Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

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leonardhcross
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Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#1

Post by leonardhcross »

Hello Wing friends. Yet again, I have acquired a badly neglected 75 GL1000. This bike has been sitting under a tree for 23years. Unfortunately, for much of that time, (maybe all), the carbs have been sitting in place but unbolted. Additionally, the air box shelter and air cleaner had been removed. So water, snow, pine needles, etc. were getting inside this engine. I paid $250 to take a chance. The bike had not been parted out. Everything was there. So, I took a chance. Upon first investigation, it appears that both the engine and the carbs are shot and beyond my ability to recover. I will strip it down for parts. The frame is good and there is a title. Here is a short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cKfnUXj1_Q
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#2

Post by CYBORG »

Looks saveable to me. Get a manual, dig in, and you will be riding in no time. They are all worth saving
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#3

Post by ritalz »

Used motors aren't hard to find. Carbs might be a bigger challenge. I brought back a 83 in similar condition.
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#4

Post by Paola Zago »

Amazing how it kept under a tree for 23 years! The chrome is spectacular.
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#5

Post by pidjones »

Pull the heads to assess the true cylinder condition. I shaved the cylinders in one rescue uding single-edge razor blades clamped with hemostats. Takes a lot of time, but if no pitting gives good results. It's just work and time. Fine if you have it to spare.
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leonardhcross
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#6

Post by leonardhcross »

You guys are tough! Thanks.
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#7

Post by leonardhcross »

Here are a couple of pics of the carbs. Notice that the float bowls on both 2 and 4 have broken. Bike was laying on it's left side. Water in the bowls froze and broke out the bowls. I do have extra bowls from a 77 rack. I assume they will fit fine.
82D799CB-22F0-473A-9624-3AD96FCE57D2.jpeg
82D799CB-22F0-473A-9624-3AD96FCE57D2.jpeg (141.99 KiB) Viewed 366 times
7EBD1002-3863-4309-8159-02F3DF7B74B3.jpeg
7EBD1002-3863-4309-8159-02F3DF7B74B3.jpeg (103.14 KiB) Viewed 366 times
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#8

Post by gltriker »

pidjones wrote: Thu Jun 01, 2023 6:27 am Pull the heads to assess the true cylinder condition. I shaved the cylinders in one rescue using single-edge razor blades clamped with hemostats. Takes a lot of time, but if no pitting gives good results. It's just work and time. Fine if you have it to spare.
I find that admirable to rescue the affected parts of the cylinder wall without resorting to spinning an off the rack 'glaze breaker'/ 'cylinder hone' in the cylinder bore. Very Good technique tumb2
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#9

Post by Rat »

It’s easy for us to suggest you do all the work !!

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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#10

Post by cfairweather »

I have rebuild a lot of carbs that were in worse shape. An ultra-sonic cleaner set at 75C with a mix of water and Krud Kutter cleaner would be a good start. I would also soak these in a can of that carb dip (one carb at a time). Then back into the ultra-sonic cleaner. You can do it.
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#11

Post by Old Fogey »

The float bowls are all the same, carb for carb, from 75-79. Same with the floats, float needles, drain screws, jet holders, bumper rings, tops, idle fuel screws and springs, sync screws and nuts (actually the early screws are slightly different to the later versions but either work) . Fuel jets are specific to the 75 #65 and #125 as are the fuel needles #302305.
If need be, the scalloped pistons can be interchanged with the flat bottomed version; Honda superseeded them like that.
All the spindles, sync brackets, operating arms and quadrant are unique to the 75, even down to idle screw having a different thread.
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#12

Post by leonardhcross »

cfairweather wrote: Fri Jun 02, 2023 3:53 pm I have rebuild a lot of carbs that were in worse shape. An ultra-sonic cleaner set at 75C with a mix of water and Krud Kutter cleaner would be a good start. I would also soak these in a can of that carb dip (one carb at a time). Then back into the ultra-sonic cleaner. You can do it.
Thanks for the encouragement. I admit, as a week-end mechanic this is a bit intimidating. Does everybody own an ultra-sonic cleaner?
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#13

Post by cfairweather »

I have one. Post a picture of your caps. Are they cracked?
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#14

Post by NotSoLilCrippseys »

23 years? I don't know what kind of trees you have in Sylvan Beach, but something sure seems to have protected the bike. Pine needles = evergreen = some shelter from snow/rain, I suppose.

Time will tell - and it's easy to post up encouragement when I'm not the one sitting next to the bike for hours and hours - but it looks like a perfectly good recovery candidate to me. If the motor isn't seized, you'll have her running in no time - or some time, or quite some time. And if it is seized, there are other motors.

Plus, I think I see the original grab bar, which is worth about what you paid for the entire bike. You might think of it this way when you're having a rough patch on the build: You bought a grab bar and got a bonus motorcycle.
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Re: Can I restore a 75 that has been sitting under a tree for 23 years?

#15

Post by Old Fogey »

Looking again at the carbs, particulary at the flange around the float bowls, I worry that the force necessary to break the float bowls may have also distorted the carb bodies somewhat.
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