I've wanted a GL1000 for a while now, and finally had a chance to pick one up. This one's a '76, Sulfur Yellow. It arrived looking like this: Bought it from the original owner (!) with only 43k miles on it. It hasn't been used in the last 6 months according to the seller, and it doesn't currently run. I wanted a restoration project - I've got two working bikes (a '98 Valkyrie and a '00 VFR) and definitely don't need a third. What I do need is something to combat boredom during these weird times
.The battery is dead, but it turns over on the kickstarter, so at least we aren't dealing with a seized engine.
First step was to pull the fairings and bags off: Interestingly, the original headlight was still there, just behind the fairing. But the lens and bulb were removed. I'll need to figure that out, along with the missing front turn signals...eventually.
I'll be doing the following, in roughly this order:
-Draining gas tank (done), and removing it from the bike to get it inspected by my mechanic/the local Honda dealer to assess the level of rust. According to the previous owner, it was coated about 10 years ago, but there seems to be some degree of surface rust no doubt caused by the gas left sitting it in. I live in California and haven't worked with a bike this neglected before, and while I'm aware of a few methods of dealing with rust, I don't have a great feel for what is appropriate for this particular amount.
-Pulling the exhaust off (done). The headers have some very odd white/rust-colored tone to them, which the owner says is the remnant of an old paint job. I'll definitely want to re-paint them at some point.
-New belts. I don't know when they were last done, and I'm not rolling the dice with an interference engine.
-Spark plugs, Valve adjustment, New battery.
-Ignition tuning - haven't worked with points before and am excited to start.
-Replace oil and coolant
-Carb clean and rebuild (thinking of getting's Randakk's kit and DVD), carb sync.
-We'll see if it runs then, and figure out next steps based on that. Stuff like brake work (probably rebuilding everything, is my guess), getting a headlight and turn signals on it, fork seals, etc.
-New tires. It currently has Metzeler 88s on them, which the owner said he put on it a year ago. They look fine. But looking at the date stamp, it is a 3-digit code, which seems to mean that they're pre-2000 and therefore will most definitely need replacing before I ride anywhere.
-Wrapping the body panels. I picked this bike because it is entirely stock and I got it from the original owner. According to Randakk's blog, Sulfur yellow is also more collectible, which could come in handy down the line if I go to sell it. But I'm not really a fan of the color. Wrapping it seems like the best way to go, since it won't affect the underlying paint.
I spent many hours on Randakk's blog prior to making the purchase, and I'm even more excited to find this community full of useful information and helping minds. It's already been a blast working on this thing, and I can't wait till it is running!
