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In a spate of sheer madness, I decided that I could take the bike and motor down to the base elements, clean the slingers, and put it all back together. It would teach me something, and what doesn't kill ya makes ya stronger. The shocks and final drive all came apart with no issues. In fact, the worst part of the teardown was the exhaust ring on one side which required a lot of heat and penetrant to remove. It broke the tool I bought along the way. Pulling the motor was a bear !! It looks simple as you view it in the frame, but it is a job for two people with strong hands. Once out, you need the right tools to do the job and I did not have all of them. My friend Ron had some, but he was away, and Greg from Florida did, but he was 1100 miles away. Then the work schedule and the home schedule were not cooperating with the rebuild schedule. Progress stalls again. Aaaaarrrrggghhh !!
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With a little bit of time to spend on the R60, it was time to clean things up and see more clearly what was needed for the frame. The hard decision had been made, I was not going to restore the bike, but would rather clean it up and touch it up where needed. It is very tempting with the bike stripped down this far to just go all the way, but I wanted a rider and so it will follow the path of almost all of the vehicles I have owned. That said, the frame, earles fork, and swingarm were all covered in dirt and grime which could be hiding a multitude of sins. Greased Lightning was sprayed liberally along and around the aforementioned parts and left overnight. The floor was a bloody mess the next morning. Armed with shop towels, I went over the bike and wiped away most of the grime. Then I doused it again, and took a toothbrush (the secret weapon of all vintage restoration shops - be sure to get hard/firm) to the crevices and the more baked on stuff.
The result was revealing in a couple of ways. First, the frame's paint was in remarkably good shape on most of the bike. It was thick and glossy along the majority of its area. Second, the areas where it looked like there was surface corrosion were mostly brown dirt. There are several chips and the sidestand clamp area has no remaining paint, but what remains exposed is good shiny metal. My plan is to prep the larger areas and apply some eastwood high quality chassis paint. It doesn't look like much got done, but it was a very good session.
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The dissassembly continues. More penetrant, a little heat from the propane torch for one bolt, but other than that things are moving along without drama. The exhausts and the luggage rack are off and the fender hinges nicely. Some areas are a head-scratching conundrum. For example, the tires are so new that they still have whiskers on them !! They look good, and I am really hoping that they are not dry rotted. It lends some credence to the previous owner's claim that the bike was running a year or two ago. It is amazing how much surface rust can accumulate just from a single winter in a drafty leaky shed or under a tarp. Footpegs and other minor things are removed. So far, so good.]]>