Wildguzzi.com
General Category => Bike Builds, Rebuilds And Restorations Only => Topic started by: bigbikerrick on August 06, 2022, 05:39:41 PM
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Hello Folks, about a month ago, I was lucky to be contacted by a member on the Convert Group, after I posted a wanted add. This long term Guzzisti, had a beautiful red convert in east Texas that had been parked in a museum in Indiana ( Jim Minnise's motorcycle museum) for over 20 years, and had less than 10K miles. The PO bought it when contacted by the museums owner about 3 years ago, then changed out the stamped flywheel, and hardy rode it. The bike is featured in a hard cover coffee table book( Motorcycle Classics by Doug Mitchell, and the editors of Consumers guide) .
A new copy of the book came with the bike, along with the original sales receipt from Ace's Motorcycle Sales, of Oakland City, Indiana A Guzzi, Norton, and Ossa dealer where it sold for a whopping $ 3289.73 out the door!
I have all the original registrations on the bike since new, as well as the sales documents,a red tag that hung on the handlebars warning about the "Freno Integrale" or integrated braking system. I have a stack of documents covering service, etc. on the bike for the last 46 years. The PO kept everything in perfect order in a 3 ring binder.
I have started the job of replacing all the fuel lines, ATF hoses, full service to the brake system, and general all around cleaning, painting, greasing, etc.
Rick
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photo neymar 2018 (https://imgbb.com/)
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all new atf hoses, oil cooler cleaned and painted, mounted with new grommetts, and spaced away from frame a bit.
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fuel lines replaced, new braided oil feed lines to heads, rubber lines "Dowdy"sealing gaskets used on all fittings.carbs cleaned, and kits installed, along with new choke and throttle cables.
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ATF tank removed, cleaned, and new hoses/ sealing washers installed. So far everything I have found on the bike is completely unmolested, and seems like opening up a "time capsule" from 1976. All the wiring, connectors, etc. are not hardened or modified at all. What a pleasure it is to bring back a bike like this as opposed to some I have wrenched on where there were many stripped and or wrong fasteners, with things "cobbled up" everywhere you look! :thumb:
Rick Duarte
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This is the coffee table book where my Convert is featured.It was really cool that the previous owner provided that with the bike!
Rick
Rick
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Nice attention to detail Rick! Your Convert is getting the TLC it deserves.
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This will be a nice reference when I dig into mine. I have that book also.
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This will be a nice reference when I dig into mine. I have that book also.
Thank you for the kind words, Dave. Compared with the work you do, my stuff is all "amateur hour" level of quality. When your Vert is finished , that will be the yardstick others are measured by. There is just no comparison to the quality of work you turn out! :bow: :thumb:
Rick.
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Here is the original sale receipt from the dealership where the Convert was purchased, and the handlebar tag, describing the integrated braking system, its written in Italian on the flip side.
Rick D.
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Working today on prepping pacifico pathfinder fairing for new paint. The 40year old enamel is super thick,brittle, and has poor adhesion to the primer, so I cant use it as a sandable base, since it would be very chip prone.
I am taking all the paint off by" shaving" it with a single edge blade. Then its epoxy primer sealer, to smooth things out. The PO hit a big buzzard at speed, and the windshield flexed down, hitting the gas tank, and broke. I have a nice new clearview windshield for it.
I plan to paint it red, probably with a metalflake in it, but using a modern, flexible automotive urethane basecoat/clearcoat. Or I may do a "candy" translucent red, with a gold base underneath for effect. Painting is my favorite part of the resto, the final product is so rewarding! :thumb:
Rick Duarte
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Italian plastics are "funny", some things like the Guzzi saddlebags are built very sturdily, with thick, good quality plastic, and some parts like the air deflectors, are flimsy, and very crack prone at the mounts. Everything will get reinforced, with fiberglass cloth, as needed to add strength,and prevent future cracks.
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You can see the original color of this convert ( silver) inside the bags, and below the saddlebag latches. Whoever repainted it red, many years ago, simply masked around the hardware,and did not remove it for paint. I am currently looking for latches that will work, but considering hinging the lids from one end, so they dont remove completely. I am more interested in function/ clean looks, rather than originality. Heck, if a design can be improved upon, I may as well do it. :laugh:
Rick D.
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I am currently looking for latches that will work, but considering hinging the lids from one end, so they dont remove completely. I am more interested in function/ clean looks, rather than originality. Heck, if a design can be improved upon, I may as well do it. :laugh:
Rick D.
I used these latches on one of my previous Converts. https://www.mcmaster.com/1863A23
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Hey Charlie, You Rock :bow: :bow: :thumb: Thank you for that ! Lord knows, I have gone over the selection of draw latches at mcmaster Carr numerous times, and did not find those. I found a couple other that would work, but those that you found match the originals almost perfectly.
I am going to order 4 of those along with some other fasteners and fuel line to round out the order.
Thanks again, Sir,
Rick Duarte
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You're welcome.
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The convert restoration continues, floorboards powder coated, and new rubber mats glued down, all new K&S switchgear on the handlebars, still working on my horn issue, everything else works as it should. No more wires running inside the handlebars, I hate that! Everything runs on the outside, for ease of service. Gas tank cleaned, to remove a small area of surface rust, down by the fuel level bung.
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Rick.
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Headlight bucket restored, and repainted. The chromed rim was pitted pretty bad, but It came out decent, with lots of sanding and filling.A new rubber seal between the rim/bucket installed. All dash bulbs replaced with leds, and housing which had a crack at each of the screw mounts, plastic welded, and put back together, speedo cleaned up, and lubed .Carbs rebulit, and cleaded, all new cables, and braided stainless brake lines installed. Mufflers ( made by Alphabet's headers, back in the 70s) cleaned up,and painted with high heat black VHT rattle cans ,temporarily, until I decide what to do there. They sound really nice , not loud, but a deep rumble, that almost disappears to the rider at highway speeds.
Rick
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The previous owner sent me all the history of the bike. It was purchased, as a Guzzi dealer was closing,by the brother in law of the dealership owner, who added the fairing, then it sat in the window of another shop for display for many years, after having a "carb issue".
Then It was bought by Jim MInnis, who owned the Motorcycle museum in Indiana, Jim got it running, rode it some, and repainted it red, as the original silver paint was faded on the side where it faced the window.
The gentleman I bought it from, was a friend of Jim Minnis, and bought it when he was closing the museum.
Rick Duarte
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I have 2 new Bosch "blue" coils to install. I need to come up with a good mount/location for those. None of the components in the area of the coils,and all the stuff packed in the frame area under the gas tank, has not been touched since 1976, I think, its like an old time capsule in there. You can tell, you are dealing with really old dust, and accumulation !
Rick. D.
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I have spent the last 2 days working on the gas tank. To me the gas tank is the most important piece in a paint job, so it has to be as close to perfect as possible. That means lots of block sanding, spraying primer sealer, more blocking, and re spraying, until all imperfections disappear. I work slow, and have found if I get in a rush, the results are not as good.
Hopefully ,tomorrow morning I can start on the color basecoat/ clearcoat.
Its so hot here, I had to get some slow reducer for the paint, otherwise, it would dry too fast, and I could not get a good "wet" coat.
Rick
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I was able to base coat the tins today, If the weather holds up, I will clearcoat in about an hour,
Rick
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Saddlebags restored. These little bags were actually alot of work to get right. Thanks to Charlie, M. for helping me find the right latches. I place a small piece of 3M clear protective film on the lids to protect them from getting scratched when latching. The "devil " is in the details! :laugh:
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The Pacifico Pathfinder fairing prepped and painted. Tomorrow, I will block sand , and pinstripe it, along with a Guzzi eagle front and center. Everything will be covered with Urethane clearcoat.
Rick D.
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Looking great!
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The fairing, Finished, with pinstripes,and graphics applied,and clear coated on top." House of Kolor" ice pearls added to final coat of clear for a little custom sparkle in the sun!
Thank you, for the kind words, Groover.
Rick Duarte
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I spent a few hours yesterday hammering out a few small dings on my front fender, and then polishing it . I had two dents right above the hole in the side of the fender, where the brake line stay bolts. you can still see them if you zoom in, but they were way worse. I also minimized a ding at the front edge. I just used a small hammer, and a big box end wrench in the vise , in different positions worked as a backing to hammer against. Its far from perfect, but much improved.
The polishing part is no problem, just finer grits of wet sandpaper starting with 120, finishing with 1500, then a little buffer wheel in my drill did the rest. I must say, last night, my wrists and shoulders were trashed! I think with the right tools, like a special anvil, and picking hammer, and then a proper polishing motor/ wheels, I could have done better.
Overall, I am happy with the results, fit looks decent from a few feet away.
Rick
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I bought a nice body work hammer/anvil kit from Harbour Freight about a year ago. $45
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Your paintwork is looking super!
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Thank you, Berniebee. I didnt know HF sold those. Although, the ones for stainless trim resto are a little smaller, but same principles.
Rick.
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I spent most of the day today, polishing the front Borrani rim, replaced wheel bearings, and fork seals, and added gaiters. The oil in those forks I am pretty sure was the original stuff, and after 46 years, it really smelled bad!I painted the fork lowers with the brightest silver paint I could find. After clear coating, it almost looks like polished aluminum I got the front end put back together, and was able to take it for a short test ride.
Rick.
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My next step is to make custom mounts for the Pacifico fairing, out of stainless steel strap. The multi -fit brackets that come with the fairing are crude, and ugly looking, made to adapt to a multitude of bikes. I plan to shape some clean mount specifically for the Tonti front end.
Then its time to go through and service the cush drive, mount a new rear tire, polish the rear wheel, and service the bevel box. I was able to take test run the Convert a bit. I took a father/son ride yesterday ( 9/11) to Bisbee AZ, about a 60 mile round trip. My son rode the convert, and I rode the 73 eldorado. Both bikes performed beautifully!
This photo taken at the top of the Bisbee divide, there is a marker there that states "Continental Divide" 6200 FT. We parked the bikes at the top of the Mule Mountain Tunnel observation point. Perfect weather, and fun twisties to ride.
Rick.
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The bikes both look great!
Looking forward to seeing those brackets. I've got a "Moto Guzzi" labeled windscreen that came with angled, chromed mounting bars. It was obviously meant for some other bike but it was adapted to my SP with some crudely chopped brackets that look...awful. I replaced the non-original SS plate instrument panel with a V50 type panel so this ugly contraption no longer fits my bike.
I'm hoping your work will give me some ideas!
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The bikes both look great!
Looking forward to seeing those brackets. I've got a "Moto Guzzi" labeled windscreen that came with angled, chromed mounting bars. It was obviously meant for some other bike but it was adapted to my SP with some crudely chopped brackets that look...awful. I replaced the non-original SS plate instrument panel with a V50 type panel so this ugly contraption no longer fits my bike.
I'm hoping your work will give me some ideas!
Thank You Bernie. I will post some photos of the brackets when I get them made. I could not find stainless steel strap,at ACE, so I will either order some from McMaster Carr, or possibly use aluminum 1" x 1/8" thick strap. The nice thing about the fairing, besides the wind protection, is that it hides the "beautiful" Convert instrument cluster.
Rick
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I’ve really enjoyed reading this write up! Nice bike!
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Thank you, Gusable, I appreciate the kind words.
Rick
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Your painted parts look great! as does the rest of the bike, nice work! :thumb:
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Your painted parts look great! as does the rest of the bike, nice work! :thumb:
Thank you,Canuck!
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Today , I decided to take a look at the distributor, the points looked great, no pitting present, but the gap was a bit small, so I set the gap on both, and then hooked up the timing light . The timing was quite retarded on both cylinder, so I set it to the proper slow speed advance. after marking the appropriate marks on the flywheel with white paint, I checked the advance at 5-6K rpms, and it went to where it should advance to.
Now I find the bike idles much better, I had to readjust my carb balance, and idle speed. The bike now idles very smoothly, and runs strong.
Next, I plan to replace the funky stock air box with individual K&N pods, and install a V 7 sport breather in place of the oem one.
Rick D.
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Since I got the Convert, I have tried a couple of rattle can high heat paint on the mufflers, and have not been 100% happy with the results. The most heat resistant paint I found is the VHT flat black header paint. The only thing I dont like is that the flat finish, while durable, after a few weeks turns into a dark grayish color, and I really wanted a gloss or semi gloss black finish.
The mufflers are a period correct set made specifically for the Guzzi in the 70s by a company called " Alphabet's Headers" and they have a nice mellow rumble, so I wanted to preserve these. Some day I will pony up the bucks to have them properly ceramic coated, but for now ,I found a rattle can product that seems very good. Its a VHT paint made for engine blocks, that is supposed to be chemical resistant,and resistant to heat up to 500 degrees. ( the flat black VHT header paint works up to 2000 degrees) and so far, the finish has held up very well on the mufflers, and its a nice glossy black color. I tested the "chemical resistance" , after cured, with a rag soaked in lacquer thinner,and it did not wipe the paint off. Good Stuff !
Rick
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Since I got the Convert, I have tried a couple of rattle can high heat paint on the mufflers, and have not been 100% happy with the results. The most heat resistant paint I found is the VHT flat black header paint. The only thing I dont like is that the flat finish, while durable, after a few weeks turns into a dark grayish color, and I really wanted a gloss or semi gloss black finish.
The mufflers are a period correct set made specifically for the Guzzi in the 70s by a company called " Alphabet's Headers" and they have a nice mellow rumble, so I wanted to preserve these. Some day I will pony up the bucks to have them properly ceramic coated, but for now ,I found a rattle can product that seems very good. Its a VHT paint made for engine blocks, that is supposed to be chemical resistant,and resistant to heat up to 500 degrees. ( the flat black VHT header paint works up to 2000 degrees) and so far, the finish has held up very well on the mufflers, and its a nice glossy black color. I tested the "chemical resistance" , after cured, with a rag soaked in lacquer thinner,and it did not wipe the paint off. Good Stuff !
Rick
Thanks for the research and report! I have had mixed results with low gloss black ceramic coating on mufflers and would not go that route again. Good to know that the VHT when cured is so durable. The black ceramic coating I had done scratches very easily, not worth it IMHO.
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I had a transmission oil leak, and decided to go ahead and replace all the seals, gaskets and "O" rings in the transmission, and Torque converter system. I also replaced the rear main seal with a viton one, as well as the flange gasket, which was seeping a little oil.
Rick.
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Good going. I will use this as a reference when I tear mine down.
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testing out the new National Cycle Plexifairing today. Much better than the Pacifico pathfinder fairing from the 70s, that was on there. Lighter, and no buffetting.
Rick.
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Nice Connie!
I love the red.
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I took the opportunity to convert my rear wheel to tubeless, before mounting a new tire. Sikaflex 291 marine urethane used, after cleaning up the rim with a wire brush on the drill, and degreasing with brake cleaner spray. Tire much easire to balance without the innertube!
Rick.
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I have enjoyed this read very much. Very nice bike. Each bike is even better when there's a great story that comes along with it. BK
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Thank you for the kind words, Bobby. The Convert project has been alot of fun. Even though I had to re do the rear wheel. I had a tiny leak at one of the spokes, so I am re sealing that. The front wheel sealed up 100%. No big deal, easy fix. Its a good time to polish up the rear wheel and spoke nipples, as well as painting the rear brake caliper bracket, and a good cleaning/detailing of the swingarm, and pipes, etc.
Rick
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