Scuderia 523 - Midwest Shop Thread

[pancholasvegas]

Just like everyone else on the forum, we like to mess about in the garage. And talk about it. Hence the reason for starting this thread. I thought it would be nice to have a repository to show what's moving through the shop and what's going on. My wife and I were fortunate enough to stumble across a property that had everything we were looking for, most importantly a shop space. Since then, we've been outfitting the shop and getting through our list of projects.

My brother stumbled across this older Suzuki JR50 a few years ago with the plan of getting it fixed up and running for his kids to use. Life got in the way and the little bike got pushed to the side. He recently asked me if I wanted to do anything with it and if I wanted it, it was up for grabs. I told him I'd grab it and get it cleaned up and likely put it up for sale.








Usually I like crusty old bikes, but this thing was covered with good intentions and poor execution. I didn't know how far I planned to take this, and after thinking about costs to invest vs. what it's worth, I decided that the best course of action would be to turn this into what I would consider a "Respectable Rider," for someone's kid who is just starting out. Something that runs good, looks decent, and won't get laughed at by all the kids with KTMs.







Started off with disassembly. This thing was COVERED in grease, oil, dirt & every other thing that has landed on it over the years. The machine was fairly complete, so I was happy that I wouldn't have to track down too many odds & ends. Started off making a list of what was known to be bad/missing, including the forks, brake lever, brake cables, grips.

Once I had the machine on the lift, I wanted to start off with making sure that everything was operable. At this point, I removed the tank, and noticed that it was covered in rust spots through the paint, weird shapes (result of Bondo/JB Weld Patches) and the inside was completely lined with failing KREEM coating. I removed the carb for cleaning, as well. I was able to get the machine running by dribbling gas directly down the intake, and the machine would run.

Other than the gas tank, we had another casualty, the petcock. Completely clogged through the strainer and the inside with the failed KREEM lining.





I continued to break down the machine. The wheels & spokes were completely covered with some strange powdercoat or paint substance.




Build to resume next post.

 

[pancholasvegas]

Once I had broken down the wheels, the brake shoes were in good condition. I used some rough grit sandpaper on the faces of the pads to bring back a bit of bite, and cleaned up the insides of the hubs as well as I could, along with removing/lubricating the brake cam on each wheel. I did relace each wheel as well, along with laying down some fresh paint on the hoops.



I opted not to replace the tires at this point, they are old and weather-checked, but are adequate for someone running around the yard. (Keep in mind this is a budget build). I did have to replace one of the tubes. Oh well.



Once the tires were put back on the bike, I did source NOS front and rear fender assemblies. Someone had rattlecanned the original rear fender that was on the machine, and replaced the front with fender from a completely different bike. Really bad look. I secured the appopriate fenders, and mounted those after having replaced the front forks.

It was at the stage that I was able to hook up an auxiliary tank and tune the carb, the bike ran fantastic after some messing about. I replaced the throttle tube that came on the bike with a spare that I had around. I also was able to properly lubricate all of the cables. I cleaned up all the wiring that was in rough repair (Couple splices, new connectors, wrapped in new loom, etc.).

Knowing at this point that the original tank was too far gone, I was able to source a rust-free replacement on the internet at a good price. The outside of the tank was in pretty rough shape, someone had used some paint and attempted to brush paint over the original graphics. I sourced some replica graphics from the internet, and after polishing up and cleaning up the replacement tank as well as I could, I installed those graphics in their original placement.



It was during this phase that I also cleaned up the side cover for the right-hand side of the bike. Again, this was rattlecanned yellow over the black. This must have been an aftermarket sidecover from some point in time, as the original plastic is black on this one, not yellow like all the photos I've seen. Regardless, I removed all of the yellow spraypaint, and wetsanded this through a few different grits, and then put down some SC1 Spray Cleaner. It looks decent enough for what it is.

At this stage, all testing of the machine was done using premix in the tank, and 2 cycle oil in the reservoir. I got ahold of the factory service manual and set off to test that the auto-injection was functioning correctly. To do this, I had premix in tank to make sure that we were at least getting some oil in the system if the auto-mix wasn't working. Factory specifications called for 1 ML of oil consumption over 10 Minutes at 3000 RPM. After observing the oil tank levels, they were exactly the same after testing twice. At this point, I used a 10 ML Syringe (with O-ring/plunger removed to allow free-flow) with graduations showing the exact amount of oil shown in the tube, and hooked up a new line and ran it from the syringe. Again, no oil consumption (Why I ran pre-mix in the gas tank during testing). At this point, even after priming & bleeding the oil system, I wasn't getting any results. I had no desire to open up the engine and examine the pump, so I capped off the oil tank and the lines going to the pump and just ran pre-mix in the tank.

For my last parts order, I grabbed a replica seat cover and NOS number plate.


While I was waiting on the seat cover, I ended up building a new set of cable stays for the left-side fork. Pretty simple, but cleans everything up quite well. I also replaced all lines on the machine, and everything has been cleaned as much as possible.

Finally, the seat showed up. I added a small amount of additional foam to replace the worn out foam that was still on, and wrapped a bit of quilting batting over that for a bit more cushion.

Then it was just time to wheel it outside and get some photos for FB Marketplace. Fortunately, this one sold quick. I think I had it gone the day after posting it. I think it turned out quite respectful for a young person's first bike.





Thanks for taking a look. More builds to come.

 

[pancholasvegas]

Recently, I've been finalizing some work on a little cart that I've been putting together for the wife. She's been wanting something to ride around at the swap meet, races, back and forth from the house to the shop, etc. A while ago, I stumbled on this strange little cart close to town and picked it up. Non-running, of course, as the batteries had been cut out of it, along with the wiring. Once we got the machine off the trailer and into the shop, we grabbed a couple old batteries, some cable & vice grips, and wired them in series. Everything was operable, so were off to the races.





I don't have much to show with the build out on this one, as this was pretty rushed. We ended up cutting out all of the rusted sections and welding in new material, banging out all of the dents that we could, and patching various holes and rust spots throughout the body. I did end up removing some of the strange piping that went alongside the body, drilling out the rivets and welding the sides that were covered by the piping up solid. I did end up cutting out all of the existing bondo'd sections and replacing with fresh metal. Also added taillights. I also came across these trick circular brake/throttle pedals, so installed those with some modifications made. Then went straight to the paint booth. A friend of a friend was able to turn out the paint job in about 2 weeks, not bad.




Once I got the machine back from the paint shop, we tackled the upholstery. I did build out a new seat pan, which I wrapped in marine vinyl. I bought a set of universal cupholders, and did some modifications to those to put them on the trunk lid. Next, I sewed up the seat cover, using 1957 Chevy Cobblestone pattern vinyl, with french seams against the black. This was a pretty easy cover to sew up, and turned out great.

Wheels were painted body color, to stick with the older theme, and the wheels were wrapped with Shinko whitewall scooter tires. I also built a bumper for the rear.

Just last evening, I was able to lay down the basecoat/clearcoat for the handle bars, after spending the last couple days doing filler/primer work on them.



Thanks for looking. More shop updates to come.

 

[driftpin]

That electric scooter needs some orange trim to offset the John Wyer robin's egg blue. Maybe a circumferential orange pinstripe on the wheels, and an orange swoosh following the lines of the floorpan to seat rear area. And an upside-down orange Y on the front of the seat-box, going around that central box extending from the box-section diagonal front wheel member. A wide orange band on the front fender. You know, so they mistake it for a Ford GT-40.

I had the same upholstery pattern on the '57 Chevy project we've got going.



Some kid's gonna be happy with that Suzuki.

 

[pancholasvegas]

That electric scooter needs some orange trim to offset the John Wyer robin's egg blue. Maybe a circumferential orange pinstripe on the wheels, and an orange swoosh following the lines of the floorpan to seat rear area. And an upside-down orange Y on the front of the seat-box, going around that central box extending from the box-section diagonal front wheel member. A wide orange band on the front fender. You know, so they mistake it for a Ford GT-40.

I had the same upholstery pattern on the '57 Chevy project we've got going.



Some kid's gonna be happy with that Suzuki.

Funny that you mention that, we had talked about a GT40 scheme, but as this is for my wife, she wanted something a bit different. Going to have shoptruck style lettering done with our backyard TikiBar’s name on it.

Yes, I certainly hope someone enjoys the little Suzuki.

 

[pancholasvegas]

As I had eluded to in my previous post, we’ve had some custom artwork done for the sides on the cart to break up all the white. Pulled off the tape from the handle bars and rolled it out for some photos.

 

[banjopete]

Very cool, the colours came out awesome on the cart. Nice work.

 

[pancholasvegas]

Very cool, the colours came out awesome on the cart. Nice work.

Thank you. My wife is thrilled with the finished product. I did have to show her how to safely operate it... It'll pull the front tire off the ground on a fresh charge.

 

[driftpin]

Thank you. My wife is thrilled with the finished product. I did have to show her how to safely operate it... It'll pull the front tire off the ground on a fresh charge.

Get one of those Tesla 'Dual Motor' emblems and stick it in the same place on yours

 

[bdbecker]

That Hawkeye paint scheme hurts my heart... no vehicle deserves to be treated that way. Nice job cleaning it up!

 

[pancholasvegas]

That Hawkeye paint scheme hurts my heart... no vehicle deserves to be treated that way. Nice job cleaning it up!

Agreed 100%. Only thing worse than poor paint is hawkeyes themed poor paint..

 

[pancholasvegas]

The previous two builds wrap up the most current projects that I’ve worked on, other than some small bits around the garage.

The day after I sold the Suzuki, several weeks ago, was out shopping at the Harbor Freight for one of the new US General Magnetic Heavy Duty Powerstrips, grabbed that & just wanted to browse for a bit. Ended up in the welding section where I came across a brand new Vulcan 205 ProTig, open-box item. Normally $1,199.99, marked down to $789.99. Spoke with the manager and she told me I could have it for $700 and if there was anything missing, she'd take care of it...

Hadn't really thought much about TIG welding, but I am having a lot of fun as an amateur with my MIG 180 from Eastwood for the past year. Now, I bought the ProTig 205 as I didn't know if I'd come across a machine with all of these capabilities for the price ever again. Everything was accounted for, and the machine runs flawlessly.



You may notice the welding cabinet underneath. After looking at multiple different options, I really liked the idea of the Vulcan Heavy Duty cart from harbor freight, because I really wanted to consolidate both bottles and welders, along with consumables, metal tools, etc. This thing is badass! Heavy duty and more than capable for my hobby needs.



Still getting the hang of the TIG, but I can’t believe I was on the fence.



Edit: I wanted to mention, if anyone is curious, the mig welder is an Eastwood Mig 180. I purchased this a bit ago while it was on sale, and I’d absolutely recommend it. 120/240 capabilities and it hasn’t let me down yet. The adjustability of the knobs is a huge plus, and the tack mode is surprisingly handy. Would definitely recommend this machine for a hobby level welder.

 

[pancholasvegas]

Wish I had some more fun or good news to share because we went out to a car show this weekend to have some good times, unfortunately, quite the opposite. I now find myself in need of an enclosed trailer due to some mishaps with my current towing setup.

Looking at picking up either a 6 X 12 or 6 x 10 single axle enclosed trailer with ramp door. Objective is going to be using it to carry motorcycles, the cart shown above, my quad on occasion, mower on occasion, etc.

Anyone have any insight to offer on if I'm going to be disappointed with a 6 X 10? Cargo trailer is currently 6 x 12, but pickings are slim around here unless going brand new - Which I'm not entirely opposed to, but has to be within the budget. Additionally - Does anyone have any preference on V-Nose vs. Flat nose that I should be looped in on?

 

[pancholasvegas]

An update to my previous comment - Was browsing Marketplace and ending up finding a used, 6 X 12 trailer, V-Nose, 2017 ModelYear, for about $3,000. New would cost me over $5,000, so I jumped at the opportunity when it popped up. Trailer is in very good shape, aside from the "Ghosting," left by the previous owners decals. I'm hoping that some cleaning/cutting/buffing will clean it up a bit, but I'm still pleased with the trailer. Additionally, the inside is completely built out to be a mobile workshop, as it was previously owned by a carpenter.

As I was leaving the country the day after I purchased the trailer, I was unable to dig in and start removing the workshop the previous owner put in the trailer, but I am hoping to get time to work on that this weekend.

 

[shortykorte]

Saw your Honda door over on the Show us your Welding thread. Did you make it? Love the style and I’m a Honda fan.