[Parchiepig]

Bought this in 2021 and immediately stripped it down to carry out a full restoration. First off I stripped the engine and had it vapour blasted. Rebuilt it including a new camchain, guides, stator, water pump seal and all nuts, bolts and brackets zinc plated. Restored the starter motor aswell. Plus stripped and rebuilt the carbs.

 

[Parchiepig]

Next stage was the forks, wheels etc. Forks were stripped, painted and rebuilt. Discs skimmed and painted. Rear brake and final drive refinished. Wheels repainted.

 

[Parchiepig]

Switches were very faded so I stripped them down, primed and painted them. Cleaned the looms and rebuilt them.

 

[Parchiepig]

Frame, swinging arm, stands etc powder coated.

 

[Parchiepig]

And this is where I am now. Rebuild time.

 

[badger_eng]

Excellent thread and attention to detail. I did a similar re-build with a 74 Suzuki GT380 last year and know what time and patience is involved. Keep up the the great work.

 

[Parchiepig]

Thank you Badger. I'm having so much fun doing it. Even finding some of the parts is exciting! I got a new frame number plate from Switzerland, Exhaust heat shields from France and swinging arm nut cover all the way from Delaware, USA! So satisfying.
Always fancied a GT380. Lovely bikes.
👍

 

[atsmark]

Wow! Truly Awsome! So many questions... So, the finish on the fork legs and rear drive, it looks almost white-ish in some pictures but more "normal" later - what did you use? Engine cases painted or? Frame looks great powder coated! Can you go over the process you used on the wheels? Man, for someone with a cx500c where EVERYTHING needs addressing, this is inspiring!

 

[Parchiepig]

Thank you for your kind comments.The white finish you see is etch primer. I then painted the forks and rear brake with Ford Moondust silver. The rear drive is a slightly sparkler silver. Engine is not painted, its just been vapour blasted and all the bolts etc zinc plated. The wheels were cleaned with white spirit and fully covered with etch primer. Then sprayed satin black and all the alloy parts sanded back. The rivets and edges I did with a dremel and small wire wheel. Then covered the lot in satin laquer. All the priming, painting and laquering has been done with rattle cans.

 

[atsmark]

Thank you for your kind comments.The white finish you see is etch primer. I then painted the forks and rear brake with Ford Moondust silver. The rear drive is a slightly sparkler silver. Engine is not painted, its just been vapour blasted and all the bolts etc zinc plated. The wheels were cleaned with white spirit and fully covered with etch primer. Then sprayed satin black and all the alloy parts sanded back. The rivets and edges I did with a dremel and small wire wheel. Then covered the lot in satin laquer. All the priming, painting and laquering has been done with rattle cans.

The results are amazing! All of it is fantastic but I was blown away with the front wheel. On the engine rebuild, did you have trouble getting connecting rod and main bearings or other internal parts?

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Very nice. Your technique on the wheels will be unashamedly copied.
Crewie.

 

[Parchiepig]

Very nice. Your technique on the wheels will be unashamedly copied.
Crewie.

Thank you and that is a very nice comment. ☺

 

[Parchiepig]

The results are amazing! All of it is fantastic but I was blown away with the front wheel. On the engine rebuild, did you have trouble getting connecting rod and main bearings or other internal

All bearings were fine actually. I just replaced a couple of the gear shaft bearings that I had to remove for the vapour blasting.

 

[Speedster]

Brilliant work Parchiepig!!

Keep showing us and good luck with the final push!

 

[Parchiepig]

Brilliant work Parchiepig!!

Keep showing us and good luck with the final push!

Thanks! It'll be a while yet as still lots of money to spend!🤣😬

 

[Blurredman]

Being restored, and not cut up to make a racer... How novel!

Beautiful! Lovely attention.

 

[Parchiepig]

Being restored, and not cut up to make a racer... How novel!

Beautiful! Lovely attention.

Thank you. As much as I admire some specials and definitely appreciate the work that goes in to them, I've always been a "standard and original" man. It's nice that we're all different although there does seem to be an awful lot of CX's being altered. My old Gpz that I carried out a running restoration and owned for 18 years.

 

[atsmark]

Frame, swinging arm, stands etc powder coated.

If I become a pest, please let me know! I see the top part of the guard power coated black. A question about your plans for the radiator guard aluminum side sections, paint or polish? If paint, same color as the fork legs or?
Thank you!

 

[Parchiepig]

I've polished my side trims, which I think is what they are from new. I'm not going to laquer them as they're easy to get to to polish. The square guard around the rad has been powder coated black, which I've since discovered is wrong. It should be silver, so I'm going to flat it off and spray it the same colour as the fork legs which is Ford Moondust silver.
And no, you are not a pest as it means a lot to me when people show an interest in what I'm doing and how I've done it. 🙂

 

[atsmark]

I've polished my side trims, which I think is what they are from new. I'm not going to laquer them as they're easy to get to to polish. The square guard around the rad has been powder coated black, which I've since discovered is wrong. It should be silver, so I'm going to flat it off and spray it the same colour as the fork legs which is Ford Moondust silver.
And no, you are not a pest as it means a lot to me when people show an interest in what I'm doing and how I've done it. 🙂

Do you have favorite brands for the paint, I see "duplicolor" as a vendor for car color spray cans. Any suggestions on primer or other paints I would also appreciate. In the past, I have enjoyed the mechanical puzzle of old bikes running well but normally did not get into the cosmetic work, thinking I would just mess it up. Your thorough example of what can be done in a garage may have single handedly changed that - well done! If I have not said it before, thanks for taking the time to post the pictures and describe your process.