well, still looks pretty stock. you have thr original rectifier setup to change AC to DC and the original finned egg under the headlamp to cool the zener diode for 12 volt regulation. if they work okay, youre good for the moment. its all original, as near as i can see time to read this http://www.triples.co.uk/articles/articles/sleepbeast.htm youll need a battery. get a sealed one, like an AGM. i use shorai lithium an motoblatts, they are very good but you need spark more than pricey aesthetics. any sealed battery that you will get is okay. get a sealed one. YOUR BIKE IS POSITIVE GROUND. NEVER FORGET THIS. do you have a shop manual and parts book? if not go to classic british spares: https://www.classicbritishspares.com/ kyle there is your friend and will post pictures of his beautiful girlfriend for you. what you have is dormant, not dead. remember that you need old SG, SH oil, not modrrn SN stuff, else your clutch will slip. there are alternatived. lots of things to know but your machine is so complete many of them will not be an issue. your tires look new. how did that happen? dont worry about your old and leaking shocks. you will want new ones, but get it running first
@speedrattle that’s a better pic of the right side where the pinstripe and emblem paint have seen too much gas leaking from the cap over the years.
Thanks @darkman i thought maybe it was just a US spec tank. I don’t see anything online with that pattern. The silver should go towards the front of the tank from the top of the emblem. Plus the pinstripes don’t look hand painted like yours. Oh well, I still like the look. Just leaves a full restoration on the table if I ever wanted to do that at some point in the future. Plan for now is still, get it running and ride it as is.
your tires look new. how did that happen? They were on there when I bought it. I keep forgetting to look at the date on them.
Some asf50 should help the patina without changing the look love that model, brings back very fond memories . Congratulations and keep us posted Russel.
I will for sure. Busy time of the year for me right now. Hopefully get some time off this winter to work on it.
You are inspiring me to get back to MY "sweaty-dirty" project. Was working on it but the weather got SO hot here I had to stop. Winter is a great time for things like that. ...J.D.
That's quite a find! I'd also go with a general tidy up and make safe things like brakes and suspension etc. There's a time and a place for a full blown nut and bolt restoration but on a bike as good and original as this it would be a crime IMO. You can't put a price on patina and it's only original once.
What a real cracker. Great it has come to someone who wants to return it to the road. You will love it we all do already. Joe.
I really appreciate all the thumbs up and advice gents. It will be on the road at some point in the future. I agree even if it’s not the original paint, it still has “the look”. It will be changed as little as possible. I found a set of peashooters at the Vintage bike swap meet recently, not perfect but that’s what I was looking for. It’s hard to explain, but I knew I was bringing it home when I went to look at it, it was just, how much was it going to cost me? Nothing better than the smell of old gas in the garage haha. Will start a thread when I start working on it. No better place for advice and direction than here. Cheers!
Russell. Projects like these give much more gratification than buying a new bike. I am getting my 4 wheeled project out of my workshop this month. It has been stored since 2018. Just paid the insurance for the next year. Should get it's smog cert. and license tags this month. With that one out of the way I can start on my next bike project. It is currently half finished. Wish you the best with your project. ...J.D.
you might as well wash out the carbs as they are probably cruddy. go on ebay and spend a dollar for a pack of #78 micro drill bits you will need them when you clean out the idle passages. get a gasket set for each carb and two new needle jets, no. 106. you can buy them from any number of reliable sources, including burlen, who carry original amal stuff. scrub your carbs out with a toothbrush and some carburetor or fuel injection cleaner. the float and floatneedle are plastic so dont use acetone or similar. get em spotless so youdont have to wonder whether they are clean enough when it doesnt start right away your bike does not have the choke assemblies it came with. lots of people take em out, but the motor runs better if you have em. i have in some, took em out in others. in warm weather you can get by, when its cool you really do need them. lube your throttle cables by trickling light oil down the sheath or squirting oil under pressure. motion pro sells cable lubers that work well. it will be messy. take the twist grip apart and solvent out the hardened grease, re lube with fresh white lithium universal grease. DO NOT LOSE the little thimbles on the tops of the cables at the twist grip. usually itz the crudded up carbs that need attention first when resurrecting a dormant machine. did i say to drain the tank? drain the tank. the fuel lines will be rock hard if they are original. if youcan save them do so. otherwise 1/4 or 5/16 iD neoprene and hose clamps is fine