Another day in the life of Scotty Dont

Brief Updates

2009-02-24T09:24:00.002-05:00

It's Been Awhile

2009-02-15T12:17:00.001-05:00

Ok, I know I'm slacking a bit, but I'll get going again shortly. Plenty of updates on the bike to come. Till then, here's my Valentine's Day present from the old lady.

New camera

2009-02-06T11:01:00.001-05:00

So last night I picked up a used Canon Rebel XT. It's nice to have a
DSLR again. Finally time for some quality pictures. Now it's time for
a new lens. Hmmm...

Zombie Attack!

2009-02-05T22:40:00.000-05:00

Aim for the head!

The tear down .. pt.1

2009-02-05T01:33:00.005-05:00

So tonight I got to tear some of the motor down and inspect the damage that's been done. Not pretty. As I feared, this motor is going to require some new valves, pistons, rings, and definitely some machining to clean it all up. My assumption is that with the right side valves being open and with the engine not having an exhaust or carbs on it, water was able to get in there and just start to do its nasty work. All in a days work I suppose.

Rocker cover off. So far so good ...

First thing I see as the head slides off the studs. Uh oh ...

So I flip over the head. Yeah, no good.

Stay tuned.

And the work begins.

2009-02-04T14:51:00.002-05:00

So this past Friday, Paul was kind enough to give me a hand tearing the motor out of the XS skeleton in preparation for the following day. The removal went fairly smoothly, no big concerns. Got the front end off as well. Saturday morning, Paul, Tim, Mikey and I all took the trip down to Worcester to drop my frame off to the ever talented, Jason Roche. Jay's going to be adding 2" of stretch to a rigid rear section that will be mated to my frame. It's gonna make for a killer stance and look. I can't wait. On the way back from Worcester, we stopped in Charlton to pick up Timmy's '78 Honda CB750. Yeah, I'm jealous. I'll get one one of these days. It's gonna make for a badass cafe racer, that's for sure.

So now my motor sits on my workbench, waiting for me to really tear into it. Upon initial inspection, Paul and I found that one of the exhaust valves seems to be hanging open. No biggie. The motor will be getting a full rebuild with new valves, pistons, gaskets, seals and proper machining. Stay tuned for updates.

The parts start rolling in.

2009-02-04T14:28:00.005-05:00

So a couple parts have trickled into my possession. Up first is a Paughco Narrow Mustang tank. Capable of holding a mere 2.4 gallons worth of petrol, it should make for a lengthy trip to Laconia. But damn does it look cool. As well as the tank, I received my NOS Odeon throttle housing and grips. It's nice and simple and should look pretty fucken' clean on the bars. Im going for the minimalist approach with this bike. If it's not needed, it won't be there.

It has begun ...

2009-01-24T17:43:00.000-05:00

At 10 AM this morning, Timmy, Paul, and myself loaded into the Ford F150 and set sail to Charlton, Massachusetts, where my Yamaha was waiting for it's new owner. The trip down was rather quick and fairly uneventful. Due to today's advances in technology, the GPS got us down there in a timely fashion. As we pull in, I see what will undoubtedly become my future obsession. She's certainly seen better days, that's for sure. I'm determined to bring her back to it's former glory and beyond though. There are few signs that it was once a motorcycle, short of an engine, a frame and some wheels. Most would consider me to be over my head, but as I look at it, all I see are possibilities. So we load her up into the trailer, strap her down and prepare for our journey back.

Not before we get to talking with the owner though. He tells us he has some other bikes he's looking to get rid of. One is a '78 Honda CB750. He's willing to part with it for a measly $500. I instantly look at Timmy and see that he has the same look I have. We're both intrigued by this. The SOHC CB750 is a spectacular bike, and at this price, it seems like a no brainer. Not to mention the cleanliness of it. Needless to say, we'll be returning next weekend for it. I'm taking a lot on by adding this bike to my que, but it will all be worth it in the end.

So now she sits on the trailer until next weekend when I bring her to Jason Roche, welder and fabricator extraordinaire. The turn around for the frame work is about 3 weeks, which should give me plenty of time to tear down the motor and begin the rebuild of that.

Until next time folks ...

Two wheel shenanigans. Round 2

2009-01-23T16:31:00.000-05:00

Well folks, it's time for another Scotty Don't creation. After my first build, I knew it was only a matter of time before I dove into my second. For the past week or so I've been contemplating the bike that I would use as the base for my build. After some deliberation, I narrowed my choices down to two different bikes. The first would be a Triumph Bonneville. This would be my ideal choice. It's the one bike I've always wanted but never had the means to obtain. The second choice was a Yamaha XS650. Since I got into metric chops a few years ago, the XS650 has always had a special place in my heart.

So my search began. After hours on eBay and Craigslist, I found a number of sickles that peaked my interest. There were several Triumphs and a real basketcase of an XS650. My choice now came down to what I was willing to spend. For the prices that were being asked for the Triumph's, I couldn't justify then throwing more money at it while on a college students budget. The XS650 however was in dire condition. Many parts are missing that are needed, but a lot of them were things that I had intended on replacing regardless. The up side, it only costs $275. As of this moment, the choice is simple for me. The Yamaha made more sense. So for now I stay Japanese. The day will come that I own my late 60's Triumph Bonneville. It's just not today.

So as of tomorrow morning, I will be the owner of a 1981 XS650. Look for updates often. I have a goal for having this bike done by the time the Gypsy Run comes around on August 28-29. Ideally, I'd like to have it finished for June when the Laconia Bike Week is held. That's being overly optimistic though I think. We'll see.