I often get asked the question ‘how much did it cost you’ or ‘how much would it cost to restore another bike’?
It’s a difficult
question to answer as prices for parts and bikes vary so much as parts bikes get
harder to find and there is not an indefinite supply. Over the next few posts I will try a break
it down to give you a realistic guide depending on how deep you want to go and
what finish you want to achieve.
Prices are varying wildly right now but the days of the £300-400 project bike are long gone. Budget anywhere between £1000 and £2000 for a good usable bike, but again I would also consider what you want to end up with. If you are thinking about a factory fresh bike a £2000 bike will cost similar to a £1000 bike to fully restore, but a £2000 bike will need minimal spend to get it into decent usable condition.
Engine
I would
always recommend re-building the engine, this way cases can be painted when
apart so it looks so much better when its put together. If you are paying
someone to do this factor in £400-£500 depending on the parts used, but if its
coming apart fit new bearings, seals and gaskets.
Painting
Powder
coating is easy but don’t be tempted in taking this short cut and get
everything done as again this wont match the factory finish in a lot of places.
Spray painting gives a ‘thinner’ finish so is more applicable to a lot of brackets,
yokes, handlebar etc. You can get a good finish with a rattle can for not a lot
of money. Be carful with mixing OEM painted panels with freshly painted panels
as the OEM will most likely be faded by now and they won’t match. If you are painting everything, budget anywhere between £300-£1000 depending on finish and who is doing it?
Graphics
There are
some genuinely good graphic kits out there now that are inexpensive (£50) and give
great results. Be very careful with tank graphics placement, poor placement
kills the whole visual look of the bike.
Bolts
I went down
the path of re-zincing all my original bolts, however if the bolt is chewed up
or rusty all you will end up with is a clean looking corroded bolt. Bath zinc
plating is actually pretty cheap, so is good value and keeps an original part.
Lots of replacement bolts are available from Honda and I used this as the next
level replacement. Lastly you can easily and cheaply replace any bolt with
alloy or stainless replacements, this for me is the last option. Zinc plating from around £30.
Shiny parts
The bike didn’t
really have anything polished as standard, don’t be tempted to over polish fork
legs as they should have a satin style finish. The fuel filler cap is chrome
and the advice I had (and will pass on) was to only fit a genuine Honda item as
aftermarket caps leak and can damage the paint on the fuel tank.
Rubber parts
Nothing
makes a bike look new more than by fitting fresh rubber. Consider new handlebar
grips, foot peg rubbers and tyres.
Plastic parts
A really
good level of finish can be achieved using plastic trim creams and polishes. New
parts can still be found, or a good quality second hand part? For example my
original rear mudguard was cut down, so I used a good second hand part cleaned
with a plastic polish.
It’s the small
things that make a difference such as warning decals, cable tidies, washers and
springs. Make an effort here to lift the overall project.
No longer available
parts
You will
encounter some road blocks along the way where you will find that some parts
are no longer available so will require either specialist restoration, for example
the front brake or replacement with a good quality used option.
The end result
My personal bike required a lot of replacement parts in the end to achieve the level of finish I wanted. I could of achieved a quality non-original finished bike for less money, but that was not what I was aiming for.
In the next post I will share the break down of all the re-finished and replacement parts I used to complete my restoration.
