Resurrecting a 38 year old motorcycle

Step 9

The project is finished!  I spent quite a bit of time on this bike (7 hours just sanding one wheel!), but very little money.  All-in-all I think I spent around $300 on parts and supplies.

I'm not a motorcycle mechanic, but am reasonably handy with tools.  When I began this project I purchased a Clymer manual, which I found indespensible.

Comments

[Kurokami]

Your sl125 turned out really well, I hope to resurrect my '65 Honda Trail 90 for the second time since my brother blew the top end.

[7070x]

looking acutely sweet there.

I own a 1978 Honda CB 100. Been on the dock for the last two weeks. Same idea: resurrecting. Bit hoping to rejuvenate or mind you, swap off, with Chinese-made of Honda GL Pro series. In my area, that Honda SL125 is used mainly for Forest Rangers. Hard to get by these days, when found, such restored...err resurrected bike with original/genuine parts costs definitely a fortune !

Super great job !

[Mankut]

everything perfect, but the engine has to be either painted or sand blasted.

[gonlgn]

why don't you try to sand your engine with 1000cc sand paper it will make your engine shine or buffing will much easier . . . i Like your project . .

[ac-dc]

Sanding an engine is very very tedious, better to sandblast it instead.

[MRslave]

I love it, very nice

[milesduggan]

Excellent job! I am buying a 1975 Honda CB360 at the end of the month and its not in as bad of shape as yours, but it will still require alot of tlc and oxidation removal. Great inspiration!

[knife141]

This was a fun project. Good luck with your's!

[lingg]

It's good to start with a 4 stroke and I would get it running good before i spent lots of time doing anything cosmetic. then you know it will run (unlike the dirt cheap porsche 914 I disassembled and never reassembled -major rust and cash)! You did a awesome job!

[tioshrek]

nice nice nice!!!

[dbdanbach]

This awesome. I saw this and I had to join this website. I just bought a 1973 honda cl350 thats in similar condition to what your bike was. I've been having trouble organizing my steps, being that its my first restoration, and this is an awesome example to go off. So, thanks for putting this up.
-dan-

[gfiandy]

Great job on the bike. How have the fork seals stood up as I didn't think you could get them to work on anything but a hard chrome finish and it appears yours are running on a painted finnish. Andy.

[knife141]

You are correct, the seals will eventually fail. I have a good pair of forks (ebay) to put on when this occurs. I was going to install these during the rebuild, but found that the axle holes are too large (everything else is identical). When I get a chance I'll turn a set of bushings for them to fit the bike's axle diameter. Thank you for your comment.

[Gagarien]

Congrats very well done, there is not a lot of people that have the courage and perseverance to complete a project like this. 10 HOUR'S ON CLEANING THOSE RIMS!!!

[mountainmandan]

Nice work!  I like the black/yellow combination.  Not a bad dual sport for $300.

[mightymidget]

Wow this is almost exactly the same thing I am doing! Only instead of a Honda I have a 1975 Suzuki TM75. However, when I received the bike the engines wiring had been cut and rerun haphazardly. The tank also had multiple large dents in it, and my brother did the Bondo on it, but i decided the dents were to big and lessened the fuel capacity by too much, and also was extremely heavy. so i shaped a piece of metal to replace it instead. The engines chain was jammed inside the case and took a bit of effort to remove. So I'm still in the process but you even chose the same color scheme as me!

[ratboy75024]

 Boy that brings back memories. I had a Silver SL125. Rode the hell outta that thing and it was still going strong when I traded it in on another bike. Wish I had it to scoot back and forth to work on.

[Wade Tarzia]

I'm glad you took this on.  I loved those Hondas when I was a kid. The SL100 and 125 were handsome and well-designed for road and trail, and of course reliable, and much more fuel efficient and quiet than their two-stroke counterparts. I wish the bike companies would go back to making those in-between "enduro" style motorcycles again (bikes between 100 and 175cc). Seems like so many of the the modern designs I might buy seem like brutish steroidal machines, like two-wheeled Hummers.

[carpespasm]

Check into Chinese-made motorcycles. They're often near-copies of old Honda and Suzuki designs, and if you properly set them up and break them in and don't abuse them they can be about as reliable. They're pretty cheap to boot.

[rswander]

Careful there! The metal in some of those products is horrible, resulting in collapsed forks, frames, etc.

There are numerous motorcycle junk yards around the country; as well as enthusiast forums for just about every bike ever made. Those folks are some of the best resources for renovation, restoration and one-off parts for project bikes.

[carpespasm]

I can't say I've heard of collapsed frames and forks on them as many as I've worked on, seen, and had. The problems they have non-engine wise tend to be more with undersized forks for use as a dirt bike, poor welding on the frames, and tubing for frames not being as thick as more well known brands.

Like I said, if you're willing to check them over and set them up right and don't dog them out they're not usually a bad deal. Whether or not they're a better deal than a used Japanese bike depends on what you can find used and the quality of the build of the specific Chinese bike you're looking at. Some are indeed built better or worse and the only real way to be sure is to check reviews from owners.

[biffula]

carpespasm, problem is getting parts for them.  Virtually impossible.

[carpespasm]

Not nearly as much as it was a few years ago. There's not usually a decent shop that'll work on them since there's no easy supply chain, but if you're handy enough to work on a bike like in this instructable you can definitely find parts online.

[Calorie]

Carpespasm is correct. There are many licensed (and knock off) versions of the venerable Honda Cub and Supercub. Sym made a reissue of the Cub. was an OEM manufacturer for Honda for decades.

www.sym-usa.com/

You can be sure that if a bike has been made in any number there is a large aftermarket industry related to it. These bikes are no where as complicated as a car. And even then cars often share similar (if not exact) transmissions, etc.

[exaran]

Great work!  It looks good.  But before you put your pocketbook away, don't forget about new tires, chain, and any brake hoses or valves that are rubber or plastic.  Those are critical parts for safety if you intend to ride on the street.

I just got done putting an '89 Kawasaki back on the road, and all the rubber and plastic parts were toast from age.  Even after only 10 years tires lose their grip, and hoses get weak.

Keep it shiny side up!

[A-Nuke1979]

Very nicely done!  It's great to see how much can be done with a little money and a lot of elbow grease.  Much cheaper than buying a new one, and it looks great!

[gare8421]

 Great job!  Nice!

[carmaster65]

That came out really nice!

[WarHawk-AVG]

Incredible!

Outstanding job!

I have 2 bikes I am resurrecting...I hope mine turn out 1/2 as nice as yours!!!

[precision]

Very nice.  I have a 1972 CB305K4 that is one of my preferred riders.  Keep up the good work.

[SystemZERO]

Awesome work! Reminds me of my 72 Yamaha I'm currently working on. Just got the fenders painted and installed this weekend.

[Wade Tarzia]

Nice! What size is that? I had both the RD 125 and 175 of that year (the 125 had a warranty-covered problem after a few months, and the dealer replaced it with a 175 for a few extra bucks, important since all my friends were getting bigger bikes :-)   I had my 175 until 1979, giving it a punishing 7 years of off road and occasional road work -- it held up well.  A zippyl little bike for the tight trails of New England, though at higher trail-speeds the bigger framed bikes with more torque perfrmed better (the Suzuki 180, Kawasaki 175.... when the Kawasaki's ran: they were not so reliable in that era).   Briefly owned a 1973  RD250 too for a short time.

[knife141]

That's a nice looking bike!  What size engine?

[SystemZERO]

100cc two stroke

[MAXcenter]

Nice job!! That legendary is still expensive in my country, Indonesia. I have one old stuff from 1980, from Honda CB K-5 type.

[msw100]

It is not two stroke its four stroke and looks more like a TL123

[knife141]

??????????  If you're referring to my project, it is a 4-stroke SL 125.

[Harvard82]

Looks good.  I'm working on a '73 Yamaha.  It's a AT3 frame with a CT3 engine.  I still have a lot of work to do, as you can see.

[ramedia]

Good job bringing that bike back from the dead.  Hondas are great bikes.

[wrenchead]

Great Looking Bike. I love the blacked out wheels.