RD400 Mega Pic Heavy Photo Bomb Resto

DeanJ

Been Around the Block
Sorry this took so long to load.. here is a 2+ year resto in one blast :eek:

"before" photos of the bike:

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Here is how the engine looked.... ugh.

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Prep and blasting of the exterior surfaces ....

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The engine cases were pretty nasty. Here is a before photo of the lower :

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I soda blasted the exterior surfaces only :

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hardware condition "before" :

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ready to use:

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new stuff !

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had to go .75 over due to some scoring and pits in the sleeves.

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I went with the YPVS spec ProX pistons. These required that I mill and chamfer the intake side of the skirt ( where the h20 cooled has the split intake port )

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bottom end done, ready for the bike

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So I blasted the case covers and feathered the scrapes and scratches...

before cleaning and blasting :

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after blasting and feathering:

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wet sanded and polished the case covers.....
Trust me.. they are shiny:

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Finishing up with all of the engine hardware

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after:

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The last of the engine mounts- before:

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during:

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complete:

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before....

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after:

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damper mounts.

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Air box "before" pic :

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After

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I restored the fuse box/electrics bracket assembly

before pics :

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during :

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complete :

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Same routine for restoring the battery box:

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Kicker..... pretty ugly

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it's decent..

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all done:

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Original:

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After:

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I had to make up a set of spacers for the proper preload

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The switch gear ..... before:

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I pulled everything apart for stripping and a good cleaning, then painted the housings ... plus new shrink tubing for the wires.....

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after:

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I double checked proper operation and connector continuity with the multi-meter... very happy.

restored the resistor pack and cleaned up the flash cancellation unit-

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It was a real treat to start with an unmolested harness vs. the usual mess I find myself with.

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Cleaned, every wire and connector checked for proper continuity and matched against the diagram..... plus some new wire wrap:

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The shiny bits were... well, not very shiny..

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Here's what I scored from a local kid that is chopping up , what was, a perfectly nice RD:

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rear master lever pivot, spring and rod.

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Caliper bracket stay-

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after:

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center stand spring-

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after

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Rear brake lever restored. I used liquid rubber non skid on the foot pad.

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Restored the rear axle bits....

ick:

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after:

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powder coated stuff !

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new bronze swing arm bushings.... more before and afters

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after

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before:
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after

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before

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after:

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the foot pegs, springs and fastners were pretty nasty

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restored:

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.. and installed the swing arm, center stand, shocks etc...

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so I completed the metal finishing and paint on the headlight bucket, ears etc... before:

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complete...

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the alloys were very oxidized.. pits were pretty nasty. Here is a close up "before" pic:



Gave them a blast with bead:



I wet sanded and polished the rims ( wheel on the left is before plolishing , the wheel on the right has the rim polished )



New wheel bearings and seals installed:



Finished up with the rotors and hardware .... new tubes and tires:



brake calipers did not look too bad from the outside, however they had a layer of rattle can all over them, the pistons were horribly pitted with rust and it sure was fun taking them apart. ( ummm 120 psi did it ! )



Tip- when something is caked with nastiness, use stripper and clean off before media blasting. It helps prevent a bunch of contamination in your media.



Here are the bodies after a blast



I left the thick aluminum plate logos bonded to the calipers and block sanded the surfaces. The thin repro decals need a smooth surface.



I prepped and painted the bodies with ceramic caliper paint ( ceramic with a small c ), bought some new seals, brake pads, some good pistons, cleaned up the hardware and plated some fasteners



I use high temp 100% silicone grease for assembly ( some call it "red" or orange grease )



And for your viewing pleasure- the before and after pics:









I installed the wiring harness and associated bits:










I tore it down blasted the bracket, painted, cleaned everything up, replaced a lamp, checked the wiring and refinished the plastics:





Completed and installed .... yeah, I know that ring on the key switch REALLY looks like poo now, however later you will see this with a fresh decal



The speedometer was in much better shape and I got lucky with a used tach in that the fading/ patina was close. The buckets were dinged up and rusty, so I gave them a blast and completed the metal finishing and paint. The foam ring dampers are from my XS parts pile and I plated all of the fasteners.

Before:









All done plus completed headlight bucket wiring and buttoned it all up:





Installed the rear fender, grab rail and lights.... before:



after:





I dropped the engine it ....



Jugs on... I still need to get a set of vibration dampers



Heads on a torqued, reed cages and boots on just waiting for the carbs. Fresh ignition set installed, points gapped. set timing



The heads are polished to a mirror finish to match the case covers ... I still can't seem to get the hang of photographing chrome or polished alloy... trust me, they are shiny !



new battery in and "hot tested" everything. Zero issues. New clutch lever, front brake master , new front brake line, throttle cable, speedo cable, new grips and mirrors.







Reminder of what I started with:



I put the autolube pump back together and installed it and the RH case cover, then filled the gearbox with oil. I checked the pump stroke, installed the cable and sync'd





The inside of the tank was a bit rusty with a nice layer of varnish in the bottom....



I added some gas to swish around as a start to get the varnish soluble. A few hours later I realized that the petcock had a hole in it leaking gas. I removed it and made a block off plate so I continue with the tank cleaning and prep:







As the cap gasket was perished, I used an expansion plug for the filler so I could begin with the de-rusting:



All of the muck, debris and rust removed inside:



Metal work and prep near completion. Needs final blocking





I went with graphics from the satin black Canadian C model, however mine is gloss black.



New 3M decal set



decaled and cleared, color sand and buff





So I have new hardware to go with the new fuel line and petcock:





Before:



After:





Oil tank ready for some mosquito killer ;) :



The head pipes were really nasty on the underside (mostly unseen side) and same with the mufflers.

Original pic from when I drug the bike home:







After cleaning and installed.







splurged on some decals and rubber bits:



Cylinder and Head dampers:





Switchgear decals:





Caliper and engine emblems:





I have completed the warm in cycles, have yet to take it out for a break in series. ( I'm not putting the ratty seat on, even for a 15min break in ride )

http://youtu.be/blZAyPjpFsA

I restored the seat and associated bits:





Blasted and fresh chassis black epoxy:





After:







After:



New reproduction Foam from HVC:



New reproduction cover from dis-covers .
( I can't speak more highly of a supplier- made in England, awesome service and the shipping was free to 'merica )







The rear master cylinder bore was horribly pitted and I could not find a good replacement to rebuild. So I picked up a 12mm master and made a compound adapter bracket. I matched the spacing and the angle of the stock set-up. ( It's like Yamaha welded the bracket to the frame out of position / off-set by mistake and then cast a crazy master to fit it ! )





I had to fab up a linkage adapter and used a banjo bolt pressure switch for the brake light:





New brake line, filled and bled:



"after pics" :











so as of today, it's got 21 miles on all of this freshness !

crappy video camera shot

http://youtu.be/Ui6-TIDvmg
 
Fantastic job fella. You seem to have a big bag of tricks for restoring every component. Terrific work.

ian
 
Really nice work.
How did you restore your hardware? Blast cabinet? Tumbler? New plating?
 
I'm curious about that tank job too. Looks up to par with every other shiny bit you worked on.

This is an awesome restoration - I can't believe those before/afters. It's a brand new bike again!
 
alzcbz said:
Really nice work.
How did you restore your hardware? Blast cabinet? Tumbler? New plating?
correct, all of the above
danker16 said:
nice work! how did you get rid of the tank rust exactly>??
a couple handfuls of screws with some fuel, shake the shit out of it for three hours, rinse, then add a couple handfuls of screws with some fuel and shake the shit out of it, rinse, repeat.. repeat. Evaporust , rinse, then just keep gas in the tank.

Since this is the first time I actually shot pics of a projects progress, I thought I would post it these here. There is actually a full build thread on 2SW ( I usually have little more than a before pic, and then a few after pics of the completed bike to post when selling on CL/Ebay. )
 
What's your address and the code to get in your garage?
I'm going to....uh....send that medal...yeah that's what I'm going to do....

Looks killer man.
 
Fantastic work man. I've done the frame off resto before. Insane amount of work and you did it right! Kudos sir!
 
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