Glad you joined the Forum, Dick! Welcome......I see you've got a lot of suggestions as to what bike to start on, probably more than you needed! I'm going to add another.....Check out a late '70s Yamaha XS650 Standard.....Very nice bike and relatively easy to convert to a wide variety of styles. If you want a Thruxton that you can afford and doesn't leak oil, the XS can be built that way.......Parts both stock and after market are widely available and since it's a twin the bill is half of what you would be paying to get into one of the 4 cylinder bikes.
I'm just starting my build on a '79 Standard and am going the cafe route,,,there are a few other 650 builders on site so you can compare notes. I think you will pleased at the help you can get here if you need it.
Good luck and I will look for your build whatever you choose!
