Hi everyone,

after 3 months of nonstop scammers and lowballers.....I am officially deciding to keep the '74 SC500. I will have a professional go through the bike to make sure its bulletproof/dependable very soon. I will mention that the previous owner cut off the oil injection system and removed a part in the motor that tends to fail a lot of times. I don't recall on what that part/mechanism is?? I know these bikes are very well known to be one of the top 10 worst bikes of all time from the early 70's but I will give this one a chance. Once fixed up, I will ride it in the desert and WILL NOT ride it hard.

I just thought I type a post on here to let everyone know that the bikes is not for sale anymore. If anyone has any suggestions on how I can try to make this bike bulletproof/dependable, feel free to let me know 

 

All newly purchased motorcycles need to be thoroughly gone through especially’ if it’s vintage and/or came from Mr. RipThemOff. Each $2500.00 machine normally needs $250.00 in parts or 1.10% of the purchase price and that’s only initially. 

As far as offers or scammers targeting you - your posts have a tint of desperation in them. So people, feed off those emotions. 

The best advice I could give is: to buy a cheap bike and start tearing it apart and teach yourself how to reassemble the machine.

Because with eight motorcycles and being a student you probably have a different asset allocation process then someone who has worked 40 years and either saved diligently or invested in spec and made a fortune? Either way, know the in’s and out’s of every machine you have and you will save buckets of money.

The average bike is at my shop 2 months or more and costs thousands of dollars at today’s rate. Shop and Rental rates go up 7% per year and in Alaska a dozen eggs are $20.00. That’s why they drink!

Best, Arin

asco

Hi Aron, my thoughts; I have been riding an MX360 for many years out in the desert and the best thing you could do is to install either a PVL or Vape ignition system. If you are going to make it a rider then these system are the way to go. I have a Vape and it works great. I can even run lights if I want to.

mx360guy,

I will look into that! I'm thinking about switching out the ignition for a vape ignition to make it bulletproof! The one it currently has seems to be ok.

Arin

ASCO,

I am not rich nor am I poor, but I do ok for a college student. I do have one issue with taking things apart and rebuilding......I always mess up 100% of the time.....

Thats one of the reasons why I take my bikes to a professional (who charges less than $100 per hour) and could revive any bike I have. I know its important to do this myself but all of my screw up's cost me more money than to get bikes serviced. On the flip side....I wont give up! We never stop learning when it comes to anything so I hope someone could show me how to properly work on these bikes.


Arin

I think it's cool to go ahead and ride that bike, despite the negative reviews and reputation. It very well may be fine if ridden moderately, and not under harsh race conditions. But keep trying to do your own work. I know when I was your age, I messed things up now and then (and still do) but experience is the best teacher. Plus these days there's such a wealth of information online, that we old guys didn't have!

It reminds me of the time I was re-installing a flywheel on a DT3 I bought to sell. I held the trigger on the 18 volt DeWalt Impact Gun 1 - 2 seconds longer than I should have and just stripped the threads enough to keep spinning on the crankshaft. I was so upset. It wasn’t intentional. I bought a M10 Tap and carefully chased the threads so the new nut would go on freshly tapped threads. Then I was telling Joe Abbate a full on professional restorer what happened. He said; “Curtis that’s nothing I snapped the entire crankshaft in half doing the exact same thing.” Confidence takes time. There are things I have done like lacing spokes, I don’t enjoy the work, that goes to someone else. Start with Carburetors…

asco

Bulletproof sc500?

HA

cliff

young man, I think you are smart keeping that SC500.  It is both rare and notorious...and will likely only appreciate too and will be lots of fun when you get it running well.  Might want to sell a few of the more common bikes for cash, but that depends upon your priorities, education got to come first.  If it were mine, assuming the crank feels good with jug off and seals removed, I would replace the seals, all other gaskets that could create an air leak, get the bore perfect (e.g. not too much/too little clearance (spec), vap ignition if that's better (I have no opinion as I run stock on all 5 bike without issue) per experts.  Would also seriously consider reinstalling oil pump and using some of that super-duper oil that Mark shared over the weekend since this thing apparently has a history of seizure.  I have an extra rebuilt oil pump for a '74DT360 (assuming this fits) back when I had Deet rebuild mine and I was still in experimenting with DYI-ing these myself that I could hook you up with because I will probably be dead before I ever need it.

msavitt,

Thats what I figure. These SC500's will appreciate and will go up in value as time goes on. But I wouldn't consider re-installing the oil pump system since its notorious for having a easy seizure (as you mentioned). I think running pre-mix in the fuel tank is my best option to be honest. The oil pump is still intact but retired since its capped off. I do have a buyer lined up for my 1969 DT1 250 and if he decides to buy that bike, I will use the funds to get this SC500 to run perfect! 

**If for any reason this potential buyer passes on the DT1 250, I will advertise it on here (but I cannot upload pictures due to the site being down at the moment. I don't need 2 of the same bikes!!!!**


Arin