And of course, earlier we said Film at 11:00. So it's instead about 12:30 . . .

So if you have been following this - we left off at getting the bike started. As a recap, the work done so far was a serious carb clean and a new petcock and fuel line.

Next - it had a flat rear tire that was also seriously cracked. It appeared to be an original Dunlop, which may explain a lot. I had a decent Shinko universal on the rack so with a new tube it got spooned on. Actually I put it on using my new Baja No Pinch tool which really does work as well as could be hoped for. No need for irons, and no missing fingernails! Sweet.

When we removed the wheel, of course the brake shoes fell apart. the lining came off in three pieces, reminding me that we should ALWAYS check brake shoes when we get these old girls. I had a set on the shelf (same as an AT1) so in they went. The sprocket was missing two bolts, and the others were nasty, so I got 6 new bolts, and discovered I had 3 nice shiney new lock tabs from another project, so on they went. The sprocket was a bit rusty, but in good shape otherwise. Front sprocket was similar.






Picked up a gold WPS HD chain and cut it to fit, and added some new adjuster bolts (originals really rusty). OK - the back end is good.







Decided that the front needed to come apart, both for cleaning and for a brake shoe check. They were decent but got replaced anyway. Good piece of mind. No pics.


The bike also got a set of shorty levers I had on the shelf and it is destined for a set of the Fly chrome bars - also from inventory. Trying to keep the mechanical stuff as low budget as possible.






This is a bike that is going to take several boxes of SOS/steel wool and a lot of TLC and fizzy can paint. Gonna leave the tanks as is as they have a nice patina that is hard to duplicate for now.

Tonight we adjusted the brakes so it was safe, then started it up (2nd kick!) and off around the yard for a tranny check Success. Shifts like a new bike and runs smooth in all gears! Woo Hoo. Smokes like a chimney but it is running some pre-mix until I can verify the pump - hopefully the smoke tells me that it is working too!

As rusty as this thing is, it runs and rides amazingly well. It will need a full electrical restore as it has been eliminated - good news I have most of what I need in boxes. Plus today the fresh Washington title paperwork in my name arrived

I love a plan that comes together!

Sounds good

So the 75 model came stock with a 19" front wheel, with a 21" as an option. In 76 the 21" was standard. My AT1 uses a stock 18".

It is challenging to find much in the way of tires to fit an 18" front, and the 19" is not conducive to many knobby options. When my son got his DT125, it came with some Chen Sheng universals which we replaced with knobbies. The rear is on the new 175.

The other night I did some parts searches on Ebay and found a 21" 76 front wheel complete with baking plate and got it for a great price. The plan is to migrate the 21" wheel to the 175 and then migrate the 19" to the AT1. The 175 will be able to mount up a much better selection of tires (knobbies) and the AT1 will be able to mount up a really nice set of Vee Rubber universals that I got originally destined for one of the Hodakas. They will be slightly more correct size wise on that bike, and then both will have much easier times down the line with tires.

Sounds a bit complicated, but when I get a bit farther on the project, some pics will explain things better!

Hmmm... think I got it... one more time now... who's on first*????

* obscure reference to an ancient Abbott and Costello radio comedy bit.

I just picked up a basket case of this bike. I may have some stuff if you need it. I am going to delve into it tomorrow and see what is worth anything. The shocks are worth about $150 when I get done with them.

I took the bike to the country today to see just how bad it was gonna be. Pleasantly surprised. Starts on first kick most every time. Wheelies with throttle only in 2nd gear. Suspension seems to work well! Given the level of rust thinking about a Mad Max build . . .




Other than cosmetics gonna be an easy one!


Posted from my iPhone from the Wild!

I'm loving this, Mako! Bike looks like a blast to ride!

The tanks look too nice to strip back on this bike, but old, [even dented] tanks, stripped back to bare metal and clear coated look great with all that rust. I love the style... This Dt1 in Sydney has been mad maxed. I think your Dt175 would suit it better with the high front guard and the expansion chamber....An oversized Baja style headlight with a rusty grille to complete the look... Trivia Tidbit, the old dirtbikes in Mad Max 2 and Beyond Thunderdome were late 70`s early 80`s dual shock honda XL`s..

Hard to decide on this one. I ordered a new wiring harness, so going back to stock really means adding the lights (I have them in inventory) maybe a new seat cover, and a lot of Duplicolor and elbow grease. The bike really, really runs well. The carb was sticking a bit yesterday, so I may need to work on it, or possibly just the new cables will solve that. I popped on some new bars as the old ones were bugging me bent as they were.

I was thinking maybe a headlight something like this . . .





But then again, that would work on the DT400 flat tracker build too . . .