To repair a bike is like a project that you must give your utmost focus in other for you to achieve maximally. Your old or damaged bike is worth repairing, so go for it. There are many ways to restore an old motorcycle.
The effort you want to put into it depends on your desired outcome. Would you like your motorcycle to drive, would you like to adapt it to your driving style, or would you like to restore your motorcycle to its original condition down to the last screw?
For amateurs and motorcycle enthusiasts who take the plunge into restoring a classic motorcycle, there are several factors to consider – many of which go beyond sourcing new tires and a new paint job.
The important things you need are spare parts, time, dedication and some money too!
Restoring an old motorcycle can be challenging, but the love you have for your bike will propel you to want to start the project of repairing it.
If you have little experience, a restoration project will surely be a life-changing learning curve. For such a project, you need a good portion of determination, patience, and passion.
There are many ways to obtain information for a motorcycle restoration. It starts with workshop manuals and YouTube videos in which many motorcycle freaks explain their tricks step by step.
In this way, you can use the concentrated load of knowledge for yourself without having to pay for it yourself.
These are a list of the basic items you will need:
1. A convenient workplace: Attempting to restore an old classic motorcycle in a cramped garage is not ideal. You need space to take it apart, space to lay out your tools, and space to move around the bike. The dismantled parts also want to be carefully stored and found again.
2. Good lightning: Repairing a bike requires a place with very good lighting to see clearly. The lighting must be good, and the work area must be clean and dry. The workplace must be heated if you work on a motorcycle in winter.
3. The lifting platform: A lifting platform is highly recommended for motorcycle work. Your back will thank you, and you’ll have more fun screwing your motorcycle. This purchase is recommended if you plan to work on a motorcycle frequently.
4. Buy a working motorcycle: Don’t buy a total dead bike for starting, so you don’t feel discouraged. Buy a classic for your first restoration project to make the job manageable and successful.
Make sure that there is no complete rewiring or complete engine renovation. It should make the first project manageable and enjoy success. It is sufficient to take care of clogged air filters and exhaust systems or to repair defective switches. Bigger problems might overwhelm you to start with.
5. Become a member of a motorcycle restoration forum: Joining a platform will allow you to ask so many questions that are not too clear to you.
So joining a bike repair platform will do a lot of good. The platform will help you to know where you can get spare parts and other necessary info.
Likely, many of the questions you want to ask have already been asked and answered. There are usually a few different approaches to restoring your motorcycle.
Nowadays, special groups on Facebook and Co. collect in-depth knowledge about their respective models. These communities are also great for their moral support.
Choose your model carefully. The rarer the machine, the more difficult and expensive it is to obtain spare parts. We also recommend motorcycles with designed single-cylinder two-stroke engines.
Once you have successfully renovated your first motorcycle and gained some experience, nothing stands in the way of choosing larger and more complex models.
So let us get started with the repair project.
First, you need to disassemble the motorcycle. If you don’t know where to start, numerous videos online can help, or refer to your repair manual.
Next, you must determine which components need a deep clean and which require a great restoration.
Some might be repairable, while others need to be replaced entirely. Once you have an overview, you can get to work and order the parts.
Finding replacement parts for an old motorcycle can be difficult and nerve-wracking. It takes a lot of heart and soul to turn your aging planer into a roadworthy eye-catcher again.
Tips for your motorcycle restoration;
- The more complicated the component is, the more expensive it will be to purchase. Changing brake fluid may be relatively cheap, but the costs add up when you need to replace the entire master cylinder, drum brakes, or braking system. Parts availability is also an important financial element. If you find a part you have been looking for, you can be almost certain that at least one other motorcycle restorer is looking for the same part.
- Therefore, establish and adhere to a budget for the entire project. It’s simple to become slowed down, especially if you need a last-minute improvement like custom handlebars, new turn signals, upgraded engines, or a custom ignition system.
- Also, don’t expect to make a fortune restoring old motorcycles. The finished motorcycle will probably only be worth as much as the parts you put into it.
- You won’t get far with cheap wrenches or screwdrivers. You will need both hand and power tools of decent quality. Make sure you invest in a good-quality adjustable wrench, socket sets, screwdrivers, pliers, and a hammer. Drills and grinders are also very useful. Don’t forget gloves, safety goggles, and a respirator to protect you from the dust when sanding.
Bike Engine Overheating Problem and Solution
The frictional heat generated by the friction of high-temperature gas and moving parts raises the temperature of components such as pistons, cylinders, and cylinder heads.
The high temperature can cause thermal deformation that reduces the mechanical strength of the engine components and causes the normal installation clearance to change due to excessive thermal expansion.
Therefore, the motorcycle engine must have a reliable cooling system to ensure the normal operation of the engine. The normal working temperature of the motorcycle engine cannot be too low or too high, and the general lubricating oil temperature is about 55℃.
When the air-cooled engine oil temperature is about 99℃, and the water-cooled engine water temperature is over 95℃, the performance will drop due to the excessive engine temperature, weak acceleration, and large noise.
Even when you switch off the ignition key, the engine does not stop. At the same time, the engine cylinder cover and the oil on the cylinder block will burn and smoke, and the engine will stall, indicating that the engine is not working properly and there is an overheating fault.
Engine overheating is relatively harmful. Engine power is reduced due to overheating, acceleration weakens, and fuel consumption increases. The engine is not usually burned from overheating. The lubricant is degraded and carbonized by overheating, and the film between the moving parts is destroyed.
These increases wear to the crankshaft, piston, and con rod head bearing. All will be destroyed by overheating, the piston ring is broken, the cylinder is pulled, and the cylinder is held. The engine’s lifespan is shortened, endangering the driver’s safety while operating the vehicle.
Other causes of motorcycle engine overheating:
1. First, new cars and passing vehicles don’t pay attention to the break-in.
Newly purchased motorcycles and refurbished vehicles will have a certain deviation between the geometric shape and the installation position of the parts due to the rough surface of the parts.
The rubbing bases have a small contact area, the pressure on the unit contact area is large, and the amount of wear increases rapidly. The friction generates a lot of heat, so the new car and the refurbishment car should pay attention to maintenance and wear.
During the running-in period, the speed and load must be limited, and the lubricating oil must be serviced and replaced in good time.
Many new car buyers, especially the three-wheeled passenger and cargo motorcycles, carefully fit and maintain the vehicles according to the owner’s manual requirements. Some drive over the mountains while the new car is being broken in.
You are too fast, too much time, and too busy. You don’t change the lubricating oil if you drive thousands of miles during the break-in period, which will cause the engine to overheat.
2. Second, improper repair and assembly; some motorcycle maintenance repairers use the iron hammer to hit when overhauling the engine. After tapping and disassembling the 2-stroke engine several times, the bore of the crankshaft bearing will enlarge, resulting in poor bearing fit.
The bearing runs outside the circle and is inserted incorrectly into the bearing. The bearing is deflected after the crankcase is closed when repairing the horn and indentation on the outer circumference.
In addition, the new parts of the crankshaft assembly that were replaced during the overhaul were of poor quality, and the journals were no more than 0.05 mm.
When the left and right crankcases are closed, and the cylinder block, piston, and piston ring are not installed, the rotation is inflexible when the crankshaft is rotated. The frictional resistance is relatively large, causing the engine to overheat.
Due to the severe wear of the connecting rod bearing of the engine crankshaft and the bearing of the left and right crankshafts, the vertical center line of the crankshaft is not in the center of the cylinder after the crankshaft is installed, causing the position of the connecting rod to be twisted left and right and the piston in the cylinder bore.
The piston ring and cylinder are ground eccentrically, and the cylinder pressure is lowered, causing the engine to overheat.
The camshaft of the four-stroke engine is badly worn, the cam height is insufficient, and the lift of the cam rocker arm to open the exhaust valve is small, so the exhaust gas is blocked, and the exhaust volume is insufficient.
3. Third is poor lubrication; lubricating oil for four-stroke engines also carries heat dissipation during engine operation. During the oil pump cycle, the heat absorbed by it and the heat absorbed by the parts are dissipated through the lubrication cycle so that the engine components are evenly heated.
When the oil pump is damaged, the oil supply is insufficient, the lubricating oil quality is poor, and the lubricating oil is deteriorating or lacking lubricating oil, the heat transfer and heat dissipation function is weakened, the lubricating condition deteriorates, the oil film is broken between the friction pairs, wear is increased, and the engine will overheat.
4. Fourth, poor heat dissipation conditions; The air-cooled two-wheeler blocked the front cooling airflow of the engine due to unreasonable installation, and the cooling air volume was seriously insufficient, resulting in the engine overheating.
Forced air cooling is a better cooling effect in a small displacement engine cooling system. Because the fan blade in the forced air cooling device is damaged, the fan is broken and lost, and the air shroud is melted and connected to the cylinder head, or cylinder heat sinks through the cylinder block and cylinder head, resulting in poor performance cooling airflow, negative pressure and air ducting.
The cover cannot disperse the wind flow properly, and the motor housing is affected by the adhesion of the sand sprayed from the wheels, causing the motor to overheat.
Causes of Overheating n Water- Cooled bike; In the water-cooled engine, a radiator is placed around the cylinder, and the radiator is connected to the cylinder water passage.
The water jacket is filled with cooling water; after the engine warms up, the cooling water also warms up. To maintain temperature balance during operation, the high-temperature cooling water is pumped into the radiator to remove heat and then returned to the cylinder jacket.
The cooling water system often includes a temperature control valve (thermostat) to prevent excessive temperatures from generating steam.
The thermostat water valve is closed before the engine operating temperature is reached, and water circulation is limited to a small cycle between the cylinder housing and the thermostat.
When the water temperature rises to 71℃-80℃, the control valve is gradually fully opened. The cooling water is pumped into the radiator to form a large circuit, dissipating more heat.
When the temperature rises to the critical point, the thermal switch will automatically open, and the electric fan will rotate, enhancing the heat dissipation effect.
Suppose the water-cooled engine thermostat is damaged and the water temperature rises to 82 °C. In that case, the control valve will not (or not fully) open, and the cooling water can only be used for short cycles, causing the engine to overheat.
Suppose the coolant added to the water-cooled engine is untreated hard water. In that case, scale is easy to form at high temperatures because the hard water contains a large number of minerals, the water jacket becomes smaller, and the water radiator and other components are blocked, which reduces the heat dissipation effect impaired.
It will cause the engine to overheat.
In addition, due to damage to the radiator, deformation of the radiator and external dirt, water leakage from the inlet and outlet pipes, air removal when filling the coolant, or damage to the fan motor and thermal switch, the water temperature rises, and the engine overheats.
Avoiding the causes of overheating above will help you enjoy your bike without the hindrance of overheating.