[1973GTS]

Over time I have picked up a few sl350's, am finally getting around to starting on one of them, a K2 I picked up last year. The bike was in decent shape with the typical rusty chrome. The engine was out due to the P/O having rebuilt it and having found metal shavings in the oil after running it. I have disassembled the top end and have not found anything obviously wrong and am having a local shop go through the bottom end. The frame had the broken rear middle engine mount issue which the shop repaired with a mount off a spare parts frame I have. The frame and swing arm were then powdercoated and new swing arm bushings were installed. The mufflers from another sl350 are being used and were in decent shape. The dents and dings were repaired and they were then powdercoated. The seat frame is in decent shape but has pinhole rust issues and a crack on one side, will have to find someone who can weld that. The right side headlight bracket is quite rusty and had damage to the upper part but I was able to get a new one from Western Honda. The tank, side covers and headlight are currently at Marbles Motors for paint and I should have them back in a couple of weeks. I am currently working on the fenders and am attempting to get the brushed look prior to clearcoating. I have buffed out all the gouges and scratches in the front fender and am going to finish that first in an attempt to get it as close as I can to the original look on the rear fender which I haven't touched yet for comparison purposes. I have taken the tires off the wheels and am not sure if I want to get them re-chromed or get new ones yet. Here are a few photos of the progress so far. The last photo is how it looked when I got it.

 

[captb]

Excellent progress! Torque all motor mounts, if loose they will break mount ears.

The kickstart idler GEAR BUSHING can wear in these and make metal shavings.

All so 40 years of sludge/metal/etc end up in the bottom of the lower case, a good cleaning saves many future headaches. Best of luck!

 

[1973GTS]

Thanks for the input, captb, I'm just waiting to get the bottom end back to start putting the engine back together, hopefully will have a rolling chassis ready within a couple of weeks, I'm trying to find a good tire for mostly road/some trail purposes, I don't think there are as many matchers made in the 18/21 inch combo. I'm sure I will be back for more input and guidance soon. Thanks again - dave WebRep


currentVote


noRating
noWeight

 

[captb]

Thanks for the input, captb, I'm just waiting to get the bottom end back to start putting the engine back together, hopefully will have a rolling chassis ready within a couple of weeks, I'm trying to find a good tire for mostly road/some trail purposes, I don't think there are as many matchers made in the 18/21 inch combo. I'm sure I will be back for more input and guidance soon. Thanks again - dave WebRep


currentVote


noRating
noWeight

Actually there are a large selection of tires in 18/21, I've been thru many on my dual sports/enduro bikes... XR650R and DRZ400E, I leaned more to 80% off road 20% road but there are alot out there. Here's the set I put on first, they were spares for my DRZ, more off road than I wanted since I don't ride the SL off road, I switched to street tires for the quiet ride but these Twin Duros (TKC80) actually handled decent, I would search on Thumper Talk you can get some feedback on tires for dual sport.

 

[1973GTS]

Thanks, I'll check Thumper Talk out, trying to find the original trials tire type.
WebRep


currentVote


noRating
noWeight

 

[amueller454]

very cool project! It will be nice with all the parts powdercoated

 

[1973GTS]

Just a quick note I forgot to mention in the previous posts, the swing arm bushings are from Bob Franzke, very impressed with the workmanship and fit. For anyone looking for bushings I would highly recommend them (another great piece of knowledge gained from this site).

 

[1973GTS]

Got a box from Marbles Motors today, opened it up and found these They definitely do very impressive work, the paint is flawless, can't wait to get the rest of the bike done to put these back on. WebRep


currentVote


noRating
noWeight

 

[captb]

The paint looks great, Marbles does super work, not cheap but if you want it right they can do it.

 

[Drifter]

That paintwork looks fantastic.

 

[amueller454]

wow looks very nice!

 

[LashLarue]

Great looking project! Wow factor soaring.

Consider the Dunlop K70s. They come in the old sizes, metric not required. The universal pattern is what I used back then too. It does OK offroad and quite well on the road.

Dump the orange rectifier, you will be glad you did. Make one yourself as described in the electrics section here or pay Oregon Motorcycle parts about $30 for theirs.

 

[1973GTS]

Thanks for the comments, it definitely gets this old guys blood flowing when the parts start coming back and the people that have done the work have done a nice job. To Mike ref the reg/rectifier I was seriously considering a new wiring harness from Sparck Moto with the reg/rectifier combo included. I am not very experienced electrically and on this bike I want it done in a way that makes it as reliable as possible. I have a couple of others that I am going to be rebuilding later and I will be doing much more on those myself after I get the experience from this one.
Not sure if anyone else has done any repair work on the sl mufflers, I had both of mine powdercoated, one of them was in really good shape and came through the process nicely. The other one had some dents that was repaired by the shop with a commercial metal filler. After powdercoating the filler started cracking and I returned it to be re-worked. The filler they used was supposed to be high temp but did not hold up. Has anyone used a filler that will work with the heat factor with these mufflers?
I did do a little work on the front wheel. The wheel and spokes were in pretty good shape so I am just going to clean them up for using this summer. I buffed the hub and polished the rim and then took my dremel to the spokes, all in all I am satisfied with the results but will possibly replace the spokes in the winter. Here are a few pictures.

Like I said not perfect but should do for now.

Also for the sl guys, has anyone come across a conquerable aftermarket horn switch (the skinny one)? I've done a lot of browsing but have not found one that is similar. Thanks - dave

 

[Sam I Am]

Nice work on a cool bike ! I am subscribed.

 

[Spike]

Also for the sl guys, has anyone come across a conquerable aftermarket horn switch (the skinny one)? I've done a lot of browsing but have not found one that is similar. Thanks - dave

I was not able to find anything that I really liked. There are a couple of Yamaha kill switches used on the dirt bikes that are ok, and a couple of Chinese universal switches that could be used as well. All that is required is a normally open switch (button). you could also use a left-hand switch assembly and ignore the additional features like turn signals, although this option could be more costly.

 

[LashLarue]

I bought a used SL switch off eBay and paid way too much for it. It is still in the box and I have been using a bicycle horn to pass inspection and then take it off. The SL horn is so ineffective I would never use it anyway if there was an emergency.

 

[1973GTS]

Sorry to say I took a couple of months off from the build this summer but have started back up again. I sent some parts out for chrome plating at Browns in Kentucky which came back last week, they turned out fantastic and was about an 8 day turn around time, can't remember who on this site recommended them but I was exceptionally pleased with the workmanship and Ronnies demeanor, he appears to genuinely want to please the customer. The wheel had numerous nicks and gouges in it and you can not tell now. Finally got the bottom end of my engine back from the local shop that was checking it out, and received my new forks from Franks. I had the seat pan cracks welded by a friend of mine and primed it up, buffed up the spokes and nipples for the rear wheel, bought a wheel stand from harbor freight and got the wheel back together. After doing much research on wheel truing I believe I got it real close. Next thing up is painting all the black parts this week. On the last picture this is the muffler that the filler the shop used in the dents and creases did not hold up after powdercoating, I applied an aluminum body filler, USC ALL_METAL, and it has been very easy to work with, won't be getting this one re-powdercoated, will be priming and painting and then seeing if it holds up to normal operating temperatures. For you SL350 guys, are the wheel locks on the rear rim necessary, the ones I have are not in the greatest shape but are usable, I have no plans on using this off road.

 

[outobie]

wheel bead locks are absolutely needed off road...not so much for street riding

what did you pay for your chrome? looks like they did a good job.

on your handlebars have you checked to see if the throttle tube still clears adequately. I just sent a handlebar to chrome and he was concerned that the triple plating may build up too much and may cause the throttle tube to bind.

 

[1973GTS]

I cleaned up the old wheel locks and they came out pretty good, should be fine to use. Chrome was not cheap, a little over 900, the handlebar was 190, but I am more than happy with the results. I'm glad you mentioned the throttle tube, hadn't thought about checking that, will do that this afternoon and make sure there are no issues.

 

[outobie]

your costs sounds similar to mine.

I haven't gotten mine back yet but he's charging me $600 for a CB350K0
rear fender with side struts,
handlebar
chain guard
luggage rack