Back on 2 Wheels Again...Sorta

[nodaclu]

It's been a rough 4 years...

It culminated with having to sell everything I owned last fall, including my beloved Suzuki GSX650F.



But after being out of work for 19 months with no income, it was a necessity.

Happily, I became gainfully employed in April, and I'm now at the point where I could find a cheap little beater bike to rebuild and have some fun with. (I think if I'd been stuck watching one more lousy TV show with nothing else to do, I would have lost it.)  :crazy:

A few years back I'd bought a yellow '96 Nighthawk that I really liked and regretted selling.



I arranged to go look at an older KLR (which turned out to be too far gone for me), but on the way, I stumbled on a Craigslist ad for a 1992 Nighthawk.

It was cosmetically rough, but once fired to life, purred like a kitten and had better throttle response than my '96 did.

$800 later, she's at her new home, ready to be reborn as a weekend touring machine.

She's a "ten feet bike". From 10 feet away, she looks pretty good. It's only when you get up close that the cosmetic problems become apparent.

Anyone in the Sacramento area who loves nothing more than wrenching on old bikes - let me know. I'd love to have some help! :D

My goal is to have her road worthy within 6 weeks, and fully finished by February.

Here she is - rough in some ways, clean in others.  :inlove:  A walking dichotomy...kind of like her new owner.  :lol:

[cmyers]

welcome, enjoy the bike, and dont worry about the cosmetics.

[popo303]

She doesnt look all that bad. Two cosmetically challenged wheels is better than no bike. Remeber- Good things happen on a Honda

[tomb raider]

 First off I happy your working again, This world is messed up.

Nodaclu has a 92, kinda catchy huh.. Hey, put them OEM stickers back on her and she'll be looking good.. You header is clean looking, no lean burn there.

What all do you have to do to get it ready ??

[JB1290]

  to the NHF. Sorry to hear about getting rid of 2 very nice machines but, its also good to see you are back on the upswing and have a new toy.

[hppants]

Welcome to the group.  Ride safe.  Bike looks great to me.  Plus, you have the advantage of beautiful roads and scenery for your tours.

[ariwhiteboy]

  to the forum!  Sorry to hear about your rough patch, but you have taken a step in the right direction!  I don't see anything wrong with that bike really, the PO just took care of wearing the showroom shine off of it so you can put lots of miles on her without feeling guilty.    Take care of it and ride safe! 

[luckylindy]

  back to NHF.  Glad things are getting better for you.  Start wrenching, cleaning, riding that NH and leave the TV behind.

[nodaclu]

Thanks guys!

Hard to see in the photos, but the chain is almost rusted in place (only rusty part of the bike thankfully), everything is gummed up (carbs, shifter, clutch), there's no oil in the forks (I can compress them from the handlebars with one hand), the rear brake pedal is bent and when you press it, it locks in place underneath  the cover and locks up the rear brake as a result.

It's also missing a speedometer, the tach is busted up but functional, the rear inner fender that holds the license plate is gone, and it has a set of incorrect bars that slam into the tank on both sides well before full turn. Also, though the headers look great, the mufflers are pretty trashed, complete with 4 17mm bolts screwed into the back of each pipe!! 

Oh, and it was home to at least 75 spiders, and untold webs and foxtails. :D

And that's only a partial list of this bikes many (but mostly minor) ills. 

So even though it runs, it's not exactly "road worthy" right now. My 2 mile shakedown ride to make sure the frame and forks were straight was terrifying. (But at least it confirmed that everything went straight down the road at near freeway speeds with no funny wobbles or wandering.)

The good part is that all of that stuff is minor in the big picture, and by the time I have the title straightened out, it should be ready to rock. :)

Here's a couple more shots. I've since torn down the front end already, and have a new lockset on the way (did I mention the ignition, though functional, is trashed, the rear seat lock is missing, and the fairing was partially held on with zip ties?) :funny

I have a 3 page list of parts....someone decided to paint over the Honda logos on the tank and tail, and removed the decals from the side panels. I miss them. With a huge bike recycling yard right down the street from me, I'm hoping that I can keep the new OEM parts orders to a minimum.

One more shot...

[popo303]

I like the fairing, is that a rifle? I really want to get one put on my 97.

[nodaclu]

Thanks!

When i was looking at it, I couldn't figure out what it was. Then, when I disassembled the front end, all become clear - it was printed on the inside of the fairing...lol.

It's a "Small Sport Fairing" by Maier:

http://www.maier-mfg.com/catalog/small-sport-fairing-round-headlight

Looks pretty decent, and you sure can't beat the price!!

[popo303]

wow! no you cant beat that price. The Rifle one I was looking at was a lot more. Thanks for the info looks like I might have one very very soon now.

[Soupskin]

You'll have that beauty on the road in no time!

[nodaclu]

Picked up a brand new matched 4-lock set on Ebay this week. Ignition, fuel tank, seat lock and helmet lock. (The seat lock and helmet locks are missing on the bike. I'd forgotten that NH's even *have* helmet locks!!)

The biggie is going to be the gas tank. I don't even know if they are available via OEM anymore, and even if they are, $600+ is hard to swallow. I'm hoping that the motorcycling recycle yard down the street will have something.

Tanks and speedometers are strangely absent from Ebay. That's making me wonder....

[noahnsteph]

I would've guessed that parts for a 750 Nighthawk would be easy since it was the same bike from 91-03 if I'm not mistaken.

[Soupskin]

I would've guessed that parts for a 750 Nighthawk would be easy since it was the same bike from 91-03 if I'm not mistaken.

You are correct.

Tanks and gauges are in short supply though.

[nodaclu]

You are correct.

Tanks and gauges are in short supply though.

The irony is....I have a tach in perfect working condition, and I thought working tachs were the hardest thing of all to come by.