Patience needed!

[rbt1548]

Something I still do now (as well as rebuild older bikes) - mainly RC boats, recent ones completed - Titanic & Bismark & currently Hood under construction - struggling with hands & eyes though for the finer “bits”, age is a wonderful thing but with it comes problems - main reason I’ve given up on “larger” bikes!
Bruce

Now, they are superb, the work that must have gone into them is something else.

[Laverda Dave]

I actually thought the Ducati was the real thing! Great detail in those, well done.

[MCTID]

Mmmm that struck a nerve.......many years ago I owned a Triumph Stag. At the time it was the most beautiful vehicle in the world in my eyes. Pimento red and an exhaust note to die for....my eldest Daughter never said no to a drive out on a summers evening (sadly, her Mum and Daughter Number Two could never be that arsed) and the smile on her face was always worth all the aggro that bloody car caused me. 30+ years on and we still have that connection and that bond that anybody who doesn't understand it - will never understand it. Later today, she's being sworn in as a Magistrate and she can invite one Guest....that Guest is me. Not her Husband or one of her 3 Kids or any of her lifelong pals....me ! I'd like to think that bloody temperamental, awkward, cantankerous Stag is a big reason why she has asked me to accompany her. That bond we forged back then is unbreakable and it's held fast over some difficult dilemmas since. She's the most sensible person I know and her abundance of common sense and decency makes me firmly believe that in the Family Division, she's going to make the right decisions - every time- when it comes to deciding whether the Kids from a broken marriage will live with their Mum or Dad - or whatever.

I digress......back then, I joined the Stag Owners Club and went to a couple of their meetings and one memorable one was a Sunday at Tatton Park.....it was a splendid summers Sunday afternoon and some of the Stags being judged were simply breathtaking.......the cost to make them awesome and the efforts their Owners had put into them was incredible, and as an Engineer, I was mightily impressed, although I could never hope to match their skills, dedication or budget. One fabulous car had been subject to a painstaking body off restoration and when It came to the judging, it came nowhere.....not even in the top 5. I couldn't believe it and I asked the Owner why it had failed to impress the Judges. It was because during the renovation, he'd wanted to protect his investment, so he'd had a professional apply an underbody Undercoat and injected all the rust traps with a suitable preservative. The Judges marked the car down because those 'safeguards' would never have been applied by the Factory !

Well, that was it for me...I never attended any more Stag Owners Club meetings and never bothered with anything they had to say or do again.   

[Johnny4428]

Quite a story Alan! Pity the judges didn’t look beyond investment protection on their quest for originality.

[XS850]

MCTID - yours has definitely struck a nerve here! How many of us rebuild our bikes (yes including our subject headers 400 & 350’s) to an exact original spec! If you do, does it mean it’s worth more, is it more reliable & long lasting? I suspect a “true” original rebuild doesn’t exist - there will always be an “improvement” somewhere - and before anyone starts getting uptight at that statement just think about the painting & re-chroming to modern standards & materials, these areas will almost definitely be better than original factory build!
I recently completed re building a 65 Norton Jubilee, from the outside it looks as if original - but - the paintwork is better finished, some parts have been powder coated, cadmium plated bolts changed to stainless (in non structural points) or zinc plated, 12v instead of 6v, electronic ignition etc. It runs and ticks over smoothly (unlike the original) - I set out to be as original as possible with the rebuild but if I had, then I would have an “old dog” that wasn’t reliable, wouldn’t last and deteriorate quickly - just like it was “originally”!
So, just what is actually original in any rebuild nowadays - the “rivet” counters can have a field day when I finish my CB400F, but I know it’s as original as I can get it BUT not at the expense of reliability, long lasting & deterioration!
Aghhhhh - rant over- sorry, it’s a pet subject with me 😁😳
Bruce

[Oddjob]

Been saying that for years Bruce. Unless it's just come out of a crate or has never been ridden no bike is original.

[TrickyMicky]

Been saying that for years Bruce. Unless it's just come out of a crate or has never been ridden no bike is original.

.  If anybody else is interested in railways, then the famous "Flying Scotsman" locomotive is a perfect example of this. It was constructed 100 years ago, and over that period it has had numerous new boilers, frames, cylinders, etc. There is every possibility that the only parts that are original are the name and number, and yet people still get all dewy eyed about it, regaling about how marvellous it is that it's still running.  RIGHT, now for Trigger's broom------!

[andy120t]

Flying Scotsman is due in Hertfordshire on June 24th. Look at the schedule...she'll be everywhere next year.. Worth a ride-out to a local railway bridge as she goes under.

https://mechtraveller.com/2022/10/flying-scotsman-trips-in-2023-100th-anniversary/

[Laverdaroo]

AlwYs left me a bit old the FS, always thought there were better engines out there. Never the less a chance to see it running and worth a ride outfit that alone. Not that it takes much of an excuse to get the bikes out


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Cappodimonte]

Well, when it comes to rebuilding anything and I’ve done plenty you can count on it not being original because as soon as you replace an old nut and bolt or screw it is no longer ‘original’ it has been upgraded. You balance what you want to look as it did but couple it up with reliability. Especially as older parts can fail at Inopportune moments.
If you want a real uptight bunch then look no farther than the CAA or as one air bod termed them (Campaign Against Aviation ) as they expect a 70 year old aircraft part to be replaced with another 70 year old part, now to me that’s putting the craft and those in it at high risk.
Personally I’d go for rebuild with upgrade than putting an article back together with fatigued parts just so you can call it totally original.

[Cappodimonte]

Just to rub it in a bit I have a Bandai 1/12th scale Lotus 49 model in it’s original box with 3 as it’s racing number. This I believe was the Jim Clark racing designate, I also have a 1/12th scale of the gas turbine Indianapolis car in red which was part built and needs some love and attention to finish it off. Both models apparently can fetch quite a high price especially the Lotus which is very rare especially in it’s box.

[taysidedragon]

Well, when it comes to rebuilding anything and I’ve done plenty you can count on it not being original because as soon as you replace an old nut and bolt or screw it is no longer ‘original’ it has been upgraded. You balance what you want to look as it did but couple it up with reliability. Especially as older parts can fail at Inopportune moments.
If you want a real uptight bunch then look no farther than the CAA or as one air bod termed them (Campaign Against Aviation ) as they expect a 70 year old aircraft part to be replaced with another 70 year old part, now to me that’s putting the craft and those in it at high risk.
Personally I’d go for rebuild with upgrade than putting an article back together with fatigued parts just so you can call it totally original.

I think you're jumping on the anti-CAA wagon there. They can be very pedantic about certification of parts, but parts do have a 'fatigue life' and if they've reached the end of their safe life you can't use them. Parts have to be approved and, if original manufacturers parts are still available and in usable condition,  then they should be used.
Newly manufactured parts are frequently approved for use, just look at all the Spitfires, Hurricanes and other warbirds that are being rebuilt from complete wrecks with just a few original parts left on them. 👍

[Cappodimonte]

The conversation I had was with an engineer involved in warbird rebuilding so the comments made were by an expert in the field of aircraft refurbishment not any old joe. The CAA are more interested in originality than useability making it extremely torturous for rebuilding to take place.
In taking that route it’s a very expensive business, much the same as when you race anything, it always costs ten times as much as an ordinary road going vehicle, bikes included.
There’s making a profit and ripping the backside out of it.

[K2-K6]

I cant believe that the CAA would condone any fatigue lifed part to be in use for flight.

I trained in engineering at Farnborough with teaching from people working in Air Accident Investigation Bureau, with all that entails around certification, design, inspection etc etc, just can't see anything allowed to fly without the durability requirements being met for any component and regardless of age.

If an original component can't be scourced that met this level, then that in itself brings forward problems as a new/replacement would need verified standard of material science and certification to be even considered for use. That's even more expensive.

[Multiman]

The argument about originality exists in all areas of "renovation".

This young guy bought a famous old racing yacht for 1 USD and has been sorting it for the last 5/6 years.
The subject of "is it the original boat" has been discussed at length.
Worth a watch if you have a few days spare!

https://www.youtube.com/@SampsonBoatCo

The level workmanship is fantastic.

One other comment I heard, and I don't know the medical facts, virtually all the cells in our body have been replaced multiple times in our lives. Are we the same person we used to be?