Restoration of Sandcast Frame 5369/ Engine E5479

[UK Pete]

Here goes for another restoration thread, i have another thread going for diecast 9574, which i will carry on with but at an even slower pace than it has been going at, for now the Sandcast takes priority and it will also take some of the diecast parts i had stashed

Here is the bike as i bought it, the head and barrels are off a later bike, there are no brackets or fixings whatsoever, just an incomplete bottom end of engine, frame, swingarm, wrinkle tank, oil tank, wheels, and a couple of beat up guards





As you my well see there is a hell of a lot missing but hey beggars cant be choosers,
The parts i most need are carbs, head and barrels, 9 hole clutch cover, double cut front guard, complete front brake set up

First of all i was itching to get the engine apart, fully expecting to find all sorts of nasty surprises, firstly i removed the studs, never an easy job especially on a 45 year beat up old engine



Then the moment of truth, open up the cases




Well all i can say is thank you god, the inside is in perfect unworn condition, the only mess in there was a small mouse nest, all the bearings were oiled and smooth running, the crank and its shells look as good as a bike thats only done 100 miles 0% wear, all gear cogs intact, and best of all no nasty chain break damage to the casings,
I have to say i have never been so excited about a bike restoration like i am about this one, guys its official i have SANCAST FEVER , and i have got it real bad,
bye for now
pete

[Green1]

You lucky lucky beggar
Looks like you've got your work cut out.

Mick

[Trigger]

Pete, is this the one from Freddy the Frog?

[UK Pete]

Mick certainly have got my work cut out, but thats the fun tracking down parts from (mostly USA), and doing as much work on the bike as i can myself, this is certainly a restoration for the brave, it will be a fine motorcycle when its done
 Graham, yes you got it right it is the one from fat freddy (will dawkins ) from classic bike imorts

[mick]

Nice one Pete  , I'm looking forward to this thread, you've got your work cut out on this one but like you say half the fun is finding all the pieces of the puzzle

make sure you post plenty of photos as you find / do stuff  cheers Mick.

[UK Pete]

Thanks Mick, there will be hundreds of pictures, again half the fun for me is getting as much up here in pictures for you guys to see
it helps to keep the interest alive, plus i can look back and enjoy, i still have my 69 diecast on the go at the same time , i wont be giving up on that, things will just go on ahead at whatever pace suits me , no point in rushing
pete

[AshimotoK0]

Did 'Freddie' give you any indication of how he managed to find 4 sandcast restos at around the same time Pete? At least he also sells off engine parts from USA imports sometimes. Have you noticed D&K will only really sell the complete motors (well for Cb350 motors, not sure on others) with no indication on the true state of them internally other than the standard ' weather seized' and some decent external photos. I was talking to their guy Pete on the 'phone a while back and he say he can sell that type of engine for (CB350 twins) all day long for around 350GBP so why sell engines for parts. Looks to me like some will be a real bargain, others will be full of rust inside. But I can't a afford a 350 quid 'punt'. It would be a five minute job to remove the cam cover and the state of the cam/rockers would be  a real good indication of the true engine state.

Cheers ... AshD

[UK Pete]

Yes will told me the story, not sure if its ok to spread on a forum i can tell you off air
DK is a lucky dipp i have had some real clean low milage parts from them, on the other hand i have had some total heaps of shit at the same price as the good stuff, on the whole i think they are ok, it is a lucky dip with engines, but other parts have good up close pictures so its a bit easier to determine
pete

[UK Pete]

Ok guys a bit more progress, i washed the crankcases in my parts washer, then pressure washed them, dried them in the oven , blasted them clean getting rid of all that thick black paint, then pressure washed them again, oven dried them blew them through with an air line, washed them in thinners and masked them ready for spraying

[Bryanj]

Pete, I seem to remember the inside of the cases had a yellow paint? to counter pourosity

[RGP750]

As a patternmaker and supplier of castings it's nice to see a closeup of the cases.
there are internal paints available to counteract possible porosity.
www.dialpatterns.co.uk
Rich

[UK Pete]

There does seem to be an internal coating to the insides, i only cleaned off the outsides by blasting, the insides remain as was
pete

[mickwinf]

those cases look a bit rough, get the dremell out and polish them smooth 

[Green1]

Going well Pete
I can't even find the time to wash mine.
I only mended my speedo today as I was stopped by the Oinks the other day.

Mick

[UK Pete]

those cases look a bit rough, get the dremell out and polish them smooth