HONDA RESTORATION

Here's a 1983 Honda XL125 trail bike, i purchased it from a friend as a non runner, it had been sat in his shed for a few years and it seemed a shame to let it rot. Not having much value i was conscious that i would have to do this rebuild on a budget. First image is a poor phone photo of what i got for my £200, rusty, not starting, plywood side panels, a bit of a mess to be honest.

So lets get started, firstly strip the whole thing down ending with a few boxes of bit and pieces, some not worth keeping. Making notes of the wiring and keeping tally of nut and bolts along the way. Next job is to strip and repaint all parts, normally i would send everything for sand blasting and powder coating but this would prove too expensive for this project so plenty of elbow grease and wire brush action and hey presto ready for a rattle can spray job.

While dealing with the paint job also there was the small matter of why the bike wouldn't start. A clean and rebuild of the carburetor had it coughing back to life but something else was amiss. So after a little digging around in the gearbox a couple of second hand spares we are back in action, SHE'S ALIVE.

Painted and running it's time to get this baby back together, starting with the rebuilt rear suspension.

Next up the steering head stock some of the electrical components and then the engine looking fresh with it's newly painted black engine cases, i didn't like the silver it arrived with.

Now time for the front end, headlight assembly front forks, tank and seat added temporarily just to see how she's starting to look.

With the wheels on and the bike back on the floor it's getting close to completion, with a final push i'm there, an old dog is ready for new tricks.

While not perfect this shed and buried piece of decay has been given another chance and is ready to attack the road or dirt again. I sold the XL to a young lad who was over the moon with his first ever bike, i even managed to get a bit of cash left over for my pocket although that was never the point, it's more about seeing something considered dead having a new lease of life and giving new enjoyment to somebody. Here's the finished bike.

Hope you all enjoyed this restoration, more to come in the near future, be safe all.