Little Dream 02 - The Black One

Part 4

Putting it together.... Finally!

13th September 2012. Donna Passed her Mod 2 motorcycle test, and gained her full licence! Horay! When she got back from the test centre, my first question was not "Well, did you pass?" but "Can I have my engine back now!?" Which gained me a very black look! "No" was merely implied! Trouble was, that her engine was still untouched since it had chugged to a halt in a cloud of smoke, suspected another gummed-ring, long-lay-up failure, and neither of us had the money to rebuild it. But I pressed on anyway, and started digging out 'the bits' cleaning them up and putting them back together, in the hope, she'd relent!

I had never intended to do a full ground up rebuild on this bike, but Donna had got all enthusiastic in her 'help' and stripped it to the frame, and to be honest, having the chance to look at it all in detail, it was worth the while. It gave a good chance to properly clean and inspect everything as it was put back together, and while I have raved about how 'nice' this one was when we got it, it was far from faultless, and I started with the frame, which I sanded back and re-painted, then the swing-arm, likewise, checking and greasing things like the suspension linkage and steering bearings before re-assembly. And there were many, now familiar problems to sort, like the lugs being cracked on the tail cowling, that needed plastic welding, and the tail-lamp, which when I fitted up all the electrics proved to not to want to work.

The camera was not much used to record the rebuild, though; I was working in fits and spurts between rain showers and other 'stuff', so it came together as sporadically as the rest of the project has progressed! But come together it did. The brakes being overhauled along the way, and eventually prising that engine back out of Donna's bike!

Here you are; From the 'Before' photo's taken in May 2010, the odometer reading 14394.2, and now 14394.5... a third of a mile being wheeled around the garden! Mind you, in the year the engine was in Donna's Pup, checking the MOT's reveals it has done less than 500 miles since rebuild! Nicely 'run-in' and been serviced twice.

So, here it is, as 'Finished', passing its MOT 15th November.

So, another Super-Dream returned to service..... NURSE! Call in the next victim, if you please!

Post-Script - A New Home

Well, Its Spring, and having installed The Black-One at its new home at Christmas, its new owner has been in regular contact, and is still loving every minute of riding it, and sent me a couple of pics after giving it a Spring-Clean. Looks better than when I built it! (apart from the L-Plate!)

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