The cost of a “free” motorcycle.
The tale begins with a longtime acquaintance who I see often at their place of work. Having gone to his home on many occasions over a 20 year period, I knew he had a red 1992 Seca II hanging out in his garage. He had lost interest in riding over the years as new people and hobbies entered his life. So I knew about the bike, stored in a heated garage, languishing but not being truly neglected.
Fast forward to last summer. I encountered my acquaintance and he asked if I wanted the Seca. I thanked him but told him that I had just bought a bike. His reply was that he just wanted it gone, he had the title ready to go, all I had to do was come and pick it up.
So a week or so later I popped by with my trailer and he and his wife helped me load it up. He signed a $1 bill of sale and the title. I gave them a $50 gift card to Buffalo Wild Wings as a thank you, a free lunch for a free bike. Fast forward again to the second week of February. All of my other projects are sold. The Honda and the dirtbikes are sleeping soundly. It’s time to get to work.
First the bike had to be pulled from storage. When I say pulled, I mean dragged through the snow and ice from a storage shed to the garage. I shoveled the level ground in between, but left the approximately 10” of snow on the twenty feet of incline. It helped keep the bike upright and gave me needed traction. After 45 minutes of grunting and swearing, the Seca was tucked into the space formerly occupied by a Yamaha 3wheeler.
The immediate needs of the Seca are very apparent. The fork seals are blown, the gas tank has surface rust and a number if pin holes, the tires are rocks, both calipers are slow and sticky, and the engine has not been run in years. Carb cleaning and balancing will be necessary, and replacing rubber bits and hoses along the way.
A trip to the local multi-brand dealer miraculously produced a set of OEM fork seals. Dust covers needed to be ordered, again OEM parts. Total outlay $98. The quote from the dealer for the shock rebuild was an hour per shock, if I pull the shocks myself. Since I am bringing the front wheel to a different shop for a tire, pulling the shocks should not be too much trouble.
Hopefully by the end of the month I will have appropriately springy shocks and a new tire. While those parts are gone I will begin my assault on the tank and chassis. Stay tuned, pics to follow.