Beginning to End - Member Restorations => Restoration of Sandcast #538 => Topic started by: Sam on April 28, 2019, 10:40:12 pm
Title: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Sam on April 28, 2019, 10:40:12 pm
Hi everyone!
I bought sandcast #538 form the original owner. It was parked more than 30 years ago, so it was a great candidate for a full restoration. Last time I restored a sandcast (#410), I decided to take a unique picture (http://www.ujenimotors.com/anatomy_of_a_sandcast.html) of it. You can read about that bike here (http://www.ujenimotors.com/sandcast_410.html). For #538, I decided to film the entire restoration! It worked out to almost 40 hours of timelapse footage! Perhaps I'll post longer timelapse cuts if people are interested, but for now, here is the five minute version (make sure you have the sound on!):
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: danyo on April 29, 2019, 12:12:33 am
I'd like to watch full 487 hours of restoration!
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: kp on April 29, 2019, 05:31:50 am
Yes indeed! An excellent watch Sam Well done
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Wayne on April 29, 2019, 08:02:20 am
Great job and a very nice bike Sam. I can't wait to see what you're going to do with the site. :)
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Ferenz62 on April 29, 2019, 09:39:09 am
Hi Sam,
great video..., I always knew it is that easy to do ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
enjoy your fantastic sandcast resto and have perfect rides with her.
Your friend from Germany, Tom.
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Steve Swan on April 29, 2019, 09:54:41 am
I bought sandcast #538 form the original owner. It was parked more than 30 years ago, so it was a great candidate for a full restoration. Last time I restored a sandcast (#410), I decided to take a unique picture (http://www.ujenimotors.com/anatomy_of_a_sandcast.html) of it. You can read about that bike here (http://www.ujenimotors.com/sandcast_410.html). For #538, I decided to film the entire restoration! It worked out to almost 40 hours of timelapse footage! Perhaps I'll post longer timelapse cuts if people are interested, but for now, here is the five minute version (make sure you have the sound on!):
Superb video, Sam! I love the order in which you carried our the reassembly!
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: markb on April 29, 2019, 09:58:38 am
Wow, that is incredible. I assume that was you doing all the work. Upholstery, wheel lacing, painting, carbs. :o You are one talented guy! ;)
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: 4pots1969 on April 29, 2019, 11:12:20 am
My God.... You are incredibly talented as usual !!
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Sam on April 29, 2019, 11:50:26 am
Yes, I did all the work except for the metal plating....havent figured out how to do that in my tiny garage yet! ;D
I actually painted the tank six times before I was happy with it. Not joking! I've painted a lot of bikes, but I wanted to get this one as close to perfect as I could. One issue that I was determined to solve was candy consistency around the filler neck. Because you must be very careful with how many passes of your candy you use, it is almost impossible to get an even amount of candy paint around sharp angles like the filler neck. The result that you will see on many restorations is that the candy either gets lighter at the filler neck or darker depending on how the painter chose to address the problem. I wasn't happy with either solution. After a few tries, I came up with this:
1. After painting the basecoat (a very fine silver metallic), I masked off around the filler neck anything that would be painted from a spray gun above the tank.
2. I then used an airbrush to apply the candy to the side of the filler neck and the gas cap "hinges". You can see this at about 2:38 in the video.
3. After removing the masking, I painted the candy as normal.
4. The result was even candy on the entire tank!
This was the first time I have ever painted the stripe on the tank. I used an original early wrinkle tank to get all the measurements and, as you can see in the video, painted the black and then the gold. I'll never use a decal again. The result is so nice and more accurate to my original tanks.
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: fire ball bike on April 29, 2019, 08:15:08 pm
all I can say is that's a mighty fine bunch of work on two really nice bikes about as perfect as you can get
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: acruz on May 01, 2019, 09:56:06 pm
Bravo Sam! Bravo! Great job on the bike and video. I'll see you at the Quail motorcycle gathering. Good Luck this weekend.
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: markb on May 02, 2019, 07:56:44 am
Sam, I watched your video again and I gotta tell you again how amazing it is. At first glance 487 hours seemed like a lot but having been there myself and not being nearly as efficient as you are I probably have two or three times that in #97. :o That's why I deliberately don't keep track of my hours. I don't think I want to know. ::) What an inspiration for all of us to see how things are done right. I can't wait to see what you do for the website and future projects.
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Sam on May 02, 2019, 11:03:25 am
Fire Ball Bike, thanks! But I certainly can't claim they are perfect...but I am getting better at this :)
acruz, see you at the Quail!
Markb, I'll bet #97 is way beyond 487 hours! I've seen your bike in person and it is on par with the very best restorations I have ever seen. World-class. Seriously!
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: kmb69 on May 02, 2019, 01:16:33 pm
Impressed! That is really kool, Sam.
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: markb on May 02, 2019, 04:28:28 pm
Markb, I'll bet #97 is way beyond 487 hours! I've seen your bike in person and it is on par with the very best restorations I have ever seen. World-class. Seriously!
I've had #97 for nine years, two winters is L.A. So seven (long Minnesota) winters that I've worked on it, don't do much in the summer. So six months times 7 years, 42 months. Average maybe 20 hours a month (5 hour per week) adds up to over 800 hours for a wild-ass guess. Whew! I have to say I have enjoyed it. Thanks for huge compliment.
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Ferenz62 on May 05, 2019, 02:45:35 am
Hi Sam,
thank you once more for your fantastic video, here is a very rare brochure I have, with the flat rate time charts, showing what a skilled mechanic should need to repair or restore a CB750... So you are far before these skills :D :D :D I have 2 brochures, if anyone would like to buy one from me, please send me a mail. Best regards from Germany, have a sunny sunday, Tom..
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Steve Swan on May 05, 2019, 09:33:58 am
Tom, your flat rate books are only the second time in 20 years i've seen them available. seems few care about factory literature. if anyone is starting a collection, these flat rate books are pretty uncommon.
Title: Re: Sandcast #538 Restoration Timelapse
Post by: Sam on May 05, 2019, 05:54:11 pm