New guy form South Dakota

[GUTS]

Hi fellas, Wayne was good enough to let me join your forum so Thanks! I will start off by letting you know that I do NOT own a sandcast 750 but I have a good friend that has 4. The reason I joined your forum is that Leroy want's me to restore his latest sandcast purchase, Frame #56 with engine #79. I do not take this task lightly, I understand the historical value of a sandcast that was produced this early. I want to share and gather information so this bike gets restored as correctly as the availability of parts allows. The bike came with a lot of spare parts that appear to be correct for an early sandcast including no-number pipes, short chain guard, 5mm throttle cable, wrinkle tank, meters and a bunch of other stuff we haven't looked through yet. Leroy is a well to do man with an incredible motorcycle collection and he doesn't mind paying for good work and rare parts. He has over 500 restored motorcycles and his Honda collection is over half of it. I do restore motorcycles for a living so I know what I am up against. I am very curious to see how many of the original parts that came with the bike are still on it. I am restoring an early CB750 K1 for him right now so it will be two or three weeks till I start on it. If anyone cares to see some of the restorations I have done I can put up a few links. I specialize in Kawasaki triple and Z1s but I have done other brands.

Here is #56 as Leroy bought it with K1 tins.









Here are his other three sandcasts. The first two are restored and the red on in back is original.






The red bike in front is a Vic World bike, Frame #546 and Engine #661
The blue bike is from the Jimmy Dean museum and it is Frame #446 and Engine #478
The red bike in back was originally sold in Rochester MN and is an unrestored bike. Frame #1095 and Engine #1319

I am really looking forward to hanging out with you guys.  

Leroy also said he would fine with adding his bikes to the registry. I think one is already in there but maybe under a different name.

[patriotcommercial]

You probably should send the gauges to that master in Arizona for a rebuild !!!

Good to have you join

[kp]

Welcome Guts. That's is an interesting collector you are restoring for. Most of our member collectors have a Sandcast or two, a lesser number have an under 1000 VIN machine and a rarer number have a VIN with 2 digits. Your man has a two digit as well, making for a total of 4 under 1000, all of which look to be nice machines. I envy him.
May I make a recommendation or be so bold as to give some advice. A two (2) digit VIN is not only a rare item but has some of the rarest factory parts fitted to any Sandcast and as such needs to be restored with the knowledge of what you have and what parts are unique to this bike. Fortunately for us we have a start to finish restoration of a two digit machine #97 by Mark  Beuttner (Markb).  This is not just a restoration but detailed guide as to what is on an early (read 2 digit here) machine. There are over 40 pages to the thread but I would suggest you get 2 six packs and start on page 1 and read to the end.  I doubt there is a more comprehensive record of what you will/should need to know about an early machine. There is a load more other stuff on our Board site that will give you tips on paint, finishes, techniques etc so your success in the venture will all come down to research. You already do restorations so application is not something that will bother you. You mentioned that there is a bunch of spares that came with the bike. Just a cursory look at your friends bike tells me there are some significant parts missing so keep that box of parts at hand and throw nothing away. Something tells me some of that original fitment to this bike lurks in that box.
For the record I also own a 2 digit VIN and I won't be doing my restoration without reference to Mark's writings. Final aside is I note you are familiar with Z1 bikes. I also own a 2 digit VIN Z1 (#94) and a 3 digit, 743 which are yet to be restored
All the best with the project

[GUTS]

Thank you, I appreciate the advice. I have read Mark's restoration thread about a dozen times, it's a fantastic restoration that not very many people have the patience or determination to do correctly, I am absolutely impressed with Mark's work. Leroy is a top tier collector and his collection will take your breath away. It's in North Dakota and if anyone get's out this way get ahold of me and I will take you there. Here is some links to some of the motorcycles I have restored.

This 1965 Kawasaki B8 was my first restoration. I finished it 2 years ago and it was featured in the Nov.-Dec. Motorcycle Classics Magazine.
http://kawasakitriplesuk.forumatic.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=5271

I did this 1972 Kawasaki H2 for myself.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1634116_I_finished_my_1972_Kawasaki_H2_750_restoration.html

I restored this 1973 Z1 for myself too.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1756981_I_finished_my_latest_Kawasaki_restoration.html

This 1969 Kawasaki H1 I restored for the fellow with the sandcasts.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1779679_I_just_finished_another_Kawasaki_restoration.html

This 1973 Kawasaki H2A is the latest I built for my friend Leroy.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1827339_First_restoration_of_the_year__Kawasaki_again.html

This is a 1976 Harley Davidson SS175, it was a terrible pain to restore. It was for another friend of mine.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1787843_My_latest_restoration__not_a_Kawasaki_this_time_.html

I think I will be able to do the #56 sandcast justice with the help of you guys. Like I said though, it will be two or three weeks before I start on it. If there is anything you would like me to check out on any of Leroy's sandcasts, let me know.

[Wayne]

The blue bike is from the Jimmy Dean museum and it is Frame #446 and Engine #478

I remember the tread on The James Dean Museum bike very well on here. Back in June 2013 by hewittj2. We decided to hide that thread... the guy was just amping up interest in the bike, or trying to. Nice bike though.