TOM SCHANNE
XS400 Enthusiast
Greetings and Happy New Year
I was recently given an 81 XS400 Heritage Special that has been sitting in a shed and not run since around 1985. I'm not doing a perfect restoration just disassembling and cleaning up the surface rust on the chrome parts as much as possible, also making sure it runs well and is safe to operate. New carbs, rebuilding the brakes etc.
Sometime over the past thirty or so years someone painted something overhead in the shed where the bike was stored either with a roller or some type of spray paint. Either way the bike was covered in tiny pin head sized white paint dots. I've gotten most of the paint off the chrome and engine up using 0000 steel wool but haven't tackled the tank, side panels and seat yet. I think for the tank and side panels a series of wet sanding and finish with a coat of clear should do it.
Anyway, nice to be here, seems like a ton of great info and a lot of really helpful people on board. Hopefully as time goes by I'll be able to give back. In the mean time I have a couple of issues I'll post in the other section.
Tom
I was recently given an 81 XS400 Heritage Special that has been sitting in a shed and not run since around 1985. I'm not doing a perfect restoration just disassembling and cleaning up the surface rust on the chrome parts as much as possible, also making sure it runs well and is safe to operate. New carbs, rebuilding the brakes etc.
Sometime over the past thirty or so years someone painted something overhead in the shed where the bike was stored either with a roller or some type of spray paint. Either way the bike was covered in tiny pin head sized white paint dots. I've gotten most of the paint off the chrome and engine up using 0000 steel wool but haven't tackled the tank, side panels and seat yet. I think for the tank and side panels a series of wet sanding and finish with a coat of clear should do it.
Anyway, nice to be here, seems like a ton of great info and a lot of really helpful people on board. Hopefully as time goes by I'll be able to give back. In the mean time I have a couple of issues I'll post in the other section.
Tom
