Vegas Newbie Resto 82 Seca

[VegasNewbie]

Figured I'd take the plunge and start a thread for the restoration of my '82 Seca. I'm a brand new rider and this is my first motorcycle. I wanted something that I could work on and maybe customize.

There's a ton of great info on the forum and it's encouraged me to try some things that I wouldn't have without your assistance.

After too many hours looking at custom bikes, I decided that I'd just bring the Seca back to near original shape. The Seca is in pretty good shape with minor cosmetic flaws. The engine runs great and I've been on it learning to ride.

The petcock was leaking and gas got into the oil so I needed to fix that. I have a little bit of rust in the tank so might as well etch and seal that too. Tank is etching right now.

And while the tank is off, may as well check the valves. And so on. I'll be doing a little at a time because I want to continue to ride and improve my skills.

Here are some pics of the tank and petcock. There was no gasket left on the petcock, so that explains the leak.

I do wonder how you get all of the liquid out of the tank. It doesn't all come out of the petcock hole, so how do you completely drain it?

 

[xschris]

You can let it evaporate out of the take. I have a extraction pump I use to get it all out of mine. I got it at walmart for $40 in the boat section.

 

[VegasNewbie]

Thanks Chris. I was thinking a pump might be the only way to get the last bit out.

 

[VegasNewbie]

Got the tank etched and lined and I never, never, ever want to do that again. Nasty chemicals and trying to drain them through the tiny hole for the petcock was not fun.

While the tank was off I checked the valves. Couldn't get the wire harness guide off, so I couldn't get the valve cover all the way off. I was afraid I'd strip the screw head that holds the wire harness guide, so I'll tackle it when I change the valve spacers - yep, I'm out of spec.

Also changed the fork oil and fork seals. The stuff in one of the forks looked like transmission fluid, it was that red. Who knows, maybe it was transmission fluid.

Put the forks back on with the speedometer cable running outside the forks, so I got to do it all over again.

The forks are much firmer now, and I'm looking forward to my ride tomorrow.

Then I put gas in the tank and immediately saw gas leaking out the petcock. NOOOOOOO!
Tightened one of the mounting screws and things seem to be sorted now. I am concerned about how close the fuel line is to the engine tho - any thoughts?

I learned there are things I enjoy working on, and things I don't. I also learned there are things I can do that I never thought I would, like checking the valve spacing.

 

[levdir]

The nearness to the engine doesn't look like it should be a problem to me, there ought not to be too much heat radiating off the valve covers and it's not that close to the jugs. If you're worried keep an eye on it and make sure it isn't cracking at the nipple, otherwise it's probably fine.

 

[VegasNewbie]

That makes me feel better - thanks levdir. I did check it after today's ride and it wasn't hot. And no leaks!

Took it for a ride and it was so much smoother with the forks having new oil and seals. It was pretty windy so I got buffeted about, but when not getting blown around, it was a noticeably smoother ride.

 

[VegasNewbie]

I got my seat re-covered. I'm still on the fence about the red, but I love the white. It gets too hot here for an all black seat. It's got a little better padding now too.

 

[iamunique127]

Nice looking bike- very clean.

I like the white of the seat too.

 

[xschris]

Seat looks good but just don't ever touch it with a greasy hand

 

[billday]

Thank you for not chopping up your beautiful bike! Looks great!

 

[VegasNewbie]

Thanks for the encouragement!

Chris, if I can get something dirty, I will, so thanks for the warning. Hope I remember to cover it when working on it