Will, I am riding a Nighthawk that sat in a barn for about 12 years. It turned over fine. Remove the spark plugs before turning the rear wheel in third gear to make it easier. I'm in my 60s as well. I have found parts plentiful. Check the inside of the gas tank for rust. Graham
Sent from my iPad > On Jan 29, 2015, at 11:48, Will K <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > Good to see interest in the Nighthawk. > > About 25 years ago I had the pleasure to take an 83' Nighthawk for a ride and > I was very impressed; smooth; all the power I could ever want; very > responsive; just felt like a beautifully engineered machine. > > So, I recently lucked into picking up an 83' Nighthawk for a couple hundred > bucks. > > Photos: > > https://www.flickr.com/photos/accidntl/sets/72157650536979555/ > > > The bike was buried in a storage unit for the past 15 years, but it looks > very good on the outside (see photos; under 11,000 miles; seat looks great). > This bike was used in the Western states (dry climate) – not near the ocean. > The previous owner told me he did not prep it for storage; says it ran great > the last time he had it out (over 15 years ago). > > My Plan: > > I'm retired, in my 60s and bought this bike with the plan of restoring it and > selling it (I don't ride anymore). > > I hope to get some ideas from the group here. > I will take photos and document my progress as things slowly (hopefully) > progress. > > I have the “Official” Honda Shop Manual, CB650SC … (hard copy). > Also downloaded PDF versions of Honda Shop Manual and Clymer. > > I will be reading the repair tips and other useful info found at Paul's site: > http://www.hondanighthawks.net/ > > > Question: > - How hard are parts to come up with? - oil filters, o-rings, gaskets, . . . ? > - Recommend any cleaning or conditioning products? > > My initial strategy – slow; in stages; methodical: > - Both old tires look and feel like they've crystallized – so will have to > come up with the money for inexpensive replacements (advice welcome). > - Drain oil (though I'm thinking it will be more like sludge). > - Fill crankcase with 10-30 > - Remove spark plugs and squirt in a few ounces of 10-30. > - Let it sit for at least 4 days > - Warm up the oil pan and figure out how to hand-crank it (not going to hook > battery to it yet); may need to remove drive shaft and turn engine with > wrench? carefully just to see how bad things are gunked up. > > Well, anyway – that's the general idea – go slow; incremental. > > Any ideas / tips on how to take a bike that's been in storage for a long time > – back into service? Challenges coming up with things like replacement > gaskets? > > Thanks > > Will > > > > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Nighthawk Motorcycle Lovers!" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nighthawk_lovers. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Nighthawk Motorcycle Lovers!" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nighthawk_lovers. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
