To Restore or Not?

[AdminGuy]

Which do you prefer? Original unrestored or museum shine restored? Explain your preference... VOte above.

[val]

the most important thing is to get the bikes out in the open for all to enjoy, but if the truth is to be known I really enjoy seeing original unrestored bikes with some history to them

[LouieMCman]

You can restore a bike a 100 times but it's only original once...I prefer them original, I just wish I had a garage full!

[L. A.]

OH MAN!!!!!!
now ya gots me thinkin' twice about my flathead retoration.....oh well...waaay too late now...LOL

[AdminGuy]

Your flathead is lookin' good!
I think alot of folks get opinonated when they see really early rare bikes. Alot of talk about over done restorations, etc. ie. the paint was never like that coming out of the factory! Post war paint tech. has come a long way from slapping a coat on w/ a brush and pushing it out the door to market.

The aging process/patina on orig. restored bikes sometimes tells a story of its history, use, previous owner (a sence of place and time). Sometimes it is really interesting. Sometimes it is a "far gone" pile of mismatched painted parts broken bits and rust.

Finding a "barn fresh" bike. One has to really consider alot of options regarding its restoration.
Any comments folks?

I dream about finding a barn fresh bike. They're few and far between these days. Anyone have any good stories about finding one? Periodically they do pop-up on the market.

[MWFAH52]

Leave them original if they are fairly close to original. Restore them when they are already way past leaving them original.

[Jim]

I like them out and running, if they are rusted and running thats OK and so is a 100 pointer, but youd better drive it. Thats why they were built in the first place. Right?

Jim

[Andy]

If its running OK and you are not planning any long trips and has most of the original parts,leave well enough alone.If its not running and missing parts or original items are in sad shape,once you start taking it apart and decide to do it right,restoration/detailing makes sense. And I do admit I prefer clean bikes to the extreme,a clean original (detailed not restored,theres a big differance) is hard to beat.

[S_G]

Anyone ever see that Ferrari from the fifties that shows at Pebble Beach? It looks like it was in a fire!... peeling paint and corroded chrome. But it is very rare and mechanically sound, thus the finish has not been altered. Originality is paramount to the authenticity of an antique object, whether it's a piece of furniture or a painting, pottery or ***lery or an antique bike or car. Even when I hear of somebody who found an old vehicle with the original year issue license plate and opts for a vanity plate instead, it says alot about their knowledge of the importance of originality. On the other hand, old stuff survives in lots of different states of decrepitude and mix-n-match disrepair. In many cases there's nothing at all wrong with putting something together that's not completely original so it can be used and enjoyed for what it does and for the pleasure of riding it. I just think it's a shame when somebody alters something that's complete and unrestored... (because the paint's not shiny?) ...changes it forever and robs the future of an example of how a particular bike was originally put together for those who are restoring other machines of the same type.

[Andy]

Its a proven fact,an unrestored original motorcycle(or car) is much more desirable and worth more than restored.Interestingly enough,(and correct me if I am wrong)show judging does not always reflect this statement.

[parkerize]

Well, hmm, where do I start. I am an original paint nut job I guess sums it up. My dad and I have hunted original paint bikes for over 20 years, drives on the spur of a phone call or discovery of a classified add basically all over the northeast, southeast and even midwest, sometimes with a bike in tow on the return and well, sometimes with nothing but good coffee, a few beers here and there, tired eyes and another road trip with a seller who claimed they had something they didn't (but sure as hell we went anyway with a wad of hard earned cash, passion and hope). I can tell many stories- I will share just one for now. I remember receiving a call from a long time AMCA club member asking if I would be interested in a 47EL that was painted robins egg blue but "otherwise is all original as you like them but has been sitting, dirty and probably could be gone through". The price was reasonable, I respected the club member's knowledge and despite the lack of original paint, I told him sure, drop it off. I remember the snowy day we met. I keenly recall looking at the saddlebags when the van door opened and thinking holy crap, this is going to be good as the original loctite bags were in incredible shape. Too bad for the robins egg blue paint- it's disgusting I thought. As it was getting dark and the lighting was poor, to ensure the bike was largely original I checked a few major items that are generally good signs of originality, like the original seam rocket fin muffler, y pipe, clock, 47 only tanks, etc. as best I could in the diminishing daylight. All correct. Hmm, it truly appeared to be a time capsule with 16k miles on the clock. It was getting late so we unloaded, parked it in my barn, had a few beers in the house and my good friend (the seller) left for the relatively long treck back home. The next day in the light I looked at the bike more closely and truly was amazed how in tact all was, long stem SH2s, 47 deluxe solo seat, needless to say I was happy. Too bad for that crappy paint job. I then checked to to see if there were what appeared to be original Good Year Super Eagles. Sure as hell again I was amazed, original tires, albeit with some checking and dry rot but holding air. As I checked the tires I noticed on the front fender brace what appeared to be a few specs of some darker blue paint under the chipped puke robins egg paint. I asked myself could it be that the front fender still had the original paint underneath? I took some easy off oven cleaner (which by the way is great to remove non-laquer based enamels or other early paint applications without harming the underpaint), and to my amazement I was quickly removing what was a thin layer of the robins egg paint with relative minimal effort. And there it was--- beautiful original Skyway blue underneath! I then almost had a heart attack thinking could it be that the entire machine has original paint under the turd robins egg paint? If so could I get it all off? Once again Dad and I with a seller claiming they had something they didn't, but this time to our benefit for once? There I was frantically testing spots all over the bike and before you knew it I had a checkered board of robin's egg blue and skyway blue all over the place. Sure as hell, the entire machine (absent the chrome dash cover) was original paint Skyway blue under the robins egg. Today that machine sits in Winner's Circle in the original class at 99.25 points. Thanks to Ben in Vermont, it also now has the elusive original paint dash cover that took me about 8 years or so to find! My good friend (the seller) still has heart palpatations every time he sees it!

[c.o.]

Great story! Feel free to spin a yarn any ol' time you please! Awesome stuff!!

[Chris Border MFG]

Ok. I have to agree with they are only original once. The story behind most machines ( cars, bikes, tractors, ect ) is great. If you restor to a TRUE CORRECT FACTORY CONDITION, nobody likes it. Story for you of a 54 corvette I restored a few years back. Owner had a really nice 89 point 54 vette already. He bought another to get the 100 points with. During the restoration he wanted me to "fix" the door fit at the rocker/qtr panel corner. All early vettes the door sticks out about 1/4 inch there. I told him this and he insisted. Ok "fixed". He then wanted me to smooth the underside of the hood and decklid. Ok again "fixed". everything else was as factory and he did well. When he asked the judges why he was docked points.... The "fixed" areas hurt him. Car looked great but not correct. Same with bikes. They never looked that good from the factory. My vote.... I like them all. Even if its just a orphaned motor on the bench :D

[t-bone]

the voting poll is closed but my vote would be for original. i have a 50 fl that is about as original as youre going to find but it had been repainted. the paint on it was terrible i could,nt save the original paint underneath so i repainted it the correct color and did nothing else but clean it up. so is this a original 50 fl or a restored 50 fl? either way it is my favorite bike to ride. the reason i ask is i found a 440 indian last year in the same condition that was painted with a brush so far all i,ve done is clean it up and get it running.

[big jesus 151]

I once bought a 25 chief frame in primer for 100 $ at a swap ( 20 yrs ago ) & was very happy with my purchase. Got it home & under the primer was so much brass in pits the size of pencil erasers & 40 % of them just plain holes !!! That I figured the guy took a large hit considering the time & materials it took to polish that TURD..... But now whenever I look at a pristine restoration, I always think....wonder if there's a piece of crap under that beautiful paint. I like unrestored anything, they don't lie ! Big jesus 151, pusherman racing :cool:

[moon wolf]

First, the wording in the poll indicates an extreme bias against restored bikes, but the more important point is that you're arguing apples and oranges. Most of us would love to have an original paint, but by definition there aren't many of them (disregarding the burgeoning number of counterfeits), certainly not enough for all lovers of antique bikes to possess one.

[sludge]

whether restored or original the one thing a bike should never see from that point on is soap and water....i love the grease, oil, and gas stains etc. BTW i like original paint if there is enough of it left, i really like looking at the old striping on original paint bikes.

[Pete Gagan]

Personally, my definition of a good machine is that it should look as much like a well maintained and cared for example would have looked like when it was on the road, no more, and no less. That means overly shiny is out, and so are a lot of those "barn finds" unless they are exceptional. (If they were still in the condition they were when they went into the barn, that would be better)
If an original machine is a bit past it, it should be well photographed before and during the restoration, so the history is preserved and not lost.
That being said, I do have one original peice which I will never touch, (other than to drive it) It's a car- a 1950 XK-120 Jaguar roadster that has never been driven in the winter or in the rain. Original paint, top, tonneau cover, sidecurtains, etc., all as new. That's what I call original and untouchable. If half the paint was missing it would be restored.
Just one man's opinion.
Pete Gagan

[indianut]

I have a 1965 BMW R50/2 that I bought from the original owner 18 years ago. My wife and I ride it once every couple of years to a BMW Rally about 350 miles from here. I paid $180 for it and it even has a VDO mechanical driven tach on it that I have been offered a LOT of money for. It is 100% original down to the paint and the Period Craven Panniers! I put a Sportster windshield and a Solo seat on it, but still have the Original seat and Period Windshield. The problem is that the paint is in poor condition with a lot of surface rust. It has gotten worse since this picture was taken about 10 years ago. It has only 20,000 miles on it. I used to think that when I get old I would restore it, but lately I have started thinking that it would be a mistake. Even with the poor cosmetic condition. What do ya'll think?
http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l291/INDIANUT/DSCF0003.jpg

[cheifrider]

sell it and buy an indian!:)

[indianut]

Believe it or not I have TOO MANY Indians already!

[Chris Haynes]

Believe it or not I have TOO MANY Indians already!

I know people with one that make that statement. :D

[DaveSwanson]

whether restored or original the one thing a bike should never see from that point on is soap and water....i love the grease, oil, and gas stains etc. BTW i like original paint if there is enough of it left, i really like looking at the old striping on original paint bikes.
When I bought my true barn (garage) find 56 FLH it had 50 years of oil and gravel dust caked on all the usual places. It was petrified to the extent that the tranny could not be moved to adjust the primary chain. I had no issue with returning the bike to what a well maintained and lubed bike should be. I went through pains to not disturb the patina of time, but the grunge had to go!

[Joe G]

Everyone loves an original "barn find". Notice what gets the looks at a bike gathering, its the ones with the character.

An unrestored bike is like the old timer that can tell stories all day long. Stories of adventure, misadventure, triumph and tragedy. A restored bike is like an old timer who got tons of plastic surgery, died his hair, dressed to the nines and has complete amnesia.

Okay the comparison may be a bit over the top but that's how I see it.

Joe