Complete Restore, how to decide
 

I bought my Tour Glide early August. It runs great, but it needs a lot of work. Rusty fenders, frame, rear shocks, leaky base gaskets and who knows what else. I haven't removed the seat yet, I've just been riding it. It's a '91 with 55K on it. The engine paint is shot, plastic/fiberglass chipped. It was ridden, not kept clean. I like the bike. I picked it up for $5600. Not sure if it was a good deal or not, but compared to 10K plus for a newer one, I was happy to get a running bike.

So I guess my question is at what point do you decide it's worth investing in and restoring it or just ride the bike for the next few years and upgrade? I'm not a mechanic by any means. I'd work on tearing it apart, but I wouldn't be comfortable doing anything major without an experienced person assisting me.

Any thoughts and or advice would be great.

I think it all boils down to personal preference. I know originally when I bought my Tour Glide, I was in the same boat. It was a fixer-upper for sure, but was running and in my price range. At first I thought I would just ride it, fixing things as I went along, then possibly trading it in on a newer one later down the road when I wasn't going to be backwards on the deal(owing more than trade-in value).

Eventually though, she needed repairs just to keep running. I found a blown head gasket, so instead of making payments on a garage ornament, I tore her down myself and replaced the top end gasket set. This got her back on the road for a while, then something major happened and the engine seized.(still not exactly sure what happened). Again, so I wasn't making payments on a non-functioning bike, I tore her down and had the engine remanned, then put her back together myself, with the help of the forums, the FSM and the service manager at the good local shop.

Now she's running better than ever and I have been able to concentrate my efforts on the body; fixing the broken latches, replacing the luggage gaskets, etc.

Basically the sharknose and the paint job, which I didn't love at first, have grown on me to the point that I think Ruby is about the prettiest bike around. There is really nothing short of a wreck that can kill a bike. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING on it is replaceable, repairable or rebuildable. This even includes the frame, engine, transmission, etc. AND it's usually much cheaper and easier if you do it yourself than paying someone else to do it. Yeah, I put almost 3 grand into the remanned engine on Ruby, but you know what? I have a brand new, stock engine that I got to break in myself the way I wanted. The only other way to do that would be a brand new bike, which would have cost a lot more than 3 grand.

I have turned the screws and nuts on my bike. I know it pretty damn well now. Ruby is definitely MY BIKE. It no longer matters to me how many miles are on the odometer or how many tires and oil changes she has had. I will continue to keep working on her and taking care of her for as long as I can. I am making her my ideal ride, and she's already most of the way there, so why would I want to start over with someone else's used trade-in?

I know this was long-winded, but it all boils down to this: If you love the bike, fix the bike. If you don't love the bike, figure out why and fix whatever you don't love about it. If you hate the bike, maybe you'd be better off finding one you love.

I'm kinda partial to Tour Glides and I think yours is a real looker for sure. It would be a shame for it to not get fixed up. I think you should fix her up, but then again, it's YOUR bike - not mine.

Ride it until you feel the need to change it's appearance - it will be darned expensive just to repaint it, unless you are a competent painter. Those tank decals are around 50 bucks each IIRC.

This pretty much sums it up.

I'm in the process of a complete restoration of my '93 FXR. In a word (or two)…expensive and time consuming. I bought the bike for $5500, and the restoration cost will easily eclipse that amount once I'm done with her.

Basically you have to throw all financial sense aside when you undertake a project like this. It's either a labor of love, or it isn't. Whatever budget you've estimated, just go ahead and double it right now, and get it over with.

I'm upgrading a lot of things on the FXR to bring her into the 21st Century. FXDX front suspension, FXDX brakes and 13 spoke cast wheels, Ohlins rear suspension, newer FLH swing arm with spherical bearings, Baker 6 speed tranny, and building the EVO engine from the new stock cases up.

At any rate, good luck with your choice.

Ester started out as an FLHS in bad need of some serious repair when I got her for what I consider a good price here in Cali. I did all the work myself on her and it sat getting repaired for almost 6 months before I could ride her. Since then I have slowly fixed/upgraded systems and pieces as I ride her. If you like her, show a little love and fix her little by little. EVO's are not hard to work on if you can read the factory service manual and can wrench decently.

Once your done, you know that she's in good condition and she will serve you for a long time. JMO

Mine has gone from a dented, no charging, blown shocks and forks, electrical nightmare........to Ester. Still not done.............but gettin there. I'm not restoring her, I'm making her the way I want her to be.

http://s181.photobucket.com/albums/x...to07041220.jpg

http://s181.photobucket.com/albums/x...o033112271.jpg

As for the motor ... do a compression test and oil pres. test .
If all is good and you dont hear any nasty noises from the cam chest then all is good.
The rest is all up to you.

Another great quote! That's two in less than 7 replies! LOL!

Thanks for the replies, and what you all have said makes absolute sense. I do love the bike. Since I've purchased it, my Sportster has sat loney and neglected. The Sporty has it's own issues, but it is pretty decent shape. I just need to figure out where it's spewing oil from.

Anyway, for the time being I'll ride it until the temps get too frigid, then roll it into the pole barn and tinker with it over the winter.

Sell your Sporty & drop the cash into your bagger. In the spring you roll out with an awesome machine!
Hatch.