We purchased our 1978 R45/N about 9 years ago from a 'friend of a friend'. He was having some health issues and could no longer ride on two wheels. Not too many of these here in the states, and I thought it would be a fun addition to the stable. I've only put about 700 miles on it.
One of the last times I rode the R45 was to the National in Redmond, OR back in 2010. Spouse tells me on the way home that the bike is smoking a bit and it stinks something fierce.
Later that fall I acquired a compression tester and results were pretty much as I expected. I could have sworn I recorded the numbers, but where I stuck that piece of paper eludes me to this day. The 45 became a "when I have time" project. Almost 7 years later, I've barely started. I did get a valve job done locally, but the right side intake was so far off it couldn't be properly adjusted. Head are now packed up in a box long with a valve kit from Moto Bins. One of my Guzzi mechanics recommended a shop in Ballard, WA to re-do the valves. I'll drive those over next week. :-)
Before:
After. Very pretty, but one of those valves is not like the other......
I ordered a bunch of bits from Moto Bins, mostly stuff that was obviously needing to be replaced. Oil pan screws, rubber grommets, points, brake lines, pipes, etc.
I've taken the front end apart.
Forks taken apart, cleaned and ready for reassembly. Only problem is, the rubber ring that can cause so much hate and discontent when it disintegrates is completely missing. hmmmm..... Was it removed sometime in that past, or was there never one in there? Shop manual clear shows it....
Waiting on new steering head bearings, and trying to decide if I should just re-use the brake pistons and at some point in the future have a set made. Or keep the bike on hold while I save up for a Brembo. I REALLY want to keep this bike as original as possible, so I'm thinking the Brembo will be a last resort.
Brake pads appear to be delaminating (that was the first word that came to mind). Those will be on order soon, along with a caliper O/H kit.
Calipers were pretty dirty, but I cobbled up a DIY soda blaster setup. Arm and Hammer makes some soda blasting media in different grades, I picked up a 50lb sack of the medium grade at my local Harbor Freight. Stuff works pretty good, and isn't as dusty as plain baking soda.
After. Little bit of work to be done yet, but I'm pleased with how the calipers came out.
I'm a bit concerned about the pistons. From what I'm reading the pitting at the top will not effect the braking. Will save up for a new set of pistons to be done at a future date.
The handle bar mounted master cylinder is another matter entirely. I have replaced all the lines with s/s, along with new pipes. But the fluid leakage has bubbled off a bunch of paint. My little soda blaster isn't powerful enough to take the paint off, I'm thinking maybe I'll just place it in a small tub with a bottle of 10 year old, unused brake fluid. Won't hurt it, but the paint will be easy to wipe off. haha Considering that the round m/c's are Unobtainium, I'll have to get creative with stripping and re-painting.
That's about as far as I've gotten. Only one day off for the next two weeks (OT slave here, saving up for trip to Thailand), so no more work to be done until the end of the month. In the mean time, I'll get some parts ordered and plan for the next round of work. And figure out of the shocks really are supposed to have the rubber ring on them. :-/