Most people fall in love with motorcycles when they are young and this was the bike that sparked someones love for motorcycles. That person happened to be the owner of Atlanta Motorcycle Works. This bike sits in the shop when Joe isn't riding it. One day while we were closing up the shop I finally asked Joe if there was a story behind how the bike came to be. 

Joe had a buddy when he was in high school that had an RD400 DS. Joe was 17 years old at the time but by the way he described his buddies bike you would have thought it was last week. One of the perks of owning a motorcycle shop is having a staff of guys who like building and restoring motorcycles. Knowing its for the boss man makes it a bit more special. Joe is a very busy guy but if he was walking through the shop and his bike was on the lift he would check it out as he does with all the other bikes. Instead of asking what we were doing for the customer he became the customer. He could make judgement calls on parts and even be hands on when he had time. I remember him talking about the colorway for the wheels and how he decided on which exhaust to use. 

As you can imagine this was a full custom build. Motor rebuild, powder coating parts, re-plated hardware, and a couple of choice aftermarket parts. All of the rubber parts and seals where replaced on the bike. A set of SCR radial heads were added along with some Hagon shocks. A pair of VM32 Mikuni carbs are handling the fuel. Joe is beyond pleased with the end result. Its amazing to see someone get a bike they have wanted for so long, in a trim that was picked by the person riding it.  

Build sheet:

• Performance SCR radial heads
• Performance exhaust
• Powder coated frame and swing arm
• Custom paint
• Custom powder coated wheels
• Hagon shocks
• Re-plated hardware
• Fully rebuilt engine
• Floating rotors
• Braided stainless brake lines
• Fully restored controls
• Custom upholstered seat
• Trimmed inner fender 
• Aftermarket tail light and indicators
• Vapor honed crank cases
• VM32 Mikuni carbs
• Powder coated engine covers
• Airbox delete with pod filters
• Performance crankshaft
• Avon Road Rider tires
• Exhaust valve actuator delete
• Fully restored braking system
• Vapor honed, polished and clear powder coated fork lowers
• Dyna ignition coils
• Dyna electronic ignition

A lot of riders have a favorite bike from their youth, it could be the little motocross bike you learned to ride on, or the Honda Dream you used to commute to college, or that one bike that was just out of your reach price wise but you've never forgotten. Some riders will go to great lengths to finally achieve their dream and Dave is one of those people, but there was a problem. Dave couldn't find a complete, running CL to restore. Undeterred, he brought us a CL350 with a seized engine and a CB350 donor bike since the CL and CB share the same engine and frame as well as several other components.

Even though the CB's engine ran, it wasn't in the proper form for a restoration, so we took it down for a complete rebuild.

After vapor honing the engine parts looks as good as new!

With a strong foundation to work from, the engine was reassembled using all new gaskets and parts.

Here she is, painted, chromed and put back together with the correct tank, seat and bars.

A lot of people wouldn't know the differences between the CL and CB models so we spend plenty of time making sure this restoration was as accurate as possible. We had to source the correct wheels since the CB ran a 1 inch smaller front wheel and the CL's front wheel was unsalvageable.

Since this was a complete restoration, everything from the neck bearings, hubs, forks, carbs and of course, engine, was rebuilt. The hubs were vapor honed and polished along with the front fork lowers. Reproduction badges, controls, lights and signals were replaced making this CL look like it did on the showroom floor.

Build Sheet:

• Complete engine Vapor Honed
• Complete engine rebuild
• Carbs restored and tuned
• Factory style repaint
• Engine covers were polished
• Hubs and fork lowers polished
• Frame and swing arm powder coated
• All new switches
• New seat and grips
• Wheels trued and relaced

All restoration projects are a labor of love and this pristine 1974 Kawasaki H1 Mach III 500 is no different, but before we delve into this resto, let's take a look at the history behind "The Widowmaker".  

When first introduced in 1969 the Kawasaki H1 Mach III was the most powerful production motorcycle on earth. Not surprise considering legendary racer Tony Nicosia had a hand in it's development. Powered by a 500cc, 60 horsepower, 2-stroke triple, it was putting in quarter mile times in the low 13-second range at over 100 miler an hour. Unheard of at the time. While relatively docile being ridden at under 4,000 rpm, once it reached 5,000 rpm it becomes a whole other beast, earning a reputation for popping unexpected wheelies due to the sudden burst of power. 

For this restoration, we started at the front by removing and then rebuilding the front suspension. Below you will see the freshly restored triple tree installed on the frame. The forks were entirely rebuilt and the lowers were polished. 

With the suspension removed we disassembled the rims for cleaning, polishing, relacing and truing.

When it was brought in the engines center cylinder was seized requiring a complete tear down and inspection. Years of accumulated sludge from the 2-stroke couldn't have been helping it.

After the cylinders were freshly bored and honed the heart of the "Widowmaker" was reassembled using all new pistons, rings, gaskets and hardware. 

The carbs also received a thorough cleaning and media blasting before being rebuilt using all new gaskets and hardware. Jetting and tuning will happen once she's up and rolling.

With the engine back in running condition we could move onto installing the rear suspension, bodywork and tail lights. 

She's finally a roller! Here we can see all the freshly restored controls, gauges, brightwork and other miscellaneous parts needed to revive this beauty.

With a new seat being made and the side panels installed we were all getting excited for this build to be complete. The only thing left was to install the renewed mill and she would be ready for testing.

After some tuning and a couple shakedown rides, she's done! Her owner was thrilled with the quality of work and attention to detail we put into this restoration.    

So thrilled that a couple day's later he pulled into the shop to thank Joe, owner of Atlanta Motorcycle Works, again. To learn more about Tony Nicosia and the history of the H1, click here.

Build sheet:

• Rebuilt forks
• Polished fork lowers
• Rebuilt front brake caliper
• Restored gauges and controls
• Restored and polished hubs
• Relaced and trued wheels
• New exhaust
• Rebuilt carburetors
• Media blasted heads and cylinders
• Polished heads
• Restored triple clamps
• Bored and honed cylinders
• Rebuilt engine with new pistons
• Polished engine cases
• Installed new wiring harness
• Fabricated battery holder
• Installed new seat
• New spark plug wires
• Restored master cylinder
• Rebuild rear drum brakes

Ralph brought us this '78 Z1R for a complete mechanical restoration. The bodywork was in surprisingly good condition for a bike over 40 years old, but the paint still needed freshening up.  While the bodywork was being resprayed attention was given to the mechanicals.

Starting with a valve adjustment, carb rebuild and tune, we got her running perfectly, before turning our attention to the front end. With fresh fork oil and seals installed, the front suspension was good to go. New brake pads, steering neck bearings and tire finished off our work to the front end. 

In the rear we installed new brake pads, swing arm bearings and rear tire.

We also replaced the throttle and clutch cables giving the '78 a like new feel to the controls.

Build Sheet:

• Dyna S ignition
• New petcock
• All new cables
• New tires
• Plug wire set
• Valve adjustment
• Fork rebuild
• Fresh paint
• Fresh brake pads
• New wheel bearings
• Swing arm bearings
• Steering neck bearings
• All new emblems