Buying your first motorcycle is a thrill in itself. For every motorcycle lover, nothing can match the feeling of buying their first ride. While buying a brand new motorcycle can set you back by a significant amount, you can choose to purchase crashed motorcycles for sale and enjoy great savings. Online auctions have plenty of salvage motorcycles for sale that may fit your budget. After some restoration work, you can hit the roads and enjoy the thrill of riding. If you have already taken the route of online auctions and have brought home a crashed motorcycle that needs restoration, you’re in the right place. We’ve brought five DIY tips for restoring your crashed motorcycle and help you make it road-ready. Read on.
1. Study the Service Manual
First of all, you need to get your hands on the service manual of the motorcycle you bought. It is recommended that you study the service manual properly. It will give you an overview of the different parts of your motorcycle and how to work on them step by step. From changing the oil to even engine rebuild, you can find almost everything about your motorcycle on the manual.
2. Recharge the Battery
Checking the battery of your motorcycle will be a good idea. Open your service manual and follow the steps to check the voltage on your battery. Give the battery a charge. There are very slim chances of finding the battery in your old motorcycle in usable condition. Sitting around in the auction yard for long periods is detrimental for battery health. If the battery doesn’t seem to charge, replace it with a new one altogether.
3. Clean-up the Carburetor
Most old motorcycles come with a carburetor for fuel delivery, whereas newer models may have a fuel injection system. If you have purchased a motorcycle with a carburetor, inspect it thoroughly. Carburetors can be contaminated or choked with old fuel. Take the carburetor out and start scratching the black tar-like formation. In most cases, a simple cleaning routine should suffice. If the carburetor, however, seems worn out and the gaskets are about to give up, considering rebuilding the carburetor altogether. Buy a carburetor rebuild kit which comes with factory jets and gaskets.
4. Check the Electrical Circuitry
Make sure the battery is connected and then turn on the key to check the electrical circuitry of your motorcycle. Make sure that the headlights and turn lights are working fine. The light that illuminates your gauge cluster also needs to be working fine. If a light or two is not working, it may simply need a bulb change. Bulbs for older motorcycles are inexpensive and you may consider changing all the bulbs, including the headlight, for a clearer view of the road at night.
5. Get Rid Of Rust and Dents
You will find rust at many places on your old motorcycle. Take sandpaper and scrub the rust off of your motorcycle. If there are some tiny dents on your motorcycle’s body, you can handle them with some fillers and mixers. Once the rust and dents are gone, get it painted. If you have spray painting equipment with you, it makes matters even simpler. If not, simply reach out to a professional for a top-notch paint job.
Wrap Up
Restoring a crashed motorcycle can seem daunting or time taking, but in most cases, you may end up bonding with your machine and get to learn a great deal about it. You can find a wide range of crashed motorcycles for sale at online auto auctions offering crashed and salvage motorcycles for sale. All you need to do is browse through the auction inventory and find the one that best suits you.
