I am trying to make these bikes original. What I have seen from my research on original unrestored bikes is that the front and rear hubs were painted. I know that some were a satin finish also but I could not duplicate that. I even have some with original paint on them still, so that's why I did it....

Wow, I never got to uncrate a Hodaka. That would be something to remember that's for sure. I do definitely remember going to a Hodaka dealer in Weslaco, Texas back in the day. My father and I went. He sold Hodaka's and Ossa's. I have always wondered what happened to his inventory of parts when he cl...

Here are some wheels that just came in from Buchanans Spoke and Rim in Azusa, CA. They are for number two. They have polished stainless spokes, and nipples rather than zinc plated. If they ever need repolishing, its easy to do. Never will rust either. The hubs are painted with Mr. Pauls Hodaka grey ...

That's a little better than before. Both were a mess, just glad I straightened them and could repair the bends and dings. There is just some very small evidence that they had damage now. Its hard to see though with all that shine. On number 2 bike I will add a few steps extra when I polish those fen...

Now here are the fenders after another going over with the hard felt wheel. Pretty good for now. Look at that reflection

The hard felt polishing wheel came in yesterday and this morning I gave the fenders in this post a good going over with it and using the Brownells 555 white polishing compound. They both are even more lustrous now. These pics are hard to see them clearly because of the shine and reflection but they ...

Yes that's right. It could go in the resonator. Good idea Thank you

That thumb in the pic is the one I almost lost using that dad gum table saw a few months ago. Almost back to 100% thank God. Thumbs are a necessity. The other day Matt Glasscock asked me about clear coating the decals. I have been thinking about that and I still have some clear coat made by DuPont. ...

Ok, next I sprayed the cover thoroughly with water then I peeled the protective cover off the decal and placed it in position. Once everything was good, I squeegeed the water out using that yellow bondo spreader. Once I got the water out I removed the backing paper from the decal by pulling it off t...

Now when I determined where the correct rotated position was, I marked both the decal and the cover with some blue painters tape. This way when I peel off the backing paper I will know where to position the decal back exactly where I want it. I also used plenty of water with about four drops of dish...

Ok, Next comes the decal placement. I decided in order to help me put it on centered and positioned in the center of the circle the cover has on it. That I better cut the decal out into a 6-3/4 inch diameter which is approximately the same size as the center circle the cover has on it. That way, all...

Today I installed a decal onto one of my model 93 A air cleaner covers. This first cover, when I painted it, I used some glazing and spot putty compound to hide a few scratches it had in it. After I painted it, the paint over these areas where I used the putty did not react well to the paint and wri...

Water boarded? Ha! that's exactly what that monkey needs

What a shame, Dad Gum thieves. That's just outrageous. I better get those security cameras I bought two years ago and get them hooked up. I could not imagine having my bikes ripped off. That's bull&%#@. They ought to be shot.

Thank you Sir.

Also, another method for polishing things are these 3M scotch brite roloc discs. The different colors represent different grits. They have quite a few grits available. You can use these also with a drill. Notice the holder tool for the pads. It has a 1/4 inch shank for a drill also. I have used scot...

Here is a pic of the aluminum polishing kit sold by Harbor Freight. You can use it to do what I have done to those aluminum parts. Its cheap, I don't remember how much, and you can use an electric drill that most of us have. Works good, I have used these when I ran out of the Brownells compound I no...

Here is the other side. I thought one would not be up to par for sure but you cannot tell. I just wished I took a before pic.

Here is a few pics of some 93 A chain guards. I wished I would have taken a pic of them before I repaired them. They were both a mess. I hade to weld, grind, straighten and tweak them until I got them fixed. They came out much nicer than I thought they would. You cannot tell now how bad they were. A...

Yes the paint Paul sells is an Acrylic Enamel but it does not use an activator. The single stage DuPont paint I have used for my Bultacos uses an activator that causes the paint to harden very quickly and it is hard and tough when its dried. Pauls paint I have noticed does not harden as quick. It do...

Yes, In a day or two when the paint is good and dry I will spray water on the area where the decal is going to be placed. Then I will put the decal on and position it where I want it then squeegee the water out and there it is. I have done it before on my store front window glass with decals and its...

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Yes, There are many ways to do polishing. First, Harbor freight sells polishing kits that work well. These kits have polishing pads that you use with an electric drill. They even have several grits of polishing compound. If you have scratches and or damage, remove them first by hand sanding with a 2...

I also painted several Rat 93 air cleaner assemblies this morning. I used some of Mr. Paul Stannards paint. I really like it. Goes on very well and is easy to touch up with a brush or using my Badger air brush. Lovely color and if there is an imperfection it can be polished out easily. Just let the ...

This afternoon I repaired some damage to a 93 Model front fender. Then I gave it a good polishing. I finished it with some Brownells 555 white polishing compound using a stitched 8 inch wheel. It came out really nice. Like to where you could use it to shave in. The rear fender that I did the other d...