1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

A forum for stories, pics and updates of your resto's. Be it a barn find, Grampas hand me down or a bike being brought back to it's former glory.If you are restoring it, show us your stuff!

Moderators: Brant, Sagebrush, Forum Moderators

Post Reply
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#1

Post by toolbox »

Hey guys!
New to the forum and Goldwings, but not new to resurrecting a bike (went through roughly the same thing with my '83 Shadow). Last fall I picked up a 1982 GL1100 Interstate corpse, and was recently able to drag it home since the snow has finally melted up at my place.
I've got a bunch of pics on photobucket, but I'm not approved to post urls yet, so I'll have to share them later.

The ad said "has some cosmetic damage, and the starter relay is burned out so it won't currently start". He was asking a LOT for it, considering it didn't even run...and that's probably why it was for sale for several months before I got it.

When I went to go check it out, I got the whole story... Bike was purchased new in 1982, and sold to the second owner in 1988. The guy wrecked it on the highway roughly a year later, and parked it in his garage intending to fix it...but he never did. He passed away in 2013 in his 70s. His estate sold it to the guy I got it from...he bought it thinking it would be a quick fix, but all he did was take the fairing apart to get to the ignition switch (the estate didn't have a key) so he could get the ignition switch out and have a key cut.
Bike wouldn't turn over, and he covered it with a piece of plywood...and there it sat. Until I dragged it home :) .

So, after doing an initial autopsy, what did I get? An '82 GL1100I that had damage from the wreck--fairing was trashed, instrument cluster badly damaged, right side crash bar destroyed, timing cover and valve cover damaged, rear crash bar has road rash, as does the hard bag. Front fender has some damage, and the ditch lights were destroyed.
Bike only had 16K on the clock when wrecked, and the engine is very clean. Gas tank is almost full of disgusting 30 year old gas. Front tire is original, rear tire was replaced shortly before the wreck and looks almost new (but is dated 1988). Brake calipers were locked up solid (which led to an adventure getting it off the trailer that I'll maybe tell someday...it wasn't pretty lol). Engine wouldn't turn over all the way even rocking the bike in gear.

She had a bunch of extra lights and bumpers and chrome and stuff stuck all over her...she must have looked like the Queen of the Highway back in the day :).

So, what are my plans for her? Going to go semi-naked...sort of a bagger. My Shadow doesn't have any bags, and I'd really like to have a little cargo capacity. Fairing definitely won't be going back on. While I can appreciate the full dresser look, it's not really my thing. While these were still being sold as a standard bike, they've got really nice clean lines under that stuff, and I'd like to let it show some skin. Going to leave the trunk off when I don't have a passenger...also going to finish the truck rack in some sort of black finish so it's not as noticeable when the trunk is off. I would just remove the rack, but my GF loves bikes, and I want to have the option of having the back rest for her. Haven't decided on a paint scheme yet...since it all has to be redone, my options are wide open. Going to lose a lot of the extra chrome and lights and doo-dads... For my own taste, a little chrome goes a long way...I like it as an accent, but it doesn't need to be the star of the show. I tend to like simplicity better. I've already done quite a bit of work on getting her running (it's not yet, but should be in the next few weeks), and I'll post more about that later.
Anyway, just wanted to give a little introduction to my project...I've seen so many great things here that I wanted to share my progess, and ask for help when I hit roadblocks.
Cheers!
Scott
User avatar
Rat
Photo Gallery Admin
Photo Gallery Admin
Posts: 15457
Joined: Fri Oct 21, 2005 9:59 pm
My Album: https://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/rat/
RIP: cookie
Location: Toronto .... Canada

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#2

Post by Rat »

Welcome to the 'Wingdom.

Sounds like you're well on your way ..... lots of help here ..... you can post pics after 5 posts .....

Gord
"I'd rather Ride than Shine"
‘14 KLR650 ... not a rat ... yet
‘84 GL1200i ‘R2B6' (Rat to Be 6, the last, adopted by twowings)
My Original 'RAT' was a hybrid '82 CB900/1100F
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#3

Post by toolbox »

RAT wrote:Welcome to the 'Wingdom.

Sounds like you're well on your way ..... lots of help here ..... you can post pics after 5 posts .....

Gord
Thanks! I'll post some pics when I hit 5 then... I'm off to a pretty good start on it...I've brought heaps back to life that were in worse shape than this one, so it shouldn't be too bad. So far it's been really easy to work on...I'm used to working on stuff like my Contour SVT, which was apparently designed to be worked on by contortionist dwarfs. Everything on the 'Wing is pretty easy to get to...even more so than my Shadow.
User avatar
robin1731
Membership Admin
Membership Admin
Posts: 21724
Joined: Mon May 29, 2006 8:31 am
Location: Decatur, Indiana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#4

Post by robin1731 »

"timing cover and valve cover damaged,"

And you say the engine won't turn completely over. Check that a valve isn't open. Could have broken the timing belt or hit hard enough to cause valve damage.
1976 Goldwing Super Sport
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#5

Post by toolbox »

robin1731 wrote:"timing cover and valve cover damaged,"

And you say the engine won't turn completely over. Check that a valve isn't open. Could have broken the timing belt or hit hard enough to cause valve damage.
It had some "interesting" internal damage because of the impact...I'll share the details once I can post pics. I've been wrenching for 20 years, and never seen anything quite like it... Timing belts were actually ok (and were really nice Honda originals), but will obviously be replaced. It's really funny though...the guy I got it from said it wouldn't start because of the starter relay--it had about 23 reasons it won't start, but the relay wasn't one of them :IDTS: .
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#6

Post by toolbox »

robin1731 wrote:"timing cover and valve cover damaged,"

And you say the engine won't turn completely over. Check that a valve isn't open. Could have broken the timing belt or hit hard enough to cause valve damage.
I'd also add that when I first tried to turn the engine over by rolling the bike, I dumped ATF in all the plug holes...the #1 plug was a little rusty, and all the others were clean. This ended up being a clue to the problem...you're on the right track, though not for the reason you might expect.
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#7

Post by toolbox »

Ok, so I should be able to post pics now... Here's how she looked in the CL ad...

Image

Image

The seat looks torn up, but that's actually just stuff from a cottonwood tree or something. It was kind of sunk into the mud when I went to look at it from sitting for so long...
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#8

Post by toolbox »

And here she is on the trailer when I got home from picking it up ...it was like 9:00 at night.

Image

Had to back the trailer up my driveway...in almost total darkness. It was um....well, lets just say I'm glad the neighbors probably couldn't see what I was doing any better than I could lol. Took about 15 tries to get it lined up where it needed to be. Once I did the real adventure began...the brakes were locked up pretty bad from sitting, which led to a three hour odyssey getting it off the trailer. I'm not kidding, it took three hours to move the bike 20 feet. And yes, I should have just taken the brake calipers off first thing, but I thought I could get it to scoot off without doing that on the trailer. Long story short, I ended up with the bike stuck on the ramps...which were only about 14" wide. So yea, couldn't use the side stand...and I was all alone. :oops: . Anyway, eventually got it into the driveway.

Here's what I got...

Front is going to need some work...going to need to find a standard headlight and mounting ears.

Image

Front fender has some damage from the wreck, but might be salvageable.

Image

Pay no mind to the weeds that were growing in it lol.

Here's some of the impact damage...

Image

And the "good" side...

Image

It landed pretty hard on the valve cover and timing cover...you can still see asphalt stuck on it.

Image

Road rash on the hard bag and guard.

Image

The engine OTOH, is really (really) clean for a bike of this vintage...

Image

Lots of chrome and lights out back...
Image

Image

Someone popped the lock out of the cover :/

Image

Instrument cluster got it pretty bad, but I've got an ebay replacement from an Aspenscade on the way. When I power the electrical system, the lights come on, so at least the wiring should still be good. Hoping to reuse the speedo since it has the actual milage on it.

Image

It's filthy, but the seat is actually in remarkably good condition for its age...
Image

The fairing got it pretty bad in the wreck. It's fine though since I wouldn't be using it anyway...

Image
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#9

Post by toolbox »

Started to take things apart, clean, inspect, and figure out what all needs to be done. Here she is starting to get torn down...

Image

Removed a bunch of bling from the back of it. I think by the time I'm done putting her on a diet, she'll probably lose at least a hundred pounds from when she was last run. These are the bumper thingies.

Image

And here she is with the covers off, and radiator off. The coolant was very likely original from the factory, and looked PERFECT! Bright green, with no signs of corrosion or anything. Looked like it was put in yesterday, which is a really good sign.

I unbolted the hard bags so I could move them out of the way, but left the wires hooked up for now.

Image
User avatar
Rat
Photo Gallery Admin
Photo Gallery Admin
Posts: 15457
Joined: Fri Oct 21, 2005 9:59 pm
My Album: https://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/rat/
RIP: cookie
Location: Toronto .... Canada

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#10

Post by Rat »

Might want to look really hard at the frame where the crash bar was mounted .....

Gord :roll:
"I'd rather Ride than Shine"
‘14 KLR650 ... not a rat ... yet
‘84 GL1200i ‘R2B6' (Rat to Be 6, the last, adopted by twowings)
My Original 'RAT' was a hybrid '82 CB900/1100F
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#11

Post by toolbox »

RAT wrote:Might want to look really hard at the frame where the crash bar was mounted .....

Gord :roll:
From what I could tell it looked ok...it didn't even have the usual dents from the clamps being cranked down too hard. I think the engine actually took the brunt of the impact...for better or for worse. The crash bar wasn't actually all that much help in this case I don't think. It looks like it got bent a bit when the bike went over all the way, but the engine hit the pavement first (and hardest). I'll give it a really close inspection just to be sure though.
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#12

Post by toolbox »

Ok, so speaking of the damage... here's what it looked like when I got the timing cover off:

Image

The backing plate was cracked, but the pulley seems to be ok.

I figured whatever was keeping the engine from turning over, the answer was under the cylinder head, that came off next. I was afraid there was a big blob of rust or something in the #1 cylinder, but it actually looked pretty good. Well, they both did actually. It needed a little cleanup, but really wasn't too bad.

Image

The head on the other hand... :shock: .

Image

The #1 exhaust valve was stuck, and looks like it may be slightly bent. With the head off, the motor turned over by hand easily. Still not sure if the valve was bent at the time of the accident, or possibly when I was trying to turn the motor over. I wouldn't think the impact could have made it skip a tooth or anything...but who knows.

So, bent valve isn't that unusual. What was weird was what was *behind* the valve...in the exhaust port:

This stuff--
Image

And a closeup:

Image

This stuff was so dense, the valve couldn't retract. What it looks like is the impact caused a very small crack in the head in the water jacket...and over the years coolant leaked into there, and as it dried, it formed crystals. For 30 years. Eventually, there was so much of that stuff in there, the valve couldn't have closed even if it wasn't bent. Soooo strange. At any rate, the head was trashed. Block looks fine though. I found a replacement head on ebay from another low mileage (18K) bike that was wrecked and has been sitting. I'll clean it up and lap the valves, and it should be good to go I think...

Here she is with the head off...and you can see the frame looks straight, though I'll inspect it more closely.

Image
Last edited by toolbox on Mon Feb 29, 2016 7:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
toolbox
Titanium Member
Titanium Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2016 1:54 am
Location: Montana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#13

Post by toolbox »

Even with the head off, the starter wouldn't turn the motor over, so that was next... I took it apart and gave it a good clean and lube. Also cleaned the starter switch with electronics cleaner.

Image

I hooked it up to my truck battery and let it free spit to get the grease circulated well. Put it back in and hooked up power...and for the first time since the 1980s, the motor bumped over on the starter :). I didn't crank on it because I hadn't changed the oil yet and didn't want it to circulate the old stuff (which I drained yesterday, and was actually nice and clean).

Next up...pulling the carbs. Now, before I pulled them, they wouldn't open at all...they. Were. Stuck. Like, glued shut with old varnish. Removing them was pretty drama free, but I can tell getting the throttle cables hooked back up will be...challenging lol. Here they are right after pulling them

Image

Image

I gave them a quick bath in my ultrasonic machine, just to see if I could get them to move...

Image

Even the sliders were stuck before I soaked them. I've seen some nasty stuff, but I've never seen gas turn to glue as bad as it did on this poor thing. After getting a bath, everything was freed up...

Next up is a carb rebuild, getting the replacement head ready to go and installed, cleaning the fuel pump (I'm sure it's nasty too). Oil and filter change. Gas tank overhaul. Put the cooling system back together, and at that point, I think she should be ready to make some smoke... I'm ordering the gaskets and tune up parts in the next couple of days. Carb kits I'll probably order next week. I used to rebuild Quadrajets all the time, and I've done the carbs on my Shadow, so I don't think these should be too bad...except that there's four of them :) I'll put new tires on in there somewhere, and check the wheel bearings, lube the final drive, etc.

Anyway, that about catches up to where I'm at now. She's been pretty easy to work on, and so far everything seems like it should come together just fine. With any luck I'll have her running by the end of march...then it's a brake system overhaul, front forks, and headlight/turn signals. I think the rest is just cosmetic...paint job, and damage repair, etc. Really hoping to have her basically done by mid-summer, or sooner if possible. Mostly just depends on how much money I can throw at it lol.
User avatar
robin1731
Membership Admin
Membership Admin
Posts: 21724
Joined: Mon May 29, 2006 8:31 am
Location: Decatur, Indiana

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#14

Post by robin1731 »

Get carb kits from Randakk, don 't skimp. And use OEM head gaskets.

Bright green coolant is probably aftermarket. OEM Honda coolant is more of a blue/darker green.
1976 Goldwing Super Sport
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
User avatar
ericheath
Honored Life Member
Honored Life Member
Posts: 9580
Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2009 11:20 am
Location: Winnipeg, Manituba

Re: 1982 GL1100 Corpse resurrection...er restoration...

#15

Post by ericheath »

You jumped right into the deep end, but it looks like you're a pretty good swimmer to get that much done. Hook your throttle cables up when the carbs are half-way in to save on swearin'.

They are 'spensive carbs to rebuild. Advice is usually go with OEM float valves. If you get bored waiting for parts, you could pull the other head and replace that gasket too so you won't have to do it next year. Seems like sitting weakens gaskets in horizontally opposed cylinders.
Whatever I suggest here should be given ample time for a moderator to delicately correct. I apologize in advance.
77 WING, 1200 engine with 77 heads, cams, gl1100 foot pegs, Magna V65 front end, 764A carbs, [-gone Suzuki M109 monoshock--, replaced with gl1100 shocks] gl 1200 swing arm, gl1500 final drive, wheel and rear brakes Valkyrie seat, Meanstreak tank, Sportster pipes, Power Arc ignition off crank.
77 Wing. black
83 Wing, in pieces
"Continuing education is important even if the subject matter is fairly useless (as in this case)."---Greg Foresi
Post Reply
  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post

Return to “Members Restorations and Projects”