Classic Suzuki Thumpers » The Restoration

Fully Assembled

Matt — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 15:00:32 +0000

[The bike was completed, to the standard seen below, in August 2009. The MOT/Tax was arranged at the end of August/Beginning of September 2009]

Here she is fully assembled. Although lacking in graphics, and a few neat touches, she’s completely road legal and very fun to ride!

I decided that this should be a bike that is well used, therefore I restored her to a good, nice standard, but not concourse.
There are things that I will do and add over the years, but, at least for now, this project is done.

Thank you for reading and following, and watch this space!

Feel free to leave your thoughts.

The First Start

Matt — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 22:30:52 +0000

Today we heard her for the first time, lovely.

It was a bit of a struggle, i’ll admit….

The smoke around the engine is just excess paint etc burning away.

Notice the blond moment at the beginning….[slight miss-calculation of which position the kill switch was in..]

Getting The Big Bits On

Matt — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:29:02 +0000

It’s been quite a while now! As projects go, this one is fairly easy going, although nearly finished now
Today we managed to get the electrics finished, get the tank and side panels on and assembled the headlight.

Adding The Handlebars

Matt — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 20:00:13 +0000

Today we decided to assemble some of the front end. We basically painted the handlebars, cleaned the levers, and began to rebuild a front headlight.

Parts that i still need:

Front mudgaurd (white)
Clocks (tacho and speedo) [maybe]
Seat cover
Mirrors
Shiny bit’s and peices!

Adding The Shocks

Matt — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 21:57:01 +0000

Today me and my dad finally got around to fitting the Shock Absorbers we found at the Classic Bike Show in Stafford. We also managed to get the air box on, began polishing the front forks, and painted a few brackets.

Adding The Electrics And Yokes

Matt — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 21:35:23 +0000

Today we routed the electics and attached the yokes.

Putting The Engine Back In The Frame

Matt — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 22:00:49 +0000

She will be a completely standard DR400S, with the exception of the SP400 engine (which I painted myself).

I got the frame and swing arm back last Sunday. The job was £60 and worth every penny. Me and my dad put the engine in and started to assemble the electronics.

I still need to get a few parts, shocks, front mudguard etc, so I’ll be searching around at the next classic bike show. I want the bike to look at good as possible, so ill have as many new parts as i can find.

I think i’m going to get the wheels rebuilt with stainless spokes so that they look nice and shiny. I need to get the petrol tank repaired and repainted aswell as it has a dent in it.

My baby so far…

Parts that i still need:

Front mudgaurd (white)
Clocks (tacho and speedo)
Seat cover
Rear indicator
Heat sheild for front of exhaust (downpipe)
English spec headlight glass
Rear shocks
Mirrors

Dismantling The Frame

Matt — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 21:28:27 +0000

Ive started to dismantle the frame. The loom is off, as are all of the components. In fact, alls that left is the rear swing arm, the left rear shock, and the rear brake lever. These only remain because i cannot get the bolts out! When ive come up with some ideas in getting the final bits off, ill send the frame and swing arm off to be painted. The frame will be black, and the swing arm silver. I’m also going to send the tank off as soon as possible, to be restored, as it is badly dented and damaged with green paint!

Note: I need a new rear left indicator and possibly side pannels, rear shocks and a front mudgaurd.

The Engine

Matt — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 21:20:45 +0000

The first thing to do was to fix the engine after snapping the cam chain. The damage was a bent valve, snapped cam chain and unfortinetly some of the engine casing broke away. However, the piston ect were fine

Once we had put the engine back together, me and my dad re-painted it black, to meet the original factory standards.

Next step. Dismantling the frame.

The Bike

Matt — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 20:38:27 +0000

In 2006 i purchased a 1980 Suzuki DR400. It cost just £25!!! When inspecting the old tax disk, i noticed that she had not been taxed since 1989! It stands to reason then, that she had been stood since then. All she required was a new battery, a new ignition (the key was lost) and a carb clean (there had been petrol in there since she was left). Success! She ran! I rode it for a little while in a local field, until the lock nut came off of the inlet valve and snapped my cam chain. Since then ive decided to try and get the bike back into its original glory.

This is what i suppose could be described as a diary, of the work ive done on the bike.

Heres how the bike looked before i stripped her. Everything had at least a little rust, or a dent, and the inner tubes were escaping from the sides of the tyres! Unfortinetly at some point, a tin of paint had been dropped on the bike, so the left side was paint stained. The plastics were also completely perished, and as a result, all will need replacing.

The pictures don’t reflect the intire state of the bike, however i’m sure you can imagine what a bike, left for 17 years, would look like!