Resto / Build Costs

[Bitten]

It's funny how everyone has a different approach and desired outcome, for me the original goal was to own the bike of my childhood dreams, from there it just took over and I wanted it to be as 'pretty' as possible. I do plan to throw it around a track and get it dirty as often as I can amongst all my other duties in life!

I have loved the research and chasing bits and pieces from around the globe as much as the actual work and like you Oldfart, I can now sit back and look at her with a big smile knowing that everything is as it should be

PS On another post we were talking about suspension and I have just got back from dropping off the shock and forks to SOS in Penrith, Sean at SOS seams like a pretty knowledgable bloke so he has been entrusted with the final piece in the puzzle, I will post some images as soon as it is done and I work out how to get them on the forum

This site has and will continue to be a great source of information to blokes like me (novice restorers) your collective knowledge is truely awesome and I thank you all for the direct and indirect help you provided

Cheers

[firko]

In the twenty plus years I've been restoring, rebuilding and creating old dirt bikes the one thing I've learned is that keeping an accurate record of what you spend only leads to heartache and disappointment. Naturally when I've restored a bike for a client I must keep a record but on my own bikes, especially my hot rod specials, I just go with it....whatever it costs is whatever it costs.

Being a self funded retiree I most definitely have to watch the dollar output so I do make a concerted effort to keep the costs as low as possible by doing as much stuff as I can myself. I'm also pretty canny at picking up bargains on eBay, Marks Swapmeet and other places, once again saving a lot of money. If you're intent on doing the restoration yourself the most important thing is to get the core bike for as little outlay as possible. Try and find a bike that's never been previously "restored" as I reckon it's better knowing that you're the first to touch the bike, avoiding any hidden butchering by previous bush mechanics.

I'm about to start restoring a Yamaha IT250H which I paid $500 for. The bike looks a bit on the rough side but under the barn find patina it's a solid, unmolested bike. The engine's got plenty of compression, a spark you could weld with and all of the gears are there. The shock seems to still have dampening and the wheels and hubs are straight and reasonably unmarked. The frame's had no damage or repairs that I can find. The plastic mudguards are shot but the tank and side panels will clean up OK.
Because I'm a poor old retiree and as the bike will only be used a couple of times a year I'm not going to spend shitloads turning it into a shiny show queen. This is my Vinduro ride so it's certain to get all scratched up anyway ( I fall off a lot) so all I'll so is get it as good as I can and try to keep the total under $1500. Rather than spending the big money for plastic I'll use DC mudguards which work well for a project like this and tidy up the side panels and tank including a new sticker kit. I won't be repainting the frame, I'll merely pull the bike totally down and clean and polish the original paint. I'll give the engine a bit of a top end overhaul and a quick coat of satin black powdercoat, bash out the pipes header pipe dings, fit a set of YZ490J 43mm forks and triples I got for $50 a couple of years ago, a twin leading backing plate from Marks Swapmeet and a set of cheap tyres, I don't give a shit what brand, as long as I can get 'em both for around $150.....I hope to have it started within a couple of weeks with a planned Christmas finish (which in reality means it'll probably stretch out 'til next Easter as I do have a couple more projects on the slab).

Many of you might remember the step by step thread of Yamaicos low buck 465 Yamaha flat tracker build which we posted a couple of years ago. Well, Pete's about to start on another of his amazingly low cost bike builds which we're going to post once he gets rolling on the project. I'll save a description of the bike until he starts but both he and I hope that it will show that you can build a good, fun bike for under $1000.


 

[Bitten]

Images attached (I hope) - I'm a fast learner!

These were taken a few weeks ago and I will put some more / better ones up when the job is done!

Again thanks to all

PS Welcome back Firko, you are one of the many who has personally responded to my many naff questions so thanks

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[Bitten]

[firko]

Import permit $50
Shipping $400
Port charges, quarantine and GST $1,447

Bitten, those charges seem a bit on the steep side. I had to go back through my files to find what we paid and found the following bill from Peter Leahy Imports from two years ago.
There were two complete bikes, a dismantled mini bike and a spare frame in the shipment. the costs were:

*Freight.....................$1200 (total for all 3 bikes)
*Customs clearance.....$ 195
*Qurantine.................$ 125
*G.S.T......................$   37.72
*Duty on goods...........N/A
total..........................$1589.72 (remember...this is for three bikes)

[shorelinemc]

i think they have amade a mistake on the gst componet ,you get charged gst on the shipping costs now ,so there is on your prices 120.00 in gst on the freight plus gst on the cost of the bikes

[Bitten]

Hi Firko

As this was my first attempt I had nothing to compare it with, when I first found the bike it seemed like a bargain at $2,100 compared to what they were going for on places like DDR.

To have it picked up in Las Vegas, taken to LA and loaded on a ship and then sail it to Australia was $900 US - not $400 as posted earlier but I have since done some checking and it is about $400 just to ship so the agent made $500 - he earn't it!

I was told that there wasn't much more to do on it but when I got it it was well short of what I would have thought 'not much more to do' meant! - photos can hide a lot!! I had joined Heaven VMX club in the anticipation of riding the bike straight away but once I saw the condition that was folly!

Then just as it hit Australian ports I was provided bills from Freightnet for the following (I expected some charges but never to this extent and I suspect some of them are just 'padding' to screw people like me!)

$903.92 covering...
Delivery order fee - $65.00
Destination Port charges - $184.08
Destination Terminal Handling charges - $62.30
Customs clearance - $135.00
AQIS Inspection - $150.00
Quarantine Entry fee - $129.00
Quarantine Attendence - $35.00
Postage - $5.00
Destination Cargo Automation fee - $40.00
Destination documentation fee - $20.00
Destination security surcharge - $10.00
GST on the above $68.54

I also got hit with
$175 steam cleaning bill
$282.46 GST on the bike plus and shipping component
$70 GST Compile user fee - is this for the person who calculates the amount

I had no choice in the customs brokers as this was arranged by the contact in the USA

Anyway it's done now and I know better for next time.........

PS I forgot to add in on my earlier post the cost of the GMC pipe and muffler so the cost keeps climbing so I am about to hide the receipts in a deep hole and like you said it is what it is!

Cheers

[GOOF]

                                                                                                                                                                  Hey Bitten,    hope you have added the cylinder nuts   !!!!!   hate to see all that work go to waist  ..

[Bitten]

Well spotted! - and my wife got her tea towel back as well!!

This was at soft build stage as I was waiting on a bunch of stuff and was bored

Cheers

[shorelinemc]

couple of others to add in time slot booking fee,trucking fee

[Marc.com]

Wow looks like you got off light with the security fee at the US side

The problem with fees is most of them apply the full container fees to your pallet of bits. But defintiely Australia has pretty imaginative in the fee generation stakes.

[paul]

nearly finished this one/i,ll add up what its cost /probablly 5k

[shorelinemc]

one more piece of advice never let wife/girlfriend find the list of money spent i have seen that get ugly

[Toolboy]

Here is my before (found leaning up against a shed south of Perth) and after Suzuki RM400N 1979.
Total cost of rebuild around $5000...i never kept reciepts....it was an act of love..
and still not finished....rear shocks are a little long..you learn so much rebuilding yourself.





Tim

[monaro308]

When i bought this RM125C i wasn't even sure which way i wanted to go with it.
It wasn't pretty to look at,but the day i got it,i already had it down to a frame 2 hrs later and thought "she aint a bad old stick"
Maybe being on arvo shift and then rebuilding it in the lounge room kept me interested to see how it would turn out.
The further i got into it the more i realised that the core of the bike was pretty good to work with and agree with Marc that starting with a decent
bike helps alot.
The biggest fun is the "chase" at swap meets and searching around the world on Ebay etc.
It does get expensive,but having Suzuki keep quite a bit of parts still in stock after 30+ years is a bonus to keep going.
I started noting things down and piling up the receipts but half way through the build i just filed them away and didn't bother anymore.
I just like working on bikes,it keeps me occupied and seeing the finished product be it a lounge queen or whatever frankenbike is FUN.