The Panther Restoration Project Has Begun.
After a lot of head scratching and a fair amount of indecision, at long last the project has begun.
The first thing that got me off dead center on this was the tires. From the date code they look to be about 23 years old.
As you can see the side walls are pretty cracked too.
The wheels have gone to Wheelworks in Garden Grove for new tires, re-chrome and new spokes.
All of the black metal parts except the frame are going to Primo Powder Coating in Huntington Beach for refinishing.
I'm trying to get a new seat from an outfit in the UK who specialize in vintage bike stuff.
However, it seems that they march to the beat of a different drum.
Still waiting for a formal quote after more than a week.
I can't tell if the seat pan is original or not.
But for sure the two pieces of rolled steel angle on the rear attachment points are not original.
The gas tank has gone to Classic Cycles in the city of Orange.
Check them out at the link below.
The tank needs some body and fender work along with re-chrome and paint to restore it to former glory.
There are numerous dings scratches and scrapes which need to be removed before the chrome and paint are applied.
Italian Red, RAL 3003 to be precise.
I have one last hurdle to overcome to remove the swing arm, the factory drawing shows a stud passing through the frame and the gearbox, even though it is called out as a bolt.
On my bike it is a bolt, with the head on the wrong side to allow it to be removed without taking the primary drive and clutch apart.
More on that later when I decide how to tackle that problem.
Currently, the team at Sheddington are working on tooling for the dis-assembly of the rear shocks.
More soon on the project.
Ciao Bella,
Norm
