After speaking to the owner further about the damage to the Ariel Huntmaster frame I have found out the bike was laid up after a small accident. Also the bike had been having some issues with the clutch, I will show why later.
Back to the job at hand, I have now taken the frame to work and lightly blasted all the old paint off so I can now see what I am up against. A few problems as expected are a little clearer now, the side stand and rear footrest mounting’s will both need sorting.
The original side stand mounting was damaged so this was a temporary fix at the time i think, this will defiantly have to go and be replaced with a much sounder bracket. The frame tube is also full of holes so will need patching up a bit. It wont be a particularly pretty job but I can’t leave it like it is.
I think the footrest mounting just snapped in the accident but will need some sorting out. As this build is not a full nut and bolt restoration I have a cunning plan for the footrest mounts. I will do both so they match up, the other also has a crack in it so will need doing too.
Now these two ugly bits of junk held a make shift battery box so will also need to go as i will be upgrading the bike to a 12v system and will be mounting the battery in the tool box.
On the Ariel Huntmaster Frame headstock there are two grease nipples, these were there to help keep the bearings greased. This is all well and good but most of the grease missed the bearings and was pumped down the frame. So as you can imagine after all those years of careful maintenance the frame is now full of grease. If i took this frame for powder coating before removing said grease the good chap’s at the powder coaters would have kittens because when they warmed it up prior to coating all that grease would end up on their nice clean floor. So i set about warming the tubes with a blow torch and the grease started to move. Finally before it goes of to get coated i will swill the whole frame with solvent and leave to dry.
Powder coating day...
Today I woke up with a real spring in my step, because it was powder coating day. I am still like a big kid on days like this when new parts arrive or you get your chrome plating back etc. But today it’s powder coating day and after the toil I have had with this Ariel Huntmaster frame today is a very good day. So I went to work as usual and waited for the parts to arrive from the Powder Coaters and as always they were bang on time. I have always been happy with the quality of finish from these chaps and today was no different. My pictures really don’t do this job justice, it is a stunning finish and a fitting result to all the hard work that has had to be done.
As you will recall the rear footrest mountings were shot to bits so I replaced them with new ones.
Also the side stand mounting was done for and past repair so this has also been replaced. I have had to do a lot of patching on the frame around the side stand mounting too as it had been hacked to bits at some point in it’s life and was full of holes.
That ugly old battery tray has also been relegated to the scrap bin too. A new battery set up will be added later and also a 12v upgrade to the electrics.