OW31 vs TD3

Over the past few days, I have been tossing and turning over the overall design of the bike. About a year ago, I was resigned to just throw the bike back together the quickest and easiest way possible, just to get it on the road again. But now, after combing over my inventory of parts I've been collecting, I'm having second thoughts...

The real kicker was when I (again) realized how heavy those OEM cast wheels are compared to the wire RD350 wheels I bought a while back. I bought those wire wheels for a good reason and it would be a cryin' shame not to use them.

Okay, well, as long as those wire wheels are back in the scheme of things, now I have to think about rear drum brakes! Dammit! I had already started shopping for pads and brake master cylinder rebuild kits. Now I have to figure out a new setup of rearsets that work with the drum brakes.

I was already shopping for fiberglass parts to do the OW31. I might as well switch back to the TD3 concept again. I found this stunning TD3 replica that uses Mead Speed fiberglass parts. I do believe I found my new inspiration for design.

Other news is that I did get in contact with my local engine builder. I was just happy that he was alive and agreed to take the job. He quoted me $1100 just for labor, which includes rebuilding the crank and honing/boring the cylinders. I would have to buy parts out of my pocket and this doesn't include blasting/repainting anything. I emailed back giving him an idea of my configurations, including mating the Daytona head to the jugs, which could need some decking. Still waiting for his reply. There's still the engine building in SF that I need to get a hold of- I guess his old cell phone number is defunct, as the SMS messages are bouncing back.

So moving forward, I've suddenly run into a small rash of extra cash- I've been unexpectedly working a shit ton of overtime recently (I've worked 23 hours over the past 2 days), plus I get an unexpected bonus from work coming in early March! I might start working on the forks and perhaps buy some build kits for the front brake system. That seems to be a good reasonable start. I'll keep you posted on how things go....