Custom Seat

June 2016.
This process started back in Feb/Mar with a half a hundred searches for examples of a seat to match the project objectives and fit the 850T frame.  The seat pan on the bike as purchased is a custom, hand-hammered aluminum, which has unfortunately deformed and sagged over time.  Although a new seat was not part of the original plan, I eventually had to conclude that it would never serve as the basis for an upholstered seat and that I would thus be starting with both a new seat pan and seat.
'motorcycleseatsdirect.com' has a wide variety to choose from for many early model brands, and four of these included Moto Guzzi models.  I chose the '3355' cafe style as a starting point and submitted measurements and modifications to suit my desired overall look.  At the time of payment, however, I had not realized that they are based in Vietnam.  Not a big deal in most ways, but the minor communication issues and long lag time for completion and shipping were unfortunate.  However, nothing that was rate-limiting as this will virtually if not literally be about the last thing to go back on the finished project.

 Some shots of the foam construction and seat pan.

hardware for latch to be transferred over; note, base is smooth and flat, not as lighting makes it appear

Final seat as it arrived approximately 3 weeks later.  The fabric is a textured vinyl, although it has a very leather-like look and feel.  The stitching is very straight and uniform.  The foam is forgiving yet firm.  I placed in on the frame and it lines up where I'd expected.  Must wait for tank re-mount to finalize the position to attach the latch mechanism (from the donor pan).
My only negative is that the 'butt stop' is not as steep as I had requested; I drew a clear diagram and asked to accentuate the steepness of the rise to the top of the seat hump, as well as steepen the drop down to the end.  I thought that this might not have translated properly.  If anything, I think they may have done the opposite.  It is still a good looking seat, but it will be many months until the overall look can be assessed as the rest of reassembly is closer to complete.

Tear Down

May/June 2016.
Disassembly first began not long after the 850T arrived in my garage.  However, most aspects of disassembly require a pace commensurate with careful documentation so the final push took several months; I need to keep track of the obvious and not-so-obvious of how everything goes back together.  With the fenders cut and all pieces off to paint, the 850T was partly disassembled.  Finally time to finish the job and take it down to the frame off the engine.  Photos detailing a few of the last incremental steps are shown sequentially below.

The images above and below are primarily going to serve as detail reminders of component location, mounting, wire and cable routing, etc.

Fork disassembly proved interesting.  When the front axle was removed from the wheel and the fork(s), the left female side fell off!  It was held on by the axle and the fender mounting bracket.  I do not yet know if it is a damper issue or an internal retaining bushing that is broken, but that is a job coming up soon.

Remove of the rear wheel proved quite easy and quick.  Notes were made of the axle washer/spacer locations and fit of the drive splines, plus the brake stabilizer arm.






All that remains now is for the wiring harness to be labeled and removed, and for the drive shaft and swing arm to come off.  The frame can then be separated from the engine to complete another major milestone in this project.

Then chrome bits off to be re-chromed; frame stripped and painted; final assessment and plan for remaining replacement parts.

Then my reassembly checklist kicks in!

Finished Paint

June 2016.
Well, I just picked up the tank, fenders and side covers from Robert Prayther.  Wow!  Definitely the look I envisioned and was hoping for.  The white stripes pop, yet are balanced in proportion so as not to take over the base color (a Jaguar metallic gray).   My repair and reassembly work on the rest of this project is going to have to live up to this paint!

From earlier posted photos of the tank, you will see deep indents on the right and left.  Although it took a lot of time, Robert smoothly integrated these indents on the aft part of the tank very effectively; a little angular and a little smooth, fitting perfectly with the lines of the original tank.  See above 'overhead' photo.  Although, truly, these indoor photos do not do the finish or color any justice.  It is also much lighter gray than it appears here.

The side covers will each have an '850-T' badge as shown.  The backside of each cover is a steel box, which will each get cleaned, sanded and painted black before re-installing the lock and hinge mechanisms.
The fenders (cut down - see earlier post) came out as I'd hoped; the length won't look cut down and the leading edges have a sportier curve.  The brackets for the fenders are being re-chromed, and there will be a modest number of other chromed items, including a new gas cap I'm in the process of looking for now.

Another related task involved rehabbing the gnarly tank badges; the final painted photos above do not include the badges which will eventually be placed just above the center line.  I like the 'chunky' look of the stock badges and the relief from the sides of the tank.  In consultation with Robert, I decided that they needed to be placed slightly more forward of the stock mounting position, in a large part due the the knee cutouts and to help restore a balance to the tank.  This meant (for Robert) bondo over the mounting points and (for me) cutting the tabs off the back of the stock badges.

The badges as they came on the bike were fairly nasty.  One was sanded or blasted down to a silver while the other retained the original gold base, but both had been partway through removal of the old paint.  A thick, rubberized glue caked on the back of each also had to be cleaned and removed.

An hour or so of scraping and cleaning with paint thinner had them clear of all of the chipped paint.  A layer of metallic gold later and they are ready for paint with black background and white lettering.