(MBBO Class 1) "The Judge 5": Closing argument.

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I'm throwing my own hat in the ring with a straight restoration. A 1971 Huffy "The Judge 5". This bike was rescued from a barn in New York. Here's how I got it.

mGrf6f.jpg

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Originally it was purple. My son, the one building the Derelict Dill, will be the one riding it. He saw the purple and "a look". Knowing that his little sister's favorite color is purple, and she has a '69 Slingshot in that color, and mom has a '64 Astro Flight in that color, he wanted nothing to do with it. I showed him the ad for the '71 Judge, and he smiled. That was it.

1971huffy4.jpg~original



Instead of the red/yellow, we've decided to go with a red/burnt orange. We both like that idea better.

On to the restoration!!
 
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While unpacking, I found the rear fender wasn't protected well, took a hit through the box, and the ducktail was creased 90 degrees up. This is it after I tried to pull it back down with my fingers a little.

ILo2ZA.jpg


These rear fenders aren't cheap, so in an attempt to save my money I took to it with some shaping hammers.

3Dvdng.jpg

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Still has that crease in there. So I tried to polish it out...

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No luck. So I'll have to decide what to do about that.
 
Looks good so far Crash. Don't worry about the fender. Just use it until you find another one in better shape. They are around. You always do a great job on your builds.
 
this is cool crash!!!! can't wait to see it done!

Troy
 
Ok, we're creeping this build forward. In case you've never followed one of my restorations before, I always start with the wheels, and I always relace. Reasoning:
1) I have yet to get an old bike with any shine left in the spokes. They are all corroded down to dullness, and in some cases rusty. I can work hard to bring back a rim and a hub, but corroded dull spokes just detract from the final "bling" of the bike.
2) Safety. All my bikes are riders for my kids. I don't want a dead spoke to bust and potentially lead to a crash.
3) Because I can. I love to lace and true wheels. I don't know why.

So after years in a barn, this is what the inside of the rims look like.

iwvSDQ.jpg


Even if I cleaned up the outside, I would know the insides look like that and it would freak me out. So...

This morning I created a little "pool" of wood bleach (Oxalic acid) and submerged the rims in it.

xtpzxb.jpg


By this evening it looked like an accident from Chernobyl. My wife saw it and freaked out that I was bringing hazardous waste into the house.

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I'm going to let them soak till the morning, then pull them out and clean them up. I also tossed a few other parts in there as well. Results pictures will be next.
 

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