A Locost has always been on my "things-I-will-build-one-day" list. Although I'm starting my build log now, there won't be any actual work for some time - possibly years. I've got a long-term Austin Healey 3000 restoration that I'm nearing the end with, a '79 BMW 320i that I vintage race and a '67 F350 that I haul it to the track with. Oh, and on top of all that nonsense, we've got a 9 month old. So daddy physically can't take on another car project right now.
So why start the log now? Because I stumbled upon an offer I couldn't refuse. For a whopping $300, I got a partially finished 442 frame and a running '82 Honda CB650.
The frame includes a section of a Miata's frame rails with a rear subframe bolted to it. The story I got is that an engineering student built it with his father for a project. He then got into building turbo Miatas and this fell by the wayside.
The bike is a peach.
The previous steward of this fine specimen was a serial drunk rider. Around October, he got pulled over again and the bike went to impound. Once he decided it wasn't worth paying a month or so's worth of indoor storage fees, the tow company sold the bike to the guy I bought it from.
Although I do have a love for old Japanese 4 cylinder motorcycles (I've previously owned a '77 and '78 Suzuki GS550), I initially intended to just sell off the bike to recoup costs and use the extra BMW M10 motor I have sitting in the garage. I then realized that in order to pass the state inspection, I would need a bill of sale for the M10, which I do not have. I'm trying to track down the guy I bought it from but chances are slim.
The frame was dropped off on Sunday and yesterday I started knocking off the surface rust and priming it before hanging it from the ceiling. There's a lot more surface area on the frame than I thought and I ran out of primer. At least most of it is more protected...
Anyways, for the foreseeable future, I hope to use this thread as a sounding board to hash out my plans for the build and get things lined up so that when it's go time, I can take off running.