[Spawned800]

Hi there, I am a new member here and I am asking for opinions on something i discovered while fixing and babying this bike i just got . Honda shadow 1988 looking beautiful about 50 000km on it. Everything is in good condition, the frame is basically perfect except i came across this spot of rust on the bottom left part of the frame near the oil filter and the stand . That would probably be where the water dripped from sitting outside for the last season. I scraped the rust out but no holes in the tube. It seems to have affected some of the welding but i dont know much about that.

Is this a safety concern? Is it fixable or should i stop working on this bike? I live in Canada so it doesnt take much for rust to install itself here. Im kinda bummed Any help on this would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance

 

[Ramie]

Doesn't look to bad to me. I'd take a wire brush to it and clean it up and make sure the metal underneath is solid then paint it to protect from any more rust.

 

[Spawned800]

Doesn't look to bad to me. I'd take a wire brush to it and clean it up and make sure the metal underneath is solid then paint it to protect from any more rust.

Appreciate that. Will do that and see how everything comes out. Thanks!

 

[D's Spirit]

Howdy Spawned800!

I agree with Ramie about the frame...but, when was that oil filter last replaced? I've never seen an oil filter rust between regular maintenance intervals!

 

[Spawned800]

Howdy Spawned800!

I agree with Ramie about the frame...but, when was that oil filter last replaced? I've never seen an oil filter rust between regular maintenance intervals!

Thats a fair point. The previous owner said it had 200 miles on it and sat for a bit over a year. Regardless Im changing everything thats part of maintenance. Im definitely going to revive it entirely. Ive started with the carbs and im liking what im learning. I think older bikes are so cool. I wish i learned all of this way before.

 

[crazyoldman]

HI, Shure looks cracked to me. Clean it up with a Dremel, V out the crack ,MiG weld and paint. That's what I see. Sorry!

 

[Spawned800]

HI, Shure looks cracked to me. Clean it up with a Dremel, V out the crack ,MiG weld and paint. That's what I see. Sorry!

Ok. This would be the closest picture i could take. Still positive?

 

[CSRoad]

I'm voting for just surface rust, clean up and paint.
Honda doesn't have the prettiest welds.

 

[KC_97Shadow1100C]

Looks to me as if the factory welding robot stopped a little short of a complete weld around the joint, nothing more. Had it been too weak, it would have cracked long ago. Seeing as its been like that for 34 years and there's no cracks growing from it, I'd say you're more than fine.

I'd sand off the surface rust with some 180-grit paper, shoot it with a good primer and follow up with some matching chassis black paint to prevent rust and call it a day.

 

[KiwiRider]

Clean and re-paint, but keep a good eye on it initially. And look for any other rust especially around that area.

Go out and find yourself a guy who's an old-school welder/panel beater. Befriend him, and treat him very well.

My brother's 85 500 had a leak into the frame (also from an incomplete weld as suggested above), it made a mess. But I had a friend like the above, and she was able to be saved and restored.

Having someone good with welding and making patches got her back together. She was sandblasted and a little more work was found, that was fixed too and then she was powder coated (back then it cost me a whopping $50)

It is because of riding that bike that I love Shadows. They're worth working on, even if sometimes that means a few hours every now and then completely stripping everything out and a few more putting it back Look after them, and you may well see over 300,000 miles on it. I've heard rumours of some getting quite a lot more than that.

[EDIT : Mods/devs - it really would be cool if we could get some control around the white-space surrounding pictures! (assuming there's not something I need to learn about using the site better ]

 

[crazyoldman]

OK, I'd Sure watch that one. Sandblast to be sure. Someone failed welding class. Paint and watch if you wish .For me, 15 minute reweld is the only way I could safely pass the inspection. (retired DOT safety inspector and mechanic).Welcome to the forums .Enjoy your winter project .Lets ride!😉

 

[Spawned800]

Clean and re-paint, but keep a good eye on it initially. And look for any other rust especially around that area.







Go out and find yourself a guy who's an old-school welder/panel beater. Befriend him, and treat him very well.







My brother's 85 500 had a leak into the frame (also from an incomplete weld as suggested above), it made a mess. But I had a friend like the above, and she was able to be saved and restored.



















































Having someone good with welding and making patches got her back together. She was sandblasted and a little more work was found, that was fixed too and then she was powder coated (back then it cost me a whopping $50)











It is because of riding that bike that I love Shadows. They're worth working on, even if sometimes that means a few hours every now and then completely stripping everything out and a few more putting it back  Look after them, and you may well see over 300,000 miles on it. I've heard rumours of some getting quite a lot more than that.







[EDIT : Mods/devs - it really would be cool if we could get some control around the white-space surrounding pictures! (assuming there's not something I need to learn about using the site bette.  ]

Wow. Thanks for all this info cheers

 

[Spawned800]

View attachment 305716 OK, I'd Sure watch that one. Sandblast to be sure. Someone failed welding class. Paint and watch if you wish .For me, 15 minute reweld is the only way I could safely pass the inspection. (retired DOT safety inspector and mechanic).Welcome to the forums .Enjoy your winter project .Lets ride!😉

I appreciate that a lot. That seems totally fair. I think i will clean it properly, apply some rust stopper and probably hire someone before summer to do a quick nice reweld just for my conscience and wanting to ride concern free. I dont wanna wait for that to be working on the bike but since its easily fixable ill continue my job. There is only this spot shown in pictures that i could locate other than that, this bike is in really good condition for its age. Some more rust on the exhaust pipes but I plan on changing them anyway. I spent so much time looking last night i almost slept below the bike. Thank you for the warm welcome

 

[crazyoldman]

I appreciate that a lot. That seems totally fair. I think i will clean it properly, apply some rust stopper and probably hire someone before summer to do a quick nice reweld just for my conscience and wanting to ride concern free. I dont wanna wait for that to be working on the bike but since its easily fixable ill continue my job. There is only this spot shown in pictures that i could locate other than that, this bike is in really good condition for its age. Some more rust on the exhaust pipes but I plan on changing them anyway. I spent so much time looking last night i almost slept below the bike. Thank you for the warm welcome

Me...OCD over simple small things .Cheers!

 

[Spawned800]

Looks to me as if the factory welding robot stopped a little short of a complete weld around the joint, nothing more. Had it been too weak, it would have cracked long ago. Seeing as its been like that for 34 years and there's no cracks growing from it, I'd say you're more than fine.

I'd sand off the surface rust with some 180-grit paper, shoot it with a good primer and follow up with some matching chassis black paint to prevent rust and call it a day.

That could explain this definitely. I could not warp my head around what could have possibly caused this that way until you mentioned this. Cheers

 

[bweighmaster]

I'm voting for just surface rust, clean up and paint.
Honda doesn't have the prettiest welds.

Clean properly and re- weld ....

 

[Spawned800]

*update : here is where I am at after some cleaning. I think i should be able to find someone to make an easy fix to this before the inspection for summer hopefully not too costly in Montreal...

 

[crazyoldman]

At least the frame looks solid. The whole weld is a red tag. Got any friends at a muffler shop or bike shop?

 

[CSRoad]

An experienced MIG or TIG welder would make short work of that repair.
Shouldn't cost much, make sure the battery terminals are disconnected and anything melt-able or flammable is removed or well clear.

 

[Spawned800]

At least the frame looks solid. The whole weld is a red tag. Got any friends at a muffler shop or bike shop?

At least the frame looks solid. The whole weld is a red tag. Got any friends at a muffler shop or bike shop?

I dont, but ive seen a few ads for people with pretty solid projets showcasing their work that are mobile. I should be able to find someone. Its really just that single patch because the rest of the frame is very good. Here is another perspective. Not bad for 34 years.