424 monkey ward (cause all the cool kids have a gilson)

#1
Well after tinkering and finally able to order the clutch the lil 424 has moved today under it's own power in 30+ years (according to the original owner I got it from). Still working out the bugs. The rear chain is a goner, broke on me 3 times today and I'm out of master links. Carb needs work but it's running and I'm cleaning (soaking) a spare I have. Points all of sudden decided to act up after I've had it cranking for weeks but thats fixed. I pulled out my 80's model hs40 with solid state. I'm debating cleaning it up and putting it on. Tried to weld on the cracked rear fender again and thats a nightmare. This has to be the most impure steel I've ever had the displeasure to weld on. Ended up tacking it like you do when welding thin sheet metal. Even then sometimes after you pull back the an impure spot would start popping and sparking, then a hole would appear. I prolly have 4 hours in it now trying to weld up what started as a 2 inch crack. I bet there is a 3 inch circle of nothing but weld to grind down.

Dad and I was talking and said he had a 5hp. Turns out he has a Montgomery wards branded briggs. He got it for my grandpa way back when for a tiller and long story short it hasn't even had a full tank of gas ran through it but has been sitting in a shed since the early 80s. Not big on the idea of fabbing up a linkage for the kazoo carb on it but I thought it was kinda cool its branded the same as my bike. We also found some shocks off an old moped I'm gonna try to put on the 424. They look to be the right length but are not coil overs so I don't know if they will be stout enough. They are only temp till I do get the correct shocks a 525 should have. After the short ride I was able to do I have to have something back there, I've broke horses that rode smoother.

I know everybody loves pictures but I overdone it today and will take pictures tomorrow.
 
#2
Naw, cool kids have Wards bikes too! Just check out Gilson Resto-mod by Unorthodox Creat--it became a VT525. Glad you're moving, but for goodness sake, those incisions couldn't have liked being twisted around!
 
#3
No incisionS, they reversed the ileostomy through the hole it come out of and it's actually surprising the doctor how fast it's healing. About the only pain I have now is the tape from the bandage pulling the hair on my belly. I only overdone it because after all this time of not being able to do anything I don't have any stamina. The doc told me to get out and do stuff I'll just have to do it in bursts and rest for a bit. They raised my weight lifting from 5lbs to 20lbs, woohoo.

I cheated cranking on it. I took the recoil off and used a 1/2 drive impact. Dad was laughing because he knows I've been chopping at the bit to A. get back out in the shop to do anything B. get started on this. He heard it crank up and came out to say something about me pulling on it until he seen what I had done. He even took it for a spin next door in his yard (smoother than mine and he has a bad back). The moped shock idea was actually his, I had forgotten we had the thing in the back 40 in a junk pile.


Here is the wards/briggs dad had put up.


Only pic I took of it. There is a sticker on shroud beside the carb that has the briggs info.
 
#4
This is the bike as I got it from the original owner. It was parked in a barn and somebody had stole the clutch. Somewhere in time the clutch guard got lost. I'm still hoping it turns up, they said if they find it they will call.







Pictures do it better justice. Sometime in the early/mid 1970s (according to the original owner) they decided it needed painting. They stuck to the factory colors but zero prep work besides taping off the decals and went to town with a brush. A home done seat and hippy stickers on each fender round it out. If the repaint wasn't so bad I might had tried to keep it in survivor condition. Even if I did I'm a hot rodder and have to tinker with everything I own that has an internal combustion engine or I'm not happy. So this will be a restro mod. I'm gonna try to keep it somewhat factoryish with tasteful mods and nothing that hurts the bike that can not be reversed.
 
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#5
Before the above mentioned health issues I did manage to tinker with it for a bit. I evicted the tenants (wasps) of the engine shroud and cleaned the mess previous ones had left (mice). Actually got the engine running needed a carb cleaning/rebuild but it ran.

They weren't very happy. Its amazing we loaded it up in the truck and drove it home without ever knowing they were in there.


This so far has caused the biggest headache trying to fix.


Tape left over from a poor paint job


What did I start??


Yall gonna have to bare with me as this isn't gonna be any fast turnaround build. I'm still recovering from health issues and my budget is highly limited. I do what I can when I can and save up and shop around for parts. Anybody have any tips, hints, suggestions, or simply look stupid don't do/do that I'm all ears.
 
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#9
She needs shocks...
Not one single argument and she has some right now. They are a bit too stiff (came off an old moped) so I have to get some softer ones. It's been raining here for the last few days and I just aint felt like going out to the shop and tinkering with it. I've been pulling the smaller rusty parts off, sandblasting them, and painting them in red primer. About all I been doing and rain/paint don't mix. Chain is still busted because I haven't been anywhere to get a new ones.

I'll try to get some updated pics up but my brother is down to hunt (he lives 4 hours away) so I'm planning on spending the weekend with him.
 
#10
Well anybody watching this I'm at my wits end on this thing and it may tick off the purist but for now this thing is gonna get a clone until I can calm down and totally rebuild the tec on it. I've fought a hard fight to keep this thing as factory as I reasonably can but this lil engine has finally won. I've had it running 5/6 times now and every time something new has came up. I've replaced the carb, points, condenser, crank rope, fuel tank, sparkplug, (used) coil. The last straw today is I got the new carb on, the rope broke again, the oil seal on the flywheel side is pouring, and it's not firing again.

One day later on I will get the tec back and going but I want to get the bike up and going. The tec is gonna get a full rebuild and worked over first. I just don't have the time with my son wanting it fixed yesterday so he can ride it now.
 

buckeye

Well-Known Member
#11
That's what I do.
Screw it. Have fun and ride it with the clone.
They are so much fun with the clones.
Starts every time. Lots of power that these bikes can handle.
You can always get the original going latter.
 
#13
Yeah, I have a real honda 390 :devil2:

Because I got it "running" when we first got it so easily I just figured on keeping it factory-ish. The 4hp is more than enough for the speed demon 9 y/o. Thats the only reason why i have been hesitant on putting a bigger engine on it. It's just driving me nuts every time he wants to ride it something else with that engine has gone out. I can't blame the engine because it sit for 20+ years semi sorta covered and brought back to life. It needed a good going through when I brought it home. The spare tec I have doesn't have a much better story. It's been sitting behind the shop for at least 10 years, parked when the washer head started acting up and we just went and got a bigger washer.

Thanks for the offer Pete. You still have those templates for the TAV plates for these things?

I've ran it past the kid and the bike is getting blown apart tomorrow. He has his 4 wheeler to play on right now and he has started back on his 59 chevy for a bit. I'll take the reins of the MW and do a frame up restro on it during the winter so it'll be totally ready by the spring.
 
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#14
Go for it Neo. Clone schmone. Who is looking down at the engine while haulin ace anyways. I say get your motor running, whichever you choose and ride it. Can't paint til warmer weather unless you got a climate controlled booth or powder anyways. It's your bike, do what you want.
 
#16
Sorry Neo, I thought I was at the end of the thread but was only at the end of the first page. That's really cool how your son is into this stuff. Wow, he's got a '59 Chev! Is he going about tasks that he can do on the Chevy?
 
#17
I wouldn't say a gear head but a speed freak so in turn I'm making him learn to wrench. The 59 is a long story, dad had a rust bucket sitting on 78 blazer 4x4 running gear that my boy liked. Dad gave it to him and I found another thats a parts truck but has a fleetstyle bed. Next thing we know another one (step side) found its way to be sitting behind the shop. They are all now tore apart picking the best bits from each and starting from the ground up. Right now it is a frame with a old nova subframe grafted on the front, and the rear is a GM 12 bolt we had laying around, frame is all boxed, and the rear suspension if a triangulated 4 link. The gas tank is moved to the rear of the frame using a stock replacement el camino tank that we ordered for a "customer" and got shafted on. As for the work hes only 9 and mostly a go-fer right now but he did do some of the welding boxing the frame. Got a bone stock TBI 305 we are gonna put in it for now he did get really hands on rebuilding. He proves he won't do any stupid teenager crap with it (yeah right) I will help him build and drop a built LS in it.

We do have a shop that is heated but its wood. It can be tricky painting in super dry air, the flash times are way faster normally. But to be hard headed and make things harder than they have to (and I'm lazy, hate masking everything in the shop off) I tend to do most of my painting outside. I do have a small powdercoating oven (homemade insulated box with an oven heating element in it) and one of the cheap DIY powder coating guns. It's more for engine parts and brackets, valve covers, intakes, and such. Nowhere near the scale to fit the frame in. Right now I can do any color you want as long as its black or chevy orange unless I order more powder. To make things harder than they have to be (seems to be my theme) the color we like I haven't found a good powder match in a book much less enough to order some to test out. The base is a factory color but I'm gonna soup it up enough to make it different enough if parked beside a car with it they won't really look the same. Maybe some flake, some pearl, a tinted clear, I'll never tell:shifty:
 
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#18
Sounds like my same song and dance. Prior to working on any mini bikes, I had a 68 Chevrolet C10 short wheel base. Took it apart in a million pieces, and got burnt out on it, sold it. Had an 04 5.3 LS out of a Tahoe I was going to put in it. Since he is 9, hopefully he will get it all put back together. Its easy to take them apart, however going back together is much slower, and expensive if you want to touch every nut/bolt. Plus they don't make new metal as thick as the old metal, best to use original when you can. Good luck.
 
#19
I have a 1969 gmc custom (factory custom with ac, the upgraded interior, 350, auto, coil sprung rear suspension instead of leafs) it does have some minor custom work done to it. It was my my truck when I turned 16. Dad drove it one day and hit a deer so we are looking for a front clip. I have another original chrome grille but kinda wanting to swap it over to the 67 front. It's lower on the priority list as I already have 2 running trucks so it's sitting waiting for parts. I've always like the body style and think its funny how I've had this thing since back before they were cool and the prices for them skyrocketed. I only gave $1500 for it years ago (borrowed $500 from dad at the time) with the ac still working in it. At the time it had a 400 in it and 2 months later I had to borrow the cash again to buy rear tires. I wish I would have bought them all up back when they were old beaters you could pick up for a few hundred bucks and I had the money.
 
#20
The 67-72 C/K10 parts are so expensive. To fix one up and make it like new, $15,000 easy. They almost all need rockers/floorpans. The front fender cups are gone too, but with a LS powerplant, they will scoot. Someday Neo, someday.
 
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