Last week a friend who lives near me in Oregon brought over his restored 1976 Bultaco Astro 360cc flat tracker for some photos in my garage. My friend Mike is pictured below, standing with the bike.
The way he tells it, a California homeowner discovered the bike abandoned in thick bushes when he was updating the landscaping in his yard. The bike had been there for twenty years or longer and it was a rusty mess. The engine and front fork were full of water. Another fellow bought the bike from the homeowner for very little money, and later gave it to my friend for free when his restoration plans stalled.
A lot of work and a few thousand dollars later, it looks like new. My friend did most of the work himself. He said that he had to buy another complete engine to get a good crankshaft and clutch, but he was able to retain the original, numbers-matching cases.
The restoration was done several years ago. My friend raced the bike a few times in 2016, and after that it sat unused until last February when former national champion Joe Kopp (3) raced it at The One Pro event at the Oregon state fairgrounds. Kopp is normally a good pick to win any race he enters, but this time a poor jetting choice left the bike underpowered and he finished mid-pack.
The way he tells it, a California homeowner discovered the bike abandoned in thick bushes when he was updating the landscaping in his yard. The bike had been there for twenty years or longer and it was a rusty mess. The engine and front fork were full of water. Another fellow bought the bike from the homeowner for very little money, and later gave it to my friend for free when his restoration plans stalled.
A lot of work and a few thousand dollars later, it looks like new. My friend did most of the work himself. He said that he had to buy another complete engine to get a good crankshaft and clutch, but he was able to retain the original, numbers-matching cases.
The restoration was done several years ago. My friend raced the bike a few times in 2016, and after that it sat unused until last February when former national champion Joe Kopp (3) raced it at The One Pro event at the Oregon state fairgrounds. Kopp is normally a good pick to win any race he enters, but this time a poor jetting choice left the bike underpowered and he finished mid-pack.
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