Motorcycle Project Organization How-To

Is it time to tear your motorcycle down for a rebuild? Maybe you are ready to start on your first big garage project. Before you start, you need to get prepared and organized. Today on MC Garage we are going to give you some tips on motorcycle project organization.

So you probably have some time on your hands, put that time to use on a motorcycle project! We’ve got our next project, and it’s a big one. So big we expect it to last nearly a year. This is a 2019 Ducati Scrambler 1100 Sport. It’s a pretty cool bike as is, but inspiration struck while looking at images of Cook Neilson’s 1977 Daytona 200 winner “Old Blue,” also known as “California Hot Rod.”

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Old Blue was a preproduction 1973 Ducati 750SS that Neilson and tuner Phil Schilling used to take it to the factory racing efforts of Kawasaki, Honda, Moto Guzzi, and BMW. It was a victory for privateer racing and the first Superbike win for a Ducati on American soil. The entire effort was chronicled in Cycle Magazine, of which Neilson was editor. In 2006, Neilson was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.

I’ve decided that the Scrambler 1100 would make an interesting platform as a modern interpretation of Old Blue. There have already been tributes and replicas, including NCRs “New Blue,” which was a more modern take on Old Blue based on a Sport Classic 1000S. This project is going to be a racer, unpolished and rough, but ready to go to war on the track. It will look like 1977, but have modern underpinnings. It will have period-correct touches like a steel swingarm, dual shocks, mag wheels, and minimal bodywork. It will also have modern brakes, a tuned EFI, and radial tires.

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It’s a huge project, but first we must tear this thing down to the frame. But before you start any project big or small, research what you need to do the job. Also you need the space to work and an area to store parts. Get or build a workstand. There are plenty of plans out there for DIY stands. Clear out some shelves to store big parts; nothing will ruin a project quicker than accidentally booting your fuel tank or other expensive parts across the garage floor.

You should make a road map of the project. Write down what needs to be done, and then research each step before doing. Get a service manual and find out if you need any special tools. Having to chase down tools midway through is a pain and will delay your progress. If you know what parts you need, get them before you start. On big projects with fabrication, you’re gonna have to roll with the project as it happens. The message here is the more you do up front, the easier the project will be.

Organization is key. Without a system of storage and identification of your nuts, bolts, and screws, you can easily lose track of what’s what. I’ve seen everything from muffin tins to tackle boxes used, just get a system and stick to it. And label everything! I prefer to use plastic zip-top bags. Keep the hardware grouped by section of the bike, like the front fairing or exhaust system. The fewer bits in each bag or container the better; this will make it easier during reassembly.

Another quick tip, before putting hardware in containers, take a picture where each nut. bolt, and fastener goes on the bike. Lay each out in its proper orientation to parts. This will keep you from installing a bolt that’s too long or short into the wrong place. Not to mention after just a few days, you can start to forget what goes where. More info is better than less, and storage on your smartphone or in the cloud is cheap.

I then place large parts with their baggies of hardware in plastic totes for storage until needed. It’s crazy how parts can grow legs or become lost without a system. Organization is key to a successful and stress-free bike rebuild, restoration, or project.

That’s it for this episode of MC Garage. We’d like to thank Ducati for supplying us with the Scrambler 1100 Sport for this episode. We have big plans for this bike, and that includes where it may end up after we are finished with it. If you like what we are doing, subscribe to our enewsletter, and share it with your friends. As always, put your comments and questions below. Stay safe, and we will see you next time.