I'm not in the market but I think it's interesting. ANY sidecar that is in rolling condition for less than $1,500 is interesting. Any set of Terraplane mounts for an Old Wing is interesting. Any sidecar rig in many markets in interesting.
Frankly, even if you aren't interested in it or don't want to see it, posting it here isn't hurting anything and someone may find it SO INTERESTING that they'll want to buy it. If I wanted a Terraplane, I'd be all over this.
One man's POS is another man's budget project.
Wow. Always wanted a hack, but didn't have a zillion dollars to spend on an experiment. Logged onto this site after picking up a rig yesterday and this is one of the first threads I see. Why is that interesting?
Because the rig in the craigslist ad is the one I picked up. Something about another man's budget project.
As a complete newbie on sidecars and free of bias and preconceived notions, I can only say this. I have always admired sidecars in general - and find the lines and design of the Terraplane in particular very appealing. The car in the ad is in decent shape needing only a windscreen, a recovering of the seat and some spit and polish. The original paint will clean up nicely.
I essentially got the GL1000 for free, the way I see it. Being intimate with Goldwings, it's a bonus - and I kind of like the patina.
I run the roads with a '97 Valkyrie and do 200 mile radius runs on a very nice '78 GL1000 that I spent many quality hours with bringing it into the 21st century. I'd post photos, but it appears that I need to "season" a while before I'm allowed.
See you on the road, Mr. DRONE.
Good luck with your purchase. Great people hauler or to take your best friend along. Nothing wrong with a Terriplane and being a long time GW w/sidecar driver the bike is bullet-proof.
_______________________________________________________________________
Ralph Taylor
2002 GL1800/Hannigan Astro GT
1998 Ural Sportsman
1989 KLR and several others
Yeah, have fun with the project. Bet you will have it looking great. .Unlike you I've been looking for a while and just can't bring myself to pull the trigger. Something about old age and feet of clay I suppose. Like you, I putter around on a Valkyrie.
Keep at it. All it takes is time and money.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
The POS is actually not bad under all the grime and oxidation.
The project is so promising, that it has temporarily displaced the Westfalia in the garage. I was getting tired of running back and forth for tools.
The wing:
Carbs are off the 'wing, new belts are on. My friend does paint work. I can have decent paint on this bike for about $200 - although the current paint actually cleaned up nicely. The bike is very solid. Zero rust. I was going put this car on my own GL, but have changed direction.
The Terraplane:
Polished up nicely with just handwax. I plan to take my DA buffer to it soon. Windscreen is on order from bikescreen.com (Gustofsson). Sourcing Airheart brake components.
And I still think the look of the Terraplane is one of the best looking of the sidecars out there. (My opinion, of course).
I'll be into this thing for "budget" money which was exactly my goal. Not bad for an ugly duckling.
Nice purchase. I have always liked the Terraplanes.
There is nothing wrong with a project, my GS rig started with a literal barn find CSC complete with chicken crap.
A little sweat equity can do wonders.
Dana,
I always liked that paint job.
+1
The best part of it Al is I did it on my deck with a HVLP gun. I used a good 2 part primer and BMW paint to match the bike.
Great find, your garage looks like you have enough experience for a project like this, looking good already, good luck with it.
That buffed out real nice Desert!
It must be that clear high altitude air. If I did that it would look like used flypaper. I've got a black Armec Tremloa II that needs to be Mystic Red. I switched out the GT2 when I ran across this Armec...I've alway thought they were cool. Need a GT2?
Thanks guys. I can tell you one thing. A big sidecar hugging the right side of a motorcycle introduces a whole new dimension to otherwise routine maintenance actions. (But, I guess you guys already knew that).
To wit: I'm doing the thing any "new" early four cylinder Goldwing owner should do - changing timing belts. Getting that right side timing cover off was no picnic. The cover was blocked by the front main sidecar frame mount - which required removing the unnecessary crash guard - which turned out to be necessary since it provides the front mount point for the floorboard. About half of the bolts were positioned such that there was, maybe, three degrees of swinging space. Took all of my allotted time last night, almost two hours, just to get that stinking cover off! Belts will be pretty anticlimactic after that.
Sheesh.
