Honda Ascot FT500 coming home with me.

I had sworn that I wasn’t going to do this anymore. It’s been several months since I had a hit & experienced that euphoria. It’s tough being an addict but I was keeping clean and was even beginning to straighten out my life & get my act together. We all know the first rule to overcoming an addiction is to stay away from temptation.

Then yesterday I ran into my dealer, and he’s got the best stuff on the east coast. Next thing I know money & merchandise were exchanging places. If you’re a collector & restorer there is no better feeling than buying a new old pile of junk motorcycle. Especially when it’s a fairly desirable model like the Honda Ascot FT500 that you actually really wanted but couldn’t get when you were younger. Oh man it felt so good! I’m still riding that high today as I type this.

The price on this old Honda Ascot FT500 was righteous enough that the condition really didn’t matter. With dirt cheap motorcycles you just need to go ahead & assume that you need to replace or repair everything. That way you avoid the disappointment that comes with having high hopes.

I love it when they have fuzz growing in the cylinder fins.

Last night after supper I grabbed a beer, & removed the timing plugs so I could try to turn the engine and it’s seized but that’s okay as the plan is to strip it all the way down & build it back as a fire breathing hot rod.

This one is a 1982 model. One of the best things about the Honda Ascot FT500 is the funky flat track styling, it’s the closest thing ever built to a factory street tracker. I’m not a fan of the rectangular headlight that instantly dates what is an otherwise timeless design. Beside it’s rusted out & will be tossed in garbage anyway.

One of the best things about this bike is that it has cast aluminum wheels that are not Comstars. All of my other bikes except for my Helix scooter have wire wheels and quite frankly they are a pain in the rear to restore & maintain

it’s so 1980s

So how did a motorcycle with less than 3500 miles wind up in such horrible condition? My guess is the the original owner thought that it needed a new starter, so he took the old one off & went to his local dealer for a replacement. Once they learned the price of a new starter they either swore off motorcycles altogether or went & bought another bike, leaving this poor old thing to die out behind the barn.

If the engine had not been seized I’d go ahead & start working on it but since it needs a full overhaul it will wind up in the corner of the shop with the other “ladies in waiting” where I’ll walk by occasionally and marinade it with penetrating oil until I complete my 2 current restorations. This one definitely will not be restored but will end up being a fairly nice restomod instead.

<1982 Honda Ascot FT500 >

Until next time

Peace Y’all

UPDATE 2023 I never finished this one and passed it on to someone else who wanted it.