Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/1542902
January 2026 35 As I've said before, what I enjoy the most about these vintage projects is the story that unfolds. Like most, this one was filthy, covered in years of barn dust, but it was apparent the bike had spent li le me out in the weather. The fact that it was pre y much unmolested right down to the original bars, grips, and levers showed it hadn't seen any hard off-road use. With only 2300 miles on the odome- ter, tell-tale signs such as foot peg wear and brake pivots told a story of a low-use bike. Once I spun the front re and found the odometer actually worked, I believed the mileage to be correct. Rare for a Maine bike, as most are ridden into the ground with li le le to work with. Mainers are a resourceful lot and spend li le me or energy on fluff — this old DT being no different. When the seat cover turned bri le and split, a leg of an old pair of Levi's was slipped over. Mainers love fishing, and it's not uncommon for racks to be fi ed to trail bikes. With a bit of Yankee ingenuity, along with a few pieces of scrap steel, an old lug- gage rack from a street bike had been fi ed. An olive-drab green U.S. Army pack, fastened securely with nuts and bolts, would have held the tackle, along with the fresh catch. With a decent length of nylon rope wrapped around the crossbar, those in need could have been pulled out of precarious situ- a ons. Along with these add-ons, the bike had been fi ed with decent res of the day, Goodyear Eagle MX's front and rear. The teardown went excep onally well, given the fact that there was li le corrosion. Even the swing arm pivot bolt slid right out with minimal effort. Amazing- ly, the swing-arm bushings were s ll well greased and ght as new. Our first order of business was the rolling stock. With res the consistency of dinosaur dung, they had to go. Since this bike will see a fair amount of camp and logging-road use, we elected to go with another set of knobbies, front and rear. Incredibly, the original chrome rims were in pre y decent shape. Even the wheel bearings and brakes s ll had life in them, but no one likes to do things twice, and we elected to replace all consumables with new ones. The brake backing plates were stripped of the old shoes/springs, and both brake cams were cleaned with a wire wheel, greased, and reinstalled. As for the chain and sprock- ets, we elected to replace them and gear it up for some high-speed cruising with a 15/39 combo. With the rolling stock now up to snuff, it was me to con- centrate on the bones of the beast.