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Thread: New Fatcat Owner

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
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    New Fatcat Owner

    Everyone needs a Fatcat!! I found this on Craigslist only some 10 miles from my house. It looks better in pictures than in real life, but it runs OK and it is mostly complete. It needs a headlight shroud, fork seals, a rear brake cable, battery, and some paint on lots of small parts. The previous owner put what I think is a China carb on it, and the pilot circuit is WAY too lean. It won't idle at all until it's very warm, and there is a lot of popping on decel. I got the original carb, so I might try to clean it and reinstall, or swap jets if needed. I also got the stock handlebars, which I think are straight but need some paint before they can go back on.

    Does anyone know of an off the shelf spray paint that is a very close match for the Shasta white?

    Click image for larger version. 

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    -Chad

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
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    Massachusetts USA
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    I always liked those. Never noticed until now, though, that the "A" in the logo looks like, well, the end of a cat you don't really want to look at...
    1985 Tri-Z 250
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  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
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    NEPA
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    Yes,she needs some tlc,,but man,, that is a great grab!! I would go with good ol Rust Oleum paint for $3.50 a can and never look back.. I can't remember if anyone has repopped the headlight?? I know they have most of plastic on these..
    Please help those who cannot help themselves.

    ALWAYS buying Museum quality machines,3 and 4 wheels. And any and ALL ,NOS parts,EVERY brand.

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  4. #4
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
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    Quote Originally Posted by YTZ drew View Post
    I always liked those. Never noticed until now, though, that the "A" in the logo looks like, well, the end of a cat you don't really want to look at...
    Lol, I never noticed but now that can't be unseen lol.

    Quote Originally Posted by atc007 View Post
    Yes,she needs some tlc,,but man,, that is a great grab!! I would go with good ol Rust Oleum paint for $3.50 a can and never look back.. I can't remember if anyone has repopped the headlight?? I know they have most of plastic on these..
    Yeah I definitely want to paint some parts, but I'm not sure if I want to pay Colorite extortion prices for the proper paint or try to find a match in something cheaper. There are repro headlights available.

    I put a China carb from ebay on it, and right out of the box with the included jets it runs perfect. Strong idle, easy to start, no popping on decel, and runs good at all throttle positions. The OEM handlebars are slightly bent, so I'm going to try to bend them back to straight, nothing to lose. I ordered fork seals, brake lever, battery, and a few other odds and ends.
    -Chad

  5. #5
    kiser's Avatar
    kiser is offline Just Too Addicted Arm chair racerJust too addicted
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    Dec 2008
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    Coshocton Ohio
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    Nice find! I want a Fat Cat! A buddy of mine has one and I dig it! They ride great!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
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    Austin, Massachusetts
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    i had nothing but frustration with the chinese carb. cleaned the stocker out and she ran beautifully.
    Wubba Lubba Dub Dub!!!!!

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  7. #7
    Marty is offline Just Too Addicted Arm chair racerJust too addicted
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    Just to let anyone know any OEM plastics, feders, covers, shrouds, OEM stickers, OEM tires are all discontinued from Honda. That is a good find good for you she is complete, enjoy and take good care of it.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
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    303
    Quote Originally Posted by Marty View Post
    Just to let anyone know any OEM plastics, feders, covers, shrouds, OEM stickers, OEM tires are all discontinued from Honda. That is a good find good for you she is complete, enjoy and take good care of it.
    All I'm really missing that is obvious is the headlight shroud. I'll probably buy a reproduction one. I've added a few small missing items, like the battery hold-down and tool box cover. One thing I can't find is a proper replacement left brake lever. I bought a new right lever but the left is discontinued.
    -Chad

  9. #9
    Doink's Avatar
    Doink is offline At The Back Of The Pack Arm chair racerFirst time rider
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    Mar 2011
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    northwest SC
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    If you're looking to paint metal parts white, Dover White is the closest off-the-shelf color in a . Plastics can be painted with "Fusion" plastic specific paint, again, in a .
    Most of the plastics are repro - I like to shop them at DC Plastics. They borrowed a set of mine (and other owners) to make injection molds for them. Since they're not vacuum molded, you probably will never see side covers that attach to the bike properly (especially the tank). I love restoring these things. You can see my videos on YouTube (doinker72). For some odd reason, my most popular vid is the CAMOCat, which I thought was the ugliest one I've ever owned.
    "If it were easy, everyone would be doing it."
    1987 Yamaha BW350 (dealer find, never oiled or gassed)
    1990 Suzuki DR350 Fat Cat/ Big Wheel conversion
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  10. #10
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
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    Quote Originally Posted by Doink View Post
    If you're looking to paint metal parts white, Dover White is the closest off-the-shelf color in a . Plastics can be painted with "Fusion" plastic specific paint, again, in a .
    Most of the plastics are repro - I like to shop them at DC Plastics. They borrowed a set of mine (and other owners) to make injection molds for them. Since they're not vacuum molded, you probably will never see side covers that attach to the bike properly (especially the tank). I love restoring these things. You can see my videos on YouTube (doinker72). For some odd reason, my most popular vid is the CAMOCat, which I thought was the ugliest one I've ever owned.
    Thanks for the paint info!! How close is Dover White to the real deal? This bike will never be a museum piece but I do want it to look mostly original.

    I've installed a DC headlight cover. It looks way better, but as you said not quite an exactly match for the original.
    -Chad

  11. #11
    Doink's Avatar
    Doink is offline At The Back Of The Pack Arm chair racerFirst time rider
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    Mar 2011
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    The Dover White will be hard to notice against original Honda paint. It takes an unusually keen eye to tell the difference. And I should note that if you're going to repaint the plastic, chemical stripper should be used even if the parts weren't repainted by a PO. It gives you a perfectly clean, slightly tacky surface to apply new paint onto. 1-2 dust coats, 2 full coats, and then 2 clear coats with a compatible clear. If you take your time and work in a clean ventilated area, your results will exceed the OEM finish.
    If you're recovering the seat, go to a shop that will apply the three Honda logos. I use Cosmic Quads and their results are second to none. In fact, they can do FatCat seats and BW350 seats because of me
    +Doink
    "If it were easy, everyone would be doing it."
    1987 Yamaha BW350 (dealer find, never oiled or gassed)
    1990 Suzuki DR350 Fat Cat/ Big Wheel conversion
    2011 Suzuki KingQuad

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
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    What's your opinion of the ebay fork boots? My bike is missing them, and I'd like to put some back on after I replace the fork seals.
    -Chad

  13. #13
    Doink's Avatar
    Doink is offline At The Back Of The Pack Arm chair racerFirst time rider
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    Almost every set of "blue" fork boots will be disappointing. The blue leans too much toward electric blue and IMHO clashes with the other correct blues on the bike. I think you'd be better off with black or white, and you can plastic paint the white boots to blue for a stock look. If you're lucky and wealthy, as et of NOS boots come on eBay once in a blue moon (no pun intended. The last pair I saw was almost 2 years ago when I was selling an extra pair of mine
    "If it were easy, everyone would be doing it."
    1987 Yamaha BW350 (dealer find, never oiled or gassed)
    1990 Suzuki DR350 Fat Cat/ Big Wheel conversion
    2011 Suzuki KingQuad

  14. #14
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    Dec 2003
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    This bike certainly isn't nice enough to be a collector, just a clean-ish stock looking rider, so I'm not sure it's worth the cost for OEM boots. I will keep my eyes out though and maybe I'll get lucky.
    -Chad

  15. #15
    Doink's Avatar
    Doink is offline At The Back Of The Pack Arm chair racerFirst time rider
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    Oh, and by the way, I remembered you were looking for levers for the handlebars, right? You will benefit greatly replacing with longer levers, especially if you brake a lot with them. when I swapped my rear drum for a disc, I bought Honda quad perches and levers ( I needed the master cylinder). I am hoping to do a front disc soon, but those parts are getting expensive.
    "If it were easy, everyone would be doing it."
    1987 Yamaha BW350 (dealer find, never oiled or gassed)
    1990 Suzuki DR350 Fat Cat/ Big Wheel conversion
    2011 Suzuki KingQuad

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