Well, I went and checked out the Savage this morning (See Here )and here is what I found.  It is a 1996, not a 1998 and it has been in storage for a little over 4 years, not 2.  It was VERY dirty (4 years of dust and dirt).  It only has 8117 miles on it. Windshield is brand new... tires both look brand new... he told me the rear was replaced just before he stored it.  Paint is in perfect condition.  No dents, dings, scratches, or scuffs.  

Now for whats wrong.  All the chrome on the bike has tiny rust spots on it.  The tank also has a layer of very fine rust in it.  These are the only 2 things we found.  My wife and I talked about it and we are going to buy it.  We are getting it for $650 and foresee a few hundred more in it.  If she doesn't like riding it when I get done restoring it to its former glory, then we will sell it in the spring when motorcycle prices go up.

The tank rust should be easy.... Just pour in some WD-40... slosh it around and let it sit for a couple days rolling the tank each day to let it sit in WD-40.  All the rust should come right off then.

Does anyone know a good way to get the rust spots off the chrome?

That's a very nice price. Don't worry about the carb. You're gonna want to tear it down to rejet it anyway. You should soak all the metal parts in a one gallon drum of Gunk carb cleaner (the one with the parts basket in it). No plastic or rubber in the carb cleaner though. Or pay someone to rebuild it. Get the rejetting done when it's being rebuilt.

Yeah, I don't think WD is the answer. If the rust is light, just put some aquarium gravel or bbs in it with a little gas. Slosh it around for a long while. Rinse really well and add some drygas or alcohol to get rid of all the water. Keep it full and the rust won't return.

The worst problem you have is the rust on the interior of the tank. You must find someone who can sandblast of otherwise clean this tank. Start at a cycle shop who isn't a dealer to see if it can be done. You must verify it can be done first before you buy this thing. If you can verify this, buy it!

You will have to strip all the stuff off the tank before you take it in for cleaning.

The problems with the chrome have to be rub-rub-rub-rubbed with chrome polish until you can tolerate the appearance. Some pieces might have to be removed from the machine to be properly cleaned up.

If it has a stock muffler, junk it and put a SuperTrapp or Jardine on it. This should save a lot of rubbing.

The next thing is starting it. Get rid of the junk in the crankcase by warming the housing. Take it in the house if it is cold to warm it up.
Do a thorough inspection of the engine assemply to be sure there is no corrosion on critical parts like rocker arms/upper end stuff. Pull and inspect the spark plug.
You can manually rotate the engine from alternator rotor bolt under the slotted cover. You might squirt some oil through the spark plug hole and rotate the engine manually.

Dynobob suggests you clean and rejet the carb. Do it! This will get the varnish and all the sh!t out of this vital component. Also follow WD advice. Ultimately though, don't use that Castrol sludge generating compound.

First, do not use anything abrasive on the chrome. No steel wool or sandpaper or anything that will scratch the chrome.

I've never dealt with rust spots on chrome, but there are several metal polishes that you might try.  Autosol and Simichrome are supposed to be good for this purpose, but they're hard to find.  You can probably find Blue Magic metal polish at a local auto parts store.  It may remove the rust.  It will make the chrome shiny. These products will probably work on dull aluminum, too.

I have no idea how well tires handle storage. Consider looking at them very closely. Congrats on such a nice find. That kinda $$$ for a bike is nice.

I know your question was on chrome (no idea about it) & tank, but here's my 2 cents worth -

agree with what WD said (other than I'm ignorant on how to clean a tank so cannot pass comment on his solution).

however - I add a caveat - replace brake line when changing fluid - likely never been done & they recommend change every 4 years. Easy to change when changing fluid (but ensure you use new copper washers - which might come with lines from source below)

a fellow called Lancer on this site (find him via his e-mail) sells steel braided line - much better than stock & even better it is cheaper!! I replaced my line with another company's product but only because I did not know of Lancer carrying them.

also recommend buying a Clymers manual for the Savage - can buy it cheap from Amazon (like around $25)

might want to check the condition of the air fliter (the Clymers will help you locate this & how to get @ it).

hope someone else can answer this - but can you clean a air filter or is it buy a new one assuming his like mine when I bought bike very clogged. if so, can he get away with a K & N slip in without rejet? cost is not much more than Suzuki one & it lasts eons longer.

oh yeah - unless I am contradicted by someone who knows more than me on this site (which is highly likely) I do not recommend you do something to "clean up the belt."

not wishing to directly contradict someone, (& call me cautious) but you might want to hold off on buying a non-stock muffler to just get rid of chrome trouble. a new muffler would allow the bike to breath better but then you are definately into playing with rejetting (& cash outlay. you might want to leave this for down the road after you've spent time & $$ getting it up & running like a top in standard form.

I admit I have a non-standard muffler but only started on that path after I'd done a lot of post purchasing work on bike.

Belt can/should regularly be cleaned with plain old soap and water. Does not require lube or stop squeal, both will ruin the belt. If you must, you can edge dress it with black shoe polish.

If you plan to rejet and do a cone filter swap, pipe it. The other mods are useless without increasing outflow. It can only breathe in as much as it can expell.
-WD

Trippah wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:12:


 I agree, When I had to clean the rust out of my tank my husband and I used Muranic Acid in it. It cleaned the tank right out. When using it though you might want to get a mask and put it on your face and get back some, Or else it can burn your eyes and lungs if your not careful. My gas Tank looks great on the inside now. We used Gravel rocks with the Acid and sloshed it around because there was tons of rust in the tank. Now the inside of it looks new.  Good luck with the project. You can get the Muranic Acid at Lowe's If you decide to go that route.