Here we go again

I should stay off the net...I just can't help myself...its ok to dream, but when you start taking action, do look both ways before jumping in front of the bike!
I brought this home yesterday in my quest for a reliable camp cruiser. '83 Interstate, 66k miles on the clock, reasonable looks. minor crash damage from falling on the po's trailer. Got it for $450 plus a tank of gas. Start stripping off the body work and accessories to see what's really going on.

To free up the carb shafts with atf/acetone, can I soak the whole rack to get started or is that just silly?

Yes you can soak the entire rack but not using acetone. That stuff will eat the O rings and gaskets. ATF will not. A bit of kerosene or diesel in the atf will thin the mix and might make it penetrate better. I'd remove the float bowls and the carb tops for the soaking. Just try to keep them marked to go back to the same carbs.
83 carb jets unscrew so you may want to let it soak a few days before trying to remove them. Nice find BTW! :clapping:

Did the bike puke is guts out in that first pic? :?

Allot of times it is just the center pivot shaft that is frozen not the carbs throttle shafts but sometimes both, kerosene or diesel does sound better though, you have some plastic stuff in and around you don't want to risk ruining. Maybe try disconnecting the center linkage from both sides and see if you can free up the shafts with some spray lubricants or cleaners.
Looks like you have a little rats nest thing going on there.

what a steal ............... :laptop:

There is a long way to go before I really think its a steal, I want to hear it run first.
Its been stored since 2006, there is rust in the tank, the carbs are stuck, the rear rake pedal is stuck, and I haven't turned it over yet. I think I should squirt something in the cylinders before trying. What do you guys recommend? ATF, marvel mystery oil, some combo?
The puke in the first pic is the mouse (rats!) nest under the seat. they had nut shell on the engine top and I didn't get the air cleaner open yet to see what's inside. Gonna be an adventure for sure.

Before you think about flooding the cylinders with a lubricant I would remove the belt covers and see if the engine crank bolt will turn easily with the plugs removed of course, I think if it was sitting with the plugs in and everything buttoned up it may just need a light coating of PB or WD into the spark plug holes, it just depends on how easy the crank turns, the piston and rings will scrape away any light to moderate corrosion with a few cranks of the shaft.

I'd spray in some ATF or penetrating oil after removing the plugs. Be sure to block the holes with something so nothing drops in. Even if it's super light rust some oil in there will help to prevent any possible scratching. After a long sit there's usually at least one hole where the open valves let in enough moisture to rust some.

Take a few minutes and read Steve's efforts to get the Rats Nest back on the road after at least 13 years of not running, lots of good advice and success :good:
viewtopic.php?f=82&t=5340#p74433

Thanks for the tips guys. I'll finish reading Steve's thread tomorrow, it looks like a great success story. Got the carbs off tonight, made me want to consider a single carb setup instead of hooking those cables back on! Only one throttle plate shaft is sticking (not quite frozen) seems like a serious gummed up situation. Only broke one manifold bolt and cut one new screw slot in a carb top screw. The innards are gummed up but not corroded, woohoo! Sorry, no pics tonight, I wouldn't want anyone to see the disaster I created in my shop (actually I forgot to take the camera out and was too excited to make progress to go back for it). I'm sure I'll regret that when it comes time to reassemble.

just for fun...

Two steps forward, one step sideways...Well I got the carbs freed up nice , now they are ready for a rebuild. I turned the engine over with the stator bolt after letting ATF soak in the cylinders for awhile. Took the valve covers off to find good looking oil in the heads. Engine turned smooth so I decided to try the starter motor. (no plugs in) It turned over nice but had a sharp snapping noise. I think this is the intake valve on number one being too slow to close and getting hit with the piston. Now the gap on that valve is too big and I think I may have bent a valve. Aw Shucks...just when I thought I was getting lucky I get a hiccup!

All thoughts and opinions on what to do next are greatly appreciated. The goal was to keep this one long term, but not spend too much money on it.

just for fun...

take the heads off ... i used to not but now it just what i do ..theres no doutb that a hanging or slow valve just wont tell us anything turning by hand ....anymore i just take the heads off first thing .. gamble over on your work anyways ...plus you can really clean from here

Yup, the heads gotta come off. I tried turning it again tonight and the valve had loosened up. No snapping noise and no slow-closing valve. So I ran a compression test and got no, zero, nada, compression so there is a problem.
So the next question is...how or where do I get a new valve if this one is bent?

If you need a valve I'm sure there are used available. Maybe from a member here or on ebay. Maybe you could find a set of 75-77 heads with cams. That would be a nice mod. Like Joe's Angry dresser.

seen that before.

its not that bad a deal obviously a valve is not much more than a head gasket job anyways ... slapping sound is much better than crunch and stop