This is the 'BIMBO bike that Marvin shared with this forum a few years back. This is one of the three Racing 851's ( 000782, 000790, and 000802) that Ferracci bought from the factory for the 1991 AMA season. After it was raced (shared by Polen and Picotte ) it was sold at the end of the season to a professional Mexican bike racer. I tracked this bike down about six years ago and spent those years trying to get it back into the USA legally. I finally had it smuggled over the boarder with all of the original paperwork by the PO and he brought it to the home of a friend of mine (day job is astronaut) who lives in Houston. He in turn sent it out to me on the East Coast by airfreight.

Turned out that it was very, very rough. I called the PO and he said that he thought he had told me that he had crashed very hard down a long straight when the motor dropped a valveend over end. Even the PC board of the P8 was cracked in half. He had soldered on thin wire to bridge each broken pin trace. The frame was badly bent. I had wondered why Ferracci told me to beware when I told him I was buying the bike.

Last year I cut off all of the front tubes and welded in new aircraft tubing using a frame jig that Marvin rigged up years ago. I primed it over the winter. I just finished painting frame this week. Thought that some of you would like to see a few pictures of the frame and a couple of the motor I rebuilt this past winter. I have kept all of the black paint on the side covers/heads/cylinders exactly like I received them since I want the motor to retain its race patinaeach a well-used piece. This will be in contrast to the rolling chassis, which I am going to make as newly original as I can. I have original factory painted sides and tank, a used tail,----just missing an original nose. I have some good copies but I want this to be as factory as possible.

If anyone is interested I will continue to update pictures as I make progress.