[krukster86]

So here is the bike that I am working on. I purchased it from a private seller in Gurnee IL. Aparently the person that owned it rode for ~4,000 in 1975-1976 and left it in storage till recently, and began restoring it. He ran out of funds and sold it to the guy I bought it from. He rebuilt the engine, swapped the rear suspension and forks with a CB400 and salvaged carbs from a parts CB450 bike. He replaced the bars with clubmans, took off front turn signals, and mirrors, and left a cafe style mirror on the left. He also replaced the stock exhaust with some of his own making (I love the thermal wrapped headers!).
Future/Current plans: I am restoring the engine case and heat transfer fins to their former shine with a lot of elbow grease. The seat has been replaced with a Saddlemen replacement cover. I need to buy an exhaust clamp for the pipes since they were bolted together with 2 screws (very wobbly). I am also looking to replace the brakelight with something cooler, and then just repaint the tank and side covers to a wine red color.
Here is the bike when I initially got it:

Here is the new replacement seat cover:

Here is the polishing job thus far:

 

[66Sprint]

Excellent start.....just keep it up!....
What's up with the pipe cap?.... Leaky carbs?
Steve

 

[krukster86]

Excellent start.....just keep it up!....
What's up with the pipe cap?.... Leaky carbs?
Steve

I thought it was leaky carbs, it turned out to be a fuel petcock that shuts off only when you hit its "sweet spot"

 

[66Sprint]

That is a common problem..... Sometimes a thorough cleaning will remedy it, sometimes a "new" petcock is required (about $50).......... Just thought I'd warn ya!..... Steve

 

[krukster86]

That is a common problem..... Sometimes a thorough cleaning will remedy it, sometimes a "new" petcock is required (about $50).......... Just thought I'd warn ya!..... Steve

Yeah I was eyeing one, but I am going to lump that order with a bunch of other parts to save on shipping. At the moment, I set the switch to about a millimeter below "OFF" and it work just fine. Anything else, and I get a couple tablespoons of fuel in said PVC cap the next day.

 

[krukster86]

So big news today, I am about 70% done with the engine cleanup job, all I need to do now is get all the nooks and crannies :evil: and start looking for some nice polish. I heard that this product called simichrome is nice for this application.
I also took the toolbox out, saw that the flasher relay on the bike actually is there, but does not work, and I rearranged a part of the wiring harness so that I do not have a gobbledegook of wires hanging under my headlight (They are now behind it :lol: )
Once I get done with the polishing, I am going to take the carbs off (one at a time of course!) and study them before cleaning them.

I like the look of some cafe bikes out there that forgo the side covers and move the battery to the back bump of a the cafe seat, but that is out of my area of expertise, so I am fine with the way mine looks. At the moment, I do not see any really obvious cafe-style changes coming up soon, I just want to keep my bike running happily

(Sorry no pics, I left my camera at my gf's place 150 miles away)

 

[Bird76Mojo]

I am going to take the carbs off (one at a time of course!) and study them before cleaning them.

I like the look of some cafe bikes out there that forgo the side covers and move the battery to the back bump of a the cafe seat, but that is out of my area of expertise, so I am fine with the way mine looks. At the moment, I do not see any really obvious cafe-style changes coming up soon, I just want to keep my bike running happily

Sounds like you'll do fine when tackling those carbs. They're more simple than you think. Take your time, and in the meantime if needed, I've got 4 spare carbs up for grabs....

Hey, you've got "Ace" bars so who says it's not a "cafe" bike?? Screw em. It's yours, it's paid for, and I think it's looking pretty damn good so far. Keep it up!!

The guys here will guide you through any necessary maintainance procedures/mods.


GB :mrgreen:

 

[krukster86]

Lotsa progress on the bike! I left my digicam at the gf's place 150 miles away so no pics to back it up
I have removed the seat, rear fender, tail light assembly, battery box, horn bracket + ignition bracket and have begun sanding the rusted up parts for repaint. Thanks to my buddy's recommendation of using a wire wheel for the initial cleanup job, my productivity quadrupled at least! I began rattle can-ing it and the parts look pretty darn good! I started with the wire wheel, 400grit - 1000 grit sandpaper, automotive primer, black metal paint (2-3 coats) and then a clearcoat, which I regret using (faded some of the gloss).

After some inspection this morning after using the clearcoat, I noticed that there are uneven coloring spots where you can still see the primer underneath the layer. Is it too late to apply another coat of the glossy black? I figure once the clearcoat is on you either are forced to be happy with what you have or sand it down and start over.

 

[66Sprint]

Nope!...Once the current paint is fully cured, scuff the top layer with a fine 3M pad or fine wet sandpaper and simply re-shoot the color coat.... Several lighter coats followed by a good gloss coat are better (for avoiding runs) .....This ONLY applies IF the paints are compatable...Otherwise it could "wrinkle"..... Steve

 

[krukster86]

Alright will do sometime this week

 

[74cb360]

Hi,krukster86:

Could you take some pictures of your bike's harness and wire for me?
I have a 1974 CB360 and wire&harness was messed up.
IF I can get some pictures of those harness (like the coil, some wire mounted around battery bracket, air box and wire mounted behind side cover...), it will very helpfull to let me work out those wires.

My post is here.
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=225

Thanks.

 

[crazypj]

I have a couple but I won't be able to take any pics until weekend if that's any help?
PJ

 

[74cb360]

I have a couple but I won't be able to take any pics until weekend if that's any help?
PJ

Thanks very much. Any picture that show the wire/part's location and how mounted togather is helpfull. Below is one of them I found today that show stuff under the seat.

 

[krukster86]

Oh yeah so I took off the points cover and got rid of the old flaky paint. I sanded down and polished it to a 1/2 way decent mirror shine, I like it so much I don't think I will repaint, though the old rusty screws might detract from its awesomeness :roll:

Since the bike is winterized, can I remove the generator/stator cover and the crankcase covers? Or will that cause a mini Exxon Valdez? At the moment I am cleaning up oxidation and varnish on those components as mounted on the engine and it is a real PITA

 

[krukster86]

Nevermind, the Service Manual answered my question

 

[Bird76Mojo]

Sounds like it's coming along Kruk..

Keep it up!

GB :mrgreen:

 

[krukster86]

Heh, if it doesn't break the bank :lol:
I am through buying parts at the moment, its time to clean up the engine before anything else distracts me further.
I can't wait till this weekend, I can finally take some "progression" pictures!!!.......oh yeah and my gf will be in town haha!

 

[krukster86]

Update: I took off the stator/generator cover and from 7pm-9pm I just wet sanded the crap out of it. I finished up with some steel wool (very fine) and Mothers Mag/Aluminum polish and it is SUPER shiny and reflective, almost a mirror finish! Too bad the rest of the engine is quite the opposite :lol:
I tried prying away the left crankcase cover, but even with liquid wrench, the screws wouldn't budge and the heads started to wear away, YIKES!


(yeah yeah I know,...pics or it didn't happen, hopefully I can get a comparo pic once I reclaim my digicam)

 

[66Sprint]

An impact driver is the tool you need..... If you don't have one, an easy method (but it destroys the phillips screws ) is to hit a 8 or 10 mm bolt into the top of the screw (fairly hard, usually several blows, and until the + flattens a bit)....Then Hit (drive) a #3 phillips driver in to open the + back-up and apply hard twisting pressure.... most will "pop" and come right out.....

 

[Bird76Mojo]

If anyone here EVER plans on working on anymore old Honda's then they should own an impact driver. It'll save you a lot of headaches. Plus they're cheap if you shop around. Get extra bits for it as well. You're gonna snap a few.

GB :mrgreen: