[240kat]

Hey everybody. I bought my '76 CB200 back last fall, but it sat in my buddy's shed until I got my endorsement back in the spring. It was a bit spendy at $1200 (Portland, OR), but it's only needed some long overdue maintenance. Thus far, I have replaced or cleaned/adjusted the following:

Tires, tubes, chain, valves, points, advancer springs, left-hand controls, air filters/boxes, carbs, clutch, all of the cables, front forks, front caliper several times and a host of misc. gaskets and seals.

It fires right up and idles happily at 1400rpm, and is willing to drag my 185lb ass to at least 63mph. It's my first bike, and I'm freakin hooked. Future plans include getting the front caliper to operate correctly, or replacing it with a hydro setup, and replacing the rear shocks. This website has already been a tremendous help in trying to diagnose ridability concerns; the aforementioned list of mechanical areas of attention was not generated by mere curiosity.

Enough hoopla: let's see some pics!

 

[Lefty]

Hey there cool bike!

 

[J-T]

Welcome to the group.

 

[longdistancerider]

Welcome aboard from the north side of the river. Looks like you're working hard there.
What's the caliper problem?

 

[dtsmjr8dan]

Welcome to the forum.

 

[JamesPal]

Welcome to the forum. You really should get the front brake squared away. Get a copy of the FSM and take it apart to clean the caliper. I have never owned one, but I have read the the cable operated front disk brakes are fine if the are working correctly. There is a little rotating ramp inside that gets crudded up.

 

[240kat]

Welcome aboard from the north side of the river. Looks like you're working hard there.
What's the caliper problem?

When I took it apart to inspect, it was corroded, covered in rust and burnt grease and grime. I assume that years of water had run down through the brake cable and collected in the caliper mechanism. I soaked it for several hours in a mix of WD40 and vinegar, scrubbed with much vigor and packed it full of fresh grease, but the ball bearings are fairly pitted and I'm missing 4 of the 27 needle bearings. The brake cable itself is, if nothing else, not the correct one for the bike and is pretty well gunked up. I have another caliper from a parts bike that I'll try to rehab, but, as it is, I have to decide how much I want the brakes to work all of the time since the ratcheting device doesn't work. Do I want to accelerate without any braking friction but then not be able to stop well or have the brakes grabbing all of the time and be able to stop more safely? It's plenty safe to drive on the my commuting route, but it's rather limiting on a more exotic back road.

 

[HondaCB200Lady]

Welcome to the forum.

 

[bilbikek411]

When I took it apart to inspect, it was corroded, covered in rust and burnt grease and grime. I assume that years of water had run down through the brake cable and collected in the caliper mechanism. I soaked it for several hours in a mix of WD40 and vinegar, scrubbed with much vigor and packed it full of fresh grease, but the ball bearings are fairly pitted and I'm missing 4 of the 27 needle bearings. The brake cable itself is, if nothing else, not the correct one for the bike and is pretty well gunked up. I have another caliper from a parts bike that I'll try to rehab, but, as it is, I have to decide how much I want the brakes to work all of the time since the ratcheting device doesn't work. Do I want to accelerate without any braking friction but then not be able to stop well or have the brakes grabbing all of the time and be able to stop more safely? It's plenty safe to drive on the my commuting route, but it's rather limiting on a more exotic back road.

Welcome 240kat,
I have rebuilt my past CB125S mechanical/cable operated front caliper mechanism(which is exactly the same type as the CB200T only just a little smaller).I first soaked the inner mechanism in Evaporust and that removed all the rust and did get the adjustment screw in the center of it working again.I then took the mechanism apart and replaced both radial/flat needle bearings and thrust washers and the 3) 7mm ball bearings where the mech. 'ramps' on when you pull the cable;it took some work but was well worth the labor involved and it stops Great now.
I hope you find an NOS oem front brake cable and go ahead and rebuild your caliper,bearings and thrust washers are available at a quality bearing supply house.