[woody1981]

Okay guys... this isn't about my twins... well kinda. I have a '73 CB350F as well that I am rebuilding into a cafe. I needed to clean the motor cause it was just really gross. It's out of the bike right now so I finally got around to it tonight. Here is my worry.

I went and got some rubber stoppers from the hardware store after measuring my intake manifolds and my exhaust ports. Plugged them up with the stoppers really well... tapped them in with a hammer. All seemed good. Stuck the motor on a stand with the help of my bro and soaked it down with some engine cleaner/degreaser and let it sit for about 15min. It was sitting with the exhaust ports facing mostly downward. After it sat for a while and I gave it a little scrub with a brush I rinsed it off with the hose, not using any knozzle or excess pressure. We then flipped the motor onto its back and I did the same thing to the front of the cylinder heads etc...

My concern is that when I was done and I got it back on my workbench, it was leaning forward and when I pulled the stoppers out of the exhuast ports some water seemed to be around/behind them... I don't know if it was just around the stoppers and so it appeared to come out or if there was actually some water that got by. Also, I didn't notice that the stopper that was in the vent tube spigot about the valves must have been knocked out and there might have been a little water that got in there... I pulled that cover and it was a little damp... but not excessively wet.

I'm not really freaked out... but the engine is drained of oil and I just want to know what precautions I should take to make sure it's good to go when I get it back in the bike.

I went ahead and pulled the clutch side cover off and the points cover off and made sure there wasn't any excess moisture in there... didn't seem to be much... there was a little under the points cover cause that gasket is kinda jacked. Its all opened up to that point right now... sans the breather cover... I put that back on.

Should I pull the plugs and put a teaspoon of oil in each cylinder? Or what do you experts suggest? The motor was a good runner when I took the bike apart... it just needed a little tune up on the carbs etc... and it was only running on 3cyl cause of a bad plugwire... but I still road it home like 10 miles before I even noticed that

I'm not freaked... just want to take precautions.

- Woody

 

[tbpmusic]

Woody -

I'd be freaked, myself.
I'd also be considering a complete teardown, if it were my bike.
Even a little bit of moisture will produce terrible things in a short time.
You could end up with a LOT of damage.

But that's just my opinion, for what it's worth.

bill

 

[woody1981]

Eeesh... You're not instilling confidence in me... I think a "tear down" might be a bit over my head... I'm not even sure that any water got in there. Like what do you mean? Like pulling the top end off? I really don't want to have to do that.

Is there anything I can do? Will it "dryout" with the exhaust and intake ports just open like they are? IF any water even got in?

- Woody

 

[tbpmusic]

Woody -

Other folks here will have different opinions I'm sure, but.....

I think the only thing that would stop me from tearing it down completely is to get it running, then run it hard through several oil changes. I've seen and been through what a little bit of water can do to these engines.

Again, just my opinion.

bill