[Santacruiser]

So, this post is starting about halfway through my "restoration" project, but I thought it would be fun to share my progress. This bike used to be my uncle's, and it's the one he rode when carving up the winding roads of central Ohio with my dad when I was just a kid. Everything was there when I got the bike, but it wasn't perfect. Lots and lots of cleaning and polishing to get it to a good "baseline". It runs great, but needs a little mechanical attention, like a front suspension rebuild (hoping the forks just need oil), new tires and some tweaking and tuning. I had originally intended to do a mild cafe treatment on the bike, but the more I look at it, the more I love it like it is (save for the handlebars and lollypop mirrors).

Before - the pictures are actually much more flattering than the reality.

Lots of nasty yellow clear coat and an incorrectly painted side cover.

The front forks were truly nasty (again, they look much better in the photo).

Lots of oxidation and discoloration.

As she sits today. I didn't take anything off the bike to polish it, but that will come later.

New petrol cap and various rubber bits.

Cleaned and polished engine bits.

New shocks (at least until I can rebuild the originals).

Definitely not a show-winner, but clean and pretty...in my humble opinion

More to come later...

 

[frogman79]

Very Nice! Welcome to the forums!

Just as a piece of info, that left engine cover the goes over the stator looks to be one of the earlier rather sought efter K0 covers. MIGHT think about getting a replacement since they are pretty damn hard to find and worth some money.

 

[JAYinNY]

The early style cover was used right up through the K3 and may have even made it onto a few K4s as well. I absolutely agree that it is a valuable and easily damaged item and you should consider picking up a later replacement. Nice bike and brilliant job of polishing while still together.

 

[Santacruiser]

Thanks you guys!

I had no idea that the cover was that rare...although, I will say that I haven't seen many (if any) on anyone else's bike. I'll find a replacement and put that one away as an "investment" It already has a little ding in it, but it sure cleaned-up nicely.

Any tire recommendations? I want something that looks like the original OEM rubber.

 

[frogman79]

I'm pretty happy with my Dunlop k70's seem to be wearing well and have plenty of traction for the roads I ride on. I'm a back country bomber, love good to lane country roads. I wouldn't dare run a street tire on some of the roads I like to frequent.

Dunlop K70 Front Tire - Motorcycle Superstore They do make front and rear just linked the front.

The K81's are not too bad as well, vintage styling wise. I guess depends on where you plan on riding.

Dunlop K81 Rear Tire - Motorcycle Superstore

 

[PA J]

Nice work man!

 

[Santacruiser]

New Heidenau tires (stock-sized 3.25-19 front, 3.5-18 rear), plus a whole lot more cleaning . I've ordered, and received, a CB400F handlebar (I need a little more forward lean to get out of the wind). I'm not looking forward to replacing the bars, as I've heard it can be quite a job...wish me luck!

Heidenau K34, K36

New stock-sized rubber

Before

After

 

[bilbikek411]

Nice Work & what a Beautiful CB450 !

 

[tbpmusic]

I've ordered, and received, a CB400F handlebar

Where did you locate those handlebars?????

 

[bilbikek411]

Where did you locate those handlebars?????

Bill,I ordered a pr. of EMGO repro. CB400F bars from Dennis Kirk,for a good deal.

 

[Santacruiser]

Where did you locate those handlebars?????

I got mine at Dime City Cycles for a very good price.

 

[Santacruiser]

Tried to replace the oil seal behind the points today, to fix a small oil leak. I now can't get the old seal out (which is now too damaged to work properly) and the points base gasket is in pieces. Apparently the points base gasket isn't easy to find. I've ordered one on eBay, but who knows how long that will take. So basically, I've taken a well-running bike, with a small oil leak, and turned it into a rolling paperweight.

Any advice on how to get that old oil seal out? I beat it from the backside with a dowel and a mallet, but it didn't budge. I think i'm going to put-in an electronic ignition from Charlie's Place while i have the points assembly out. Thoughts on that?

Thanks!

 

[Santacruiser]

Just installed the electronic ignition from Charlie's Place. What a HUGE difference! She idles like a new bike and starts on the first push of the button...seriously, the first push. Getting the timing right took more time than we thought, but it wasn't difficult. Now I need to find a new wiring harness. The old one is really brittle, and I'm afraid that something's going to crack the next time I start messing with anything electrical (like the wiring in the handlebars).

 

[Santacruiser]

Wow, I can't believe that it's been more than a year since my last post!

Here's are a couple of shots of the 450 with her new bars (CB400F style), new fork boots and a few new bolts...and some more cleaning. Those bars make a world of difference in terms of the riding position and they still look period-correct. Still sorting things out here and there, but that's the fun of it.

 

[ctrider]

Love that color scheme!!

 

[JamesPal]

I have the repo 400F bars on my DOHC too. I couldn't see anything but my elbows and gut in the rear view mirrors. I went to a set of Hindsight Lane Splitter bar end mirrors. At first I didn't like the look of the mirrors sticking out the end of the handlebars, but it is growing on me. The lane splitters fold in when you need that extra bit of room when you're bust'in the traffic Actually the fold in if you hit anything

 

[Santacruiser]

Thanks for that...great idea. I put bar end mirrors on my Triumph Bonneville, and it's made a huge difference - I can actually see behind me now . The 400F bars do look really good on the 450. The tricky part was rerouting the brake line from the reservoir. It didn't want to go anywhere convenient, but I eventually got it to sit close to where it did before. Any advice there would be really helpful - I checked out the photos of your 450 and the reservoir and brake line look nice sorted. The rest of your bike looks amazing, too, by the way .

 

[Santacruiser]

Love that color scheme!!

What is it about red? It's just so good, right? That's a pretty bike. There's a gentleman, in nearby Capitola, CA, who has one just like yours (I think he has several CB350s) and I eye it every time I drive by.

 

[Santacruiser]

My buddy refilled both forks, as part of the service that he did a couple or weeks ago (they weren't dry, but close...and the oil that was in there was pretty nasty). Both of the seals started leaking as soon as I got home from his shop.

We replaced the seals yesterday. The old ones were rock hard...not really rubber anymore. The new ones went right in, and work properly. That was a big job - not because of the seal replacement, but because of all of the prep and reinstallation work. The bike handles a LOT better now

 

[Santacruiser]

Help with fork caps!

I've purchased two sets of new fork caps; both sets made by Honda. I purchased the caps for a CB450K4, and neither set worked. The thread pitch is different than the original pair on my bike. I've now looked at photos, and it appears that my fork caps are from an earlier model. I'm wondering if Honda didn't completely move to the new design (different thread pitch and "shoulder") for all K4 bikes? The older caps, for the Black Bomber, etc., look like the correct parts, but those are from at least a couple of years before my bike. Any ideas? My original cap is on the right, the new OEM cap is on the left...they're clearly different. Should I be ordering an older set of caps?