My Honda CB550 Bike Restoration Project

The red and black says "I like to engage in speedy riding" yet the seat says "but in a dignified way."

The whole persona of the bike is very VERY interesting, very unique. It is like your personality in steel and rubber.

That's what I was going for, a kind of dignified "Gentleman's Express." It's stock, but just stock enough. And thanks!
 
/me is jealous.

Perfect, just perfect.
 
Art/sex on wheels.
 
i-came-ghostbuster.jpg


Looks absolutely fantastic. The colors came together nicely; you rarely see a CB with a silver frame, much less a brown seat.
 
Did some more crap to it. I wrapped the kickstart lever and grips in paracord, and they're nice and tight and grippier than I thought.

https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/04/07/270604860.jpg

Also, got a new chrome headlight bucket and matching bullet turn signals for the front end. Safety first!

https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/04/07/271692001.jpg
 
Well...after 3 more months, a tune-up by a professional mechanic, a buddy denting the tank, a can of Bondo, new fork tubes, a repaired speedo, some decals, a respray, a new headlight bucket and a rewelded/repainted exhaust adapter so it doesn't hang down like a bent schlong, here's what it looks like...

https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/05/CIMG1009.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/05/CIMG1013.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/05/CIMG1010.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/05/CIMG1012.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/05/CIMG1011.jpg

Painted the tank myself with the help of a friend. Gained lots of valuable experience and got to do it for free, basically. At this point the last thing I have to do is to actually get it registered!
 
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Nice :thumbsup: That thing is looking sharp. Now, get it registered and lets see some videos :D



In other news, I registered my third old honda all the while you've been working on one today. :p
 
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Bike looks great, BlaRo!

After flipping through a recent copy of Horse Backstreet Choppers magazine, I finally decided to go to Sears and buy an impact screwdriver to work on the screws where the speedo cable enters the head.

I fractured that damn pot metal :mad:casting right off, but at least the speedo is disconnected now. Arrgh!
 
Some gratuitous shots of my bike, from 5 minutes ago:

https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/17/CIMG1014.JPG
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/17/CIMG1016.JPG
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/17/CIMG1017.JPG
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/17/CIMG1018.JPG

Before/after:
http://img175.imageshack.**/img175/6532/bikenotankoutsidetx6.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blaro/2011/08/17/CIMG1015.JPG

There are still a lot of problems with it. For one, even with the new fork tubes, the front end bounces erratically, and I'm not sure if that's just the joys of 1970s suspension or if I'm legitimately staring death in the face. Another thing: I basically let the thing sit for a month while I bought a new car and fiddled with that, and now it won't stay running with the choke off. I may have to play with the idle adjuster and clean out the carbs for good measure, but until then I'm just not sure why it won't stay running. Also, the valves are suspiciously noisy and the tach still doesn't work.

Any ideas and answers on a postcard, please.
 
Ethanol gas screwed up your carbs. Clean and/or rebuild time.

Front end - Uh, you did remember to fill them with the appropriate weight fork oil, right? Also, who balanced your front wheel?

Noisy valves - well, do a valve adjustment.
 
Ethanol gas screwed up your carbs. Clean and/or rebuild time.

I've got to store the bike for a few months, at least. Will the ethanol eat through the carb parts? How can I check to see this hasn't happened already?

Yes to the fork oil, though I may need to drain some, might be too much in there. And the valves were adjusted a month ago.
 
Yes it can, which is why you need to use Sta-bil or another fuel stabilizer - some people like Star-Tron - run it for a bit, top up with fuel stabilizer and fuel as needed, then drain the fuel out of the carbs. Here is what you need to do if you are going to store your bike for a while: http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/maintenance/motorcyclewinterstorage.htm

Ethanol may eat through the carb parts, but if you used a modern and recent carb kit from Keyster or K&L, they should be ethanol resistant. Not -proof, just resistant. It will still form gums and varnish (without touching the rubber or plastic parts) anyway, unless you use a stabilizer. In fact, as little as one week is enough to have ethanol-laced gas start deteriorating and forming crap you don't want.

Did I mention that the geniuses in the White House think that the solution is to use moar ethanol in our gas? 15+ percent? If you're not outraged at how policies like this are directly screwing you as you have just found out, you're not paying attention.

What weight fork oil did you use, and what about the fork springs? Also, wheel balance?
 
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Bike looks great. You taking this to Cali?
 
What weight fork oil did you use, and what about the fork springs? Also, wheel balance?

SAE 10, as recommended.

Did I mention that the geniuses in the White House think that the solution is to use moar ethanol in our gas? 15+ percent? If you're not outraged at how policies like this are directly screwing you as you have just found out, you're not paying attention.
No, I'm not outraged, because I'm not angry all the time. Should I go set a car on fire or something?

Bike looks great. You taking this to Cali?

In a few months, when I'm nice and settled down, I'll have it shipped over.
 
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