Author Topic: 1973 750 nightmare  (Read 2999 times)

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Offline wolfbiker88

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1973 750 nightmare
« on: March 24, 2012, 06:19:34 PM »
so i ended up buying a 1973 cb750 already hardtailed. well at night when i bought it, the bike looked nice. so this is what i started with.

well since i fabricated for a local racing team for 8 years, i knew everything needed to be perfect. well after two weeks of owning the bike i started to get curious as to how it was all put together and why certain things were extremely ass backwards when it came to needing to work on it. like why did i need to remove the rear tire to take the seat off or why did this guy weld the fender straight to the frame? so i dug in.


« Last Edit: May 26, 2012, 02:30:53 PM by wolfbiker88 »

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #1 on: March 24, 2012, 06:24:16 PM »
realized the welds looked super smooth and the paint was horrible. whats the worst that it could be? so i removed a little section of the paint to see bondo! so i grabbed a punch and tapped at it hoping it wasn't that thick. well this is the reason for why the bike has been down for over 2 months.

now i asked my self," why did you buy this at night?" well i now realize that i bought it for the motor and the front section of frame lol. the whole rear was just pure garbage.


Offline Retro Rocket

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #2 on: March 24, 2012, 07:47:42 PM »
That frame doesn't look too bad mate, bondo was used quite a lot in the 70's to smooth out sections of the frame.....
750 K2 1000cc
750 F1 970cc
750 Bitsa 900cc
If You can't fix it with a hammer, You've got an electrical problem.

Offline ekpent

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #3 on: March 25, 2012, 06:16:33 AM »
Was that called frenching when they filled the frame. I aquired a frame once with a bunch of parts that the whole frame was filled and smoothed,even the swing arm. I remember that it weighed a ton compared to a stock frame with all the bondo, but with all the pin striping etc was unique.

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #4 on: March 25, 2012, 08:09:31 AM »
well im a firm believer that you shouldn't have to grind your welds to make them look good. to me, the amount of bondo and crap welds just isn't a safe bet going down the road.

Offline lucky

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #5 on: March 25, 2012, 05:00:06 PM »
It is not unusual to see a chopper with the rear fender welded on and bondo'ed smooth.

If the rear wheel can be removed without any problems  I do not see anything wrong with that.

What is dangerous is if the welds holding the frame together have been ground down reducing the strength of the frame. THAT IS DANGEROUS. Especially if it is hidden under Bondo.

Structural welds should not be ground!

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #6 on: March 25, 2012, 10:25:05 PM »
got the frame done and started to do a little mock up of everything.


my little friend wanted to hangout :)

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #7 on: March 25, 2012, 10:33:55 PM »
oil tank installed.

just a quick mock up of a seat i had laying around and a new rust free tank

risers from joker machine were crazy expensive so i went a different route and got bars and risers for the same price as just their risers.

Offline Retro Rocket

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #8 on: March 26, 2012, 12:52:19 AM »
Looking good mate, i like the Joker Machine triple clamps.... ;)
750 K2 1000cc
750 F1 970cc
750 Bitsa 900cc
If You can't fix it with a hammer, You've got an electrical problem.

Offline Terry in Australia

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #9 on: March 26, 2012, 02:12:40 AM »
I like it. Don't put any fenders on it mate, I like that "Hill Climber" look, and it's a hardtail, so doesn't have to be practical. Cheers, Terry. ;D
I was feeling sorry for myself because I couldn't afford new bike boots, until I met a man with no legs.

So I said, "Hey mate, you haven't got any bike boots you don't need, do you?"

"Crazy is a very misunderstood term, it's a fine line that some of us can lean over and still keep our balance" (thanks RB550Four)

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #10 on: March 26, 2012, 06:01:42 PM »
got the tag mount and light fabrication done. for those that might ask, i wanted to be able to remove it for hence the quick disconnects.

wanted to get a perfect alignment on the tank but also wanted it to hug the backbone as much as possible. found an old paint roller and just sliced it down the middle and it ended up working out perfect.


hopefully more to come tomorrow.

Offline Terry in Australia

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #11 on: March 27, 2012, 01:19:46 AM »
Nice, where did you get the alloy clamps? ;D
I was feeling sorry for myself because I couldn't afford new bike boots, until I met a man with no legs.

So I said, "Hey mate, you haven't got any bike boots you don't need, do you?"

"Crazy is a very misunderstood term, it's a fine line that some of us can lean over and still keep our balance" (thanks RB550Four)

Offline Retro Rocket

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #12 on: March 27, 2012, 02:57:43 AM »
Nice, where did you get the alloy clamps? ;D

Yeah, they look cool.... ;)

Terry, anyone make hardtail kits here mate.?  I know a guy in Brissie that makes drag bike frames, maybe he could do it..?
750 K2 1000cc
750 F1 970cc
750 Bitsa 900cc
If You can't fix it with a hammer, You've got an electrical problem.

Offline Terry in Australia

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #13 on: March 27, 2012, 03:16:25 AM »
Nice, where did you get the alloy clamps? ;D

Yeah, they look cool.... ;)

Terry, anyone make hardtail kits here mate.?  I know a guy in Brissie that makes drag bike frames, maybe he could do it..?

G'Day Mick, there was a Santee frame and forks on Gumtree in Bendigo for 700 bucks the same weekend that my Triumph schidt itself, so I didn't follow it up. Many years ago there was a bike shop here in Melbourne, "Sonic Choppers", that built two thirds of the choppers in Oz, mostly CB750's, Z1's and Yammie 650's. The shop's still there, but the choppers have gone, I often wonder whether there's some frames left up in the loft? Cheers, Terry. ;D   
I was feeling sorry for myself because I couldn't afford new bike boots, until I met a man with no legs.

So I said, "Hey mate, you haven't got any bike boots you don't need, do you?"

"Crazy is a very misunderstood term, it's a fine line that some of us can lean over and still keep our balance" (thanks RB550Four)

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #14 on: March 27, 2012, 04:04:30 AM »
Nice, where did you get the alloy clamps? ;D

Yeah, they look cool.... ;)

Terry, anyone make hardtail kits here mate.?  I know a guy in Brissie that makes drag bike frames, maybe he could do it..?
they are piaa fog light mounts for crash bars/brush gaurds.

Offline 754

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #15 on: March 27, 2012, 08:40:31 AM »
 That frame has nice lines, hard to hardtail a 750 frame and get a nice look out of it..
Maker of the WELDLESS 750 Frame Kit
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My next bike will be a ..ANFOB.....

It's All part of the ADVENTURE...

73 836cc.. Green, had it for 3 decades!!
Lost quite a few CB 750's along the way

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #16 on: April 01, 2012, 07:39:06 AM »
thanks. im pretty much at a stand still till i get my wheel back from buchanab spoke in ca. im looking at a 2 week turn-around time.  :-[

Offline wolfbiker88

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #17 on: May 19, 2012, 07:37:32 PM »
so i got the rear tire mounted and hated it with a passion. way too narrow and mostly because of the rim. so i tried a new approach. still iffy on the tire.

old rim.

new rim.




and new gas cap that i had to have.


Offline CycleRanger

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #18 on: May 19, 2012, 08:09:18 PM »
Looks like the nightmare is turning into a sweet dream!
Do you have a copy of the Honda Shop Manual or Parts List for your bike? Get one here:
https://www.honda4fun.com/materiale/documentazione-tecnica
CB750K5        '79 XL250s     CL350K3
CB750K3        '76 XS650      '76 CJ360T

Offline Terry in Australia

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Re: 1973 750 nightmare
« Reply #19 on: May 20, 2012, 12:22:24 AM »
Very nice mate, I like that a lot. Cheers, Terry. ;D
I was feeling sorry for myself because I couldn't afford new bike boots, until I met a man with no legs.

So I said, "Hey mate, you haven't got any bike boots you don't need, do you?"

"Crazy is a very misunderstood term, it's a fine line that some of us can lean over and still keep our balance" (thanks RB550Four)