Author Topic: 74 Honda CB500 Four Cafe TX (Read 18196 times)

Bankerdanny · « **Reply #25 on:** June 11, 2013, 11:58:05 AM »

The project shop thread isn't limited to just SOHC4's. But most people opt to use the "Other Bikes" thread.

Stev-o · « **Reply #26 on:** June 11, 2013, 03:43:59 PM »

Did you clean the slow jets? You need spark, fuel and compression.
Try spraying a little start fluid in the airbox just as a check.

Nice score on the 450, they are nice. Start a thread in the "Other bikes" section, I have my Z1 there. Also check out hondatwins.com

Luckystrike · « **Reply #27 on:** June 12, 2013, 10:17:14 AM »

I didn't clean the jets. I'm planning on doing that this weekend actually. I'll be sure to post the 450 soon.

stuartni · « **Reply #28 on:** June 12, 2013, 12:49:17 PM »

great build so far bike looks great. Cant believe you got a cb450 for free they are so hard to get in the uk and a rough one would cost £800-£1000

Luckystrike · « **Reply #29 on:** June 12, 2013, 01:04:23 PM »

Yeah, I lucked out for sure. I developed twin fever two weeks ago.

Luckystrike · « **Reply #30 on:** June 16, 2013, 02:46:16 PM »

Quick question. Do the lights need to be hooked up to complete a circuit for it to start? I know that's the case with the intruder.

Luckystrike · « **Reply #31 on:** August 12, 2013, 02:55:53 PM »

Well, I thought I'd stop by for a quick update. Things are going well. A bit slow, but well. Right now, I'm working on the frame and seat. I decided to lop off the tail end and go for a loop. After some time with a pipe bender and a mig welder, she came out pretty nice. Two pieces of pipe were bent in a 16 ton tube bender, then cut, then joined together with a small metal rod, slid into the bike and welded and smoothed out with various grinders.

Also, I ordered a Dyna Ignition system as well, including the coils. I'm really looking forward to that shipment. :-)

Tews19 · « **Reply #32 on:** August 12, 2013, 06:56:17 PM »

I like how you made frame lines flow with the hoop. Some will weld on and have the gap where the frame was cut.

Luckystrike · « **Reply #33 on:** September 06, 2013, 09:21:34 AM »

Well, I've busy with a little bit of this and a little bit of that. I cut and shaped a seat pan to match the new hoop. I welded in mounts for the rear fender. I created a sort of "basket" that runs with the contours of the fender. I bent some strap in sort of a W shape. I then picked up from the old threaded holes for the rear tail light and welded another piece of strap at an angle. This will stabilize the fender so that it won't wobble up or down. I have the new headlight bucket and lights and signals mounted. I made a new bracket for my instruments. They were both mounted on their own separate plates. I didn't want them knocking together, so I had my dad draw up a simple bracket on CAD and I cut it out and tapped it. It seems to have turned out pretty well.

Bad news and good news: I had been underusing the tank. I swear, Apple Cider Vinegar works pretty damn well. I threw some nuts and bolts in, after a good soak, drained 3/4 of the tank, and stuffed it and a bunch of heavy blankets into the cement mixer. I had it running for two days. It was just about done, when one of the blankets dislodged and the mixer ate the tank. It wasn't too bad, but there is a very deep dent at the top of the tank. I had enough of it and bought a new one. It's a very solid tank, my new one. It's currently red, and I think I'll repaint it the same color. The cap is clean as hell. Well this is what I have so far guys.

Stev-o · « **Reply #34 on:** September 06, 2013, 06:37:35 PM »

Cement mixer? Wha??

Luckystrike · « **Reply #35 on:** September 06, 2013, 11:08:24 PM »

I was using it to tumble the inside. I wrapped it with thick blankets and and stuffed it in. It worked very well. It became dislodged on the third day.

Luckystrike · « **Reply #36 on:** September 18, 2013, 11:12:35 AM »

Well, for those of you who are still following along, I have a sizable update. I can't say enough about how much this forum has saved my bacon. There have been countless times of me scratching my head and cussing a part, then pulling up the forum to find a simple fix. This scenario repeated itself this past weekend. I spent most of the day Saturday, going through the harness and hooking up my new Dyna system. I went to start it up and got nothing but backfires. I couldn't figure it out. I knew it was probably something stupid that I had repeatedly been overlooking, such is the case. I went back inside frustrated and demoralized. Before I decided to call my friends for help, I thought I would try the forum. I read through a few posts and 30 minutes later... bingo.

It turns out in my noobieness, I found that I had the blue and yellow wires from the points turned around after I had hooked up my Dyna coils. Stupid mistake but it could have been way worse. At any rate, I went back out to the barn, switched the wires over and gave her some juice. It sounded like it was trying to start, but the choke really had to be played with to get this to happen. It almost started up and it was enough to get me finishing up the rest of the bike.

I welded on and painted the rear end finally. I used VHT Roll Bar paint. I'm hoping it holds up, but we will see. Before I called it a night, I thought I would give it another go on getting the bike to fully turn over. I worked the choke and my brother ran the throttle and hit the starter. VIOLA! She's running!

The bike isn't idling yet. The choke has to be played with way too much, just a touch one way or the other will kill the bike. A carb rebuild is now next on the list. I have the kit but haven't gotten to it until now. Is there a good brand of paint to pretty up the carbs with?

Click the photo below for the video.

CLICK THE PHOTO

Luckystrike · « **Reply #37 on:** September 19, 2013, 08:30:52 AM »

Well, the seat pan is built and I'm planning on doing something very simple with it. I've decided to cut it down to shape and make a wooden base for the padding to sit on and attach with bolts. I picked up some camping mats and I've decided to cut them to size and layer them until it is comfortable. I have an aftermarket seat cover that I will use for the upholstery. Any thoughts on that?

SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan · « **Reply #38 on:** September 19, 2013, 01:55:05 PM »

Luckystrike,

Nice progress! Are you sure you want to use wood as the base for your seat? I'm just wondering how it will hold up over time with moisture and/or bugs.

Tews19 · « **Reply #39 on:** September 19, 2013, 01:59:16 PM »

Nice job Lucky! Bike sounds nice... I didn't know you shaved your legs though....

Luckystrike · « **Reply #40 on:** September 19, 2013, 02:08:45 PM »

Thanks guys. Yeah, that's my lil brothers fiance holding the gas bottles.

I was going to use wood to enable me to staple the cover down over the pad. I'm open to better ideas though.

Luckystrike · « **Reply #41 on:** November 05, 2013, 08:15:37 AM »

Well boys, it's been a while since I posted last. I wanted everyone to know that I'm still trucking along with my project. I rebuilt the carbs and put them back on the bike. I have it idling now. The harness has been rewired in the front. I bit the bullet and bought a brand new brake calliper. There is a guy on Ebay that does exceptional work on reproducing the old caliper to spec. I have to say, the caliper was beautifully done. I bought new hoses and a rebuild kit for the master cylinder. I finally bought a new bolt kit for the engine because the old fasteners weren't holding well enough to keep oil from leaking from the valve cover.
The master cylinder is rusted to hell around the piston, making it very difficult to extract the snap ring. I'm having to soak it in Micro Mist right now. After getting the bike to idle, something new was brought to my attention. I noticed that the number two carb is blowing air. I looked down and could see that it was wet while the others were dry. I'm guessing it's a valve adjustment issue. At any rate, that will be the next hurdle to get over. Secondly, I went to install the clutch cable and realized that the chain guard on the inside of the left cover had broken. I hadn't messed with the part since I removed it a year ago when I was much greener with motorcycles. I notice now that it is snapped and had been repaired before. I see that it can be removed and replace, but I can't find the part to replace it. Any ideas on what I should do there?
One last thing, I put the rear wheel on some time ago. I may have put it on wrong. I noticed that if I move the wheel from side to side that it giggles a bit. Perhaps I'm missing a collar on the left side?
Also, I ordered a new set of bronze bushings for the swing arm. I was able to find them for $20 from Germany(go figure). I'll be back with more pictures soon.

Bankerdanny · « **Reply #42 on:** November 05, 2013, 10:01:35 AM »

If you use a marine grade wood and add some varnish I don't see why there should be a problem with a wood seat base. Plenty of boats that live in far wetter environments are made of wood and include wood furniture.

Luckystrike · « **Reply #43 on:** November 05, 2013, 10:20:36 AM »

Yeah, that's true. I was going to use a some sort of waterproof sealant. Right now I'm working on attaching it to the frame some how. I've decided to use a hook method of sorts with positive pressure on both sides of the pan in the front, under the tank, with two bolts that pick up from the frame in the rear.

Stev-o · « **Reply #44 on:** November 05, 2013, 04:57:56 PM »

Lucky - check this out, new hardware to mount your seat...

http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=126892.0

Luckystrike · « **Reply #45 on:** November 06, 2013, 08:08:12 AM »

Thanks! This looks like a great idea.

volare71 · « **Reply #46 on:** November 07, 2013, 05:21:59 AM »

So It's been from June to November. Did you ever get fire to the plugs? Engines only need three things to run FUEL, SPARK and TIMING.

Stev-o · « **Reply #47 on:** November 07, 2013, 05:34:06 AM »

Quote from: volare71 on November 07, 2013, 05:21:59 AM

Engines only need three things to run FUEL, SPARK and TIMING.

What about compression??

Luckystrike · « **Reply #48 on:** November 07, 2013, 08:29:06 AM »

Quote from: volare71 on November 07, 2013, 05:21:59 AM

So It's been from June to November. Did you ever get fire to the plugs? Engines only need three things to run FUEL, SPARK and TIMING.

Yes I did. Thanks to this forum I have been able to figure out many of my problems. I bought a Dyna ignition over the summer. I installed it and began to turn it over. I was sounding like it wanted to start, but never could. I racked my brain trying to figure it out. So I started looking. I read through a whole post on here and found the solution 7 pages in. The green and the yellow wires on the coils were backwards. I was so excited to get the coils on that I didn't pay attention to the order of the wires that were coming from the points. I switched them around and after a bit of starter fluid, boom, it was running. It wouldn't idle at first. I ordered a carb rebuild kid and set to work doing that. I got them rebuilt and then finally got it to idle at 2000 rpm. I'm now trying to get it down to 1000 like the Clymer says. I experienced an oil leak that was coming out of the valve cover. Turns out that the stock bolts could no longer hold a good torque so I bought a brand new set. I spent some time Sunday doing that. I fixed the oil leak and started her up again. Now, number 2 carb is blowing air. I looked at it after the run test and it is the only one that is wet and the others are dry. I'm thinking it's a valve problem. I'm going to go back in and check everything thing with a feeler and see if anything is off with the number two cylinder.

Also, the chain guard in the left side cover is broken. I'm going to have it get it tigged this weekend, I believe.

Luckystrike · « **Reply #49 on:** November 11, 2013, 12:01:58 PM »

Ran into another problem. I readjusted the tappets and have the tolerances pretty spot on. That fixed the the carb blowing air problem. It is now working correctly. I noticed that number 2 cylinder is blowing a lot of smoke. My dad stuck his hand behind the exhaust and he had oil spray on his hand. Could this be a busted valve stem seal? What could this be?

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Author Topic: 74 Honda CB500 Four Cafe TX (Read 18196 times)