Topic: CB750 K2 restomod to "originalish" condition // Forkbrace added ! ! !

[Viktor.J]

Neat progress on this build...

love the CNC shots from earlier posts...

Thanks, it´s a slow working progress for many reasons and its impossible for me to keep the pase that some of the guy on the forum does

The bike is 200 km from where I live. And I dont't have much of a garage or such. And im a student and spent all my summerworks money on the motorcycle driverslicense and the bike... So Everything takes soooooo loooooong tiiiiiime  

Thanks !

[Viktor.J]

Well.. Ive got some things done this weekend, but unfortently I run into more problem the more I tear apart but i guess that's comon on these Bikes.. One of the point highes on my list of priority was a new seat. I Talket to motoretti in England  and thought that I this weekend would strip the seat down, sand it down and paint it and then send it to Motorretti for a new upholstery...

Little did I know...

You could easily see that the seat foam had dried out but when I removed the cover I already saw that the whole set was "quite tired" And when I've removed the foam I saw that it was more likely that the bike´s been laying under 10 m water for 40 years..

After I removed the cover


Nevermind the beautiful view




So I wanted to see HOW much rust there was so I tried to clean it up with steel wool and steel-brush.. and got to this state.

Nothing but a sad edge





 I have a friend who let me lend his blaster, unfortunately it broke a little a few weeks ago and now had to low pressure. The result was not that good. but this is how the seat base looks now...


With a little "direct rust" (the yellow)

Also with a little "Direct rust"



And I would need some feedback here.. What do I do now ? I see two possibilities

1: grind the rust down, weld the #$%* up. Paint with "anti rust". Send it to upholstery and hope the rust is gone and its in good enough shape for the upholster to do his work.

2: Buy a new copy seat with plastic seat-base...

What would you do if you were in my position ?

[Stev-o]

I would buy a good, used, steel pan. But, you are in Sweden, probably hard to find there?

[Terry in Australia]

Most steel seat bases from the era will have some rust, so I wouldn't buy a used one. You can still buy NOS seats on EBay for under 300 bucks, or a good repro with a plastic base (which is better than a steel base IMHO) for under 200.

I bought a repro K0 seat with plastic base and put it on my K2, and I think it looked pretty cool. Shipping to Sweden would be cheaper too, due to the plastic bases being a bit lighter then steel. Cheers, Terry.

[Viktor.J]

I would buy a good, used, steel pan. But, you are in Sweden, probably hard to find there?

Yeah its quite hard to get a hold on here and I bet it would be overpriced as hell since these bikes are crazy popular here.
In one way it feels "wrong" to buy a copy seat, but the only differens from what i would have if i restore this pan and send it for upholstery and buy a new copy seat is that with the copy seat I get a plastic pan. So I don't know, hmm..

Most steel seat bases from the era will have some rust, so I wouldn't buy a used one. You can still buy NOS seats on EBay for under 300 bucks, or a good repro with a plastic base (which is better than a steel base IMHO) for under 200.

I bought a repro K0 seat with plastic base and put it on my K2, and I think it looked pretty cool. Shipping to Sweden would be cheaper too, due to the plastic bases being a bit lighter then steel. Cheers, Terry.

300 Aussie bucks ? well i haven´t found them But i will keep looking. But you have the plastic base ? from where ? and how is the plate ?does it feel rigid and good quality ? Would hate to buy a seat that brakes down after 1 year.

Edit: I checked the bay now, a NOS seat in US cost like half the price of from sweden or Europe. But with shipping it almost 100$ extra

Anyone tried honda service ?



BTW both Terry and Steve, Love your bikes, seems like we have the same taste

[Stev-o]

No disrespect to Uncle Terry, but rust free steel seats are still out there. I just bought one for $60 shipped. Granted. it was a great deal from generous from member Madmt, but regardless they are to be had. The cafe guys take em off, so I regularly see them for sale. This is the one I just got for my K5...





Viktor - would be willing to help you find/ship one to you if that interests you.
Not sure how much it would cost to ship to Sw?

[Viktor.J]

No disrespect to Uncle Terry, but rust free steel seats are still out there. I just bought one for $60 shipped. Granted. it was a great deal from generous from member Madmt, but regardless they are to be had. The cafe guys take em off, so I regularly see them for sale. This is the one I just got for my K5...





Viktor - would be willing to help you find/ship one to you if that interests you.
Not sure how much it would cost to ship to Sw?

Thats a crazy good steal Steve. And as you said, the cafe guys chop everything of = nice seats for us

About your super kind suggestion, I PM:ed you.

[Viktor.J]

Im off to a holiday for a few days to NYC and London so if anyone there wants to sell me something PM , maybe ill check up some engine covers in NYC. Anyway if someone has a seat to sell me, PM. eventhough I live in sweden I'll pay for the shipping !

[Stev-o]

Have a good trip!  Look for a seat while in NY.....

Call this guy when you get there:


http://longisland.craigslist.org/mcy/3432527236.html

[Viktor.J]

Have a good trip!  Look for a seat while in NY.....

Call this guy when you get there:


http://longisland.craigslist.org/mcy/3432527236.html

Do you know John ? Anyway  all Im back in Sweden now and thanks to Steve-O I contacted John and met him way up on Long Island.
Why ? Now I not only have a new (to me) seat, but also all alu engine covers.
As earlier mentioned I thought about de-chroming mine and yada yada bl.a. Bl.a. But now I only have to clean and polish them, all For less money then a risky de-chroming!

Ill post pictures when I unpack My bag, probably tomorrow !
EDIT: Couldn't wait !

Here's what I know and need some help with.
Seat: Nice patina colour, but if someone have a tips about how to bring back some color that would be great. Pan is no rust, foam is firm. Seat strap "hinges/conector" is rusted, but I think i have a pair of nice one over from the other seat. Chrome strip around is quite ugly, but that will due for a couple of years.

Covers: some are a little bit discolored, but with some acetone that will go away. Other wise I belive a good polishing job is what's needed, IF anyone have any tips, "tutorial" or anything about getting them pretty, let me know. Im looking for more the stock "semi shiny" finish. The generator cover have some scratches but ill do my best to remove them. Im not that super-duper anal about stuffs like that I dont have the time nor the money to have a show-perfect bike

The seat have been packed tight for a few days so the front are a bit compressed in the pictures.


Back of the seat


Side, a rusty seat-strap hinge and the "bad strip".


Solid seat pan.


Covers, the gearshifter cover I washed for 2 minutes with soap.


Scratches on Generator cover.


Don't sure what this is, looks like aluminium-color but looks like cracked color, anybody knows ?

[Stev-o]

That's great!   No, I don't know John just ran across his ad and hoped it would work out for you.
He sent pics of the seat, looks in pretty good shape, he wanted $125 (seemed a little high).
I considered the Kerker exhaust but has that big dent.  Did you have a good trip?

[Viktor.J]

That's great!   No, I don't know John just ran across his ad and hoped it would work out for you.
He sent pics of the seat, looks in pretty good shape, he wanted $125 (seemed a little high).
I considered the Kerker exhaust but has that big dent.  Did you have a good trip?

That worked out fine, thank you once again Steve !
Maybe I paid to much, 250$ for everything. But I didn´t really have the position to knock down the price lower, and compared to Sweden this is cheap so Im a happy camper and that whats count
A new copy seat would cost about the same as I paid for everything, and overall the seat looks good. And I don't know, I just love "quality" stuffs and a plastic seat-pan would bugger me. So Im glad that I now have a (to me) Nice stock seat.

The trip was great, The US was great, Although many people seems to have problem with the "big city" people I found most of them kind and helpfull. Luckilly we had crazy good weather for the season, around 50 F and i actually saw a bunch of bikes on the streets. in Soho I saw a 450 black bomber ( what we call them in Sweden). Cant wait for spring !

[Viktor.J]

Hi all..

I've now been trying to get back some color on the seat with some "vinyl recovery" I found, And it looks great
The strap is removed since im changing to my old hinges which isn't rusty.

But does anyone know any god source to buy the chrome trim around the seat ? Mine looks quite ugly ..

Also, the covers are in the sink with some CRC Gasket remover, thats the strongest "paint stripper" we have in this super controlled environment state. The things that you guys use, that actually works was banned here for like 40 years ago

This is the seat as it sits for now.




The ugly chrome trim.



As she sits now. Front fender, front brakes removed, old ugly seat, chromed covers and not the new for boots, fork ears etc.

[Stev-o]

The seat vinyl looks great. Do not know of a place to get the trim, I have a couple seats like that.

[Terry in Australia]

The "Trim" is moulded into the cover mate, and you can't remove it. Did the foam recover after a few days out of the box? The OEM foam loses it's "spring" over the years, and tends to crumble through the little holes in the base.

The "cracking" on your alternator cover is just the clearcoat, that gasket stripper stuff should remove it. Cheers, Terry.

[Viktor.J]

The seat vinyl looks great. Do not know of a place to get the trim, I have a couple seats like that.

OK, thanks.. There is a few on ebay, but its so cheap so im not sure on the quality.

The "Trim" is moulded into the cover mate, and you can't remove it. Did the foam recover after a few days out of the box? The OEM foam loses it's "spring" over the years, and tends to crumble through the little holes in the base.

The "cracking" on your alternator cover is just the clearcoat, that gasket stripper stuff should remove it. Cheers, Terry.

Molded in to the cover ? when I removed my last seat I only had to bend back the "grippers" and then remove the trim. I thought of buying a new trim, bend out the grippers but keep the trim in place. then gradually as I remove the old trim pull on the new one.. As I understood, the "grippers" just keeps a pressure on the trim and the trim is stif and  therefor holding the seat cover in place.
Yeah it recovered quite good, I kept it near a radiator and after a few days it (as you can see) are hardly visible. The spring is lost a little, but still OK I believe. At least to last a few more years.

EDIT: Sorry terry, you were right. It was molded. thats god in one way cause that means the seat cover is original I guess, but also that means I cant change it
MAybe you can glue on a new chrome trim... Ill do some research, thanks for the helpful input Terry !

The gasket remover didnt really do its job. After 3 sessions and a 3-5 times longer treatment time the cracks are still visible. SO im going to take the covers to my school (not appreciated to do that kind of work in a apartment)  and give them some love with http://m.clasohlson.com/se/Pr308846000/Pr308846000 240 grain size. Hope that will provide a "base" to proceed with.

[Viktor.J]

Well today I gave the fine art of polishing a chance For being the first time I'm overall pleased with the result.
 
Things I've learned so far, don't rush in the beginning. Its quite irritating when you finally done and realizes and sees some small scars due to poor sanding.
And I think I will try to find a new buffer wheel and polishing paste. The one I put on now was something I found in school because I was keen on see some result so i don't know if its the right one, for the right material or anything (might bee stupid to try without knowing).

The cracks couldn't be clearcoat. since I put a lot of chemicals and nothing happen, and today I had to grind like hell ( 0,1-1mm) to remove it

A question though, there are some spots that looks almost like oxidization, but it doesn't matter how much I grind I can't get it off ! So it goes deeper...

Sprocket cover.


Gear-shifter cover


And what is this ? And as I said, it doesn't matter How much I grind, it's still there.

[Viktor.J]

Some random updates !


Today all out of nowhere I got my "long lost" fork ear !
4-5 months ago I ordered parts to my front (see earlier posts), but the seller (Andy cepok @ ebay) sent me a fork ear with a  deep scratch in it....As they were supposed to be new I sent it back.... and never got a new back. Anyway I contacted "customers safety Europe" since he as a listed company... and haven't heard anything... until now when the "lost" fork ear finally arrived:D

So, now I have everything to "fix" my stock front end

I've also made some orders on polishing stuff from a guy in Sweden. So hopefully ill see some beter resaults soon. The alternator cover has so far been a real PITA ! there was quite a bit of deep scratches, scars and other random #$%* making the cover look bad. So far I've put in around 5 hours of sanding on this cover alone Im not done yet, but i will leave some scars, the reason is that i don't want to remove more material. I rather have a cover with some small scars then a cover that looks asymmetric or such. This is how the worst parts look now...



I've also changed the seat strap hinges and the seat is "done" for now. I would like to change the chrome trim. but since it's a Original seat it's not so easy. I will do some more research on weather I can remove the old chrome folie and maybe apply a new one. but for now its not the highest priority. This weekend I will mount it on the bike as im "going home".

 

[Viktor.J]

Well today I finished all the covers except the cylinder head cover, I re-polished the two covers I've already done. The result is OK I guess. I think the biggest reason is that after all the covers wasn't it as good condition as I first thought, but hey you learn
even after all the sanding and polishing there some pores and deeeeep oxidation. And a note to anyone who reads this, sometimes it better to just leave a scar then removing much material, at lest in my opinion.

I still haven't decided weather I should go with the "mirror" polish or take a fine paper and give it some drags for that more semigloss look. 
AND, after a few weeks, some dirtroads, rain and other natural causes I dont think anyone will notice pores or small miss colors

Here's the covers.
First three covers

Front of the stator cover came out pretty nice in comparason to the "before" pictures,


All four

An example of bad oxidization or whatever now it is.

And the left overs, anyone hungry ? call me....

[jerry h]

Wow - what a difference from the before and after ....  covers look great.

[stuartni]

nice build bike going to look great when done 

[Stev-o]

I think they look fantastic. I vote to leave them, no "semi gloss".

[Viktor.J]

Wow - what a difference from the before and after ....  covers look great.

Thanks Jerry ! And thanks for the help with the tank emblem, luckely it was only the white color on the left tank emblem that was bad, so I'm gona try to fix that with you're method.

nice build bike going to look great when done 

Thank you, I really hope so

I think they look fantastic. I vote to leave them, no "semi gloss".

Thanks Steve, After some thought I think I'll leave them with this mirror finish cause in a few years down the road they might look a little moore faded anyways



BUT does anyone have any tips for paintint the honda text black ?
Ive read on the forum to mask it of then drag a damp rag with acetone or something like that. BUT do I need to use primer ? clearcoat ?
If so, I guess I do the same procedure  ?

[CROMOLY]

Hi Viktor.
Your bike does look a lot like mine, Good job with the polishing... I will need to do the same too,
À+
Cromoly

[Viktor.J]

Hi Viktor.
Your bike does look a lot like mine, Good job with the polishing... I will need to do the same too,
À+
Cromoly

Thanks Cromoly, there's no easy way to do it Tomorrow I will spend some hours sanding the cylinder head cover...