H'llo, yins all,
Western PA here, where the weather is unpredictable and the hills are rollin'! After getting a buddy's '81 Kawasaki KZ440LTD on the road for him, I caught the motorcycle bug. Last March I found a 1980 CB650 that was sitting in a garage since it's removal from a barn where it was initially parked. Last inspection was 1992. She was in beautiful condition for the age and with new tires, new (used) CV carbs, and a list of several other repairs (front caliper seizure, wheel replacement, rear shocks, etc.) I got her on the road. Following with my need to make things better on a tight budget, I hit up local trades, Craigslist, and Evilbay as well as Google and this forum to find what I could modify and swap.
As she sits today:
-air assist front forks, front brake calipers and lines; '81 C
-front wheel and slotted rotors; '83 Nighthawk
-rear wheel, rear shocks, CV carbs, airbox; '82 SC
-Other new: chain, tires, Shoei FM-2 fairing, black square mirrors, black drag bars, K&N high flow air filter, and heat wrap.
After forcing her back to life on an extreme budget, running her daily all spring, summer, and fall, I now have a bad main bearing (whoops... darned oil leak), a knocking #4 piston, and steady leaks out of just about every seal and gasket on the old girl. So now I'm putting an '82 crankcase and rods/pistons under her with full gasket and seal kits. My ideal plan is to drop in 62mm pistons (KZ650 or CB750), build and regrind the cam hotter, put in heavier springs and lighter retainers, do a full valve job, port and polish the head, modify the exhaust, and add new carbs (DOCE webers would be nice, but...), and meet a goal of around 75hp @ 9000RPM. This, with the help of putting her on a diet and shaving some weight, should give me some nice results (I hope).
Well, that's my life story. See everyone around the forum!
