Topic: '75 CB400F to make pretty again..finished pics

[Stev-o]

Looks great. Rattle canned it?

Nah.  I loaded my detail gun with single stage PPG urethane for the frame.  I re-sprayed the swing arm with it, too.  Not as durable as powder coat, but very strong paint, and it flows out so smooth.

I didnt think so 'cause I know you are a pro, but didnt see any equip in the pics.
Looking forward to the bodywork...

[nvr2old]

Moving right along and looking fantastic, Larry.

Ahhh.vmass..didn't know you were a member here, too.  Good to hear from you.

[nvr2old]

Looks great. Rattle canned it?

Nah.  I loaded my detail gun with single stage PPG urethane for the frame.  I re-sprayed the swing arm with it, too.  Not as durable as powder coat, but very strong paint, and it flows out so smooth.

I didnt think so 'cause I know you are a pro, but didnt see any equip in the pics.
Looking forward to the bodywork...

That's the extent of painting with urethane in this garage.  I'll borrow a friend's shop with a real booth to do all the body parts.  Having the garage attached to the house makes it really difficult to do much more.  The fumes just about killed my wife..so concessions have to be made..

[vmass]

Moving right along and looking fantastic, Larry.

Ahhh.vmass..didn't know you were a member here, too.  Good to hear from you.

I came here to watch this build:http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=133158.0

BTW: I shot you a pm through the GSR last month.......to sum it up,  let me know if you would like an additional seven pieces to carry over to your friends paint booth.

[nvr2old]

 Started cleaning up and re-painting parts as it goes back together again. Thought I'd start in the front and work my way back, basically opposite of the way it came apart, so we'll see how it goes.

Took the gauges apart to repaint them. How do you even get rash here?



The chrome buckets got scratched too, so I sanded the scratches out with 180 and made them look brushed instead. I like it.



I really didn't want to dissect the tach but this was on the inside of the lens..argh.



Better..



If you ever get tired of sanding you can sand, and if that gets boring you can sand, and if that gets old you can always..sand..







Nice way to spend an afternoon while watching football play offs..





I like the way they reflect the same finishes as the forks now.

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[nvr2old]

 Still wanted to get a bit more done, so I repainted the master cylinder and brake caliper, which also had road rash across the flat surface of the face, and yet no scratches on the fork leg..weird. I got a flat file and some 80-180 grit sandpaper out and removed them and then smoothed up the shoulder around it, too. Looks pretty nice now..



I also stripped that crappy old clear plastic off the levers and removed the rubber ends and then took a scotch brite pad and aluminum polish to them.



Got the carbs cleaned up. I'm polishing all the aluminum bits, but not like chrome. I want all the pieces to look a bit aged, but yet, well taken care of....hmm..does that make sense .. The outside bowl is done.



Maybe too many paint fumes, but the choke butterflies look like emoticons to me..





Back on the bike with the air box, horn, cables and coils.





Pretty close to done with the front end except for the turn signals which need to have their mount repainted and the headlight shell which needs a bit of repair and then on to the battery box and air filter, wiring harness and back end. Piece at a time, Larry, piece at a time..





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[Just4fun]

Larry

You had a busy weekend. I like the brushed look on the bottom of the instruments.  It looks like it could have been a factory option.

Pat

[jas67]

Larry

You had a busy weekend. I like the brushed look on the bottom of the instruments.  It looks like it could have been a factory option.

Pat

+1!    Nice work, Larry.   I can't wait to see the final result!

[Stev-o]

Larry

You had a busy weekend. I like the brushed look on the bottom of the instruments.  It looks like it could have been a factory option.

Pat

+1!    Nice work, Larry.   

+1...very clever use of sandpaper on the gauge backs.  May "steal" that idea!

[nvr2old]

Ohhh..I should be able to re-assemble that thing in just a couple of days....mm hmm.. Two weeks later, it's finally back together.



It'll probably never be this clean again.



I'm anxious to throw a battery in it to make sure all the wiring is correct. It should be..everything's color coded. I have to wait till I can button up the headlight bundle. I'm dumping the gargantuan stock turn signals for these..front and rear from DCC.



The stock turn signal mount is also the headlight mount so I ordered some of these, also from Dime City..should be really clean looking.



I also got this on eBay. I really like the look of it.



LED bulbs, license plate light and plate holder all in one..for $21..cool!

[nvr2old]

While I wait for that stuff to get here I thought I'd get the exhaust and this oil filter cover repaired. Someone took a hack saw blade to this cover..wtf..right across the fins..? The dark gray line is where I filled it with JB Weld.



It also had the whole outside corner fin broke off, so I made one out of JB Weld.



Some sanding and a couple of coats of silver..not bad.





Even though I got the collector looking better then this last summer..



The holes bugged the s--t out of me so, yes..more JB Weld..



Some more sanding and a few coats of "chrome silver" header paint..





For something you have to get down on your hands and knees to see, I can live with this until I can spring for a new one..I'm pretty happy about the results. Can't wait to put it back on the bike tomorrow night. Body parts start next week..cool..

[tweakin]

Looks really good Larry.  You planning on Isle of Vashon this year?  Would be nice to catch up and have a beer.

[brandEn]

Hi Larry, the bike is looking great. Fantastic use of JB Weld!

[nvr2old]

Thanks, guys.  I would love to go to Vashon this year.  I haven't been there for two years now.  It would be great to see you both.  Everyone on new bikes, too..

[nvr2old]

I finally got everything buttoned up on the frame and engine this weekend. Really feels good. I stuck a battery in, turned the key, and everything seems to be working..yaaay. For someone whose done this completely solo for the first time, I'm pretty stoked.

Love the new turn signals..so much cleaner then stock.



I re-painted the exhaust flanges and replaced the regular 6mm nuts with some chrome castle nuts. A subtle thing, yeah, but it looks really finished.



I spent about five hours yesterday cleaning and detailing the front end. I repainted the guard and the centers of the rotor, I filed off all the castings around the bosses on the forks and then sanded them down from 80 grit-800 grit and polished them by hand. Man, they're smoooth.





Pretty happy with the results.





Time to jump on the tank, tail section, fender, and side covers.

[tweakin]

Looking great Larry.

[NobleHops]

Tremendous project, and you are super resourceful in refurbishing parts to make them look great, using what you have. Awesome build, thanks a lot for the detail too.

[NobleHops]

Hey Larry, can I impose upon you to take a few photos of the wiring junctions at the steering head and under the tank for me please? I need reference pics.

[cheftuskey121]

WOOF! great work so far!

[nvr2old]

Hey Larry, can I impose upon you to take a few photos of the wiring junctions at the steering head and under the tank for me please? I need reference pics.

I'll try to do that when I get home from work tonight, sure.  The wiring harness was the biggest challenge for me to get correct.  I took a ton of pictures before taking it out, and still struggled to get it back in w/o having to re-do it several times until it hooked up everywhere w/o binding and looking correct at the same time.  Glad it's done.

Thanks for the compliments, you guys. This is a big project for me.  I'm not a mechanic, I'm a painter.  Re-finishing things is my forte' and not one single bolt, nut, washer, or part has gone back on w/o being cleaned/polished/painted.  It takes a long time to do when it's all by hand, so I'm grateful for the continued interest.  The tins will be the easy part for me..

[NobleHops]

I never had the chance - my bike had been taken apart and then hurriedly put back together (poorly), before I bought it and the wiring harness was more or less just draped on it. So I'm lost in the woods with it other than the FSM and some other photos I have scrounged. Any you can share would be gratefully appreciated, TIA.

[MoMo]

here is an old photo I have of  a previous build


Notice both switch wires go around the right side of the steering head and loop over to the left, where they connect to the harness

[nvr2old]

I ended up with the routing very similar to the pic above (thanks for the contribution, btw..)  I started with the coil connections because they're really short wires.  From there it's just knowing which groups go to what components, working back and front from the coils.  Routing the separate sections neatly w/o a bunch of cross-overs was what I found most challenging.  They angle off in weird directions for a reason.  I found if you're trying to twist and manipulate it to fit, it's probably not the way it's supposed to go.  Hope these help.



I went this far and then dropped down to where the stator wires connect to the large clip above the engine cover, then to the fuse box and solenoid area behind the side cover, then to the ones that connect at the back of the engine to the points wires, the rectifier and the rear brake light switch, then finally the tail light and turn signal group.  Way easier with the rear wheel and sub-fender off.



.

[thirsty 1]

Nice job on the clean up it looks really nice.  That header looks great. Have you ever used the header paint before? I was thinking about doing that for mine.

[NobleHops]

Super helpful, thanks a ton for the pics and descriptions gents.