Topic: First Motorcycle, First Build, First CAFE! My 1974 CB350F...

[themrbruceguy]

So I have been a long time reader of this forum, but never a poster. But here it goes! I'll try my best to make this build thread enjoyable and informative.

I am a college student at KU in Lawrence, KS and I bought this bike back in March 2012. I wanted to cafe it out since the first day I owned it but never really committed... Until NOW! So I not only want to cafe the bike out, but I want to do a somewhat decent job at restoring it. And by that I mean just painting parts that need to be painted, replacing parts that need to be replaced, etc... But that is about it for background. This is what the bike looked like stock. I really like the stock look too, but LOVE the cafe look..





I just started taking the bike apart yesterday in a small room in the basement of the house I'm in. I am down to just the front end and the engine remaining. I have been VERY fortunate that everything has gone smoothly so far. So here are some pictures of the disassembly so far.

It was my first time really digging into all of the wires and where they go/what they do. So that took a while for me


My buddy Alec kept photobombing my amazing pictures... But he's cool I guess haha



Wiring Harness Out!


As it sits for the night... Until next time



Thanks for reading guys! Let me know what you think/recommendations/anything.

[themrbruceguy]

So it was another awesome, pain-free day of working on the Honda. I am still in the disassembly process and will be complete with that very shortly. I will be repainting many parts that are not in the best looking shape. If i could get some recommendations from you guys about how to prep bike parts for paint. Does it differ between steel and aluminum? Thanks everyone for reading!

My custom engine stand... Pretty nifty



Kind of got confused on how to take out the forks..



But we got it!



So this is how she sits for tonight. The real work is about ready to get started and i will have to be making many, many decisions about how i want to go about finishing this bike. Anyways, thats it for me! Cya

[Bankerdanny]

Welcome. Have fun. The 350 tank with the pre-existing knew dents lends itself to a cafe bike.

[themrbruceguy]

So today was pretty short. The only thing that i attempted today was to try to remove a bit of rust from the chrome front forks. I went about this using Diet Coke and Aluminum Foil. I have never heard of this method before, but i decided to give it a shot. The results were not quick or complete.. Here are some pictures:

Before



After



So you can see that the orange-ish color of rust is treated pretty well, but i was scrubbing for at least two hours tonight and got pretty tired.

If anyone has spruced up their forks in a DIY fashion and had decent results, it would be awesome if you could leave a comment below Thanks everyone

[FrankenFrankenstuff]

I have seen a lot of guys just mask up from the lowest rust spot and paint flat black.....but you always scratch it off when sliding back into the clamps.

I think what you did looks fine. Its an old bike. A little rust gives it character. Chicks dig character.

[FrankenFrankenstuff]

Keep all of the original parts. Don't throw away or sell anything.....

[themrbruceguy]

So with much misuse of a couple good screwdrivers, a staircase spindle, one Harbor Freight hammer, and a borrowed bearing puller from O'Reillys Auto Parts, we managed to extract the lower steering race!! And all it cost me was a slightly broken shoulder blade due to a missed swing by Alec and the 2 pound hammer of death.. But on the serious side, the removal of this bearing has officially made the Honda a BARE FRAME! A pretty big milestone in the progress of my first build. I don't have plans to completely trick it out, but i hope it turns out being a nice ride  Below are a couple questions i would like some advice regarding the future of the project.

I know I am painting the frame myself along with many of the small miscellaneous parts, but should I also attempt to paint the tank and seat myself? I'm asking this hoping to figure out if it is worth buying the paint, compound, and buffing products to give it a shot rather than paying a professional to do it for me..

Also, has anyone here done a fork swap from any of the CB's to newer CBR forks? I heard the sizes are very similar and this could be a worthwhile upgrade if the difficulty in the swap is not too high.

So here are some more pictures...

FINALLY GOT IT OUT!


I only leave Alec the most important, precise jobs.. Like pounding a screwdriver with a hammer against the frame 


Austin doing something important, and Alec... well.. It's just Alec. 


So the Honda is finally a bare frame and ready to get all perty and shiny! But i will wait for the temperature to rise before i paint anything i think. Might take a while.

[hulsecc]

I am also building a cafe with my 350 four.  Here is a link to the bike that inspired me to do a build.  I just got mine back from getting powdercoated and have been cleaning the engine ( it's taking forever).

http://northeast-sportscar.com/1973-honda-cb350f/

[calj737]

CBR swap: it can be done, but you then need a different front hub and possibly spokes/rim. Same for GSXR swaps. They are very reasonable swaps, but expect to spend around $600-$1000 by the time get a donor front end, hub, spokes, rim, etc... You may be able to do better over time on eBay, Craigslist, etc. but if you have a schedule and limited access to lots of swap meets, junkyards, then spending is the solution.

Painting: I think you would be able to sell the original tank in its condition for more money than you would to buy a replacement in need of repair and paint, then redo that unit. Or, you could easily wets and and buff the original up and make it sparkle! If you are going to paint it, 400 grit sand paper to knock down the current finish, wipe down with denatured alcohol and primer/paint/clear coat it. You don't need to strip to bare metal to re-paint it.

My opinion: great condition factory paint (even if it's not your preferred color) looks far better than a crappy rattle can job in the color you want.

All depends upon your budget and goals.

[redrider736]

Drop Devin @ www.cognitomoto.com a email. He may be able to help out with the Fork swap/upgrade using 2005-2010 Gx'er parts. (Not the Cheap way, but the "Bolt on" way)

[calj737]

+1 on Devin's solution. I'm using his front hub for a '73 500 project next week.  $330 for the hub, you find the front end, rim, spokes and GSXR wheel bearings and spacers. It's why i quoted $600-$1000. It's pricier than other DIY solutions, but if you don't have machining skills, then it's a sure fire way to bolt on and go!

[redrider736]

It's pricier than other DIY solutions, but if you don't have machining skills, then it's a sure fire way to bolt on and go!

This is the route I am going with a DOHC bike that I have blown apart and got sucked into the Cafe MOD sickness.
I don't have the greatest machine shop skills, and that is why a Bolt-on application works for me. This maybe a bit more on the $$ side, but you have to consider what your are getting at then end of the day.

Blot-on components. Check
Modern Forks. Check
Modern Dual Disk Brakes. Check
1 Bad A** Front end. Check


Keep the Build updates coming !! Cool Thread !