Author Topic: Trad's 74 CB550 K0 (Read 101853 times)

Trad · « **Reply #100 on:** March 08, 2014, 07:37:40 PM »

Well, today I got my shaved stem/triple clamp mounted. I'm really liking how it tidied up the cockpit. I had to polish the powered-coat because there were a few flaws I wasn't happy with. Started with 800 wet and went to 2000 then used a medium compound with the orbital. Polishing powder is like paint but you don't really have to worry as much about burning through like you could clear coat.

So the chassis is done! From the wheels, swing arm, forks, and steering. I decided to mock the tank up, really excited to see how it looks with the alloy BCR seat. All in all, it's been a productive day........also got to take 5 photos before the camera died.

Don't mind the electrical tape, it's temporary. The clutch cable was rubbing off the paint on the bucket. Need to get a soft housing for the cable in that spot.

And the workspace, it's filthy. Working on the Cuda's transmission as well.

albertaboy · « **Reply #101 on:** March 09, 2014, 05:52:51 AM »

Hey
Lookin' Good. Reassembly is a great stage to be at.

SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan · « **Reply #102 on:** March 09, 2014, 09:27:01 AM »

The upper triple came out great. The bike is coming along nicely.

tweakin · « **Reply #103 on:** March 09, 2014, 09:41:10 AM »

Looking great Trad! Really like the A$$holes Garage sign... I am sure my wife would like to pick one up for me.

SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan · « **Reply #104 on:** March 09, 2014, 09:49:53 AM »

Jared,

That's a great looking garage. What is the red beauty on the right side of the garage??

Don

Trad · « **Reply #105 on:** March 09, 2014, 10:10:30 AM »

Albertaboy, Thanks man! Still a ways to go though. Did you receive your parts back from Mike yet? Please update your build thread when you do and let me know.

Tweakin, Haha. I live in a loft downtown and drive out and hour to this garage to work on my bike and cars. It's actually my pops garage and I bought him that sign, not to mention half the tools in it

Don, Thanks man, I'm on the fence about the black now that I have it on the bike. I think I might strip it and just brush the alloy. I won't make any decisions until I have the seat and engine in though.

The car is a 68 Cuda Formula S fastback. It's been in the family since new. We were running low 11's last season but have decided to pull the roll cage amount other things and convert it back to a street car. It'll be nice to see more than just a trailer and drag strip.

Trad · « **Reply #106 on:** March 10, 2014, 04:19:37 PM »

Hoping someone will offer up an opinion before I purchase a tail light. Option, 1, 2, or something else?

Option one is from Prism. This is a high quality light with a real brass housing. I think this will accent well with the gold/brass pinstripe on the tank. I do however feel it will very subtle mounted under the rear seat cowl.

Option two is a more affordable bar style tail light. I would mount this on the bolt on cross brace I am making for the rear of the bike. It will be a bit more stand out.

calj737 · « **Reply #107 on:** March 10, 2014, 04:56:31 PM »

That brass light is very trick. Do you think the size will fit well with the height/slope of the seat you're planning? From the mock-up picture from Benjie, it would have to be pretty darn small in diameter to "fit" the housing of the seat IMO.

The bar light is cool too, but seen it on other builds. And I really dig the tie into the stripe idea. Is the brass protected to prevent the finish from tarnishing?

SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan · « **Reply #108 on:** March 11, 2014, 10:53:47 AM »

I believe I have the Prism light on my 750 or something extremely close to it. It's very bright but doesn't take up as much real estate. I vote for option 1.

Trad · « **Reply #109 on:** March 11, 2014, 07:38:37 PM »

Calj737,

Thanks for the input. The Prism light will go under the cowl in the same place I'd mount the bar. I want to leave the tail of the seat completely whole and uncut without a tail light mounted in it.

Don,

Thanks as well. Looks like I'll be going the Prism route. It will be the only other gold coloured accent that I plan on, it'll be a nice touch to tie in with the gold pin stripe.

Trad · « **Reply #110 on:** March 11, 2014, 07:45:47 PM »

I also made a DIY plate mount and had it powder coated. I'm happy with the outcome and it was super cheap to make.

Pulled the front rotor off to send off to Tom at TrueDisk. Going to get it surfaced and drilled. I haven't decided on a pattern yet though. I also wet sanded the centre for VHT calliper paint once I get it back.

SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan · « **Reply #111 on:** March 11, 2014, 10:04:02 PM »

Nice job hiding the wiring. Also like the license plate holder.

Trad · « **Reply #112 on:** March 12, 2014, 09:14:06 AM »

Quote from: CB750 Cafe Racer Fan on March 11, 2014, 10:04:02 PM

Nice job hiding the wiring. Also like the license plate holder.

Thanks boss. Clean and simple is key on this build. I still have to deal with making an electronics box and the bundle of wires that end behind the carbs. That's really urking me.

Maurice · « **Reply #113 on:** March 12, 2014, 10:29:20 AM »

Looking good. Anxious to see the bolt-on frame brace, as I'll probably be doing the same. The frame I have was already cut and I prefer the stock "arms" as opposed to a "cafe" loop. And truth be told I don't weld.

Do you think there'll be wheel travel issues? That's assuming you're using stock shocks.

Thanks

Trad · « **Reply #114 on:** March 12, 2014, 12:40:43 PM »

Quote from: Maurice on March 12, 2014, 10:29:20 AM

Looking good. Anxious to see the bolt-on frame brace, as I'll probably be doing the same. The frame I have was already cut and I prefer the stock "arms" as opposed to a "cafe" loop. And truth be told I don't weld.

Do you think there'll be wheel travel issues? That's assuming you're using stock shocks.

Thanks

Thanks mate. I will post photos as soon as I am done with the brace. Waiting for my seat to arrive from BCR and I will use the brace to mount the rear of the seat. I too prefer the look of the stock tail over the hoop.

I have 1" shorter than stock shocks on the bike right now. They are just the $100 slim retro-look shock from Dime City. I will likely swap them out for something else in the same clevis length down the road. I highly doubt there will be any tire interference but I will only know for sure once mounted.

Trad · « **Reply #115 on:** March 13, 2014, 10:36:34 AM »

I spent some time yesterday on the front fender. I wasn't planning on running a front fender but I thought I'd chop it shorter, shape the ends, bring it to bare metal and clear coat it. My next step will be to lower it so it sits closer to the tire. Once I get it mounted I'll decide if I want to run it or not. What's the most common method guys have used to lower the fender? I had an idea in mind but we'll see I guess.

bambuhiphop · « **Reply #116 on:** March 13, 2014, 10:38:36 AM »

Fender turned out great. I am in the same boat as you in terms of lowering. I will be interested to see what you come up with.

SF · « **Reply #117 on:** March 13, 2014, 02:30:10 PM »

Looks great dude don't change the strength of it because it's like a brace. aftermarket fork brace is a must if you don't run that fender.

Trad · « **Reply #118 on:** March 13, 2014, 03:51:48 PM »

Quote from: bambuhiphop on March 13, 2014, 10:38:36 AM

Fender turned out great. I am in the same boat as you in terms of lowering. I will be interested to see what you come up with.

Thanks mate. I will keep you posted. Your build looks killer btw.

Trad · « **Reply #119 on:** March 13, 2014, 03:54:28 PM »

Quote from: SF on March 13, 2014, 02:30:10 PM

Looks great dude don't change the strength of it because it's like a brace. aftermarket fork brace is a must if you don't run that fender.

Cheers. I rode without the fender the entirinty of the riding season last year before the tear down. I honestly couldn't really notice a difference. Maybe on really hard turns but even then it was negligible, maybe I'm not riding hard enough. haha. I know I read the thread on this discussion a while back. I agree an aftermarket fork brace would stiffen things up.......a heck of a lot more than the stock fender does even

I like the billet one cycle x offers.

bambuhiphop · « **Reply #120 on:** March 13, 2014, 04:37:37 PM »

Quote from: Trad on March 13, 2014, 03:51:48 PM

Thanks mate. I will keep you posted. Your build looks killer btw.

ditto

calj737 · « **Reply #121 on:** March 13, 2014, 05:10:31 PM »

Trad - bear in mind, lowering the fender should also change the radius of the fender. It's based off a concentric arc.

Also, the brace "legs" may have a slight angle to them which needs to be accounted for if you section there (front to back, parallel to the ground) in order to drop the fender.

Without doing the calculations, if think you might need to "pie cut" the brace along the leg, to tuck the fender mounting holes back into alignment, then remove some length from the lower edge of the fender, from the brace leg.

Does any of that make sense?

Another member modified his brace in a similar way, but made a great deal of small kerf cuts to reshape and resize the brace.that seems a lot more work to me.

RobbyD · « **Reply #122 on:** March 13, 2014, 05:37:19 PM »

Loving that tank trad, fender turned out great too. Keep up the good work buddy

Trad · « **Reply #123 on:** March 13, 2014, 07:12:26 PM »

Quote from: calj737 on March 13, 2014, 05:10:31 PM

Trad - bear in mind, lowering the fender should also change the radius of the fender. It's based off a concentric arc.

Also, the brace "legs" may have a slight angle to them which needs to be accounted for if you section there (front to back, parallel to the ground) in order to drop the fender.

Without doing the calculations, if think you might need to "pie cut" the brace along the leg, to tuck the fender mounting holes back into alignment, then remove some length from the lower edge of the fender, from the brace leg.

Does any of that make sense?

Another member modified his brace in a similar way, but made a great deal of small kerf cuts to reshape and resize the brace.that seems a lot more work to me.

Thanks for the in depth response, as always, much appreciated. With the beefier Avon's the fender sits fairly close to the tread as is. For the look I'm going for I maybe have to drop it 3/8". I was hoping I could get away with drilling new mounting holes the needed amount up back to accommodate the angle change by bringing it down.

Trad · « **Reply #124 on:** March 13, 2014, 07:12:51 PM »

Quote from: RobbyD on March 13, 2014, 05:37:19 PM

Loving that tank trad, fender turned out great too. Keep up the good work buddy

Thanks man!

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Author Topic: Trad's 74 CB550 K0 (Read 101853 times)