Topic: Need help! Where to start on '73 CB500 garage find?

[trusty]

Hey guys, new to the forum, first post here. Some quick background about me: I'm 17, just started getting into bikes (mostly dirt) and mechanics in general this year, so there's still quite a lot for me to learn (something I hope to change), but it is something I find myself falling in love with.  Don't get me wrong, I do know basics like oil changes and stuff (I have skimmed over parts of Dan's MC as well), just not a whole lot more

[flybox1]

Hey trusty, welcome.
you'll find a lot of helpful people here, especially for the 500/550 bikes.
TwoTired, dave500, Deltarider, calj737, duanob, to name a few.  There are many more.
First thing.  Go here and download the shop manual for your bike...www.honda4fun.com
This will be your guide....
Another good source of $h!tter reading is the Clymer shop manual for your CB.
Good, basic tuning and troubleshooting info.  its got pictures, too 
you'll want to go through the maintenance seciton and do all items listed for the 3000mi tuneup.

there is a FAQ section on the forum.  it covers a lot of the basics. 
read there before posting. 
upper left, there is a google custom search.  search there for older threads on topics you need info from. 
read older threads before posting.

And we like pictures. once you hit 5 posts, you can post pictures and show us what you've got
good luck.

[calj737]

Definitely everything Flybox said, plus 2 more things: in the manual, perform and follow the 3,000 mile service interval. That will get you well aquainted with your bike and it's condition.

Also, read this thread, and bookmark it. It's better than a manual in terms of how things should look from the factory. Don't expect your bike to be perfectly stock, and this thread with its extraordinary pictures and detail, will help you immensely make heads or tails of your bike. Even with the severe customs I'm building, I still refer to this thread for baseline info.

http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=86697.0

Definitely, welcome and congrats!

[trusty]

Thanks for all the quick replies! I'll definitely be sure to grab a manual. One quick thing: this was actually a mispost :p it didn't post the whole thing, so I started a new thread which has a lot more info about the bike, so maybe this one can be closed. Thanks again!

[flybox1]

copy and past the missing text in this thread.
post on the other thread for the mods to close it, or delete it yourself, rookie!