Topic: Winter basement build. CB500 GSXR front & CB550 resto-mod

[nicks2319]

Hey everyone. Started planning my winter basement build and figured i'd start a thread to post random photos and archive progress. A did a little refresh of my 71 500 this summer, and plan on swapping out a GSXR front end and a boxy tank of some sort.

I also picked up four cheap 500/550 parts bikes over the last few months. Two of them have titles. So the plan is to do a resto-mod on one of the 550s, using the tank and front end off of my 500. I have a hoard of engines and parts to work with, and am still deciding what to do.

Anyway, here's some photos to tell the story.


My basement a few years back, when first building my 500.



Basement currently:




Garage full of parts and bikes, and my friend's 70 350.



Garage cleaned up, hoard of 550 engines



My finished 500 this summer



And as she sits right now



Parts bike #1, a 72 cb500, which the owner claimed was a "rare chrome edition" lol



Parts bike #2, super rusty orange 550 completely stuck



Orange 550 was a rats nest



My inspiration for the 550 build. I want to do a silver frame, orange tank, stock front end cafe.



\m/

[Restoration Fan]

Interested to see what comes out of that.  Should make for a fun winter time.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Looks like you have a treasure trove of parts.

[AintNoEasyWay]

Hot damn that's a lot of parts. Are you planning to put the Ducati logo on the tank?

[nicks2319]

Hot damn that's a lot of parts. Are you planning to put the Ducati logo on the tank?

Hah nah. That would be sweet though. I actually might try to restore the rusty orange 550 tank I have. I also have a 550 tank that someone pounded knee dents into that I might use. Not sure yet.

[AintNoEasyWay]

Good call. Excited to see how it all goes.

[Lostboy Steve]

LOL and my wife thinks having 1 done and 1 project is too much. I wish I had AN extra engine, you have what like 5? Looks like you'll have enough projects to last a little while.

[nicks2319]

Haha yeah. People are basically giving away old Honda stuff around here.

[nicks2319]

Progress has been super slow. Finally got the frame back from powder coat. Ended up pop riveting the VIN plate back on, as it was in pretty rough shape around the rivet holes. Spent some time in the garage tearing the front end off the 500. Also tossed on an orange tank to see how it's gonna look. I'm into it.

[Trad]

I dig the silver/orange combo. In for this one.

[nicks2319]

Wheels are back from powdercoat and laced up. Still need to get them true.




Front end is also on and coming together. Using the stock gsxr clip ons and grips, a new control on the left side, and stock gsxr clutch and brake levers.




My old damper fits pretty well


Left side. Barely enough clearance from the clutch level to the turn signal.



Left side rearsets are also on

[SKTP]

looking good

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Very nice.

[nicks2319]

You might want to alter the adjustment of the left side toe peg a bit more parallel to the ground while you're at this stage. In the picture, your ankle/foot would have to be very pointed to operate the shifter from underneath.

I was thinking that too while first putting it on. But then I tried sitting on it, and it was not vertical enough. I think since i'm only 5'6", i'll need to be pretty far forward, and need to additional angle.

[nicks2319]

Finally have tires mounted


Did a quick test fit, bike is finally on the ground




Also got the tank back from powdercoat





Still deciding how i'm going to do the idiot lights and gauges. Considering an Acewell all in one. Also need to hunt down some gsxr bolts for the brake rotors.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

That powdercoat finish came out immaculate. 

[Trad]

The gas tank looks amazing. The bike's coming along great.

[nicks2319]

Got the brake rotor bolts and the acewell gauge.


Front wheel looks mean as hell now




Acewell 2853 gauge all wired up. Very cool. Really into how small it is. Just need to figure out how to mount the speedo sensor.




A couple pics with the exhaust and almost everything on. Still need to connect the rear brake.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Looks really good.  What do you have left, aside from the rear brake?

Keep a close eye on the two mount points of your headlight bucket with that Truck Lite housing.  They should call it Truck Heavy.  It snapped my headlight bucket on a ride, and I replaced it with an Emgo chrome headlight bucket.  I think the Truck Lite metal housing is at least 4-5 times heavier than the stock glass lens housing.

Have you looked into re-springing your front forks so that they properly match the weight of the 500 and you, versus the GSXR?

[nicks2319]

Looks really good.  What do you have left, aside from the rear brake?

Keep a close eye on the two mount points of your headlight bucket with that Truck Lite housing.  They should call it Truck Heavy.  It snapped my headlight bucket on a ride, and I replaced it with an Emgo chrome headlight bucket.  I think the Truck Lite metal housing is at least 4-5 times heavier than the stock glass lens housing.

Have you looked into re-springing your front forks so that they properly match the weight of the 500 and you, versus the GSXR?

Rear brake and figure out a kill switch (looking for a thin control for it). Nothing major.

And yeah, those truck lite housings are monsters. I had it on all last year with the stock fork ears. Seems pretty sturdy with these new Spiegler brackets.

I've seen some mentions of respringing the forks. But i've only seen them done to decrease the height of the front. Even with my shorty shocks, they don't feel too high. I'll have to do some research though. Sounds interesting.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Looks really good.  What do you have left, aside from the rear brake?

Keep a close eye on the two mount points of your headlight bucket with that Truck Lite housing.  They should call it Truck Heavy.  It snapped my headlight bucket on a ride, and I replaced it with an Emgo chrome headlight bucket.  I think the Truck Lite metal housing is at least 4-5 times heavier than the stock glass lens housing.

Have you looked into re-springing your front forks so that they properly match the weight of the 500 and you, versus the GSXR?

Rear brake and figure out a kill switch (looking for a thin control for it). Nothing major.

And yeah, those truck lite housings are monsters. I had it on all last year with the stock fork ears. Seems pretty sturdy with these new Spiegler brackets.

I've seen some mentions of respringing the forks. But i've only seen them done to decrease the height of the front. Even with my shorty shocks, they don't feel too high. I'll have to do some research though. Sounds interesting.

Many people forget to consider the relative weights of the donor bike and the transplanted bike -- when swapping modern front ends or even the GL1000 front.  Think about it: if you take a front end for a bike designed to weigh 500 lbs and put it on a bike that weighs 400 lbs, the fork will be over-sprung and too stiff; your front end ride will be harsh and not provide enough dampening -- and maybe even bounce upon hitting bumps in the road.  For instance, a 1976 GL1000 weighs 585 lbs dry and a 1976 CB750 weighs 479 lbs dry.  If you have lightened the CB750 the weight difference will be even greater.  On my CB750 with a GL front end, I had to use the lightest springs available so that the ride was not overly harsh.

I don't know which model and year your GSXR front came from --there's a difference between the springs for a GSXR1000, 750 and 600 of different years.  For purposes of discussion, a 2007 GSXR600 weighs 355 lbs dry and a CB500 weights 450 lbs wet.  Subtracting the wet weight and ditching the stock exhaust reduces these weight difference.  For you the weight difference might be negligible, but something to at least do a little research on.

[nicks2319]

Awesome, thanks for the in depth explanation. Forks are from an 07 GSXR750. Looks like the weights are very very close, especially with the amount of stuff i've removed on mine.

[nicks2319]

how did you support the tail section of your pipe? I can't tell from the photos-

Didn't. It just hangs. It's pretty light and didn't give me an issue last year. There's a mount on the rear of the pipe you can attach a bracket to, to support it, but I never took the time to make one.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Awesome, thanks for the in depth explanation. Forks are from an 07 GSXR750. Looks like the weights are very very close, especially with the amount of stuff i've removed on mine.

If that's the case, you should be able to get on okay with the stock GSXR springs.  Make sure to service the forks with new fork oil and new seals if necessary.

[Retro Rocket]

Ah. I would make one. Thats a lot of weight hanging on the exhaust studs. A simple strap or spring from passenger peg mount to the screw/bung. Discreet and stable and strong.

+1, make a rear support, every time you ride your bike that exhaust may only move a little up and down, but its doing it with every undulation in the road, thousands of times over, it will eventually cause problems. Better to be safe than sorry...