Author Topic: Frame-up cb350f restoration, hunk o' junk transformation (Read 55767 times)

carnivorous chicken · « **Reply #50 on:** December 20, 2015, 11:13:00 AM »

Stock 4-1 CB400F exhaust will bolt on, and they're pretty reasonable (or can be if you look). David Silver Spares makes a muffler if you can only find the header. You've already got the linkage for the shifter side, but looking at the photos, it looks like you don't have a 400F peg and brake lever on the right, so you'd have to switch that out. And if you want a kickstarter to work, you'd need a 550F Supersport kicker, which will work with those pegs. Running 400F exhaust also means you won't have to rejet -- at least I didn't. Macs are pretty low quality, especially the chrome. But you might be able to find two slip ons for 4-2, I just don't know where... Good luck!

markreimer · « **Reply #51 on:** December 21, 2015, 07:30:41 AM »

Quote from: carnivorous chicken on December 20, 2015, 11:13:00 AM

Stock 4-1 CB400F exhaust will bolt on, and they're pretty reasonable (or can be if you look). David Silver Spares makes a muffler if you can only find the header. You've already got the linkage for the shifter side, but looking at the photos, it looks like you don't have a 400F peg and brake lever on the right, so you'd have to switch that out. And if you want a kickstarter to work, you'd need a 550F Supersport kicker, which will work with those pegs. Running 400F exhaust also means you won't have to rejet -- at least I didn't. Macs are pretty low quality, especially the chrome. But you might be able to find two slip ons for 4-2, I just don't know where... Good luck!

Yeah that'd be really nice. I know a guy locally with a 400f header, and it is in really nice shape with zero rust, but he wants around $300 for it. Still, with the horrible Canadian dollar I can probably spend less with that than a cheap 300USD Mac...

carnivorous chicken · « **Reply #52 on:** December 21, 2015, 10:29:20 AM »

I got a kind of scrappy but solid one for $75, got it rechromed for $100 -- although price for plating obviously varies. That was in Phoenix, where it's cheap.

markreimer · « **Reply #53 on:** December 21, 2015, 07:00:43 PM »

Cb400f headers acquired!! Mint condition. Zero rot or rust. Missing the two lower clamps though. $250 Canadian dollars. Without the need for currency conversion, shipping and taxes, this is actually a really good deal right now for me. Plus my buddy with a 400f has a spare cone I can use. Now I've just got to hunt down some 400f pegs and a different kickstart lever.

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SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan · « **Reply #54 on:** December 21, 2015, 08:43:29 PM »

Not an easy item to source. Nice find.

carnivorous chicken · « **Reply #55 on:** December 22, 2015, 10:04:24 AM »

Nice find!

2strokeTrush · « **Reply #56 on:** December 26, 2015, 09:07:59 PM »

great find in great condition, When i sold my 350f she had the original pipes, they were so sweet

markreimer · « **Reply #57 on:** January 06, 2016, 01:48:59 PM »

Man that looks killer!

My box of parts came from 4into1. Like a dummy I forgot to include exhaust gaskets. Ah well. Next order.

I'm having trouble sourcing the 400f pegs and brake lever. aaaaaany chance someone here has a set they'd sell me??

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markreimer · « **Reply #58 on:** January 09, 2016, 08:36:56 PM »

Seven hours in the shop together today! Got a lot done, and hit a few new snags.

First up was the front brake. I had disassembled the caliper but didn’t properly clean everything out. The caliper was easy enough. I used a nylon brush in the dremel to get the o-ring groove real clean after it soaked in brake cleaner. Worked well.

The The master cylinder however needed attention. I tried to flush cleaner through it, but it kept coming out dirty. Decided to pull it out for inspection. Good thing I did, it was absolutely packed with solidified grit and grime. I’d never have gotten the brakes to work properly if left that way. The two circlips were a bear to get out, but I managed it eventually. I’ve ordered a rebuild kit and that should finish off the brakes.

Next was removal of the 40 year old tires. What a job. I was pouring sweat by the end. It didn’t help I couldn’t find proper levers and only had two 8” mini-levers to pry ‘em off.

The rims had a bit of surface rust inside, so Cindy hit it with a wire brush on the bench grinder. Cleaned them right up. I noticed something really odd though - the rear rim has a large bulge in it! The outer edge and the side are totally straight though. It’s just building to the INSIDE. What’s up with that? Manufacturing error? Doesn’t seem to be caused from an impact. Is this unsafe to use? I cut the rim off the hub already anyway to re-lace. What do you think?

Finished the day off by removing the old exhaust and exhaust gaskets. The stock mufflers literally tore right off. The metal was thin as tissue by this point. Then put on some aftermarket fork gators and headlight brackets to replace the damaged stock stuff. I think it looks real good. Oh and I straightened the fender and installed it.

I removed the 350f pegs and brake lever to see how the 400f header would mount up. It looks good, of course! I still need the exhaust clamps at the collector before I install it though, and of course the pegs...

Anyone have some pegs for me…?!

Ordered a 2-spout petcock by accident, damnit.

So next up - lace up that back wheel, acquire foot pegs/controls, install exhaust, replace bars and cables, install front brake. That’ll be later next week though.

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markreimer · « **Reply #59 on:** January 23, 2016, 03:56:19 PM »

Five hours in the shop today. I got the rear wheel laced up, pounded that budge back into place, and trued it in the swim arm. I've got it laterally true to within about 0.5mm and radially true almost 100% except for a small flat spot at the valve hole. That's about 1mm out.

Next up was mounting the used kenda tires I picked up off a local forum member. No issues, and the wheels sure look good after a good cleaning, light polish and newer rubber.

Then came the front brake. I stuck to the caliper for today, master cylinder is tomorrow. Once again no issues. New o ring , pads and a polished piston will have this working well.

Just for fun a mocked up the 400f exhaust. It's obviously not mounted but you get the idea. Looks hot!!

So tomorrow is finishing the front brake and bleeding the system, fork oil, and some final electrical repairs before swapping handlebars.

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MoMo · « **Reply #60 on:** January 24, 2016, 04:37:06 PM »

That rim looks like a pothole smacked it. Spin on either a truing stand or the bike and see if it wobbles....Larry

Trad · « **Reply #61 on:** January 24, 2016, 06:47:32 PM »

That's a pretty bad flat spot in the rim. I used to work at a place called Wheel Works when I was younger. We repaired and refinished car and motorcycled wheels. That can be repaired by someone skilled. Other than being unsightly I'm confident you can true that up fairly well with spoke tension if you don't mind the ugly hop.

That header looks so nice. Great find!

markreimer · « **Reply #62 on:** January 27, 2016, 08:38:39 AM »

Yeah I've got it all fixed up. It's not a flat spot though. The rim was perfectly round on the outside top edge/radially. It was also flat on the sidewall. It was only on the inside of the rim, weird!

I have the wheel rebuilt and true to within about half a mm now.

I've sourced a brake pedal and shifter linkage. Also pegs, but won't get them for a couple weeks sadly. Still need a kickstart lever. So everything else should be wrapped up this weekend!

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sbeckman7 · « **Reply #63 on:** January 27, 2016, 10:30:26 AM »

You're doing that 350 justice! Keep it up

kslrr · « **Reply #64 on:** January 27, 2016, 12:09:56 PM »

Nice work!

sbeckman7 · « **Reply #65 on:** January 27, 2016, 02:36:01 PM »

Looking good so far! How did you get that deformation out of the rim? Was it hollow inside such that hammering it out was ok?

markreimer · « **Reply #66 on:** January 28, 2016, 07:34:33 PM »

Yup! After I had laced the rim to the wheel and brought the tension up a bit, I laid the wheel on its side and supported the outside edge of rim with a large block of wood. Then I used the hack mechanics tool of choice, a large hammer and a block of wood. I was surprised how hard I had to smack the inside lip to get any results. I think that was a good thing though.. I worked with a 1" block of wood, starting on one side and moving to the other in small increments. Eventually I beat it back into shape. When I started to true the wheel, there was no measurable movement at that location. In fact the only part of the rim that was a challenge to get true was by the valve hole, which had a flat spot.

Today I pulled the 400f header apart to replace the gaskets. The #3 took me over an hour to remove, it was really stuck in there. But penetrating oil and my stubbornness won the day. Then it was a pretty easy process to install the exhaust.

Next up was replacing the bars with some euro 2.5" rise bars. Silicon oil helped the internal wiring slide in easy. I also replaced all the cables. Throttle is nice and snappy now. The clutch is better but still reaaally stiff. Hopefully it'll loosen with use, or else I'll have to dive in there.

I then installed a 400f brake lever. Easy fit. Just cleared the header. My local connection for the pegs sketched out so I'm still on the hunt for foot pegs.

Last thing for the night was pulling all the wiring apart. Some of the connectors seemed a bit poor so I'm going to go through each one and replace if needed, and clean them all. Then I've got some heat resistant wrap to tie the harness up nice and clean.

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Blackfin5 · « **Reply #67 on:** January 28, 2016, 07:40:38 PM »

I remember that exhaust on my CB400/4. Incredible find - it looks brand new.

markreimer · « **Reply #68 on:** January 28, 2016, 08:05:56 PM »

Yeah the headers are in real good shape. Only one small ding from a stone. Tiny bit of surface rust near the collector that I'll remove. The muffler is aftermarket though. I wish I had the OEM pipe

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sbeckman7 · « **Reply #69 on:** January 28, 2016, 11:38:35 PM »

Nice work man, handlebars look great too! I'm looking for some similar ones. I'm guessing your starter switch assembly is the stock unit?

markreimer · « **Reply #70 on:** January 29, 2016, 07:28:54 AM »

Yup, it's all stock. Those bars are just some cheap $20ish bars I got online years ago for my cb750. They are supremely comfortable, but I swapped them out for clubmans a couple years back. I drilled the bars for internal wiring and to take the stock controls. It all fits up nicely. I'm not a huge fan of the stock mirrors on the lower bars though. They just kinda look like antennas, you know? After I get the bike past the safety inspection I'll start thinking about cosmetic improvements. Gotta polish that tank big time. I hope I can bring back the black a bit. It's very faded and worn down from fuel and vinegar from cleaning.

grcamna2 · « **Reply #71 on:** January 29, 2016, 07:40:02 AM »

That new 4into1 header really makes that bike look sweet

markreimer · « **Reply #72 on:** January 30, 2016, 07:46:13 PM »

What a great day in the shop today!

The bike is running again!

Started with the tank - rebuilt the petcock using all the compatible pieces from the dual output I accidentally bought last month. They all fit perfectly and I've got no more leaks. The replaced the gas cap gasket, disassembled and cleaned the cap lock, and mounted the tank up. Leaking gas pointed to slightly oversize fuel line, which was solved for the moment with a hose clamp.

Then came the wiring. I wrapped the exposed harness in heat resistant harness material, and used shrink wrap on a few smaller wiring offshoots when possible. Cleaned all the connectors and hooked it all up. Worked first try, must be getting better at this! Oh, except the front turn signals were reversed at first.

Next was rebuilding the master cylinder, hooking the lines up and bleeding the front brake. Holy smokes this stock rubber line is a joke. I can feel it expanding under pressure. So soft. It must be replaced, so I've ordered a braided steel line with a banjo bolt hydraulic switch for the rear light. But at least I technically have working brakes now.

Filled up the forks with oil. Nothing more to say about that.

Time to fire it up! My battery hasn't come in yet so I had to hook it up to a spare I had, which has reversed poles so I couldn't actually put it in the bike. Anyway, it fired up almost right away!

It's very smokey. The last time I ran it there was nearly no smoke at all, so I'm thinking the 400f header has some oil inside that's burning off. I DID use copious amounts of penetrating oil when pulling the 1/3 headers out to replace the gaskets. They were so stuck. Probably burning off.

I also noticed the 2/3/4 headers acquiring a subtle gold hue at the first bend. Signs of running hot? The carbs are set to stock settings. Everything is stock for that matter, other than the actual header. Any ideas? Number 1 was very hot too. Just didn't turn gold. Maybe from being out of sync or something? I have heard the slow jet sometimes needs to be changed with the 400f header so maybe that's a consideration.

Up next is the brake line, install the chain (soaked the stock chain in acetone for a few days and 40 years of crud washed off. I'll use it for now but replace ASAP), then CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN.

I'll have to wait for spring to do most of the tuning, but I can start with checking points gap, valves etc.

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markreimer · « **Reply #73 on:** January 30, 2016, 07:48:34 PM »

Here's another clip. I put a small hole made baffle in after, which didn't really quiet it much but did fatten up the tone. It sounds meaner than my 750!!

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grcamna2 · « **Reply #74 on:** January 30, 2016, 09:21:39 PM »

I 'feel' for you when you said you removed the old tires w/ short tire levers,the kind you could carry w/ you on a trip to change a flat,right? Wow

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Author Topic: Frame-up cb350f restoration, hunk o' junk transformation (Read 55767 times)