Topic: 1974 CB550. Racetech Monoshock. JMR Head. Built Engine. "BLAC"

[BLAC]

Hello all!

I am a long time lurker on here and a few other classic bike forums but I am finally an owner and a member!  I recently sold a Ducati Streetfighter and a Yamaha R6 and bought a completely stock, unmolested 1974 CB550.  I wanted something i could work on and make my own.

I know most of you like to start with frames and build up, but I don't have the knowledge or history with these bikes so I wanted a complete example to tear down and build back up.

Here she is, it's time to dig in!



I will have a lot of images updated throughout this build, I apologize for the one dark shot, my real camera (nikon d810) was upstairs and I was too excited to wait

[Restoration Fan]

Nice bike.  Congrats.

What's your plan?  Is it a running bike?

Ron

[BLAC]

Thanks! 

The bike was running when I bought it in Hollywood, I rode it back to Marina Del Rey to my house (30 min ride).  I was missing a little bit under partial throttle, but nothing extreme.  I assumed the carbs needed to be cleaned or synced. 

BUT

Yesterday things got interesting... I started it, it idled and revved fine, but when I started off, it felt like I was trying to take off in 4th gear and would die under any load.  Then later on I started it again to see what was going on, but now it wont even idle without dying.  It will start up (with some throttle), rev up a little bit but will die as soon as I let off the gas (even once it is fairly warm).

I have noticed that there was a small puddle of gas under it right when I stopped riding (the day it was running) and I traced it to the petcock area or one of the two lines coming from it.  I'm guessing that is related.

Would you guys suggest pulling the carb and rebuilding?

I am going to take it down to the frame, paint and reassemble into a really minimalist 'cafe' style, so I was planning on doing a lot of this work, but am curious if I should build the bike and get it all working and healthy, then pull it apart for paint and the beautification or if I should just tear it down to a frame now and build everything from the ground up?

[Gene]

First - your issue.  You're flooding and perhaps running on 3 or fewer cylinders.  Check your spark, check your compression, heck - download your manual and do the 3K maintenance - all available on this site but (unfortunately) I don't have the time to find the link.

Always turn off the petcock when you park - if possible run the gas out of the carbs before you park (not necessary, just a good practice). 

Before you tear it down to the frame, get the bike running as it is - and running per spec - then you can decide what route you want to go with it.  It's your bike, your choice, but that is a nice survivor, at least from the pics, and in my opinion you should relish it for what it is - many mods will make the bike perform less well than stock.

Take your time - your bike, your choice - but make sure it runs as well as it should as a stock bike, then have some fun with it.

IMHO - please don't cafe it cuz it'll look cool.  If you go down that road find threads on here and do it right.

[BLAC]

Great info and thank you for the suggestions! And yes she is a nice survivor, only 8k miles on the clock, too!

I'm not doing the cafe thing for looks, I want to drop the weight a little and set up a little more of an aggressive riding position (I have come from the Ducati streetfighter and this feels like I'm riding a lazy boy in comparison haha)

Stylistically I really appreciate minimalism and mechanical simplicity that some of the builds capture, but am not going to compromise performance and/or rideability for looks.

(downloading manual now  )

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

That's a very clean bike - almost too nice to mod heavily.

[Retro Rocket]

That's a very clean bike - almost too nice to mod heavily.

Agreed, there's plenty of other 550's out there that would be better to modify. I like well modified bikes,  but only do it to basket cases, that bikes too good to chop up.....

[DMcD]

My 550k appeared to be in really good condition too, but as I started to take it apart, it was nothing special.  Have fun.

[flatlander]

heck - download your manual and do the 3K maintenance -

yes do this. get it running as well as you can. only then you'll see what state it's really in.
then ride it for some time before deciding what to do. coming from modern bikes you'll need to get used to it. you may even come to the conclusion that it's not for you and if you want to get rid of it you'll get more for it in good stock condition than another variation of the cafe theme.

that's my way of saying: this one's too good to heavily modify, it's one to restore or lightly mod.

[BLAC]

I understand the bike is in 'good' condition, but it is FAR from a showpiece.  As I said, I wanted to start with a complete bike where everything is original and where it should be because I have never torn down an old bike and don't want to start from a bare frame or someone else's half-baked project when I have never worked on one before.

This is my learning experience, if I build any others I will start with junkers

Thanks for all the help and advice, and don't worry, I won't ruin her.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

I understand the bike is in 'good' condition, but it is FAR from a showpiece.  As I said, I wanted to start with a complete bike where everything is original and where it should be because I have never torn down an old bike and don't want to start from a bare frame or someone else's half-baked project when I have never worked on one before.

This is my learning experience, if I build any others I will start with junkers

Thanks for all the help and advice, and don't worry, I won't ruin her.

No worries.  It's Your bike.  Have fun making it your own.  Ask questions if you get stuck.

[Gene]

Your bike, your build.  Whether it breaks my heart or not. 

[BLAC]

No worries.  It's Your bike.  Have fun making it your own.  Ask questions if you get stuck.

Its more of a "when" than an "if"   

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

That's one of the biggest advantages to posting in this forum.

[rb550four]

 Welcome to the forum.Nice bike . What a nice resto it would be. I have a couple that I have modified over the years, but I set rules for myself.
 I don't cut frames or tabs....That way they can go back to original.
 I always have spare front and rear fenders... incase I want to cut and paint them, I use the ones in the worst condition, they would be  wasted anyways. A spare tank if you want to paint a different color...that way you can go back to stock.
 A more aggressive sitting position, rear sets and low low bars, is only comfortable for short rides. I find that a simple handlebar change can make such a difference on the + side of comfort zone. Cafe bars didn't do it for me but we all have to try them.
 There are cafe seats from Vietnam that will fit a stock frame with little headaches .
I like the exhaust allot is it in good condition? Are you keeping it ? you should, but if you are thinking of going with headers,I could be interested in purchasing to off set your build cost.
 Lotsa things to think about, tons of fun to be had... Tell us more about this machine. How many miles? Dealer or special find....

And +1 on the 3000 mile maintenance, carb and petcock clean ,keep your stock brass and clean that. can't trust all the new kits to be nos size or quality. Just get the "o" rings for the floatbowls until you get it sync'd  and sort out the rest one system at a time. That way things don't get out of whack at all fronts.

[BLAC]

Do you guys prefer the Clymer or the Haynes books?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0856962627?keywords=cb550&qid=1453665641&ref_=sr_1_4&s=books&sr=1-4
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0892876530?keywords=cb550&qid=1453665641&ref_=sr_1_1&s=books&sr=1-1

Or get both?

[flatlander]

download the honda shop manual: http://www.honda4fun.com/materiale-documentazione-tecnica/libretti-uso-a-manutenzione

i do have the haynes next to it which can be ok to give a different perspective. haven't looked at the clymer but i would guess that if you use the honda one as the main reference (which comes from the source, after all), it's a toss between those other two.

[BLAC]

Thanks, Flatlander!  I have already downloaded from that site, but noticed the CB550 is a "1973" manual, but I thought the first year for these was my year being 1974?   

Either way, I have downloaded and printed both the "1973" manual and the other CB500/CB550 K manual on that link.

[flatlander]

go by the serial numbers of frame and engine. that's more accurate than year.
by the way, download the parts list as well. it's invaluable for ordering stuff, or even just so see in the diagrams how things are put together.

[Gene]

Huh - now that I look at that bike again, I was thinking about maybe buying it a few years back.  I remember seeing it listed - in L.A. if I recall - I remember the paint job, did you buy it locally? 

[BLAC]

Huh - now that I look at that bike again, I was thinking about maybe buying it a few years back.  I remember seeing it listed - in L.A. if I recall - I remember the paint job, did you buy it locally?

I did.  I bought it in the Los Feliz area.

[BLAC]

So... front fork decision time.

I think I want to do an inverted front end conversion.  Instead of rebuilding mine, and living with the one sad front brake, I figure I might as well update the forks/brakes.  But being a rookie, I'm not positive about the best way of doing this.  The bearing conversion from All Ballz or get the custom stem and triple trees.  I don't want to mess up the geometry and make it unstable or unsafe, so I'm just curious on what is the best way to do this conversion, not the cheapest.

I found these locally for $200, they are off of a '06 '07 GSXR 600/750.  I like that they are black and will be a little more discrete than the gold.  Is this a good deal? Right year?

[Camrector]

Devin at Cognito moto can get you all sorted out on the Gsxr swap. It's easy but your going to need a few things and he has it all. That set might not be the best option seeing that you need the lower tree. You will also need the master cylinder to run dual discs. Look for a complete fork.

[BLAC]

I have been checking out their stuff for a while, It looks beautiful!  You would suggest the custom stem and bearings vs just the bearing conversion?

[Camrector]

You will need the stem and bearings. Also top clamp, stem nut, hub and rim(if you want spokes). I would say it's going to run you around $1500 to do it right. And using a more complete front end. It's a great upgrade I've done it on all 3 of my bikes.