Topic: Another CB550

[MrBaklava]

Last month I picked up my first motorcycle for the road. A 1978 CB550k.

I found an old advert on Facebook marketplace, naff photos, no details in the ad. I thought it would be worth sending a quick message with an offer (the ad was 16 weeks old) - now here we are.

The condition is beautiful. It has 11 former keepers, and 37k on the clocks, which I think might be a lot for a bike? who knows.

The plan is to service it, change a few bits such as the large indicators, and huge rear light. I want it to look minimal, whilst still appearing totally OEM. And any modification I make will be 100% reversible.

The bike is now tucked up safely in my back garden (fits through the house, which is a massive win living in London)
I'll work on it over the next couple of months - aiming to have my license by March.

Attached are a couple of photos of how the bike currently stands, and a crude photoshop of the look I'm aiming for.

[MauiK3]

Clean looking and dual discs!
Very nice bike.

[BenelliSEI]

They are a very nice ride! My ‘78 cb550K as my first Honda restoration.

[MrBaklava]

The bike has a rather unfortunate bodge, that I'd like to fix.

From what I can gather, the thread on the cylinder head side of the cam cover bolt must have been threaded, fair enough, stuff happens. But, wouldn't the replacement nut and bolt provide enough torque to ensure a tight leak free seal of the cam cover? I'm wondering why someone would apply this sealant rather than tightening the bolt correctly - maybe for fear of breaking what material is left on the cylinder head?

Would the best fix for this be to remove the cam cover, add new rubber gasket, add some instant gasket and then retighten correctly?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks,

[BenelliSEI]

I’d clean it all off first, and have a good look. You might find that tab (on the head) is snapped off?
If not, your solution, or a helicoil in  the head, should work.

[Stev-o]

First off, congrats, the 550 is a fine bike [I have a '76 550F]

Yes, he buggered that head cover bolt and then covered it up?! I bet that screw is stripped, the aluminum is very soft and easy to overtighten.  I agree with John, clean it all off and see what you have and go from there.

Good thing about the 550 is you car remove the head while the motor is in the frame [unlike the 750]

Good luck!

[RAFster122s]

Do not to forget to use rubber bands to hold the rocker arms back when reassembling the cover so you don't bend or break things.

Timesert or helicoil can fix any stripped threads in the head.