Topic: A glutton for punishment... 1973 CB500 resto-mod

[Fezzler]

Wow.  Looks really nice.  Those wheels!  Nothing like shiny chrome with glossy black. 

[Stev-o]

Looks great Scott!  Exhaust now?

[Scott S]

Looks great Scott!  Exhaust now?

Very soon..

[flatlander]

interested to see how you will get on with the exhaust. you should have a much easier time, looking at the configuration of your stands.

what made you go for pamco, in the end?

[Scott S]

 I noticed in the pics of your exhaust while they were at the coater that they had different bends than mine. Maybe something they were trying to do for the F frame?

 I've had good success with the Pamco. I'm familiar with it, Pete is a friend of mine, I can pick one up locally, and they've never let me down.
 I once rode an XS650 home with less than 6 volts on the battery because the Pamco kept firing! The brushes on the alternator were worn out. I had to turn of the lights and have someone run interference for me, but the Pamco got me home.

[flatlander]

yeah whatever they were trying to fit the F, it failed miserably. they should have just said upfront that they have no clue, then i would have known what work was awaiting me.

that is cool about the pamco. it does use the mechanical advancer, doesn't it?

[Scott S]

 Yes, it does. I didn't really get any pics, but I cleaned and lubed the advancer. I used heat shrink on the Pamco wires to make it just one wire along the frame like stock. I soldered on stock bullets ( I have a BUNCH of old wiring I saved when scrapping bikes.....perfect for getting stock connectors. This time I used a crappy old aftermarket points plate and robbed the Yellow and Blue bullet connectors. That way, even the wire color is correct at the end!).I used the stock points wiring connectors at the rear brake switch area. I also made a Y splitter and picked up keyed power at the brake switch. I soldered on an eyelet and use a hanger bolt at the battery box for ground. It's a nearly invisible installation and will look stock to the casual observer.

[Scott S]

 Took a couple of hours, but they're on! It really wasn't that bad. I took a hint from Flatlander and bought some exhaust paste. The holes on mine weren't quite as bad as the one he showed, but I figured now's the time to do something about it. And I snapped one little 10mm bolt that holds the two mufflers together. It must have been soft or something, because I wasn't even really torquing down on it.
 Anyway, they're on! I still need to clean off a little exhaust paste and finger prints. I have to make a new center stand stop, as the one on the bike isn't quite long enough. And for whatever reason, my kick stand wants to foul the #1 pipe. I think I'll pick up another one and heat and bend it ever so slightly to clear. It won't take much.

[flatlander]

nice one, scott! congratulations!
glad to hear that they bolted on without problems. clearly, it was trying to make the 550f frame fit that got enrique thrown off with mine.

do you mind taking some more pix of how they fit on the left hand side? interested to see how it compares to mine.

[Scott S]

 Got the Speedhut gauge wired up today. I have a couple of old, sacrificial harnesses and I used the connectors to make it plug-and-play. I did this on the Pamco and the idiot lights as well. Everything on this bike is soldered and shrink wrapped...not crimp on connectors anywhere on the bike...and I'd say that more than 90% of them are the correct color wires and all of them are genuine Honda bullets or female connectors.




 The Speedhut has built in turn and high beam indicators. I really wanted an oil and neutral light, too. Picked up some mini LED lights and mounted them here. I played around with making a bracket to mount them on the top triple or next to the Speedhut gauge, but nothing looked clean. This is all stealthy and right in my line of sight when sitting on the bike.




 I'll probably move the whole headlight assembly up a few mm's, once the seat and tank are on. Just waiting to get everything lined up before tightening it down.

[Scott S]

do you mind taking some more pix of how they fit on the left hand side? interested to see how it compares to mine.

 I ordered a new kick stand today. I'm going to follow your lead and tap it for a set screw. That will keep it off the pipe, and with the ball on the end I'll be able to put it down easier. I can do it now, but it's just a matter of time before I melt my boot on the pipe with it the way it currently sits.

[Scott S]

 And you may notice that I have no rear fender/grab bar/tail light.
 I found two chrome shops within 50 miles of me and just picked one. After a few weeks, I called to find out what's up. Turns out the one I chose is a Mom and Pop operation and "Pop" had a heart attack and had a pace maker installed. When he was finally well enough to get back in the shop, the chemicals in the tanks had gone bad. They're replaced the chemicals but are still having problems with flaking. My grab bar and tail light are done. The fender is in a batch with a bunch of other stuff that they can't seem to get right. Just my luck.

 At this point, I'm ready to install a battery and I THINK I'm ready to fire it up. Maybe sometime in the next few days.

[flatlander]

thanks for the pictures. indeed, mine sits now pretty much the same as yours only in the "up" position i could create more space to the pipe with the bolt.
in your other picture i notice that you have much more space between the mufflers and rear axle then i do. they also may be a bit lower but that could be due to the camera angle. i'll need to take some better shots at some point to show how everything sits on mine.

[Scott S]

 I could have tucked the RH side in more, but I made them match the LH side, and those had to be there to wrap around the kick stand bung.
 I mentioned it in your thread, but I don't see a kick stand on the "jig" frame they used.

 I'm pretty happy with mine. They line up nicely from side to side and up/down. They "seem" wide at the rear, but it's not too much. And, I think when the rear fender, seat and bodywork are on it won't look as splayed out as it does now. It's probably a little wider than stock 4-4's would be, but it's certainly not fanned out like a peacock or turkey tail!

[flatlander]

yes they did seem wide to me, too compared to stock but in fact, they're fine.
i actually had to bend them outwards a bit otherwise they would have been too close to the axle nuts.i still have a bit less space there then you do. but yeah, they are hand made and small variations are to be expected.

[Scott S]

 I was watching a video of a 550 this morning and the spacing on the stock headers are about the same width as mine. My mufflers are about an inch away from the axle nut on each side. The outer width is approximately 22" (hard to measure with the rear tire).
 Looking from the front, they actually seem narrower. I think it's just an optical illusion when you view it from the rear.

[flatlander]

quite possible. although, don't they say that black makes you look slimmer?

[Scott S]

 Heard from the painter today. The tank is done and side covers should be done in the morning. The tank started out as a nice original paint tank with zero rust inside and no dents or dings. Another find at the Spring meet at Barber last year.





 And here's a teaser pic from my paint guy. I usually install the cap, badges, etc., but this time I asked the painter to do it. Replaced the gas cap with a nicer one; new rubber seal and hinge pins.Badges are new. I have a new genuine Honda petcock for it. The stripes are painted on, not decals.
 I have the original tank trim but it seems to have a gold tint to it and just doesn't look right with the silver paint. Maybe I'll find something to replace it, maybe I'll just leave it off.

[BLAC]

looks great!

[Camrector]

Looks great.
Theres a guy on fleabay that sells a real close tank trim cheap. I've used it on 2 tanks now and it looks great.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/120983035836

[Fezzler]

That is going to look great with those pipes.

[Scott S]

Looks great.
Theres a guy on fleabay that sells a real close tank trim cheap. I've used it on 2 tanks now and it looks great.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/120983035836

 I've used that before, too. Or, something similar from Pep Boys or wherever. It's slightly thinner than stock, though. The body shop said to check with an upholsterer. He said they often have chrome strips in a slightly wider width. That's something that's easy enough to add later on if I find it.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

I like the silver for something different.

[Scott S]

 Picked up the bodywork today.





 The tank badges are new. The gas cap was replaced with a nicer one and a new seal and pins installed. The side cover badges are super nice originals that were removed from broken original side covers years and years ago.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Absolutely beautiful paint.  I cannot wait to see it all together and to hear a sample of those pipes in ANGER!