Topic: New member / new CB500 owner in Austin, TX

[mrmunsell]

The replacement carb links arrived yesterday afternoon.  Perfect timing... I was planning to assemble the carbs that evening.  The new links fit perfectly.  I didn't notice any 'slop' or other issues while adjusting the carb linkage, so I guess the replacement link must have resolved the symptom Chris / Limey had experienced.

Now that I have things back together again, the cut out symptom is resolved (by fixing the coil wiring).  And the carb overflow symptom is resolved (by replacing the float needle / seats and reset float levels).  Looks like the carb work recently commissioned by the PO was really more of a cleaning than an overhaul.  As I started getting into the carbs, it became clear that the gaskets and some o-rings had not been replaced in a long time.  And they missed cleaning the emulsion tubes.  And the vent lines linking the carbs looked dried out.  So I ended up taking the carbs off the rack and overhauling them.  Glad I did... turns out the fuel tee o-rings were dried out and cracking - they might have still been original.

Now I have some carb tuning work to do though... running rich right now.  But at least she is alive again... felt like an eternity waiting for those carb parts from Honda.

[CycleRanger]

Your emulsion tubes look better than mine did!
I got those carb links from Europe in under a week.
They came pretty fast, pricey but there's no substitute!

[mrmunsell]

True.  They could have been far worse... I was only expecting them to be better in this case because the PO said he had the carbs done two months ago (carb cleanliness was otherwise consistent with that, at least in areas where it matters).

Odd that your links arrived so much faster.  I ordered mine about two weeks ago at the time of my prior post to that effect.  And I just received them yesterday.  Maybe mine got held up in customs or something.  I didn't really need them any sooner since I was waiting on carb parts from Honda... so it worked out fine.

[Stev-o]

True.  They could have been far worse... I was only expecting them to be better in this case because the PO said he had the carbs done two months ago (carb cleanliness was otherwise consistent with that, at least in areas where it matters).

Never believe a seller!   Did he say who serviced the carbs?

[mrmunsell]

So true. 

He said it was done by Moonlight Motorcycles, but he did not have any documentation.

[RAFster122s]

Welcome...create a thread on your bike in the project shop or sohc4 bike section...

Do NOT put Daiichi points on your bike, nearly impossible to time correctly and they are junk.  Buy a set of Tec points if you can get them if you need points.  If you want electronic ignition then buy HondaMan's and do it yourself, great product that works very well.

David

[mrmunsell]

Thanks for the tip regarding Daiichi points.  Too late though!  Turns out a PO had already installed them on my bike.

While I was waiting for the carb parts, I checked the points gap and timing... and learned I already had Daiichi points in the process.  I may have misunderstood Limey... they told me I had cheap points and recommended replacing them the next time they are due for adjustment.  I thought they were recommending Daiichi... but maybe I misunderstood and they were telling me that my cheap points were Daiichi.

Now that I have learned more about this aspect of my bike, I know that I have a Tek plate with Daichi points and condenser.  All in good condition, although I found that the gap for 2/3 was beyond the range specified in the shop manual (the other gap setting was good, as was the timing on both).  And yes, it was a bit challenging to get the gaps and timing all within spec simultaneously.  This bike and points in general are new to me... but eventually I got the hang of making these adjustments and got it all within spec.  For my particular case, I found that setting the gaps towards the lower end of the spec range specified in the manual was the key to success... if the gap was higher than that, I could not get the timing correct for both 1/4 and 2/3 simultaneously.

I do plan to switch to OEM points when they need replacement.  I am not planning on an electronic ignition... but if I were to consider that down the road, HondaMan's system would be my first choice (I read about it here on the forum and his site - came across it while looking into my ignition issues, etc).

Regarding the project thread... I wasn't sure one was merited when I embarked on this and probably too late now.  Basically, I am just getting my new bike sorted out and I think I am pretty close now (just need to dial in the carbs).  If I end up keeping this bike for awhile (which seems highly probable at this point), then I may restore it at some point down the road.  I'll make sure to start a project thread if/when that happens...

[Stev-o]

 All in good condition, although I found that the gap for 2/3 was beyond the range specified in the shop manual (the other gap setting was good, as was the timing on both).  And yes, it was a bit challenging to get the gaps and timing all within spec simultaneously.

That is the typical issue with those.

[RAFster122s]

You are lucky you could get the timing right with them.  Supposedly the Japanese made Daiichi points can actually be used.

Some have elongated the slots to get them to bring the timing in range and they were difficult to achieve this with both sets.
 The capacitors/condensors by them are very failure prone, so pray they are not what is in your bike.

Glad you have them working...like you said, lots of time to get them to acceptable range.  You will not have a lot of trouble with Nippon Denso or Tec brand points.
I believe the dealer is only selling Tec brand as ND has stopped making them.

[richmagee7]

Welcome from San Antonio, very nice looking CB500.  I recently ordered "OEM" points and received Daiichi, I didn't know better, guess I'll have a word with them.  Got everything adjusted but it tries my patience getting dwell and timing set.  Good luck with your bike, nice.