Topic: 72 CB500 Restomod - *Update* Sold!

[Scramps]

That’s turnkey, so to speak

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

So I finally got around to calling our local upholstery business. I told the guy that I’d like to get my seat diamond-tucked and gave him some basic dimensions. His off-the-cuff estimate was $150.

These guys are primarily marine upholsterers, and they do very good work, so I have to put it to my good sohc4 friends. Do you think that’s too much?

The price sounds reasonable.  What material?  Leather, alcantara, vinyl, other?

[Scramps]

I asked for marine-grade vinyl, something that’s not going to wear out or fade quickly

[Scramps]

Dropped off the seat pan at my friendly neighborhood upholsterer's shop today. Had a brief chat with the owner, and we landed on a design more or less like this:



I reckon we'll see what it looks like when I get it back eh?

I didn't ask for an ETA, but these guys typically don't drag their feet.

[DurangoCB]

That's the exact seat I bought recently off of eBay via China.  I like the diamond stitch.  Can't wait to see how your seat turns out from a professional upholstery outfit. 

That price seems fair to me.  I couldn't afford it personally, but it seems fair. 

[Scramps]

Anybody got a good lead on a rear rim for a cb500?

Figured I’d ask here before I put up a wanted ad.

[calj737]

I believe I have one bouncing about. Let me look-

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

I believe I have one bouncing about. Let me look-

Bill Benton -- you have company!

[calj737]

I believe I have one bouncing about. Let me look-

Bill Benton -- you have company!

He's a neighbor for Pete's Sake!

[calj737]

Bummer. The spare new rim I have is a front, not rear. Sorry about that. Yours if you need a front though.

[Scramps]

Bummer. The spare new rim I have is a front, not rear. Sorry about that. Yours if you need a front though.

I appreciate it, my front rim is actually in pretty good shape. Thank you for looking!

[Scramps]

Our boss at my day job told us (in so many words) to take some vacation time since we are all getting pretty burnt out. So I am taking this week off as a birthday present to myself. I used to do this every year for my birthday, but it's not always an option.

Anyway, I figured an update was in order.

Still waiting for my seat from the upholsterers. I stopped by their shop yesterday out of curiosity, but there didn't seem to be anyone there.

I've been working diligently to finish my wiring modifications, and I'm kicking myself for making this way more complicated than it needed to be, but oh well. I'm changing out all of my old bullet connectors for those little plastic plugs that I showed in a previous post. There's not really any advantage to them over the bullets, I just had several that were corroded and/or loose-fitting. With any luck, I should be able to finish that job up this weekend.

All of my control cables have been replaced. I bought some stock-style throttle cables, which were way too long for my lower handlebars, so I bought some shortened ones to replace those. The clutch cable that I had was from a 550, which made it about a foot longer than it needed to be for this bike. I bought a correct one of those as well.

A fellow forum member is getting me some forks and wheels cleaned up and ready to roll, which is hugely helpful since my fork tubes and rear rim were roached to the max.

I cleaned and painted my exhaust, and a friend of mine from work is trying to find a different muffler for me to put on it, since there's a hole rusted through mine. I would like to be able to pass a state inspection and get this dude on the road sometime this season.

I have new tubes and tires on standby, and there's just a few other finishing touches that I need to address, like fuel drain lines, fenders, light mounting, line routing/securement, and finishing up the paint and trim and whatnot.

I'm getting very close, and I'm very excited! I should have more to report and more pictures to share throughout the rest of this week, so stay tuned!

[Scramps]

I’ve made a lovely bouquet of terminal connector plugs for you

[Scramps]

So I’ve got the whole wiring harness reassembled, except for a few peripheral components like the rear lighting, and I’m blowing fuses. Kind of a frustrating way to end the day, but I’ll try again tomorrow.

[DurangoCB]

I know that feeling- just remember that even when it's two steps forward and one step back, it will still deliver you to the finish line eventually.  Keep at it.

[Scramps]

Trying again today, probably going to just run checks for continuity to ground on everything to make sure that nothing is shorted. Then, who knows!

[Scramps]

Ok! So my ignition power (black wires) are shorted to ground somewhere

[calj737]

Ok! So my ignition power (black wires) are shorted to ground somewhere

Check your idiot lights. The NEU and OIL light get their ground from the switch, the Hi and Turn use BLUE and ORange and Blue for power. Pretty common to inadvertently connect BLACK to ground since it’s always a NEG in most wiring. But in Honda-land, GREEN is ground and BLACK is switched 12v.

[Scramps]

Eureka!
While investigating the idiot lights (thanks cal) I discovered the culprit; my cheap Chinese switches!

The kill switch had a ground wire running to one side of it, and the starter button had a switched power wire running to it, so I just swapped those two pins on the plug and VIOLA!

That’s a load off my toad

[Scramps]

Well gang, I’ve got all the things hooked up, fuel in the carbs, spark from the plugs, and air from the atmosphere. What else should I check if it’s not firing up?

[calj737]

Is it cranking but not firing? A bit of "popping and backfiring"? If so, you may well have the ignition connected to the incorrect coil. OR, if you disassembled the points cam, you may have assembled it 180* out.

Confirm these 2 items.

If those are good and correct, then you probably have the valves adjusted out of whack.
Suck. Squeeze. Bang. Blow. Gotta work in that sequence.

[Scramps]

It is cranking, but not even so much as a cough or a sputter.

I have a Pamco ignition installed, and I have it set up per the instructions on their website. I also have new coils, plugs and wires. I set the valve timing back when I put the engine together, it’s possible that I messed that up, I’ll check it out.

[calj737]

Let's talk specifically about the points cam. Are you clear which part I'm describing? Did you remove it, disassemble it, service it? It has a very small "dimple" on it that but be oriented to another small, almost imperceptible mark on the plate. That way the ignition is firing the correct coil at the correct time, regardless of how you are wired to fire.

You can also use a multimeter to test the firing. Unscrew a plug. Hold it against the engine, meter probe on it. Manually advance the motor until the ignition is firing that cylinder pair. You should read voltage on the plug at that moment.

[Scramps]

Tested for spark on plug #4, it is firing appropriately, with the “1-4” F mark. As for the points cam, this ignition plate replaces the original cam with this aluminum disk, with magnets in it, about 90* apart. The installation instructions indicated that the two magnets should be at 3 o’clock and 6 o’clock with the cylinder 1-4 mark at 12 o’clock, if that makes sense.



I think I’ve got that right, so maybe the timing is advanced or retarded too much?

[calj737]

More likely the valves are adjusted out of sequence.

You are sure you have fuel entering the carbs? If the sparks are present at the right time, then it’s down to fuel or compression. You would not be the first to adjust the valves (assuming you did it) out of sequence.

Remove the 1/4 tappet covers. Rotate the motor until you get to T and inspect the rockers. What gap or play do you have?