Topic: E Tu Brute? 1977 CB550K Restomod

[flyinelvis]

Cal, your points are well taken.  We’re hopeful of a quick coating of the tank following the final clean.  Gotcha on the inner tank top, makes complete sense.  I live in the piedmont of NC, I know all too well the issues with heat and humidity.  Acetone shot sounds reasonable.

I think one of my main concerns (never having sealed a tank) is the petcock port.  I understand the Saran Wrap at the filer hole, but the Playdoh in the petcock port has me a bit dumbfounded.  After curing, will there be a physical seal from the Caswell that will need to be drilled out or chipped away once the Playdoh is removed? 

Inquiring minds need to know...

[SF]

ARP = Cheap investment


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My bad, APE studs and ARP 12 points


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[flyinelvis]

I don't care what you use, how you plug it, Caswell will seep into the petcock hole. It has to so you can drain the excess out of the tank. You can't get enough out through the filler neck as the interior of the neck is taller than the underside (think a sleeve that passes through the top, theres a "wall" from the neck on the inside).

I just run a twist drill slowly in the petcock after the Caswell has cured a day or two. May also want to run a die nut one the petcock threads to remove any Caswell on the outside of the petcock bung.

I know you're down in Henderson; I'm up in Richmond. 

Ahh, it's becoming much clearer now, thanks for the tips.  Never thought about draining off excess.

Actually in Huntersville, just north of Charlotte.  Regardless, it's hotter than Hell right now.  Been pedaling my road bike at lunch, easy to lose 5-lbs in water weight in an hour.  Storms are quite entertaining this time of year, too...

[flyinelvis]

Right, Huntersville, not Henderson. I pass by all the damn time and you have yet to host me at Mac’s! What a one-way bodger you are. Just wait until I rat you out on the forum 

Your wouldn’t dare rat me out on the forum!  You are more than welcome at my Garagemahall!  Let me know next time thru and I’ll host you on a tour of our race shop.  It’s not the ‘good ol’ boys’ sport anymore...


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[flyinelvis]

Blowing through next weekend, Sunday probably. That may not work out on your end given it’s a weekend and all. I recently met a guy who has worked for 30 years for Hendricks Team. That is a really cool stretch of town up there!

So are you talking Sunday 8/12 or 8/19?  We're off on the VFR's to the foothills on the morning of the 12th, back around 15:00.  Love to hook up (there are better spots than Mac's!) this time or in the future.  I have a step-son in Richmond, maybe we could meet up there at some point, too.

Ha!  HMS is one of our nemesis.  I did contract work with them for close to 20-years.  Randy Dorton was a mentor and strong backer of the program I ran.  His (and the others) was a tragic loss for the entire industry.  They've had a tough year or two but never count them out.  Do you recall who you met?

[flyinelvis]

8/19. This weekend I'm down to Charleston and back to see my #2 son....Down there next weekend to help him with some fab/welding/repairs of his agri- vehicles.

If you come thru this way, please let me know.  Lunch/Dinner on me.

Now time to get back on subject w/this 550 build....

[RAFster122s]

Sorry my tablet's spelling corrector is stupid and I cannot configure it to not autocorrect, sorry for being unclear.



Can I ask..playdough in the petcock opening on a later tank works for sealing a tank with Caswells or POR15 when coating the tank and after you are satisfied it has coated the interior you pull the playdough to dump the excess liner? Reason I say later is... a 74 cb550 has the petcock with fuel bowl and round strainer/filter and they bolt on with a couple screws, later tanks/models have a threaded bung for the petcock's nut.
What can you use to seal off the petcock bung when cleaning a tank with acetone to strip old liner?

[flyinelvis]

Sorry, not certain exactly what it is you’re asking.  I mentioned the Playdoh as it was discussed in the Caswell literature.  We have still yet to have coated the tank as internal cleaning continues.   Possibly Cal or other could jump in and answer...

[flyinelvis]

With Hurricane Florence blowing thru, it would be a perfect time to work on the Brute.  Unfortunately, just about everything we own is stuffed into the garage for safe keeping as we wait her out. So no room at the Inn.  Oh well...

So I was prepared to order a set of rearsets from Cognito Moto but on closer inspection, he doesn’t list the ‘77 or ‘78 as being compatible.  I dropped him an email, but figured I’d ask here.  If they indeed are not compatible, has anyone come up against this and if so, what was your solution?

Over on the CB500/550/650 Facebook page, I came up with a .dfx file for an electronics tray.  It was laser cut out of 0.050-material last week and to be bent this week.  Looks like a nice design and included mounts for the OEM rectifier and starter solenoid.  I’ll post up pics when its ready.  If anyone is interested in the file, I can put you in touch with the designer.  Good guy to be willing to share.

On the same page, there was a guy selling engine stands out of 1-in box tubing.  Should be arriving soon.  Again, looks like a quality design.  Once again, if anyone is interested, I’ll point you in his direction.

My tank has been thouroughly cleaned and we Caswell treated it a couple of weeks back.  While it initially went well, we did have a hiccup or two.  Once mixed, the epoxy was thicker than molasses.  We poured it in and did the 20-minute tank flip dance.  The temps were ~70*F and in retrospect we should have lacquer thinned the mix as there were some nickel and dime sized areas along the sides of the tank that we missed.  It was curing rapidly so we sat the tank on one side for 15-mins then flipped to the other.  We still have a few small areas that didn’t completely coat, but from what I can tell, the top interior behind and around the fueling hole was completely covered, as were the lower seams at the tank bottom.  I’m not too worried b/c the untreated areas should be under (non-ethanol) fuel most times and if the tank survived this long, it’ll survive a bit longer.

The custom top triple is coming along nicely and after some back and forth with the machinist, I think we’re going to have a really nice piece for the Gixer forks.  De-tabbing of the frame should commence soon.  Hopefully Flo will leave and cooler temps will settle in and I can consider garage time once again...

[flyinelvis]

So the electronics tray came out very well.  The designer obviously knew his craft well.  Laser cut and bent, it fits very nicely.  Once de-tabbed, it'll fit like a glove.

I also received my engine stand.  Very nice.  Simplicity and functionality combined.

I heard from 4into1 this week and ordered my APE studs.  Should be arriving soon.  Not certain when I'll actually have the opportunity to install, for now I'll set them aside with my other seals, gaskets, etc.

I have been in LIMITED touch with Devin at Cognito Moto concerning the Tarozzi rearsets.  Devin is a man of few words and I get one sentence responses.  So this is a 1977 frame and according to Devin I need a pre '77 splined rear brake shaft.  Shorter in length than the one I have.  Sounds like the shaft tube needs to be shortened as well.  So I'm looking for that shaft if anyone should have a spare they are willing to part with.

[flyinelvis]

LOL Devin is quieter in person 

Obviously you were cut from the same mold... 

Not knocking him, just looking for a bit more detail and I had to extract one spoonful at a time.  I think I have my brain wrapped around it now, proof will be in the pudding once I have parts in hand...

I believe I have that spindle. Let me look this afternoon. If so, I’ll pop it out to you via post tomorrow...

Above and beyond the call of duty.  If you have I wish to compensate (and thank) you...

-tom

[flyinelvis]

Huh!  You thought I was gone, didn't you!  Nah, you're not that lucky...

The late fall and early winter were reserved for my Hawk GT647.  Got her dyno tuned and a lot of nagging issues squared away.  She's running like a champ now, ready for spring (if it would ever get here!).

Progress on the the Brute has been slow, but she's back to a roller.  We'll be installing headset bearings this wknd for the GSXR front end.  Pics to come soon.  Also been re-building the hand controls and they're going to look really nice.  Again, pics to follow.  Engine build has stalled for now, but it's starting to gain steam once again...

I have an opportunity to purchase what has been described as a CB550F swing arm, fresh powder coat, new bearings, etc.  Would save me a lot of effort.  Question:  Will the "F" swinger be compatible with my '77K?  According to the seller "the F frame and swingarm was unchanged...75-78 were F years if I remember correctly, I do not know the year of this part as I bought it from another member over 6-7 years ago"...

Can anybody enlighten me?

[flyinelvis]

At long last, the detabbing and frame mods are (mostly) complete.  I took it to my local shop and had the new tapered steering bearings installed to accept the ’07 GSXR forks.  She looks pretty stout with the beefier USD fork and wheels.   The frame mod dropped the rear a bit, I’ll make up for it with a bit longer rear shocks.

If anyone has any input on the “F” style rear swinger as discussed in my last post I would appreciate your thoughts...