Topic: My $300 77 CB550F Project

[chesterburnet111]

I've attacked the things that seemed like they'd be the most difficult. The motor is done, the wheels are polished out and built. I pulled the forks apart to start building. They are so simple compared to the Ohlins cartridges on my MT10. I have to sand and polish the lower tubes but that's substantially easier then wheel hubs. That will be the last polishing I have to do. The actual polishing is pretty easy....it's the sanding out the nicks and scratches that is tedious and time consuming. It feels like it's all getting a lot easier now. This is not a whole lot more complicated than a motocross bike.

I have a few questions about the dual disc set up for the front wheel. I am doing Motogadget electrical and using their speedometer set up and deleting the stock speedo. I bought a speedometer blank from a company called JW Design about a year ago. It is a nice quality piece but it seems to be designed using the gearbox retainer cover and gear box retainer (#'s 5 & 6). The blank out cover will not sit flush without using the gearbox retainer. It's not going to work together from what I'm seeing. I'm sure the are people that are adding a 2nd disc and doing a speedo drive delete. How did you accomplish this?
     

[newday777]

The speedo drive acts as a spacer so you will need to make a spacer to replace it.
I imagine that there must be some sort of signal for the speed. I haven't gone that route so I  can't really answer your questions on it.

[Godffery]

It's not going to work together from what I'm seeing. I'm sure the are people that are adding a 2nd disc and doing a speedo drive delete. How did you accomplish this?   

That’s where SeanBarney was encouraging you to contact Jeff @Godferrets Garage for the blank/spacer pieces you need for a dual disc.

Hey chesterburnet111, Contact me threw PM and I'll give you my phone number then we can discuss it in detail.

Also here a couple links to my work to give you an idea of what I do: 
 https://www.facebook.com/godfferysgarage
 https://www.instagram.com/godfferysgarage/

[chesterburnet111]

I'm finally in to building the forks. There are a lot of companies selling suspension for vintage motorcycles but most are junk. Then there is the problem of 1 size fits all. It takes a little more digging to find companies that offer the correct stuff. Fortunately Racetech is an excellent source for vintage suspension. I can do Ohlins type cartridges without having to think about it at this point but although the old stuff is simpler, I had to speak to tech support to get some answers on the cartridge emulators today. They were excellent and totally helpful.

I also watched 3 different websites showing how to assemble the forks that come on the CB 550 & 750. Specifically, I was looking for a trick to tighten the screw on the bottom that goes into the damping rod and holds the entire fork together. I'm sure a lot of people have seen videos of people doing wheelies and the lower tube and wheel falls off. 2 of the 3 how toos were young guys and they were tightening the screw into the rod with an impact gun without securing the damping rod. If you don't secure it, then it just spins the rod and you don't get it tightened enough to be sure the bolt won't come out. I also guessed that you should use some type of thread locker. The 3rd video I watched was from Common Motor Collective. The guy that does their videos  addressed the issues that I was looking for. My forks will not fall apart because I listened to idiots. You have to be very careful who you listen to online. There are people out there that seem to be competent and professional that are giving advice and making how to videos that in reality have no clue.

Yesterday I spoke to Jeff from Godffrey's Garage. Glad I did. He gave me a lot of great info. I sent my 2 front brake calipers to him so he can modify them and installs banjo fittings so I can use braided stainless lines. Cool detail. Cool guy.

Today I dropped the top and bottom triple trees, the caliper brackets and a few other parts at the powder coat guy. I'll get them back next week and then I can assemble the entire front end, wrap it in plastic and stick it in the back of the garage while I move on to other parts of this build.

[chesterburnet111]

I guess a lot of people figure that if their forks aren't leaking oil or some major performance issue they're best left alone. I took mine apart and there was still oil in them, but it was brown. The seal retainers where so rusted that they made it difficult to get the seals out. The bottom studs were rusted enough that I don't trust their structural integrity. I bought new studs, retainers and rebound springs. Started sanding out the nicks and dings on the lower tubes so I can polish them out.

I have some questions and hopefully can get some experiences advice here.
1. When I took the forks apart, I found only 1 rebound spring. I don't think the other rolled away but I'm not sure. The Honda manuals don't even 
     show having rebound springs. Are there in fact 2? 
2. I saw a video somewhere about removing studs from forks. I can't find it but figured that if there are any tricks to doing it without wrecking the   
    tubes I want to know them. Any suggestions?
3. Any tips on getting inside the lower tubes cleaned out? 

[newday777]

The longer the fork tubes are left untouched, the results will be like you have found, rusted and corroded parts. Honda has always recommended fork service to be done 2 years maximum to get the best possible working suspension and is known as preventative maintenance......

1. 2 rebound springs, 1 in each fork damper.
2. Double nut tightened together to unscrew the studs. PB Blaster is a good penetrating fluid to bust corrosion loose, a little heat helps too.
3. Bottle brush for the bore size, use a powered parts cleaner or spray in brake cleaner.

[chesterburnet111]

2. I saw a video somewhere about removing studs from forks. I can't find it but figured that if there are any tricks to doing it without wrecking the tubes I want to know them. Any suggestions?

The best and proper way is to use a stud puller. It essentially slides over the shank, much closer to the bottom of the stud than the threads, and grips the stud. You can find/buy one online and for every stud I have ever removed, I have never bent nor sheared one yet. Use ample heat on the fork leg. Propane is fine, MAPP is better.

When you reinstall, use green LocTite.

Any suggestion as far as a specific type brand. There are quite a few different types for sale online.
The longer I work on motorcycles, the more colors I find out that Locktite makes.

[chesterburnet111]

I got the studs out without much problem. I bought a stud remover but didn't open it as I tried my brothers method, 2 nuts tightened against each other, a wrench and a Vice grip, heat and PB Blaster and they spun out fairly easily. Very few things have disassembled without being a minor ordeal. I got 1 leg polished and need to finish the other and I can start putting the front end together. I am not doing anything original or that hasn't been done before but I have a nice combination of new parts and old style.   

[chesterburnet111]

When you reassemble the forks onto the wheel, take note of the axle clamp. It has a front and a rear orientation. There should be a small gap to the rear of the bike and the “dot” on the bottom is facing front.

TY. I really appreciate how the old timers on this site stay active and throw out tips and tricks. Thanks.

[alexZan]

Hey guys, quick question...The headlight on my '77 cb550k isnt working. Im reading only 6volts at the bullet connectors terminating at the headlight. Any ideas why I am not getting 12?
Thanks in advance!

[chesterburnet111]

On to the forks. Every part is new except for the lower tubes and the damping rods. The brass thingies are Racetech cartridge emulators. They just sit on top of the damping rods and flow oil like modern cartridge forks. The only modification required is to drill a few additional holes in the damping rods. I'm also adding preload adjustable caps. They'll never perform as well as modern forks but they'll be a good as possible while keeping the stock look.

I'm not a big fan of putting modern upside down forks on these Hondas. I have an MT10 which is modern and I love it. , I want my 77 to retain the looks of a 77.

It took me 2 days to disassemble, clean and then sand and polish the lower tubes. It took me a little over an hour to put them together. The only reason I didn't finish is because I don't have the correct weight oil. Except for the caps, they look completely stock.

This is the picture of all of the components ready for assembly.

[grcamna2]

Those forks are going to ride nice 
Which grade/weight fork oil have you chosen ?

[Godffery]

Those forks are going to ride nice 
Which grade/weight fork oil have you chosen ?

I just put that exact same set up in for a CB500 Four project today. (Technically the forks were swapped with a set from a 75 550 because the Gold Valve emulators and preload adjustment caps were not an option with the 500 forks, also I'll be running twin discs so needed the right lower anyway.) At any rate; RaceTech recommended 15w fork oil for these.

 BTW; Looking at the photo of the parts you posted, I'm not seeing these... https://images.cmsnl.com/img/products/pieceoil-lock_medium51432357000-02_9ff0.jpg
 Hopefully they are in there somewhere?

[chesterburnet111]

I'm using 15 weight oil per Racetech. The bottom holders are installed. I forgot to put them into the picture.

BTW. I had my calipers modified by Godffery. He changed them over to accept banjo bolts. It never even occurred to me to do this but as soon as he suggested it i realized it was a very cool detail. I'm not a master fabricator so the only way to have a cool build is to get as many details done right as possible.

I'm going to assemble the front end as completely as possible. I used CB750 upper tubes was wondering how that affects the oil level. Racetech specifies 130 MM from the top. I wonder if I should just add the additional inch to the 130 mm level or leave it the same. 


Now that the wheels are built, I can install on the frame so I can figure out how I'm going to mount the seat and get the electronic trays in and figure out locations before I send it to the powder coater. I have Cognito rear sets and I'm curious to see how they fit. They utilize the swing arm pivot and rear motor mount and it seems like the bolts would be too short but I've never seen any mention of using some other type. I also have steering and swingarm bearing kits. The cleaning and refinishing is what takes a huge amount of time. I do all of my own work on my MT10 and there are so many parts that you have to remove that it takes forever to do even simple tasks. Everything on this Honda is easily accessible putting it together is so simple and quick on this bike.

[chesterburnet111]

Other then drain plugs, 2 studs and fork oil they are done. I don't think there's anything left to sand and polish out. Even though the results are satisfying, it's a tedious time consuming process.

[newday777]

Other then drain plugs, 2 studs and fork oil they are done. I don't think there's anything left to sand and polish out. Even though the results are satisfying, it's a tedious time consuming process.

Cool.
Where did you get the adjustable fork caps?

[chesterburnet111]

I don't have a brand and can't remeber where I bought them. It was over a year ago. They're not the cheapo Ebay ones.

[grcamna2]

Other then drain plugs, 2 studs and fork oil they are done. I don't think there's anything left to sand and polish out. Even though the results are satisfying, it's a tedious time consuming process.

Cool.
Where did you get the adjustable fork caps?

Yes,those adjustable preload caps are nice

[Godffery]

 https://4into1.com/search.php?search_query=TTR400+Preload+Adjuster+Set

[chesterburnet111]

Thank you Jeff. I spent an hour last night trying to figure out who I bought them from. I have the 4 into1 which are good quality.

There are a bunch on Ebay that look similar and are cheaper that I think are probably junk. They have cotter pins on the bottom with is going contact the top of the springs. You get what you pay for.

[grcamna2]

Who makes good quality

[BenelliSEI]

Are you cleaning spokes? A new set is $30.

[grcamna2]

Are you cleaning spokes? A new set is $30.

John,your dog reminds me of that dog in the vintage Disney movie: The Shaggy DA 

[chesterburnet111]

I had some parts powder coated so I can assemble the front end. I also wanted to see if this powder coat guy does good work before I send him more stuff. Next I will install fork, swingarm and wheels so I can check the lines of the seat mount and check fit everything before I powder coat the frame. I've spent a lot of time out in the garage this winter but it's always a pain in the ass because I need to wear 2 layers and breath in propane gas fumes. Fortunately I have enough brain damage that a little more won't make much difference. Looking forward to warmer weather. My garage is too dirty to let my dogs come out with me.

[willbird]

That stuff came out really nice. I have some similar parts that were blasted that I planned to prime and paint. I did buy a HF powder coat gun a few years back but I was coating cast lead alloy projectiles and baking in a toaster oven, that oven is not big enough for the lower triple tree with that tube on it. I also have not really used the HF gun hardly at all, and HF powder color selections are pretty sparse.


Bill