Topic: My $300 77 CB550F Project

[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.

[calj737]

\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.]

You need to install a mini-split. Warm and cozy in the winter, cool and dry in the summer. It will also help retard the rusting of your tools and other stuff by keeping a more temperate condition annually. Best money I've ever spent!

[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

[chesterburnet111]

I just don't have enough space to do powder coating nor the inclination to go through the process of learning to do it well.

[willbird]

I just don't have enough space to do powder coating nor the inclination to go through the process of learning to do it well.

Overall it is a lot easier to setup for than painting with auto body paints, but baking bigger stuff then becomes an issue. If somebody can do a good job local I would be totally on board with letting them do it for sure.

Bill

[chesterburnet111]

I'm at the point of assembling stuff and now I'm finding all of the odds and ends that I need to complete things. I have the original parts but once you finish the big stuff, you can't put rusty nuts and bolts on it. I've tried to refinish a few but they just don't come out that good. Fortunately you can find most any Honda CBs fastener new even though it's a 45 year old motorcycle.

I took a day off this week and spent the entire day doing motorcycle stuff. I bought the JW designs speedometer blank out but since I am doing dual calipers, the design doesn't interface as well with the second disc. The guy on "Ride The Miles" details his 2 disc conversion and had a neat spacer machine. I grabbed some screen shots and measured everything up and found a local machine shop to make one for cheap money.  got my tires mounted, brought the frame to a welding shop to find out how to prep to weld it back together. Also went to a custom builders shop to see what he's working on. Motorcycle days are pretty cool.

Hard to believe it was almost 2 months of weekends to get these done. I can't believe how much heavier they are in comparison to the huge wheels and tires on my MT10.

Wheel Tire Automotive tire Tread Motor vehicle

[calj737]

I can't believe how much heavier they are in comparison to the huge wheels and tires on my MT10.

Its the hubs. They are massive compared to modern units.

[chesterburnet111]

I keep thinking I'm going to get things done way faster than I actually do. I'm waiting on my welder, my machinist and my powder coat guy to get parts back so I can proceed. I need to get a rolling chassis so I can build the seat mounting. I'm also finding that the small nickle & dime parts add up. I figured that before I install the swingarm bearing kit, new shock bushing and grease fitting, I'd get it powder coated. It's ok to loose a weekend as I have a lot of yard work I need to get done. 

[chesterburnet111]

I have been doing a lot of work but it feels like I'm not making much progress when in fact I am. Grunt work never looks impressive whether it's mechanical work, construction, decorating or cooking, but it's what makes everything that comes after look great. I'm still working on the frame and it's close to being done. I bought a $70 Harbor Freight brake so I can make a tray, a metal seat pan reinforcement and I want to redo the inner fender as the bend is not good enough to suit me. I've got most of the nasty tedious grunt work done and am now close to test assembling everything after which I'll send the frame off to the powder coater.

I decided to get the swingarm powder coated now because I didn't want to get it done with the new bearing kit and new shock bushings in. I just picked it up along with a few other parts I had done. The color is Mercedes silver and the pictures don't do it justice. This finish and color just pop. It's a early preview for me to see the finished color. I'm on my anti black motorcycle campaign and I have to say that IMO, when I put these powder coated parts along side the brushed and polished aluminum and chrome, the combination looks awesome.

[denward17]

I like it!

Good Luck with progress.

[Godffery]

 Groovy!  Too many Black frames in the world. 

[chesterburnet111]

My thoughts exactly. Non black frames are very groovy. I really wanted to do nickle plated like a Rickman but it's not practical.