Author Topic: Where to start - the orders of operation on a newbie's first bike (Read 10048 times)

OldSchool_IsCool · « **Reply #50 on:** March 28, 2007, 07:08:23 PM »

I got the T-bar wrench in the picture above at my local motorcycle shop for about $5. Be careful if you order one as they are typically sold by plug THREAD size and not HEX size. Notice the $4 one Csendker found is for plugs that have 18mm THREADS. The plug thread size on a 550 is 12mm. The reason I know that is because when I went the M/C shop and asked for a 18mm plug wrench, the guy about fainted. He asked "What the hell machine you got that has a plug that big?"

I said an old Honda CB. He recognized my mistake right away and reached under the counter and handed me the 12mm.

formasfunction · « **Reply #51 on:** March 28, 2007, 07:24:48 PM »

Ha. Thanks for the heads up Old School, I probably would have made the same mistake and then insisted that "these guys on a website told me..."

Csendker, I'm definitely exercising caution with the brakes - driving it around my block only enough to work the new oil through the system and even then keeping it under 30. Thats actually why I've had so much time to order parts, I haven't been out on the bike! I'm praying that speed bleeder will be here this weekend to simplify the whole task. Are those piston seals standard fare for local shops or do I need to special order?

So in terms of getting my fluids sorted out, am I missing anything here - engine oil, front brake fluid, front fork fluid? Seems like there should be more. I know it's air cooled but I keep wanting to buy coolant...

csendker · « **Reply #52 on:** March 28, 2007, 07:34:38 PM »

I got my seal from these guys --> http://www.crotchrocket.com/fiche_section_detail.asp?category=Motorcycles&make=Honda&year=1975&fveh=2948

I didn't check the local Honda dealer, but I'm sure they could get it too. You may want to grease the rear swingarm and lube your cables, but otherwise the only fluid that seems to be missing from your list typically comes in 12 or 16 ounce cans & bottles.

TwoTired · « **Reply #53 on:** March 28, 2007, 07:35:32 PM »

Seems most of your questions were answered.
But, yes a spark plug wrench is what you need like the one in the picture posted. They do come in the stock tool kit. But, wait for a tool kit on eBay that sells for $35. Let someone else buy the $150 dollar one. Or, wait til it is reposted at a lower price.

From your description, I think you are going to have to rebuild that front caliper. I have a rebuild write up if your interested.

Cheers,

csendker · « **Reply #54 on:** March 28, 2007, 08:10:29 PM »

TT- I've read your rebuild write-up, but I haven't been able to find it again since the website has been re-done. I'm interested in it, or maybe have it posted to the brakes FAQ? Thanks.

formasfunction · « **Reply #55 on:** April 04, 2007, 04:16:01 PM »

So this weekend I'm going to take a look at my brakes to solve the sticking but I had a couple of questions before I got started. My Speedbleeder and new piston seal came in and I consulted both the service manual and the clymer manual but they both were missing two things I was looking for - they don't mention the piston seal and they don't say whether I should bleed the brakes before I disassemble to get to the piston. These may sound like obvious things but if you haven't noticed already I like to know the ledger of the law before I get started. So here's how I'm thinking it should go:

1. Install Speedbleeder
2. Bleed brake
3. Disconnect brake line and remove caliper assembly
4. Remove pads and make sure the red line is still there
5. Pull out and check piston to make sure it's not corroded
6. Pull out old piston seal and insert new seal (do I need to make sure this doesn't come in contact with the brake fluid or is that the point of the thing?)
7. Reinsert piston
8. put the pads back together
9. reattach caliper assembly and brake line
10. Open up master cylinder and put in new dot3 fluid
11. Go for a ride.

Am I doing anything out of order here? Is there anything else I should check while I'm in the thick of it?

Thanks!

Bob Wessner · « **Reply #56 on:** April 04, 2007, 04:18:57 PM »

Don't bleed the system until you are all done with the work. Anytime you break into the system (i.e., to repair or replace anything) air will enter and you will need to bleed.

Bob Wessner · « **Reply #57 on:** April 04, 2007, 04:55:59 PM »

Glenn,

I logged-in into the Gallery and then went to one of my posts with my sig line containing my gallery URL. Same result, just takes me to the home page, if this helps any.

csendker · « **Reply #58 on:** April 05, 2007, 06:24:48 AM »

If it were me, I'd:

1. Drain fluid, disconnect brake line and remove caliper assembly
1a. If it was really ugly in the caliper, I'd flush it a couple of times (the whole enchilada; MC to caliper) with clean brake fluid
2. Remove pads and make sure the red line is still there
3. Pull out and check piston to make sure it's not corroded
4. Pull out old piston seal
5. Clean the interior of the caliper, epically the groove the seal sits in (use something soft-ish so you don't cut the groove)
6. Lube the new seal with brake fluid and insert in caliper
6a. Real brake lube is better if you have it
7. Insert piston
7a. Goop up the outside (exposed) edge of the piston with Dow Corning Silicone, if you have it
8. Put the pads back together (don't forget the nylon washer that goes between the piston & the pad)
9. Reattach caliper assembly and brake line
10. Install Speedbleeder
11. Open up master cylinder and put in new dot3 fluid
12. Bleed brake
13. Go for a ride.

For more on the brake lube and silicon, look here --> http://www.sohc4.us/forums/index.php?topic=14251.msg185643#msg185643

TwoTired · « **Reply #59 on:** April 05, 2007, 10:11:30 AM »

I can't add much more than what is here:
http://www.sohc4.us/forums/index.php?topic=259.msg207521#msg207521

I would scrap your current action list. Sorry.

Cheers,

Uncleben89 · « **Reply #60 on:** April 05, 2007, 10:49:37 AM »

:Copies Walk through:

formasfunction · « **Reply #61 on:** April 05, 2007, 11:50:08 AM »

Can't believe I missed such a great list in the FAQs. Thanks for your patience and redirection, I'll try not to be such a noob next time.

csendker · « **Reply #62 on:** April 05, 2007, 12:49:26 PM »

So that's where that article went...

formasfunction · « **Reply #63 on:** April 07, 2007, 12:01:26 PM »

I'm in the middle of replacing my rear sprocket and I was wondering if you had any tips on getting the bent washers off. I found a thread on the forum where a guy asked the same question but never got an answer. I've been trying some needle nose pliers but they seem to be roughing the washers up up more than I'm bending them.

TwoTired · « **Reply #64 on:** April 07, 2007, 12:21:50 PM »

I use a pointy chisel and hammer to wedge between nut and bent washer. An old screwdriver will work, too.
Once you get the edge of it away from the nut, tap away til you can get your socket on the nut.

Cheers,

formasfunction · « **Reply #65 on:** April 07, 2007, 04:36:14 PM »

Worked like a charm, thanks TT.

I just installed the new front sprocket but either the old one wasn't all that worn or the NOS one I bought off of ebay isn't really new old stock. Can anybody tell me if it looks new to them?

TwoTired · « **Reply #66 on:** April 07, 2007, 04:55:03 PM »

It doesn't look nearly as bad and the rear sprocket did. I'd bet it is newer than the rear one was. Still, the stretched chain has left its imprint. You can see the wear up high on the teeth where the chain rollers were riding up out of the tooth valley.
I might still use it with a used chain. But, not a new one, outside of an emergency, of course.

When the chain rides up on the teeth like that, the chain can make contact with the metal guide in the cover and break the mountings. You might want to check that so it won't make contact with your new chain.

Cheers,

formasfunction · « **Reply #67 on:** April 07, 2007, 05:00:04 PM »

So does the one on the right, the installed one look alright? Thats the NOS part I bought off of ebay. I just want to make sure that it's up to par with my new rear JT sprocket and my new chain. If not I'll unload this one and get a new JT sprocket to match the rear.

TwoTired · « **Reply #68 on:** April 07, 2007, 05:14:16 PM »

Yes, it looks okay.
But, you can check it yourself by hand fitting a couple links of the new chain into the valleys of sprocket and noting sloppy fit. It ought to nestle in nicely and not worry about in its proper place.

Cheers,

formasfunction · « **Reply #69 on:** April 08, 2007, 10:02:26 AM »

So before I put everything back together I wanted to make sure that my brakes and bearings on the rear were good so I went to buy a caliper to measure the amount of pads/drums left and none of the auto stores around me had one for sale, however they did let me borrow one in the parking lot for a second. Having never used one before and being without a camera I measured the best I could and then decided to make the below info-graphic. The red line on the pic is what I measured and below that is the bar and dial reading. I'm guessing that this is 0.153 with the tolerance in my Clymer manual being 0.08 for a CB550. Am I reading this correctly? Sadly, the caliper they had wasn't large enough to measure the walls of the drum so I'm flying blind there. One last thing I noticed that some previous owner had NTN bearings installed which is good, but I'm not sure how to tell if they're "good." Is it a safe guess that if they feel alright (which they do) and they're probably under 10k miles they're good for now?

Anything else I should do before I put this thing back together? I wore off a little of the grease inside of the axle hole but not a whole lot, should I clean all of that out and regrease? I'm assuming this stuff is axle grease in the literal sense. Oh, and a little bit of it got on the brake pad, not much, is that something to worry about? I seam to remember that being a concern in a post I read, maybe it was for the front brakes.

OldSchool_IsCool · « **Reply #70 on:** April 08, 2007, 11:41:44 AM »

FaF,

I'm not sure about the '75, but the '77 has a pointer on the brake leaver on the outside of the shoe mounting plate. If the pointer stays to the right of the registration mark when the brake is engaged, then the combination of the drum and shoe thickness is OK. Of course, you could have the situation of extra thick shoes and too thin drums, so be careful of the extreams .

TwoTired · « **Reply #71 on:** April 08, 2007, 01:14:58 PM »

If you are going to measure the brake shoe thickness wear, it is generally done where it is worn the thinest. From the picture, it looks like the shoe on the left is worn thinner than where you measured the thickness.

Greasing a friction material is a bad idea. The shoes are porous and grease can soak in, particularly when it gets hot. Hot grease flows into any crevice it can find, and its goal in life is to reduce friction. If your rear brake now seems ineffective, you'll have a pretty good idea of why that is so.

I have no way to judge how much grease you put on the show or how effective your method of removal has been. You'll have to do that. But, if you clean it well enough, you can test for effectiveness easy enough. If you can lock the rear wheel with foot pressure, it's probably good enough. I probably wouldn't want that situation on the banked walls of Daytona, though.

I can tell you what can happen if you don't get the grease off the pad. I had a car with a leaking bearing seal and the grease made a few drips onto the drum. Where the grease had dripped, the drum got very hot, much hotter then the rest of the drum, which changed the steel's temper and formed hard spots on the steel. These drums could not be turned true, as the hard spots were harder than the lathe's cutting tool. The hard spots had to be ground out of the drum and when the rim was finally turned true it was past it wear limits and had to be scrapped. That was my lesson on why it is bad to grease the brake drums.

If your bearings spin smoothly, you check for wear when the wheel is on the bike. You should not be able to move the rim sideways.

All the axle related parts need a coating of clean grease. The cavity does not need to be stuffed.

Cheers,

formasfunction · « **Reply #72 on:** April 08, 2007, 02:12:11 PM »

Well, I decided the brakes are good for now. I wiped off the two spots of grease from the one pad and used some fine grit sandpaper to take the traces off.

As for the axle grease, I have a tube of plain old Lithium Grease (not the white kind, I don't think) here at the house, is that sufficient or do I need something different?

formasfunction · « **Reply #73 on:** April 09, 2007, 05:43:20 PM »

So, I'm almost reassembled tonight but I'm having trouble with the master link on my chain (I double checked and it is right one). The plate that goes over top is getting stuck on the ridges in the two rods that the clip is supposed to fit under. Any advice? I saw someone recommend a pair of square nose pliers but all I have are needle nose at the moment. Should it really be this hard?

TwoTired · « **Reply #74 on:** April 09, 2007, 06:44:32 PM »

The master link has a U shape with one side plate off. When the top of the U splays apart under tension of the chain the other side plate doesn't want to go on fully. I use the chain itself to bend the pin tips together and get that side plate on fully. Position the master at the bottom of the bike where it spans the two sprockets and the pins pointing at you. Push sideways on the chain which will begin to close the top of the U. The side plate of the link will slip right on.

Cheers,

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Author Topic: Where to start - the orders of operation on a newbie's first bike (Read 10048 times)

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Uncleben89

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