Topic: riders

[hymodyne]

How much weight is a cb500 supposed to be able to safely carry?

manual says 250#, which doesn't leave much room for a full grown passenger...

hym

[Bodi]

Safe? A lot of people (99% of mothers for instance) consider any motorcycle unsafe.
These 70's bikes were designed by Japanese folks with little regard for us huge gaijin. The suspension is set up for about 150 pounds of rider plus an occasional 100 poundish passenger.
It should be OK as is on a smooth road but bumpsmight  get rather exciting if the springs bottom out - it's hard to control a bike from 3 feet above the seat and passengers generally resent such antics.
Install shocks with stronger springs (the wire diameter defines the spring rate) if you have problems.
You can get new shocks with much superior damping action and a spring tailored to your weight and riding style, but thay cost a bunch.
Many common twin shock bikes used identical shock mounts and differ only in length, spring rate, and damping action. Go to your local bike wrecker with one of your shocks and select a good condition pair about the same length with identical fittings and a more robust spring and it should cost you maybe $20.00.
The frame is plenty strong enough to carry the weight.

[jwalters]

I posted a similar question about my CB750.  Being 6'8" and 300lbs, I wanted to know how I could improve my ride.  You might want to look into Hagon rear shocks, those should help out a lot for aggressive/large riders.

[oldbiker]

6'8"!  They sure build em big in your part of the world. I feel tiny at 6'0".

[jwalters]

Ya, I recon, I look a bit funny on my CB750 cafe racer... but its sooo much fun to ride.   Apologies for the tangent post!

[Geeto67]

while we are still on this tangent I am 6'5" and 280. MY friends sometimes tell me the cb750 lookes like a trail 70 with me on it. 6'8" I couldn't even imagine with rearsets and drop bars.

as far as a cb500 is concerned it isn't just the shocks that you have to worry about but also the clutch life. I don't remember what the load capacity is on a cb500 (not sure if 250 lbs is accurate since a cb750 can carry close to 400). but if you are a bigger rider I would get shocks tuned to your size and put in a heavy duty clutch. Progressive makes a nice entry level shock that has an interchangable spring.

AS far as the other components being safe to lug you around I think you are probably ok, just keep an eye on things like swingarm bushings, and fork seals and the rest should be all good. Remember honda built these bikes with wide margins of safety and reliability and that is why there are so many still around today.

[heffay]

one thing ive noticed having recently bought my zx7r is the 350f is a definate handler... but, the shocks can barely support my 150 pounds at a hard lean into the corner... quite sqishy and seemingly unglued when compared to the 750 race rep.  the springs (i believe)  are not the culprit but rather the rebound dampening or perhaps the compression or both... whatdya all think? 

[apormarkos]

both my cj360t and my  550 wallow pretty bad when i'm well leaned over if the tarmac isn't smooth.  wonder if i can fit some 550 shocks on the back of the 360 to even it out...

[TwoTired]

both my cj360t and my  550 wallow pretty bad when i'm well leaned over if the tarmac isn't smooth.  wonder if i can fit some 550 shocks on the back of the 360 to even it out...

The stock 550 shocks are adjustable for preload.  Do you know what they are set at now?

[Einyodeler]

I just got back from a 1200 mile road trip on the`72 CB500 and wouldn`t have attempted it with the stock shocks( I weigh 210 lbs and had over 100lbs of luggage) because even at their highest preload setting they would bottom out and wallow in turns.I run a pair of Boge-Mulhollands on my `72 and Konis on my `73.The poor thing had been sitting under a tree for 9 years till last fall and when we met I promised to show it the world
Look in a Japanese-English phrase book and you`ll see: Showa = For Show Only

[apormarkos]

twotired,
just noticed your reply...  my shocks are always set at maximum preload, even though i only weigh 138 lbs.  the 360 seems to wallow quite a bit more than the 550, but its shocks are smaller.  they're not leaking or anything, i guess they're just weak.