Author Topic: My 77 550K build....(pics) (Read 9553 times)

Tim in Ohio · « **Reply #25 on:** October 29, 2008, 05:51:44 pm »

Quote from: DaytonGuy on October 11, 2008, 02:45:57 pm

... I completely jammed the el-cheapo ID I got from Harbor Freight...

My Harbor Freight ID jammed after a couple screw removals as well... makes me mad. Harbor Freight if you are reading this, there is a market for inexpensive tools that WORK but maybe aren't professional grade... but please quit ripping people off by selling us turds that are polished up to give the appearance of being a tool !!!!

Tim in Ohio · « **Reply #26 on:** October 29, 2008, 06:03:21 pm »

Quote from: moham on October 27, 2008, 07:25:13 pm

... I have been trying to unleash in myself the monkey of a man that goes headlong into uncharted waters with a hammer and spit unafraid of sparks and flying metal. As a result, I have of late landed somewhere in between. Ask a lot of questions, this forum is the key to success...

LOL... I am the opposite. A natural hammer wielding monkey-man, pre-disposed to mangle first and ask questions later. I work to tame the inner monkey. Landing in between is where you want to be. Dayton Guy, keep up the good work. All of the answers you need can be found on this forum.

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #27 on:** October 30, 2008, 02:26:43 pm »

Tim,

Thanks. What part of Ohio are you from? Dayton area here.....obviously. You've done a nice job on you bike. I haven't completely decided if I'm going cafe or bobber style with this thing yet. It's going to evolve. If I do a bobber style I hope it doesn't kill the thread. I see bobbers aren't that popular on this site and those threads seem to be short lived.

Tim in Ohio · « **Reply #28 on:** November 01, 2008, 06:39:04 pm »

DaytonGuy,
Thanks. I am in Dayton too. I am seriously thinking of a bobber for my next project. I say go for a bobber... I know there are some people on this board that are into bobbers. I'll stick with you for sure. Maybe when you get her running we can do a little riding together.
I was out riding all day today. I got alot of looks. One thumbs up. And of course some Harley folks who looked down their nose... but I noticed they couldn't look away

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #29 on:** November 01, 2008, 07:33:28 pm »

Cool! We will have to ride for sure. I've seen a couple cafe bikes scooting around town lately. They are either gaining interest or I just never noticed them before.

I spent today on mike bike as well.....tore the forks apart, rear wheel off, rear breaks, cleaned front master cylinder, etc.

Wish I was actually riding though!

Everything was moving along nicely until I ran into Mr. Rear Bearing Retainer. Mr. Retainer is a stubborn guy. Can't seem to get him to budge...at all. I drilled the four dimples and still nothing. Guess I'll let is soak in PB Blaster over night. See if that will work.

FunJimmy · « **Reply #30 on:** November 01, 2008, 08:59:34 pm »

You should be fine to leave the bearing in the hub, just tape them off really well.

FJ

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #31 on:** November 02, 2008, 04:36:14 am »

I thought about that, but I tried to spin them with my finger and I can't get hem to move at all so I figured they need to be replaced?? They are original to the bike.

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #32 on:** November 03, 2008, 02:57:59 pm »

OK...I've been fighting with this d@mn rear bearing retainer all weekend and I can't get it to budge at all. I've drilled the punch marks and I've made my own tool that fits nicely and I am able to get good leverage with it. I'm turning clockwise as it is a reverse thread. My question is this....

Should I drill a little deeper into the punch marks or should I try a bigger drill bit? At this point I figure the punch marks might be still holding this thing in place. I used a 3/32 drill bit and went about 1/8 inch deep. These punch marks were noticeably bigger than they were on the front retainer. Will either a deeper hole or a bigger hole hurt anything?

I can throw up some pics if that would help.

mystic_1 · « **Reply #33 on:** November 03, 2008, 04:57:24 pm »

Quote from: DaytonGuy on November 03, 2008, 02:57:59 pm

I'm turning clockwise as it is a reverse thread.

Wait, my 750's rear bearing retainer is a standard left-hand thread. Turns counter-clockwise to remove.

mystic_1

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #34 on:** November 03, 2008, 06:27:02 pm »

Mystic,

I searched the forum for a while before I started and there were a couple posts about the 550 retainers. My shop manual says it is a left hand thread and there is a directional arrow carved into the top to suggest just that. I thought that meant that it threaded to the left on install which would mean the opposite, or clockwise for removal. In any event I tried turning it both directions with nothing. That's why I thought maybe I didn't get the punch marks drilled out enough.

I'm gonna stop by my auto mechanics place tomorrow and see if they have a tool to get the job done. I gave them plenty, I mean PLENTY of money last year for repairs to a minivan I have. I cry just thinking about it. I hope they could "hook me up" with this. I can only imagine that, with the right tool, it should take no more than 10-15 minutes.

If anyone has any suggestions on how to do this myself, given what I've done, please let me know.

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #35 on:** November 03, 2008, 07:20:14 pm »

I GOT IT!!!!

The Clymer said to use a 1/4 inch drill bit so I drilled larger holes. I was also trying to hold the tire still with my stomach as I tried to turn the retainer off. I think I was working against myself. I ended up drilling two holes in my work table and stuck a screw driver thru the spokes on opposite side of the wheel and into the holes. The screwdrives kept the wheel from spinning and allowed me to get the leverage I needed to spin it off.

For the record..... the 1977 CB550K rear bearing retainer is a clockwise removal. I'll fight with the bearings another day. I'm going to bed.

Good night and happy voting tomorrow.

Chris

Tim in Ohio · « **Reply #36 on:** November 04, 2008, 07:03:22 pm »

Congrats Buddy! The little victories along the way are what it's all about!

mystic_1 · « **Reply #37 on:** November 04, 2008, 07:58:53 pm »

Congrats! Interesting that the 550 has reverse thread on that retainer, never worked on one myself.

Glad you got it out, it's a piece of cake from there on in.

mystic_1

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #38 on:** November 05, 2008, 09:38:15 am »

Thanks guys. I knew it had to be something I was doing, but couldn't figure it out. It became a minor obsession.

Quote

it's a piece of cake from there on in.

I'll get back to you on that one....

mystic_1 · « **Reply #39 on:** November 05, 2008, 10:08:21 am »

Heh, OK so sometimes the cake turns out to be year-old fruit cake

, but really getting the retainer out is often the hardest part of a bearing swap.

cheers

mystic_1

MIKE550/4 · « **Reply #40 on:** November 13, 2008, 11:45:14 pm »

hi

watching this with interest, i am restoring same bike , out of interest when you took the chain off did you end up cutting it, mine had a joining link,

just wandering about when i buy a replacement if they will be one piece , or with a link

cheers mike

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #41 on:** November 14, 2008, 04:19:59 am »

I just took the chain off the sprockets to get the engine out and the wheel off. I had to take the swing arm off to get the chain completely off of the bike. I didn't want to cut it. In terms of new chains, you can get either a master link chain or a "regular" chain. If you get the regular chain then you need to put the chain on the frame at the sate time you put the swing arm back on. I've read on here that you may want to avoid the o-ring chains as they are little wider than the stock chain and will rub the side cover. There are x-ring chains, but I don't know if they have the same width issue. I think I have read on here too that you can get a performance increase by dropping down one tooth on the front sprocket?

I'll do more research before I buy anything, but I'm going to replace both sprockets and chain. I'll probably get a standard chain with a clip style master link. I don't want to spend money on chain specific tools.

The project will be a slow one as I have all winter to work on it. I'll put up more pics this weekend.

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #42 on:** November 14, 2008, 03:45:29 pm »

So I've been spending a lot (probably too much) time trying to figure out what I want this bike to be/look like. Anyone have any examples of bikes with frame colors other than black? I'd like to do something a little different.

Any thoughts?

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #43 on:** January 03, 2009, 12:11:50 pm »

Well...it's been awhile since my last post. The whole family ended up getting the crud for a while. I've had a cough for about a month now, but it's slowly getting better. Then the Holidays hit and here we are...

I've made more progress with the tear down. She's now down to the frame with harness and center stand attached. I think I'm going to work on getting the wheels in order first. I'm going to order new bearings, brakes, sprockets, and spokes. I have a few questions:

1. I plan on polishing the hubs and painting the hoops. Is there a clear coat on the hubs that I need to remove with stripper before I start sanding/polishing? When I'm finished, do I need to clear them, and if so, is there a good rattle can product out there?

2. Can anyone tell me if the Parts N More spoke set that they have listed for the 750s will fit my 77 550K? Here's the link:
https://www.partsnmore.com/cat_index.php?model=cb750_sohc&category=chassis

I tried to find an answer on here but seemed to get some conflicting information. Looking for affirmation before I place an order

3. Can someone give me a good source for front break pads? I can only seem to find rear pads on most of the sites.

Thanks and I'll surly post pics of the wheels before, during, and after.

Boggins550 · « **Reply #44 on:** February 20, 2009, 07:44:16 am »

Hey mate,

First of all, congrats on the price and build!!! I too have a 77 cb 550k that i purchased for 250 bucks and had some of the similar problems with it. It had been sitting in a garage since 1986. From firsthand experience, ALOT of the 750 parts from partsnmore will interchange. I have successfully ordered and installed both front and rear brakes from the 750, shocks, starter relay, wheel spokes, turn signals, and a few other parts i can't remember right now. Anyway, as far as the front pads are concerned, order the round pads for the pre-77/78 and they are a direct replacement for your front pads. I made the mistake and ordered the 77/78 750 front pads, and they were too big. They exchanged them for the pre-77/78 pads and they worked. Hope this helps! I am trying to get pics of my build on here.. I've taken mine down to the frame and rebuilt her from the ground up. Should be ridin this spring!

Erik

DaytonGuy · « **Reply #45 on:** February 20, 2009, 10:15:13 am »

Thanks for the info. I have since gotten the new spokes and disassembled the rims from the hub. From what I can tell, the parts-n-more rear spokes are a little shorter than the stock ones, but not much. Maybe 2-3 threads. I think I will be fine.

In general, the build is going slower than I would like, but it's going. I don' have a lot of spare cash at the moment, but still hope to have it back together and running by late spring.

CU2151 · « **Reply #46 on:** February 20, 2009, 07:45:39 pm »

Just a comment on the oil leak you mentioned earlier...I have a 550 as well and had a similar problem. It turned out to be the oil pump. These are notorious for leaking through the small oring under the cover. If you removed the left engine/sprocket cover and there was oil in there that's a pretty good indication. You won't be able to find that oring anywhere but I got mine from brianj who found them somewhere. He sells them for cheap and it is definitely worth it! BTW, sweet find and great job with the build so far!

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Author Topic: My 77 550K build....(pics) (Read 9553 times)

CU2151