Author Topic: Greetings from Carnation, Washington (Read 1860 times)

tlbranth · « **on:** January 01, 2009, 04:59:18 PM »

I bought my 1970 CB750 new from Pop Kenyon's Honda in Sunnyvale, California. Stopped riding sometime in the early 80's because of the crumby weather in Seattle area where I moved in 1976. The bike's been rusting away in the garage since then. I did overhaul the engine maybe 20 years ago with the intention of riding again - didn't though. About 4 years ago I got the bug again and bought a 1999 Goldwing on ebay. My wife and I go all over on that bike. But I wanted something that looked and felt like an actual motorcycle - not an armchair with an engine on it. So I decided to resurrect the old 750. It's been quite a chore - everything was rusty, Nothing worked. Anyway, I took it down to the last nut and bolt and it should be back together in a month or so. It will be mostly stock but I'm not stuck on the idea. So far it's cost about $2500. When it's finished I'll post pictures.

tortelvis · « **Reply #1 on:** January 02, 2009, 01:23:01 PM »

Welcome from western NC. Be sure to post before and after pics!

Industrial Rat400f Killer · « **Reply #2 on:** January 06, 2009, 10:05:17 AM »

When you get it done check out the backfire event in Seattle sometime if it's convenient for you. Carnation is a ways out there but it might be worth trip on a hot summer night.

billybobobrain · « **Reply #3 on:** January 06, 2009, 10:35:49 AM »

Hey I did some work on one of the buildings at the Carnation farm years ago, I think its cool that Nestle didn't try and change the name of the town when they bought it. Get a wet suit then you can ride all winter! Seattle is one of my favorite cities. Welcome.

mrbreeze · « **Reply #4 on:** January 06, 2009, 10:09:34 PM »

Welcome to the forums.I remember Pop Kenyons back in the day. I'll throw some names at ya.........Sam Arena HD...Cycle Mart(Milpitas)....Cancilla Carts(SJ)....Swanson Cycles(SJ)....and what was that one out on First street(SJ) that had the Hodaka's & Bonanza mini bikes???Anyways....good luck with the project and looking forward to some pics.

tlbranth · « **Reply #5 on:** March 02, 2009, 08:42:27 PM »

Well the restoration is more or less complete. I do need to polish up the engine covers a bit. Don't have any 'before' pics.

tlbranth · « **Reply #6 on:** March 02, 2009, 08:49:59 PM »

Yo, MR. I remember when Cancilla Motors and Sam Arena were the only bike shops in the area. I had a Triumph Tiger Cub back in '63 or so and regularly stood in line for an hour or more at Cancilla just for the privilege of ordering a handful more clutch washers. Then after a week or so go back and wait in line some more to pick them up. Also, I lived in Milpitas for several years. Small world eh.

volkswagendan · « **Reply #7 on:** March 02, 2009, 08:58:48 PM »

welcome tlbranth.
your bike looks great. i love the red and black colors.
...and i love that you bought it new back in 1970.

ev0lve · « **Reply #8 on:** March 02, 2009, 10:11:58 PM »

Hi there! Hope mine looks half as good when it's done

Did you paint the chrome black or powdercoat? One way or another blacked out like that looks super-smooth.

mrbreeze · « **Reply #9 on:** March 02, 2009, 10:19:33 PM »

Great looking bike!!!!Looks like you were into the bike scene a bit before me. I was only 12 in 1969 and used to go to Cancilla's on Old Oakland Rd. to get parts for my 68' Kawi 120.All these years later....I live up by Angels Camp for a guy that went to my high school in San Jose.He's a year older than me and I didn't know him in school.He used to race Hodakas through Cal-Karts (thats the name I couldn't think of earlier).

tlbranth · « **Reply #10 on:** March 03, 2009, 07:33:47 AM »

Iggy, all the chrome was pitted and it was discouraging. Then I saw a picture of a new Triumph Bonneville with black fenders et al & it looked great. I wondered if the chrome could be painted and scoured the web for info & found out that it could be. A neighbour of mine restores old cars and told me he had an epoxy primer that would stick to anything - including chrome and aluminum. So he let me use his sandblast box to clean everything up and he did the painting for me. He's very good at it. The paint is a 2 or 3 part automotive polyurethane. The tank, headlight and side covers are gloss (I think they're clear-coated) and everything else is semigloss. I copied the Triumph. I always thought British bikes were the hottest looking. So, long answer to short question, the chrome is sandblasted, epoxy primer, polyurethane - 3 coats.

Industrial Rat400f Killer · « **Reply #11 on:** March 03, 2009, 08:20:38 AM »

Nice looking bike.
Are you a cabinet maker? You can never have enough clamps! hehe

tlbranth · « **Reply #12 on:** March 03, 2009, 04:25:24 PM »

Rat: Yes, I am a cabinetmaker. I used the shop to assemble the 750 because it's heated and the garage ain't.

Industrial Rat400f Killer · « **Reply #13 on:** March 04, 2009, 08:32:08 AM »

Cool, I'm a cabinet maker too.

www.covelconstruction.com

Do you have a site?

tlbranth · « **Reply #14 on:** March 04, 2009, 04:59:03 PM »

Yes I do but it's way out of date and I need to fix it. I'm actually retired as a computer programmer. I don't advertise but occasionally a referral comes along and I'll bid on it. I'm spending most of my efforts on remodeling our house. Also about to install a radiant heat system followed by a ground-source heat pump. So I don't go out of my way to look for cabinet work but take it if it comes.

Industrial Rat400f Killer · « **Reply #15 on:** March 04, 2009, 05:55:45 PM »

Cool, I'm going to install radiant heat next year when my remodel is farther along. Are you doing the ground source heat pump yourself?

tlbranth · « **Reply #16 on:** March 04, 2009, 08:09:56 PM »

That's the plan. I'll have someone else dig the trenches - looks like 2 trenches 300' long, 8' deep and 3' wide. Me old back couldn't handle that.

Industrial Rat400f Killer · « **Reply #17 on:** March 05, 2009, 09:12:28 AM »

Wow! I don't have enough property to do that. I'm in the Seattle city limits. I'd like to check that out.

tlbranth · « **Reply #18 on:** March 05, 2009, 09:38:38 AM »

If you're limited in area then you have to drill down. My understanding is that drilling is kinda pricey and if the installer doesn't do a really good job of grouting the pipe to the ground, you'll have poor heat pickup and have to drill again. So it's worth finding someone who knows what they're doing. I had an outfit called Earth Heat (I think) look at my setup and with a brief perusal sized the heat pump at 4 tons. My own heat load calculations put the pump at 2 1/2 tons. And with heat pumps you definitely don't want to oversize it for efficiency and longevity reasons.

If you have any questions about radiant, come over and I'll tell you what I know. I should say that I finally gave up trying to design my own system. I had a lot of the work done but didn't want to risk a lot of money on an incorrect design. So I'm having the design done by an outfit back east. I'll do the installation myself however. Keeps me out of trouble.

Industrial Rat400f Killer · « **Reply #19 on:** March 06, 2009, 08:08:05 AM »

What's the sq footage of your place? Mine is only 1500. I'm going to use a pro for the calculations and design and then do the work myself too. A friend of mine that's a plumber has a guy that he says only charges about $200.

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Author Topic: Greetings from Carnation, Washington (Read 1860 times)

billybobobrain