Topic: 1974 CB550 restoration -- IT LIVESSSSSS!!!

[Chippy569]

First off, a history. This bike belonged to my Dad, and before that, some random guy. The random guy bought it in 1972 and put a grand total of 2k miles on it, before my Dad bought it in 1978 when he got out of college. He rode the bike for a while, met my Mom, they road tripped all over the country, and then conceived me, and from that day (roughly) the bike sat motionless and un-storage-prepped in our garage for 22 years.

In my last year of high school I took a small gas engines class and I loved it, so I asked my Dad if we could try to rebuild the motorcycle. He rather unenthusiastically said "sure." We picked up some parts, I disassembled a lot of things, and then I left for college and it sat for another two years (I took summer classes).

Well, I can't find a job this summer and I really would like to see the bike run (and now that I've started up again, both my parents would like to see it run as well).

So, without further ado, onto photos.


Here's when I first touched it, which apparently is dated June 6th, 2007.






(as you can see, my dad made some "Additions" which included a 4-into-2 exhaust, a police chopper windscreen, and a luggage rack/backrest for when my parents toured. He also wired a custom blinker circuit since he is an Electrical Engineer, and a the time, I assume he had no luck finding a job.)

I moved the bike down into his work shop and started stripping and labeling parts...


...and then busted out a lot of Mothers products.




...and when I left for college, it looked like this (except I put the front wheel back on, instead of the jack)


this is what ~20 year old gasoline looks like:


Anyway, fast forward to today. I got a new battery, new oil filter, new spark plugs, and some fresh oil put in. The carbs are out getting majorly overhauled, too. (I wouldn't touch that job myself if I got paid to, lol... I'm sure the insides were nasty.)

This is the first time I've seen any part of this bike work.




and my brother helping me sand out some rust spots on the exhaust


That's all for now, until the carbs come back!

[Chippy569]

Oh, if anyone has a maroon 1974 gas tank in amazing shape, I'd like to talk to you. As I'm sure you can imagine, this one's rusted to hell and back.

[Philly550K1]

howdy. fun project, there. somebody will say it, might as well be me. i don't think there was a '72 550. looks-wise, it could be a 74 550, but it could also be a 500 with 550 side covers. or a later 550 with an earlier tank and indicators. and sidestand... etc... 

there are apparently very few parts that are different, but you might as well check your vin and engine numbers against resources here...

-jon

[Chippy569]

Hey, thanks for the tip. I've just been going by what my Dad said. Here's the VIN tag, I think.

[Philly550K1]

definitely 550K, highly unlikely that it's anything but a '74. note mfd date top right. save that tank and covers as is, if possible, i.e. clean, don't paint. the insides can be fixed, usually (post more pics of everything...).... if u want a rider, you can find other tanks and covers to beat on...  and the seat, for that matter, depending on what u got there....

-jon

[clarkjh]

Oh, I am soooo......me wanty.  Surely could use a twin sister.  Nice that your dad stored it for 22 years and not have sold it.

James

[Chippy569]

What do you suppose it's worth? I'm not entirely sure. I assume the maroons are rather rare, though.

The gas tank is in very, very rough shape...

Oh, i'm restoring, not modifying, this bike, so the seat and gas tank (and body panels, although one is rather scratched) will stay stock.

[dagersh]

Chippy-

You can probably save that tank.

As long as the tank is not leaking, get yourself a tank sealing kit (avoid Kreem).  You first might want to try milkstone remover with a whole bunch of nuts and bolts inside the tank (you could also use a bicycle chain).  Seal up the petcock openings, and put in the Milkstone Remover and nuts and bolts.  Shake up the mixture for a good LONG while (ie read days...).  This will loosen the rust particles and the milkstone remover will "dissolve" the rust.  Empty, inspect and repeat as necessary.  When you are satisfied, use Marvel Mystery Oil or another like product to coat the inside in order to protect it against further rust.  Once you get your sealing kit, follow the directions and the inside of your tank will be completely protected from further rust.

I think companies like POR 15 make complete kits.

Keep up the great work!

Gersh

[Chippy569]

Hey,

I already did some add-bolts-and-shake-vigorously treatment to the tank, but the problem is the gas turned to varnish, not just rust.

I was reading the electrolysis thread and was impressed by the results, plus I have the tools for that, so i figured I'd give that a go.

How do I seal off the petcock? I assume it needs cleaning as well, so...

[Chippy569]

Well, here's what 20-some years of gas does to a tank...








...so I figured I'd give the electrolysis method a shot...




...and now I wait.

[Chippy569]

I've been working on cleaning that gas tank all day now and it's going slowly but surely. Unfortunately, I hit a snag. On the tank cap, there is a latch. I believe it may be aftermarket, since I believe the stock caps had key slots. This cap did not. Anyway, on the latching mechanism, the one little arm piece that holds the latch down has snapped. I know it's quite a stretch, but if anyone has this piece, I would greatly appreciate it...

This is the cap:


This is the latch mechanism, now broken in two pieces:


and here is a view of the break:





Otherwise, the electrolysis treatment seems to be going well, if very slow. Here is a before:


and here is a current:



I changed out the fluid (it had a lot of what looked like gristle floating in it, as well as some other strange particles, so I felt it would do good to change it out). This has been sitting on about 1 amp for a good 4-5 hours today, as well as a little less amperage last night for 3 hours.

[Laminar]

I believe people have used up to 6 amps with good results. Also, the greater surface area of your electrode, the better your results.

[Chippy569]

Well after my electrolysis experiment decided to eat a little paint outside the gas tank, I gave the project a couple days' rest. Today my brother and I decided to get back to some work so we shined up some front caliper parts and put them back on. I also shined up a mirror, which had gotten rusty.







While installing the caliper I noticed an unusual spot on the floor...


...and discovered that oil is leaking out from the oil pan.


So.... I need to drop the pan (and all of the new oil *sigh*) and then somehow find a new gasket. Any ideas?

[Caaveman82]

It's looking good man, since you are in Minnesota I would check out St. Boni motorsports, their parts guys are great, very knowledgeable. It's a bit out of the way but worth it to not get raped by Motoprimo or Hitching Post, other than that e-bay, e-bay, e-bay. You might check out DennisKirk too, I can't promise they'll have it but it's worth a shot.

[greenjeans]

As for your oil pan....I had the exact same problem last weekend.  I went by O'Reilly's auto parts and grabbed some gasket material.
They have several different kinds to choose from.  I chose some that was rubber/fiber - similar to the original.  Just put the oil pan
on top and traced it out & cut it with an x-acto knife.  You can punch the holes with a hole punch - the kind that you had in grade
school to  pop holes in notebook paper.

Other than that - looking great

[Chippy569]

I ordered the gasket as well as a couple air filter pieces from HDL, for a total of like $10.

I also decided to take on the master cylinder myself. Here's the thread.
http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=53812 -- and I'm stuck on it, kinda, so please help.

[Chippy569]

*sigh* two steps forward and 1 step back. The brake lines themselves are frozen. Not entirely sure how or where, but I used some 20ga wire and could not feed it down through the lines. (they would make it roughly through the connectors and stop at the rubber on all 4 points.)

The master cyl is working great, though.

I need to find some crush washers, any ideas?

Another $80 at HDL to get replacements. *sigh*

[Chippy569]

Well, in a stroke of luck my dad and I managed to free up 1 of the frozen lines, the bottom-most one. That's about $40 saved... now to free up the upper line. This one's tough.

[SohRon]

I need to find some crush washers, any ideas?

Bikebandit.com. Excellent source.

[Beans]

I need to find some crush washers, any ideas?

your local auto parts store carries them. 

[Wizzer]

Nice loooking bike ... Looks like a great project for sure ...

[Chippy569]

SUCCESS! My dad and I managed to free up both brake lines. AWESOME! I canceled my order with HDL, $80 saved! Hopefully my other order with the oil pan gasket and air filter element gets here soon.


I found some copper washers at NAPA that *should* work, but we'll see.


For fun I reassembled the air cleaner just to make sure I remembered how it all went together. I think I've got it right, but I do have 1 question. The little black plastic thing that takes the air from the box and splits it to the 4 carbs has a hole on the top which I assume is for mounting. The air box has 2 holes, one that goes to the front of the bike and one that goes to the back. At the front mounting point, there is a little tab that hangs down where the bolt goes into. Does the black plenum go on the inside (ie towards the rear) or the outside of the little tab?






Also, I would really really really appreciate someone who can ID the gas tank latch mentioned on the 1st page. A stock replacement is at least $40 but I'm willing to bet the one my Dad put on way back when could be had for a lot cheaper, if only I knew what it was.

[Chippy569]

Today I put the front brake line all back together. I followed someone else's tip of filling each line on the way up to help out the bleeding process. So, I put some fluid in the caliper, put some in the hard line, some in the lower rubber line, and some in the upper line before hooking up the master cyl and filling it. I found a medicine syringe with a tip that fits just inside the banjo bolt ends, which made that bit really easy.

Now I'm just waiting for my carbs and for my gaskets from HDL.... *twiddles thumbs*


Oh, I need a gas cap latch solution. Any ideas anyone?

[Chippy569]

Time for a photo update, I think. Here's the cylinder all together and happy:


...And the... this thing...


and the caliper now that I've put the bleeder screw back in and wiped up all the fluid:


What a cool style.


The next step...



and finally, a question. How does the plenum attach to this?


I suspect the upper part of the plenum goes between the air box and the tab in the top of the picture. But what about the lower hole? does something go in there?

[Chippy569]

I've been letting the brakes bleed the old-school way, by letting the bike sit around. Today I sealed everything up to make sure it's still not leaking, pumped the brake, and i saw the pad move! so that's a good sign. I also switched on the electrics and hit the brake and the brake light works! so double bonus today.

I also got a shipment confirmation for my new oil pan gasket and air filter cleaner element thingy (not the paper filter but the part that goes underneath it somehow).


Still just waiting on those carbs.... when they get here and I get it all hooked up the bike should be run-worthy!