Topic: '69 350 Scrambler in the works...

[seaweb11]

I paid the high dollar for the Stock Honda Filter from the dealer.

 No regrets, it was one of the eureka moments

[MickeyX]

Yeah, I'd rather not put used stuff on it. I already have used stuff on it.   I think anything has got to be better than a piece of crappy foam tied in there. Until I saw the filters on ebay, I thought that somehow Honda made them like that. It seemed unlike them.

I dig the color too but it's cracked all over so we're gonna wet sand it and see what was underneath. Well, that is if the tank can be salvaged. I'm still not sure on that one. I have a feeling if we clean it out, we'll find out that it was the crap keeping it from leaking.  

I have to wait on some stuff for lack of funds but in the meantime, I can go ahead and at least clean the heck out of it. Sorting out the wiring is free too (until I find a problem) so that will be on the top of the list. The wiring needs some love. I'm wondering if it would be better to take all those tiny push together couplings that are everywhere and solder then heat shrink them? Or if I should solder in better couplings? Wiring I'm pretty decent at and have no problem redoing. I thought about just making a new harness myself if this one is screwed.

[mrblasty]

One thing I remember about the honda twins is they like a strong battery and clean carbs  Paul has already spoken on that.  Cool ass bike!  are you gonna jump it?

[Laminar]

The wiring needs some love. I'm wondering if it would be better to take all those tiny push together couplings that are everywhere and solder then heat shrink them? Or if I should solder in better couplings? Wiring I'm pretty decent at and have no problem redoing. I thought about just making a new harness myself if this one is screwed.

I wouldn't solder those connections, as if you ever have to pull a component off or troubleshoot, it would be a PITA to undo. What you could do is map out your electrical system and order a few connectors from Oregon Motorcycle Parts. They're good stuff, and this way all of your wiring would be organized and the connections would be solid. As an added bonus, removing a component or two would be as easy and pulling a plug or two, and reconnecting would be just as easy. Contrast this with digging through a bundle of individual wires with individual connectors and you can see the time savings. The only tough part would be the push connectors with multiple ins/outs.

[MickeyX]

Yeah, I thought about contacting Tony and seeing if he can give me some advice or maybe look at it himself. We've bought our R/R for the cb650 off of him and it's really good quality. He was willing to ride it over to us if needed and help us sort it out. That's good business.

Can I upgrade this to a newer technology? I don't feel the NEED to keep it all stock, I'd like to improve on some things if I can. Like electronic ignition...

[paulages]

Like electronic ignition...

good luck... they're hard to find as dyna doesn't make one any more. i believe you can get a boyer brandsen for these, but i don't know a source.

[paulages]

i take that back... boretech has some here:

http://www.bore-tech.com/Vintage%20Motorcycle%20Ignitions.html

very pricey.

[TomC]

Hi MickeyX
     HondaMans ignition would work just fine. I have had one side of one running my Super 90 on 6 volts with a capacitor instead of a battery. I also have a home made voltage regulator on my Super 90.
     TomC in Ohio

Like electronic ignition...

good luck... they're hard to find as dyna doesn't make one any more. i believe you can get a boyer brandsen for these, but i don't know a source.

[MickeyX]

Oh holy cow, I can't believe I didn't think of HondaMan. I gotta PM him. Thanks for the reminder!! 

[paulages]

Oh holy cow, I can't believe I didn't think of HondaMan. I gotta PM him. Thanks for the reminder!! 

just a heads up: his transistor won't solve the slipping points problem... good affordable solution to pitting points though.

[chickenman_26]

Dynatek never did sell a Dyna S or Dyna III for the twins. An outfit named Charlie's Place in San Francisco is getting ready to market a system using Dyna S components for all 250/305/350 twins. Not sure whether he's doing the 360s or not. Dyna is helping him with this project. Prices should be well under Boretech. If you want to get on his contact list, give Charlie a call. (415) 255-0316.

Stu

[MickeyX]

Thanks for the advice.

I'll be picking up some molasses today to start on the tank cleaning this weekend. What mixture to water do I use? Is it 4 parts water to 1 part molasses or the other way around?

[MickeyX]

Surprise, surprise... I'm finding some "interesting fixes" in the wiring harness. Some people really should back away from the electrical tape... I still haven't figured out why he ran that red wire back from the headlight bucket to the rear brake. That is my main thing to do tomorrow.

I'm going to have to rewire the ignition for sure. I'm checking out the rest tomorrow if I have time. I will at the very least replace the connectors throughout the harness. They are corroded and falling apart. I'll test continuity too while I'm there. I can get replacement connectors at NAPA or from the oregon guy, Tony. I'm gonna solder the connectors and dielectric grease the hell out of that thing.

Well at least the headlight and brakelight come on anyway... 

[MickeyX]

Hey, if someone out there with a scrambler can pop up the seat real quick and take a pic of the wiring to the tail light and turn signals, I'd really appreciate it. 

I've read that people pour Coke on their wiring to clean off the green stuff. Will plain soda water work or is there some other ingredient in the Coke that does the cleaning? I'd hate to waste a good Coke. 

Off to see if I can straighten out this wiring and solder some new connections in.

[paulages]

i can get a picture later, but is there something in particular you're stuck with?

[MickeyX]

Well, I have the one red coming from the headlight bucket to the brake. I'm assuming that is to replace the brown? Then 2 other wires going into the brake light as well. Then just a light blue and an orange sitting off to the sides. I'm thinking they go to the turn signals. Should there be additional wiring going to them or is it just the one? I'm seeing something different on the diagrams from 2 different sites on the web as compared to my manual.

I just ordered an original tank in blue and white and side covers on ebay. The guy is local to us apparently so I'm trying to see if he will give me back the shipping and let me just come over and get them. Good price. Tank, of course, needs cleaned up and has a dent.  

[paulages]

Well, I have the one red coming from the headlight bucket to the brake. I'm assuming that is to replace the brown? Then 2 other wires going into the brake light as well. Then just a light blue and an orange sitting off to the sides. I'm thinking they go to the turn signals. Should there be additional wiring going to them or is it just the one? I'm seeing something different on the diagrams from 2 different sites on the web as compared to my manual.

I just ordered an original tank in blue and white and side covers on ebay. The guy is local to us apparently so I'm trying to see if he will give me back the shipping and let me just come over and get them. Good price. Tank, of course, needs cleaned up and has a dent.  

too bad... i have a blue/white one sitting on a shelf i'd have sold for cheap. anyway, yes the blue and orange wires are for turn signals. some models might have rear running lights, which would be extra brown wires. otherwise, it should just be green for ground, brown for tail, and green/yellow for the brake light. if the brown doesn't light up with the headlight, check in the headlight bucket that all of browns are connected.

[MickeyX]

The brown is the one he had the red running to. I pulled the red one off and checked the brown for continuity. All's good there. I wasn't getting continuity on the orange or blue so I checked the bucket. Sure enough, they pulled all the connections in there from when they took off the turn signals. I plugged them in and got continuity then.

I would like to redo most if not all of the connections on the wiring. I have to redo some ignition wires (the red and black had the coating off, inside the little rubber cover, opposite side of where the key goes in. the brown looks like crap too). I can re-solder new wires in, no big deal there. They look like cold solder joints anyway. Most of my connections are shot, not just corroded. I can get some of the bullet connectors, male/female at NAPA or anywhere. No one seems to carry anything that will do a quick disconnect on more than 2 wires though. Many of these are 2 into 1.

[paulages]

The brown is the one he had the red running to. I pulled the red one off and checked the brown for continuity. All's good there. I wasn't getting continuity on the orange or blue so I checked the bucket. Sure enough, they pulled all the connections in there from when they took off the turn signals. I plugged them in and got continuity then.

I would like to redo most if not all of the connections on the wiring. I have to redo some ignition wires (the red and black had the coating off, inside the little rubber cover, opposite side of where the key goes in. the brown looks like crap too). I can re-solder new wires in, no big deal there. They look like cold solder joints anyway. Most of my connections are shot, not just corroded. I can get some of the bullet connectors, male/female at NAPA or anywhere. No one seems to carry anything that will do a quick disconnect on more than 2 wires though. Many of these are 2 into 1.

you're right: no one in the city carries these type of connections. you can buy single bullet connectors like you said, but multiple junctions or multi-pin connectors are hard to find. there's an electronics supply at 7th and couch that has some interesting things, but nothing automotive specific. easy to order online though.

[MickeyX]

I've been online looking a lot. Maybe I'm not putting in the right search? From a glance, it looks like a 2-1 'Y'. In reality, it is a 2-2 but only 1 is used on the one side. It's a metal piece with 2 holes for male bullet connectors to fit. I don't mind reusing some of it if I need to. I can cut off the plastic and de-crude the internal part of the connector and use a heat shrink of some sort over the whole thing. I did pick up some single bullet types today for the signals, etc. Looking at the wiring, it seems to be 14ga. Would it really matter if I use 12ga on some stuff? It would allow it to handle more heat, right? Just wondering is all.

I see the orange and light blue go to the rear signals. I assume they should have a ground coming off too? The fronts are the same way I assume? I don't know. It's all a jumble in that bucket. Is there some way to cut that mess down a bit? There are only 3 wires that go to the actual headlight, for petes sake. Do people hide them somewhere, like under the tank, or just jam 'em all back in?

[seaweb11]

I ended up buying 3 used harnesses from Ebay for my resto.
You should be able to get them on the cheep used and then just make one good one with the best bits

[paulages]

I see the orange and light blue go to the rear signals. I assume they should have a ground coming off too? The fronts are the same way I assume? I don't know. It's all a jumble in that bucket. Is there some way to cut that mess down a bit? There are only 3 wires that go to the actual headlight, for petes sake. Do people hide them somewhere, like under the tank, or just jam 'em all back in?

believe it or not, it ends up being more of a hassle to have them under the tank. just cram 'em back in, making sure that there are no open connections to cause problems. and yes, there should be ground wires from the turn signals to the harness, at a 3-way female junction kinda like you were describing before. do you have turn signals? if you want stock items i almost definitely have some. if you buy aftermarket, pay attention to whether or not they are 3 wire or 2. the third wire in those is for running lights, which i don't believe your bike would have had. if you want them, you simply tie them into the brown wire.

[MickeyX]

Seeweb, you pulled them apart and rebuilt with the best wires? I know I'd have a mess that would never be the same.  

The wires for the most part are fine. I do have the ones from the ignition that need some love, definitely. I'm not sure why they were bare like that. They wrapped black tape between them but the solder joints are still crap. I may as well fix it correctly.

As for the connection at the ignition, I might just replace that 4-4 plug with a new one that is more weather resistant. Those I can find anywhere too.

Seeweb... in the bucket, I have connectors for the light blue and orange for the signals. Can I just plug the blues to blues and oranges to oranges and that's it? It was all apart when I got in there. I had no continuity to the back signals if I didn't plug them together.
There is a black and a green, barely long enough to get into the bucket. I need to know what they plug to. I will trace them out tomorrow to have a better clue. In the end, I should have a little more room in there from putting the sleaker connectors in.

Points... they are only on the left side of the bike and I need a left/right and condenser for a fresh tune up? I'd like to start fresh on this stuff cuz they look shot. But what do I know?... this is completely different. The wire that goes in there is pretty frazzled too. It looks like a bundled 2 wire set. I'm thinking I can just replace the wiring and run a heat shrink the length of the wire? Would that be good enough for the hot engine being so close? Maybe there is something better I can wrap it in? It looks like the same cover on the right, but the tach is going in there. I haven't opened that one up yet.

I do need all new cables. The gray shielding on these gave up the ghost long ago and I can see a tiny slinky inside.  

So, we checked the floats and no leaks. The one side, from the left carb is beat to #$%* though and won't clean up. Will that make a diff on how high one set floats compared to the other? The right side looks new.

Paul... no signals at all. Someone took them off at some point. If you have a decent set you can part with, just let me know. Front and back but whatever you got is ok. We can pick 'em up sometime on a weekend. (we both work evenings) Any other parts?   Like a front fender? Mirrors? Oh, I am missing the horizontal pieces on the side of the rear fender. Looks like braces of some sort?

The chrome on the bucket is bubbled up too. I think I'd like to take off the chrome and paint it anyway. It still has the little high beam indicator piece, but alas, no little bulb inside where it hooks up. The little rubber piece that insulates it is shot too. I can come up with something though. Maybe a piece of rubber hose that will fit snug and a very small clamp.

[paulages]

all of the wiring is "color by number"...you don't need to be rembrant here. plug all the greens together, light blues, etc. the turn signals are powered through the relay- the black wire is 12V switched, and the grey one goes to the bucket and then to the left hand switch housing, where it powers the left or right signals, depending on which way you move the switch. from the switch the light blue and orange wires go to the front turn signals, and at the junctions also back to the rears. the brown wires- running lights and taillight, are powered by the headlight switch. the brake switches are powered by black wires, and when they are switched send power to the brake light via the gr/y wire. headlight is also powered in a similar manner, with the white and blue wires powering the high/low beams. that's about it, really. honda made the wiring systems really simple... it's just a little intimidating when you open up the HL bucket and see the rat's nest of wires.

i'll look for the lights tomorrow. probably have front and back, as people commonly remove them for smaller aftermarket units.

the tuneup kits usually come with points and condensers. throttle cables are hard to find, as motion pro doesn't make the 2-1 cables. if you need help making new ones, using the 2-1 housing let me know and we can make new ones easily.

[MickeyX]

Hmm, interesting. How hard would it be to make them? I'm not real fond of Motion Pro. We got some for Kit's bike and they definitely weren't OEM quality. They were missing a much needed nut (because of the ferule, we couldn't add one) and were slightly the wrong length which created a problem with bunching up at the carb and lots of runability problems. We chucked those brand new cables after many tries, put the old ones back on in the meantime and ordered the Honda ones. I can actually still order this one thru Honda for around $25. (one of the few parts still avail) We'll see when we can make some. I have a lot on my plate these days. Saturdays and Sundays are easier for me to get together since I work wonky hours compared to most people. What materials do we need?

Thanks for the easily digestible version of the wiring. What I was seeing makes a lot more sense now. Any ideas on a suitable covering for the wiring to the points? I think these wore thru rather than melted. If I leave it to Kit, I'll end up with leather or squirrel tail or something.