Topic: What did you do to your bike today ?

[Terry in Australia]

I bought another engine for my CX500 Custom. There's nothing wrong with my engine, it's only done 40,000 miles and has been well looked after, but "there's no replacement for displacement" so I struck a deal for a CX650 engine (actually 673cc) which will pretty much go straight in.

I know, it's an illness, but I can't help myself. I wonder if I can bore it out to 750cc? A CX750 Custom would be pretty cool........ Now I gotta sell some stuff to pay for it...........

Terry, the 650 makes a big difference(converts a slug into a reasonable ride).  How much did you have to pay for the motor?  I am looking at a spare Silverwing(no title for parts only) and wondering what to offer...Larry

Is the 500 really a slug Larry? I'm waiting for a new electronic ignition to cure the CX500 CDI blues, but I actually like the 500, it's a torquey little engine that'll cleanly rev thru to 10,000 RPM. The 650 has more of everything though, so should be a nice ride.

The 650 engine has had a recent rebuild, comes with lots of spares, and was offered to me for 400 bucks, which I think is quite reasonable. CX650's are pretty "thin on the ground" here, they were only in production for 1 year and the majority were sold in the US, so I was very happy to find this one for the price. All I have to do now is find a pair of 87mm pistons for it, and I'll be a happy boy! Cheers, Terry.

[mrbreeze]

Rode it to the pub. Burp.

Me too bro!!!! .......burpX3

[DJ_AX]

Put the cover on it ..
Looks like at least a week of below freezing weather ahead here.

[CycleRanger]

Got the wiring hooked up.  Spent a few minutes trying to figure out why one of the rear blinkers wasn't working.
I forgot to install a bulb..
Cables all on, except the new clutch cable that's on the way.
Got the muffler back on and she stands on her own two wheels once again!
It won't be long now....

Then I took the K5 out for a run for about an hour.

[IndyFour]

Got the wiring hooked up.  Spent a few minutes trying to figure out why one of the rear blinkers wasn't working.
I forgot to install a bulb..
Cables all on, except the new clutch cable that's on the way.
Got the muffler back on and she stands on her own two wheels once again!
It won't be long now....

Then I took the K5 out for a run for about an hour.

Hey CycleRanger....I have a CJ360T residing in my garage (not mine, belongs to a friend).  He's looking for a stock muffler....do you ever see them come up for sale?  The PO installed a huge harley muffler on his and, while the length is about right, it's way too big and it doesn't sound all that great.  Here's his along with my 550....

[CycleRanger]

Hey CycleRanger....I have a CJ360T residing in my garage (not mine, belongs to a friend).  He's looking for a stock muffler....do you ever see them come up for sale?  The PO installed a huge Harley muffler on his and, while the length is about right, it's way too big and it doesn't sound all that great. 

Yeah, part of the reason I bought this bike was because it still had the original muffler, a bit scratched and dinged and surprisingly rust-free.
It's probably worth half as much as I paid for the bike!

As far as I can tell the mufflers are unobtainium.  In the last four years I haven't seen one on ebay that I'd consider buying at any price.
I have a CJ parts bike that has an aftermarket chrome trumpet pipe welded to the collector, ruining that as well...
(And it looks far worse than your friends pipe!)

They sold a lot more CJ360T and CJ250T's in Europe and Australia, but intact mufflers appear to be rare there too.

In that photo that Harley pipe does look pretty close to the stock pipe, but I'm sure the baffles are different.

[DJ_AX]

... damn car...
rode the 550 ...brrrrrr...

[Dimitri13]

Received another part today.

It's lookin quite hot (pun intended).

[CycleRanger]

Received another part today.

It's lookin quite hot (pun intended).

Mmmm, beefy!

I hit up JetsRus today and ordered a set of genUine Keihin 115 mains for the K5. 
The 120's I put in a few months ago are bit too much.

[Dimitri13]

Received another part today.

It's lookin quite hot (pun intended).

Mmmm, beefy!

I hit up JetsRus today and ordered a set of genUine Keihin 115 mains for the K5. 
The 120's I put in a few months ago are bit too much.

I wish I had the stock 550 cam or even my 650 cam to compare it to.

[70CB750]

Installed All Balls in the head.

[oldbob]

New fork tubes for the 400 arrived from Frank's Maintenance and Engineering (Forking by Frank). Yes, they cost more than those offered by DSS, but they were made here. And they look pretty sweet.

Bob

[Jerry E.]

The last of the parts needed to assemble the bottom half of my motor arrived today. Also, Hondaman informed me he was done with the carb rebuild, and head porting/valve job he did for me. Getting close!

[Dimitri13]

Got to ride today (first time in almost three months). Not my 550 though. My friend's '01 W650. I taught him how to clean and adjust the chain, and to check his damn tire pressure! He's still very new and hasn't really learned all the basic maintenance except oil changes. His chain slack was probably a good 3"+, and his tire pressures were 5.5 and 9.5 !!! His air filters were also all messed up, one of the squares has lost all it's .. filtery stuff, but can't blame that on him. His tires are also pretty work and still the OEM ones (from 12 years ago). His rear shoes will also need changing soon. Glad I got to this when I did lol.

[Terry in Australia]

My poor little CX500 has been running poorly. I bought a new electronic ignition for it, and that improved it, but it's running lean, and one look in the tank was enough to tell me that the whole fuel system was full of rust. Poop.

I pulled the carbs off, stripped 'em and soaked them in white vinegar overnight, while I filled the tank with 30% phosphoric acid/70% water mix. After I dragged myself out of bed and had a leisurely breakfast, I went out to the garage and flushed everything, reassembled the carbs, put the tank in my industrial oven and cooked it for an hour or two @ 80 deg C, to make sure there was no water inside it.

I shoved it all back together, threw some fuel in it, and it fired right up with no leaks. Only problem now is it idles at 1500-2000 RPM and I can't adjust the idle down, so I don't know if I've messed up the linkage, or if I've got a sticky slide. Anyway, no matter, it's running heaps better, so I'll pull the carbs again tomorrow and sort out the high idle problem, and go for a ride. Cheers, Terry.

 

[jas67]

LOVE the W650!   They did a better retro Bonnie than Triumph did.     I missed out on one of these for $2,000 a couple months back.  Still bummed about that.

[Magpie]

Got Ben's heart buttoned up. Cliff

[MoMo]

My poor little CX500 has been running poorly. I bought a new electronic ignition for it, and that improved it, but it's running lean, and one look in the tank was enough to tell me that the whole fuel system was full of rust. Poop.

I pulled the carbs off, stripped 'em and soaked them in white vinegar overnight, while I filled the tank with 30% phosphoric acid/70% water mix. After I dragged myself out of bed and had a leisurely breakfast, I went out to the garage and flushed everything, reassembled the carbs, put the tank in my industrial oven and cooked it for an hour or two @ 80 deg C, to make sure there was no water inside it.

I shoved it all back together, threw some fuel in it, and it fired right up with no leaks. Only problem now is it idles at 1500-2000 RPM and I can't adjust the idle down, so I don't know if I've messed up the linkage, or if I've got a sticky slide. Anyway, no matter, it's running heaps better, so I'll pull the carbs again tomorrow and sort out the high idle problem, and go for a ride. Cheers, Terry.

 

Terry, if the carb sync is correct it has to be the linkage.   In the other thread my term slug refers to my observation that other than low end torque it is one of the slowest  500s I've ever ridden...Larry

[veloracermike]

Gave her a bath, and took her for a quick spin. 

[Terry in Australia]

OH, OK Larry, well I haven't ridden it at maximum warp yet, and I'm waiting for new clutch plates and springs to arrive before I'll find out how slow it is. It seems to fly up to 80 or 90 MPH with no problems, but I know that some 500's of the day were quicker, if not as torquey.

I'm still keen to do the 650 conversion, and I've found a guy in the US, Murray Feldman, who's done heaps of performance mods backed up by Dyno results, and with different carbs, cam, exhaust and head work he guarantees up to 90 BHP at the back wheel, so hopefully I'll be able to turn my "Slug" into a "Sled".............

[MoMo]

OH, OK Larry, well I haven't ridden it at maximum warp yet, and I'm waiting for new clutch plates and springs to arrive before I'll find out how slow it is. It seems to fly up to 80 or 90 MPH with no problems, but I know that some 500's of the day were quicker, if not as torquey.



I'm still keen to do the 650 conversion, and I've found a guy in the US, Murray Feldman, who's done heaps of performance mods backed up by Dyno results, and with different carbs, cam, exhaust and head work he guarantees up to 90 BHP at the back wheel, so hopefully I'll be able to turn my "Slug" into a "Sled".............

They're heavy too(my Silverwing sure is) so put it on a diet.  Sure you want to put that much money into a CX500?...Larry

[Terry in Australia]

OH, OK Larry, well I haven't ridden it at maximum warp yet, and I'm waiting for new clutch plates and springs to arrive before I'll find out how slow it is. It seems to fly up to 80 or 90 MPH with no problems, but I know that some 500's of the day were quicker, if not as torquey.



I'm still keen to do the 650 conversion, and I've found a guy in the US, Murray Feldman, who's done heaps of performance mods backed up by Dyno results, and with different carbs, cam, exhaust and head work he guarantees up to 90 BHP at the back wheel, so hopefully I'll be able to turn my "Slug" into a "Sled".............

They're heavy too(my Silverwing sure is) so put it on a diet.  Sure you want to put that much money into a CX500?...Larry

Yeah, it's a fun little bike though, and I got it for cheap, so I can afford to throw a few bucks at it Larry, before I go past the point of no return, ha ha! Cheers, Terry.    

[CycleRanger]

Pulled out the 120 mains and installed new 115's in my K5.  Took it for a spin and the results were positive. 

[oldbob]

I replaced the 400's fork tubes and seals, and it all went smoothly. With any luck, I'll be able to road-test it tomorrow.

Bob

[madmtnmotors]

FINALLY! Got to do a shakedown/roadtest on the current project bike without getting a hot oil bath on my shins. This one almost beat me. Had the engine out three times in the last six weeks chasing oil leaks. Mission accomplished! Managed to cover 90 trouble-free miles, 20 of it in the rain.


Until today I had only managed about 10 miles per gallon...




of oil...