I already posted most of this in the nomination thread. But, some here asked for bike stories. So, this is the fable of my Blue Cb550F.
When I first saw this bike, it quite literally had a 1/16 to an 1/8 inch of dust covering it, tires flat, battery corroded, speckled/splattered with white interior house paint. I wish I had taken a picture of it's forlorn state. But, I didn't think I would get it at the time. It appeared to have been driven into the garage, parked, and then ignored for 12 years while life went on around it. It probably would have sat longer, but the owner wanted to use the garage for a start-up company and it was in the way. I aired up the tires (they held!) and did a compression check and one was way lower than the rest. The paint was wonderful, Bar controls were still a deep black, and no rust inside the tank, original muffler still good. They were asking $300. I said with the poor compression, I could only offer $100, and wound up leaving, as the person doing the selling wasn't the actual owner. Two days later I got the call asking to come and pick up the bike. I brought the truck, got the signed over title and pushed it into the pickup bed. I asked if they wanted know what happened to it after I put some work to try and make it run. They said, "no".
I washed and polished parts that I knew would find a home on another bike, if not this one, lubed the sluggish throttle and clutch cables, cleaned the carbs, put in new gasoline, did a no-cost tune up, and put in a battery from another 550. It started right away, but ran badly at first, some head pipes are too cool. I synced the carbs and it ran better. All the electrical worked. The more it ran, the smoother it got. I did a hot compression test, the low cylinder had gotten quite a bit better. Hey, it's worthy of an oil and filter change! So, I did that, along with rebuilding the front brakes and changing the fork oil, put in a new air filter, spark plugs, caps check good. Front tire does lose air gradually, so I swap the front wheel from another 550 onto the bike. The rear tire has a permanent flat spot, but I've ridden 550's with flat rear tires before.
Off for a ride. Everything tight, feels like a bike with only 8000 miles! Pretty danged fast, too. OK, it gets new tires. The fork seals are leaking, so it gets those new, too, and the front forks need refinnishing. I wish I could remember which clear aerosol I used, as it still looks good without any yellowing. Clean up the fuse box clip terminals as they are running too hot to touch. Clean and treat every electrical connection on the bike.
I put about 50 miles on the bike and do another compression check. They are all the same!
I buy new factory shocks for the rear, do more cleaning and polishing. It becomes my commute bike that I rotate in with others. The seat looks new, but starts to split at the "seams". I get a brand new one from Honda, and put a vintage luggage rack on that I got with another bike. The backrest cushion vinyl was rotten spitting, and falling away. So, I made a new cover for it, including the zippered pocket on the back of it. The rack and backrest hold my Igloo lunch box perfectly during the commute. And, the wife really likes the backrest while riding around as she feels less likely to fall of the back and this relaxes her greatly.
The cold mornings in winter make me seek out the National windshield, which can be installed with no modifications to the bike. It can be stock again in a matter of minutes, and I can wear less layers on the way to work in the morning.
I cannot explain why, but this 550 is the fastest stock one I have ever owned. Not by a whole lot, but it is noticeable when switching among bikes.
I will confess this is not a showroom bike that stands up to pristine close inspection. I use it. And, as long as you don't get closer to it than 10ft it still looks new.
I still think it is a pretty nice example of a bike I couldn't own when it really was new. Now, I notice the clearcoat starting lift away on some of the gold stripe on the right side of the tank. Like I say, it's a 10 ft bike that gets used. I think this forum may be the only "show" it's entered in.
Hope you like looking at it as much I do. But then, I get to ride it!
Cheers,
Poll