Topic: '72 CB500/4 : Project WTF was I thinking!? ...Time for some updates!

[Retro Rocket]

The wheels look awesome but i'm not a fan of 15 tooth front sprockets, puts a lot of strain on the chain....Just saying...

 Oops! Fixed that...it should have been 17T.

Thats better...

[Scott S]

 Oh, no! My front end exploded!



 Not really. We're changing out some busted up fork gaitors and putting in fresh fork oil. I installed new steering stem bearings back when I put the bike back on the road.
 We used 80cc of 5wt and 80cc of 10wt, for a total of 160cc of, essentially, 7wt fork oil.



 I also installed new EBC pads on the front.

[Scott S]

 I also started disassembly of the gauges, etc. I have a plan for a speedo and a tach with the proper ratio for the 650 cam. I also need to install the 650 clutch cable and choke cable.




 It was about this time that I got hit with a 24 hour bug....aches, sore throat, etc. It's absolutely gorgeous here this weekend, too. I should be riding, working in the garage, attending St. Patty's Day festivals. Instead, I'm trying to feel better....ugh.

[Scott S]

 Hmm...this might be a problem....



 The Hagons have been drilled out and fitted with a blot/lockwasher. The studs that I had to replace on the sprocket holder are a touch longer. I believe it would clear if the shocks mounted as stock.
 I'll have to figure out something here, for sure.

[Scott S]

 I'm going to try running the 550 clutch cable. It's about 6 inches shorter than the 650 cable and should clean up the bars quite a bit. The free length is very close....maybe an 1/8" difference.

[Scott S]

 Got the wheels back on. That's about all the energy I have for today....that 24 hr. bug I picked up last Saturday is just now leaving....ugh....

[Retro Rocket]

Those lesters look great Scott...

[Gregorymoto]

Good work man.

[Stev-o]

Looks fantastic

[RAFster122s]

Looks great!

Could you put the bolt on so that the lock washer and nut are to the outside and change the nut to a lock nut? Might have more clearance that way.
Are the spacers on the axle correctly to place it in the swing arm at the correct position?
Just wondering if you have any wiggle room there...

Lesters really set the bike apart!

[Scott S]

Looks great!

Could you put the bolt on so that the lock washer and nut are to the outside and change the nut to a lock nut? Might have more clearance that way.
Are the spacers on the axle correctly to place it in the swing arm at the correct position?
Just wondering if you have any wiggle room there...

Lesters really set the bike apart!

 That's one of the things I plan on trying. The wheel is just sitting there right now...no chain, not centered, etc. It's quite possible that once the chain is installed and adjusted they won't intefere at all, but I don't want to take any chances.

[Scott S]

 Got the exhaust installed today. This is another NOS Jardine exhaust for the CB650.



 Dad made up a small bracket for the hanger...



 Looks pretty good. I hope it sounds as good as the Jardine on my 550!



 I didn't realize how low it seemed until I saw this pic. Maybe it's meant to follow the lines of the CB650 frame? I'll measure my other exhausts and see if it hangs that much lower.
  The collector barely touches the centerstand when the bike is up; maybe the thickness of a sheet of paper. When the centerstand is up, it all clears fine.

[Scott S]

 K&N filters on the carbs.

[Scott S]

 Trimmed up a stock gauge bracket...



 ...to fit the Danmoto gauge.



 That really cleans up the dash and solves the problem of the CB650 tach drive compatibility.

[Scott S]

 Did some quick measuring, and while it's definitely lower than the other Jardine, it's no lower than the Carpy/Yoshi pipe on the STF bike. It's actually about 1/2" higher than the Yoshi style pipes lowest point, and I haven't managed to drage that pipe, yet!

[bwaller]

It looks like you're getting close Scott.

[Scott S]

 Really close. If I can get a couple of custom ignition parts together, I plan on doing some wiring next weekend.
 The seat pan is at the painter as we speak. I still need to find a fuel T to go from two petcock outlets to one inlet.
 There's a small but real chance that I'll get to hear it run next weekend, but I'm shooting for the weekend after that, just to be sure I wrap up all the loose ends.

[Stev-o]

Yeah, the pipe looks great but low, could drag on speed bumps? (my Kerker did)

Like the new gauge. is there a better spot for the choke?

[Scott S]

 Got the Danmoto gauge 90% done. I can't test the tach until the engine is running, and we have to fab up a bracket or two for the Hall sensor and magnet.

 Turn signals, oil light, neutral light, high beam, background lighting, etc. are all working now.

 The pic is a little blurry because I had to turn off the flash.

[Bankerdanny]

Probably want to change it to MPH too or you're going to be wearing a semi on the highway.

[Scott S]

 Of course. All that will be set once the sensor is mounted and engine is running.

[Scott S]

 She runs!

 Sorry for the shaky videos....best I could do with my camera.
 After adjusting the throttle cable and dealing with some leaky carbs, she fired right up. The custom Pamco ignition uses the stock CB650 "points" plate, and we had to file the adjusting slots to get full advance, but other than an oil leak on ONE valve cover bolt, she's good to go!

 I was a little concerned about some valve train noise, but as soon as we got the idle and timing right and a little heat in the engine, it sounds much better. It would probably all disappear once the tank is mounted.

 Excuse the temporary wiring and hokey gas supply. Our goal for today was just to get the ignition sorted and hear it run. I'll neaten everything up before I'm done.

CB650 start up

P4070079

 We also determined that some of the snapping you may hear in the videos was from the float bowls running dry. Like I said, my fuel supply was a little iffy and the carbs leaked, so I'd fill the bowls, crank it, and turn off the fuel.
 I'm sure there's some carb tuning to be done, but what you might be hearing in the video didn't happened when the bowls were full.

[Scott S]

 The only oil leak was from this valve cover bolt, and it was a pretty good one. I thought I had all the O-rings and seals on the valve cover....
 I took an O-ring from my stash and placed it under the bolt head. That stopped the leak completely, but I'm not thrilled about using that as a fix.
 One thing's for sure: I'm definitely getting oil to the top end!

[Scott S]

 I have to give a shout out to Pamco Pete. If you guys and gals knew what a great guy he is (and a friggin' electrical genius), you'd all be happy to call him a friend like I do.

 Every points bike I have now has a Pamco in it. They all start easy and run great. Pete's customer support is the best in the industry, too.
 If he hadn't made this for me, I would have had to dealt with several other ignition issues to get the CB650 running with the CB500 harness. This makes it plug and play.

 He mounted the Pamco circuit boards on the 650 plate. Since he used some existing tapped holes, the timing was slightly retarded. We had to file the points plate a little to get it to full advance.




 Again, it's just temporarily installed in these pics. We wanted to make sure it worked properly. I'll route the wires permanently later on.

[Drewery]

I'm just glad you took the monkey hangers off the thing at the start of this thread.
(you don't still have them do you?)