I know I'm committing a grave offense, so I will apologize up front. This is a 1980 CB750F DOHC *
GASP*. OK, I'm glad I got that off my chest.
Now, on to business.
My first build was a bit of a practice run, I didn't do quite everything I wanted due to time/money/fear of destroying my bike. This time I'm not holding back: frame up, no-holds-barred. There will be several new challenges with this build which I'll get to later, but first, on to the bike!
What I was really looking for was a blank slate, just an engine and frame, something I wouldn't feel guilty about tearing up. This is what I found:
Not running? Check. Missing parts? Check. Paint-by-numbers flame job? Check. Absolutely perfect!
It was sitting for quite a while; outside, but under a carport
And the main reason I bought this bike: the big, beautiful engine
Admittedly this was a risky buy. I brought my compression tester to the seller's house to check the engine, but the starter wasn't working, it has no kick starter, and to top it all off: no chain! So there was no way to even see if the engine was a solid, melted-together chunk of steel and aluminum inside
. The guy who was selling it, Steve, told me it had been running not long ago when it was owned by a friend of his. This guy had torn it apart to paint it, but before he could put it back together his house got foreclosed on so he had to sell it for some extra cash. Steve bought it because his wife has a bike and he thought it wouldn't take too much to get this one running; he thought he could use it to learn on and then go on rides with her. Well, Steve had some medical problems so he put it off for a while, then he found out that this was a sport-bike and probably not the best thing to learn on. To Craig's list it went, and after talking him down $200, it came home with me. As an interesting addition, he picked up a front end from a swap-meet that appears to be from a '85 CB700 nighthawk. It's pretty cool, and I think I'm going to use it... more on that in future posts.
The first thing I did when I got home was hot-wire the starter to see if the engine turned.... success! It turned over strong and it sounded like it should; so it wasn't seized, check it off the list. Next I drained the oil, luckily it was full, and it didn't look too bad. No gear teeth came out, and the oil was black and had no signs of moisture inclusion. Check two. Now the wife and I are really getting into it, tonight we check the compression and continue the tear-down.
My inspiration for this build is the
Wrenchmonkees CB750 KZ
According to BikeExif.com this type of build starts at around $13,000- I'll be doing this myself, thank-you.
There are a couple of challenges in this build that I am looking forward to:
- Welding up a new rearframe, I'm a good welder, but it's challenging non the less.
- Making and upholstering a custom seat
- Making a clean, hidden, functional and safe custom wiring harness
- Adapting the '85 front end and brakes to fit
- Making my ambitious idea for the paint look professional
- And the really hard one: do it all for less than $2,500. Including the initial cost of the bike
The cost is, of course, going to be the hardest one, but I think I can do it. I will be keeping you posted on the build and at the end I'll let everyone know how much it ended up costing. SO! off the computer and down to the garage!
