Topic: Oil cooler for 1975 Honda CB400F

[Skud]

G'day folks, (yeah, another Ozzie )
I just finished restoring one of these great little bikes... (If I can figure out how to post a pic I'll show off a bit )..I installed a Wiseco 466cc big bore kit and it seems to running a bit hotter than I feel ok with......so hence the oil cooler interest..I have just been in touch with the "Perpetual Poster", Terry from Oz, who is on the case. Just out of interest anybody done some temp samples on their 400 ?  I just purchased a meat heat sensor and it worked fine in testing the oil temp in the dipstick hole...so after coming back after a bit of a squirt on a reasonably cool day yesterday the oil tested  about 194 F....OK..not enough to cook the oil or maybe even the meat !!...but on hot days I reckon it  runs a lot hotter than this..anyone got any info as to what is the recommended top limit for the oil temp on a standard one of these bikes  ? I am using Motul Mineral 20-50 oil.

so....I'm would like to keep the whole oil filter setup as smick and minimal as possible, with braided lines etc..or as we say in Oz "as flash as a Dunny rat with a gold tooth"

..what I would really appreciate, is that if those of you who have fitted an oil cooler to a 400F would kindly post some pics showing the pipe routing and the fixings for the cooler...I have the original header setup with the four pipes swept to the right , so the routing of the oil lines to the cooler may be a bit tight I suspect...Terry says he likes to use a cooler off a 900 and will be sending me some pics of this setup....I'd like to keep the cooler as small as possible, but still do the business..any other suggestions re types of cooler options or any other comments would be most welcome..

thanks in anticipation

Skud

[scottly]

..so after coming back after a bit of a squirt on a reasonably cool day yesterday the oil tested  about 194 F....OK..not enough to cook the oil or maybe even the meat !!...but on hot days I reckon it  runs a lot hotter than this..anyone got any info as to what is the recommended top limit for the oil temp on a standard one of these bikes  ? I am using Motul Mineral 20-50 oil.

Just in general, I get nervous when oil temps get north of 240...

so....I'm would like to keep the whole oil filter setup as smick and minimal as possible, with braided lines etc..or as we say in Oz "as flash as a Dunny rat with a gold tooth"

You guys and your lingo always crack me up!!!

And welcome to the forum!!!

[Skud]

OK..thanks Scotty....hmmm..240..that sure as hell would coook the meat...!!

Cheers Skud

[jessezm]

Hey mate,
    Sorry I don't have an answer for you but I'm watching for one in anticipation as well, as I've just bored mine out to 466cc too, and live in Macon, GA, which sometimes feels like living on the equator...  Check our the TTR website and 400fourstore.com--I think they show some pictures of oil cooler set ups for this bike, as well as sell them.

[Skud]

G'day Jesse...enthusiasm is best I reckon....so with the 466ccs do you consider the bike is running hotter than it was when standard?

..thanks for the links..I'll check them out...

and with the 466cc we sure have increased the torque...so I was thinking about a 36 on the back to give it some longer legs in top gear..
..have you any experience with this trick...?

[jessezm]

Well I have still yet to actually ride my bike except for the day I bought it, and even then the front brake was partially seized so I never got a real feel for the power band.  Once I got it home I stripped it down in my driveway and took it inside to rebuild.  6 months later, a new top end, cam, ignition, coils, brakes, etc, and I'm almost ready to take it on its maiden voyage!  So that is all to say that I don't have the answer, but I'd sure like to know! 

[Skud]

....keep them spanners on the go mate !..... and get ready for a hell of a lot of fun....these bikes are a little bloody bottlers...

I bought my Wiseco kit off Kevin at the 400four store and I see he has a natty little oil cooler on his Purple flame
so will be getting the good oil from him on his setup....but the last time I spoke with him he had never had the bike on the tar ??!!

got any idea how to post a pic here ?  thought it may be some encouragement to get yours up and out there..

[jessezm]

Well here's a link to my build thread with lots of pics:  http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=70938.0

I upload my pics to photobucket and it resizes them for me and provides a link that you can just copy and paste directly into the thread.  Really easy.

[Skud]

ok....thanks..

[Skud]

yoooo man..just looked at the pics etc....you really have done the business....the finished product sure will a great looker..

I agree about the pipes...sets this bike apart big time....

..my bike is basically as original except for the rebore and a Barnet clutch setup..the original clutch was slipping with the greater torque....so bikes such as yours are always of considerable interest..

..so now where are the rest of you 400F dudes with some info./pics of your oil cooler setups...

Skud

[Motoguy23]

Well I've been reading and have they are saying about 300 degrees is about as high as you want to go before the oil starts to break down.  But you should heat up your oil hot enough to burn off the water that gets in to the engine from the breather.  If you don't do that it can cause bad things to happen too.  I think in class (just a year or two out of college, yes I'm young) they said that it creates an acid that can cause premature wear of the parts. 

So if you do decide to put on oil cooler on there, which I don't think is necessary unless you did a bunch of engine mods, make sure that it doesn't keep things too cold.

[Skud]

Moto...nothing wrong with being 21....my mind remembers it well..but the body has moved well and truly on..!!

....300F..now that is damned hot....if I was pushing those temps a cooler would be a must I reckon...

...apart from Kevin...no 400F's with a cooler huh ?...well no pictures at least....

I must state a retraction...re Kevins Purple Haze..he informs me it has indeed hit the tar and looking spectular..

Skud..



...

[Skud]

..can't believe that there ain't no dudes out there with a pic or two of an oil cooler fitment to a 400F..

[scottly]

..can't believe that there ain't no dudes out there with a pic or two of an oil cooler fitment to a 400F..

It might be that no one has felt the need to? As has been mentioned, if oil is too cool, moisture builds up. In the old VW days, we always put over-sized coolers on. I began to question this practice when I found large amounts of grey/white sludge inside the oil-fill cap as well as the valve covers. If it had been a water-cooled, rather than air cooled motor, I would have suspected a blown head gasket. Granted, I lived near the coast, and it was cool and somewhat humid...

[Skud]

..Scotty..I take your point...one can be just too cool...but I live in a temperate climate where it never really gets very cold',  but bloody hot in Summer....so maybe I'll keep an eye on it thru Winter and see what she soars to in Summer....thanks