Topic: My first project cb350f guidance needed :) Ive got a ROLLER Pic update 2-21-12

[andy8190]

Okay so I bought 2 non running cb350f, one with a stuck motor one without. The frame on one is chopped right past the shock mounts so i have decided to make that a cafe. I am completely new to this rebuild stuff so please all the advice i can get is greatly appreciated. Here is what i started with today.


and here is what i got down to today.



Sorry about the blurry not so great pics, i bought like a 30 dollar camera to use in the garage but it doesnt work great so next time i will take better pics. I pulled the oil pan off and it actually looked really clean under there. Im not sure how to get to the cylinders so im going to read the manual before doing that. This motor is the stuck one so i am going to play around on it first to get familiar with is and if i screw something up its not the better working one.

here are some other pics as well.






The oil filter bolt was stuck realllllllllllll good, i whacked on it forever with a cold chisel, i cut it with a cut off wheel and finally got the thing spinning and got it off

I will be needing a lot of help with this guys so please comment about anything on your mind.

[RickB]

Andy,

There's some great 350F and 400F (essentially the same bike parts wise) threads on here that have helped me with my 400F. I hear you on the oil filter bolt, I had the same problem.

Wingman is doing great things with his 350F: http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=67528.0

My thread here: http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=51957.0

Good luck,

Rick.

[ohiolarsen]

Great to see another 350F thread!  One of these days I'll have to take some pictures of my 350F project (I'm bad about documenting, thanks to you guys who take the trouble!).  Since you're doing an engine rebuild, check out Jensen's 400F engine rebuild - he did a great job documenting it:

http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=65233.0

Chris

[andy8190]

okay so today im going to take the forks and tires off so i can spray the frame down and get it ready to sandblast. Also going to make up a mixture of 50/50 of kerosene and ATF to put down the cylinders to try and free the motor up, i hear this is a good mixture. If this doesnt work anyone else got a good recommendation? I hear seafoam and pb blaster?

[andy8190]

okay so today i tried to tackle unsticking the stuck motor that i have, i failed miserably. I tried the gear puller method and didnt do much except chip a fin. how big of a deal is this? is it mainly cosmetic or is it a big deal? My plan now is to remove the engine that is free from the other bike and clean it up and start getting it ready to put in the frame after i get it welded and painted just like i want.

[andy8190]

i put a crap load more pb blaster in the cylinders tonight. Since this is the engine that im not using for the cafe it isnt that big of a deal right now but i wanted to use it to get familiar with a motor. I will be taking the engine out of the other bike sometime after tomorrow.

[andy8190]

okay so things i have done recently. Cut the frame to clean things up. I am going to move the bars a little like squirley is doing to his build. I also tried my first attempt at fiberglassing today and it was def a learning process. Do not mix the whole can at once, it will harden way too fast hahaha. Oh well live and learn. You can see the mold i shaved down and how i will want my seat to look. I am going to make a female mold out of fiberglass and then plug that for my actual seat pan.







thats where i got to when the resin hardened and couldnt use any more. I will buy some more tomorrow and work on it again monday prolly

[ohiolarsen]

Cool, Andy!  Digging the seat!

I've heard that Diet Coke can help un-stick rings when taking a motor apart.  Never tried it myself, though.

Chris

[andy8190]

you mean poor the diet coke down in it? i guess that could work with the phosphate in the diet coke. i used diet coke to clean my golf clubs

[ohiolarsen]

Yeah, that's what some builders of old Ford Y Block engines would do to get badly stuck pistons out of bores.  I never had one stuck so badly that I needed it.

[andy8190]

i will give that a shot. thanks.

[andy8190]

hey guys do you think it would be best if i used fleece to make my female plug for my mold of my seat, and then lay a layer of fiberglass over that?

[ohiolarsen]

What, like an old fleece jacket?  So your technique is this - you clean and prep your plug, apply some mold release agent (like wax and/or PVA), apply some polyester resin, lay on some fiberglass, and then back that with the fleece/resin to shore up the mold?  Seems like it should work.

I really dig the shape of the seat - can't wait to see it done!

[andy8190]

not an old fleece jacket but fleece u buy from a fabric store, but after reading some on the fiberglass forums last night i think ive decided to use ponte instead. my plan inow is to use the ponte on top of my mold here and let that set up. once it has set up lay some layers of fiberglass on the inside. yeah i like the shape a lot i am just a little worried about the length. when i get bars on the frame i can check it out and if it needs extending i can slice the flat part and put an extension in there and not have to make a new mold.

[ARANUC]

if you are still trying to free the motor i would try Mystery Oil. my bike sat for 18 years i filled the crank and pistons with Mystery oil let it sit for a week drained it and she kicked right over

[andy8190]

okay got the top layer of the mold layed. Also I put some bondo on to make it a little more rigid so i could lay the fiberglass down in the inside and keep the form i want. Letting the first layer on the hump on the inside dry right now and will lay some more in a min. Here are a couple new pics

[traveler]

subscribed.

[andy8190]

okay did a little more layering underneath and some cutting around the base. This is where i stand right now. Dont know if i will have time to work on it before i go out of town on thursday, i will be gone till around the 28th if i do go. Gotta do a lot of sanding and prolly some more filler here and there. but its coming along.

[twincityrider]

Totally intrigued.  I'm working on a 350f cafe right now too.  Almost done.  http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=49060.0.  I'll follow your thread and help if you have any questions.  Have fun!

[andy8190]

oh i will def be asking questions. when i get back if i do go out of town i wanna start cleaning the pistons and valves and things and thats totally new to me so there will be questions all around so be ready

[andy8190]

okay so it has been a while since i posted, have been real busy with work but managed to do some work here and there. I made new friends with a guy who has a welder so i have been trying my hand at welding. here is the project as it stands right now.




what do you guys think.

[andy8190]

okay guys i got the engine mounted on an engine stand tonight. took the head off and pistons off. I want to reuse the head studs but some of them are loose, how do you tighten them back down. I have searched and keep reading about this double nut method but not quite sure how to do it because when i try to use two nuts they both just spin. Is there supposed to be a washer in between them to keep them from spinning? Also, i keep reading that you should replace them with HD head studs but I am not sure where to buy any hd studs for the 350f, i saw the 550 and 750 but not the 350. Anyone have a link on where to get them and i might consider getting them. Last question for this post, i want to clean out the cases as much as possible without splitting them, any advice on this because i really really dont want to split the cases.
Thanks in advance and i will post some pics tomorrow.

[HondanutRider]

I expect the "two nut" method would refer to mounting two nuts together on the free thread end of the stud.  They would be locked together by turning the lower one counter-clockwise while the upper one is turned clockwise onto it.  You have to use two wrenches to do this.  The result is to jam the two nuts together and lock them on the stud.  Then, using the top nut and a wrench you tighten the stud - presuming the lower nut locks the upper in place so that they both don't turn on their thread.  At least you should be able to get enough torque to tighten the stud in its base, before the jammed nuts start turning.

[andy8190]

thanks for the reply. I am considering flushing the engine out with an engine washer i got from hf using seafoam as the fluid that it shoots in, what does this sound like to you guys?

[andy8190]

Okay i know it has been forever but i figured i would update progress. I have finally got back in the swing of things and finished the seat pretty much. All i need left is sanding the thing. I will paint it at a later date. So for the lights in back I am going all LED. I cut out the holes for the lights and used the original cases for the lenses. I cut the blinkers and tail light into circles and did some cutting around the edge so the lens would fit more flush with the seat. here are pics. Saturday and sunday I will be making the seat cushion and will post how it attaches when i finish.