Author Topic: Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike  (Read 1664 times)

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steve.m

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Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike
« on: December 21, 2010, 09:57:01 AM »
so the story goes a little something like this.

before i was born, my pops bought a cb350f.  "something" went wrong with it and the bike sat in our barn for years and years.  he had a windjammer on there, with touring style bars, leather tassles...basically exactly the look i HATE on bikes, but that's another discussion.

long story short, the bike's been sitting up for about 30 years, hasn't run, but doesn't have a stuck engine, which is a bonus.  plenty of rust to go around, not sure if it's cancerous but definitely has some surface rust. and would need to be stripped to the frame and blasted.

what i'd like to do is pull the bike out of the barn, strip her down, hock whatever salvageable parts i can on fleabay and rebuild the bike as a cafe style bike.  i realize the thing won't be a performer but i'm looking for something that i could cruise around on moreso than something to tear up a track.  if i want to do that, i'll buy an R6.

basically want to start with some clubman bars and rear sets.  will likely scrap all the original lighting so going for a complete rewire.  just curious who's gone and done this and what the final build cost was.  i'm planning to do as much as i can myself, figure i'll have to sink about 750 into the engine, maybe another 300 on rearsets and the bar and then another 300 on miscellaneous stuff.  does 1350 sound about right for what i'm talking about or am i dreaming in a fantasy land where parts are free and delivered by flying pigs? 

also, if you've done a cafe bike yourself post up a pic or two, i'm looking for motivation/inspiration

steve.m

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Re: Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike
« Reply #1 on: December 21, 2010, 06:24:01 PM »
you know i really should have dug around the forum a little more before throwing this thread out there.  lots of impressive bikes on this forum.  tons of helpful info too.  getting the itch to dig in and see what i can do with this bike.  looking forward to it

Offline BeSeeingYou

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Re: Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike
« Reply #2 on: December 22, 2010, 03:00:30 PM »
Take the bars and tassels and give them to your dad for Christmas. ;D  Often the "something" that happened is clogged up carbs and then the bike wouldn't start/run.  Sounds like a neat project with the family history.

Offline unitedguitar

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Re: Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike
« Reply #3 on: December 23, 2010, 02:44:23 PM »
I think if you do all the work yourself you should be able to keep the cost down. With a smallish budget it comes down to craftsmanship. If you do good work you can make it look like you spent way more than your budget.

If the motor turns over you may not need to rebuild it. That would save a ton of money.

Just make a plan and then decide which parts you want and how much they will cost. I spent a lot more money on shipping than I had to by going back and ordering parts from the same places several times.

I ended up spending about 1500 on my CB750. It still hasn't been painted but that won't cost much at all. Here it is next to a Kawasaki 400 that my buddy and I built.

Ben Whitener

Offline Goofaroo

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Re: Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike
« Reply #4 on: December 23, 2010, 04:27:17 PM »
It sounds like a fun project and the fact that it belonged to your dad is cool. I restored my father-in-law's BMW after he put about 200K on it and then let it sit for about 15 years.

I think you'll be surprised by the performance of your bike. It might just be a fun little track bike if you get it handling good. Speed is a relative thing and going 60mph on the 350 will be a lot more fun and interesting than going 100 on an R6. I learned a long time ago that going fast on a slow bike is more fun than going slow on a fast one. You'd rarely get a chance to really open up an R6 but you'll be able to flog the 350 without going to jail.

As for the cost, the obvious things such as bars,seat,tank,exhaust,etc. are easy to calculate. It's the seals, bearings, cables, shocks, fork springs, tires, tubes, fasteners,carb kits, and the heaping pile of rubber bits that will bite you squarely in the right rear pocket.

Just do a little at a time if you have to and plan your orders to save on shipping. As far as the expensive pieces go, a little research and ingenuity can go a long way. Watch CL and Fleabay for deals. You might even find a project bike on CL that someone has given up on and just wants it gone. I missed a CB450 a few months ago that was already disassembled and he had bought a cafe seat, tank, and numerous other bits and pieces for $500. I didn't look at CL that morning and it had just sold when I called. 

Offline knowsnothing

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Re: Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike
« Reply #5 on: December 23, 2010, 06:13:24 PM »
Just a word of advice.  Try to get the thing running before you start tearing into it and dropping a ton of money.  It may look like something out of a swamp, but if it runs and shifts nicely, its a great place to start. 

I would start by cleaning/rebuilding the carbs first, new gas, new oil, new plugs and probably new battery (probably can do all for a few hundred $ or less).  If you can get it to fire up , I would then spring for some new tires and get the brakes working so you can take it around to see how it runs and shifts.  If the engine has problems, it would be a shame dump a bunch of money into it just to find out it won't shift into 2nd. 

Just my 2c. 

Ps - I am super jealous, i want a 350 so BAD!  Good Luck!!

pps - we all love photos  ;)
1978 CB750k Green - 811 engine
1978 CB750k Blue - for sale
1974 CB375F Faded Black - had to have that 6th gear
1976 CB400F Red - in many pieces
1973 CB350F TBD - in many pieces

steve.m

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Re: Thinking about turning a cb350f into a cafe bike
« Reply #6 on: December 23, 2010, 10:19:23 PM »
well knowing my pops it could have been something as simple as the points being out of tolerance and a bit of misfiring that caused him to quit riding it, that and my mom probably wasn't too keen on him riding with two screaming kids running around the house.

I know i'm looking at the basics to get the thing running again, plugs, wires, new points, carb rebuild for sure.  i think the cables are all still intact and will just need to get lubed.  shouldn't take much to make her run again.  then again, there may be a sheared wrist pin that i don't know about...who knows.  as i mentioned, i figure about 750 to get the engine up and going again and do the cosmetics from there. 

as for making it a performer...well i've had my fun on the track with my cbr1000rr, so i know how much riding a fast bike fast can be, and i've tried having fun on the track with my bandit 600 (not as much fun).  i know with the right suspension i could trip that little 350 through a corner pretty hot, but i'd rather not spend more money on suspension than the bike's even worth.

anywho, i figure i'll have a bunch of questions when i sink my teeth into this thing so i'll be sure to harass you all when the $hit hits the fan  :D  for the time being, i'm going to memorize the clymer manual and get the sucker shipped down here, bike's 1800 miles northeast of me.  just spinning wrenches in my head for now.