Topic: Assembling my '74 CB550 - Putting it all back together

[Ravie]

Wow Ron! Just wow.

I am somewhat of an expert on Corvairs. I bought a 64 2 months ago and have been working on and daily driving it. About to replace all of the wheel cylinders and hoses after one of the fronts locked up in a quick stop to avoid rear ending an idiot. Got the fronts rebuilt with kits bit will be replacing them anyway.

You and I are a lot alike. The band I play guitar in has been in the studio for the past month working on our first full length album. Between the Corvair, the bike, work, my kids, and all the other stuff in daily life I know how busy it can be. We soldier on anyway!

A pic of Tabbyvair.



All the best to you, Ron.

Sent from my LGLS740 using Tapatalk

[RAFster122s]

Ron, so sorry to hear of your Mom's passing. My condolences.

Unleashing the anger would be cathartic but not productive normally...
Something where you can unwind and release the pent up emotions is helpful.  I used to play 3rd person computer games like Unreal tournament,  Descent, and others to release stress and it helped a bit. Stuffing it down only builds the pressure until it comes out in unhealthy ways or sideways...

My Mom has had a rough time of it since a knee replacement in March, a fall in late April that destroyed beyond repair the shoulder rotator cuff of her right arm and she herniated a disc in her lumbar to tailbone and it is possible that more is going on.  Local doctors/surgeons in the region indicated it was beyond their expertise. She checked into Vanderbilt Medical center this morning to be evaluated and surgery for fixing the problem.  She had been confined to her lift chair recliner day & night as she couldn't sleep comfortably in the bed for about 6 weeks or more.  Any walking setting off muscle spasms with intense pain bringing her to tears. She's got a high pain tolerance and it was intense and would take a long time to calm down.
.

[SohRon]

Thanks, Cal; I appreciate it. I've certainly been considering the acetone treatment, but after my first attempt I'm not sure I can trust myself to do the job correctly. I found a shop on line that will remove the old liner and put in a new one, but they're asking $500 for the work and won't guarantee the paint job, so I'm still debating just what to do. Simply don't know who to trust if I can't trust myself! I'll get it sorted, eventually.

Thanks again for the kind words.

[calj737]

I would happily remove and reinstall the liners for you, free of charge and my compliments for your thread and the tank you shot me. But, I can only guarantee the utmost care will be taken, but no way can I absolutely guarantee a damage free paint job.

- I would wrap the tank in Saran Wrap, several layers, tape the filler neck, wrap it, and then cover the whole tank again with Blue painters tape. Essentially a hermetic sealing with cling wrap. That's the only way I've had any success getting them out when dealing with stock paint. Especially a newly painted tank.

I don't prefer the Dragon Blood, but understand why you chose it for coverage verification.  Let me know, I'm available at your convenience.

[SohRon]

Well, that's quite the offer, Cal. Seems like a lot of work for free, but I'll certainly consider it. Thanks.



RAF, sorry to hear abt your mother - hope you can find some comfort for her. Treat her like a lady and tell her you love her as often as possible. Wish I had done more of that with my mom. They don't live forever, even though it seems that way sometimes.


Ravie, thanks, as well, for your response. Like the look of your car! I don't know if you oicked up on it, but my 'Vair is a '62 in '63 trim, and it's been registered as a '64. Additionally, it has other, strange parts, like the Pinto hubcaps, for instance. Should be an experience getting her back into trim. I like to call it my "FrankenVair"

Thanks to everyone for your support. Good to have in times like this.

[Stev-o]

Good to get an "non-update" from you Ron, sorry to hear about your Mom. [I can relate, lost mine 2 years ago].

Disappointed to hear how the shop work turned out, I'm sure you are really frustrated.

[RAFster122s]

Ron, hang in there and don't let jerks like the once at the shop you dealt with continue unchecked.  There's Yelp reviews or other online avenues as well as filing a claim against them with the better business bureau.  Don't accept the shoddy work laying down.  Most don't know how to exact their pound of flesh from the poor service. 

It sounds like the tank needs resprayed so, just plan on doing it again and making it right again.
Put the tank in a large container to capture the acetone, in case your stopper for the petcock opening leaks. Since it is a 74 yiu can fabricate a blanking plate to do the soaking with a neoprene or other rubber gasket you make for the plate. Then fill with acetone. If you explain the situation to the paint supply shop you can sometimesget a break on price.  Otherwise they think you're cooking drugs. They can cut their price...take your tank along.



Oddly enough, Mom's been consulted by the primary surgeon and they're going to need a pair of surgeons and they both won't be available until the 23rd of July, so they are headed home to see how far they can make it today.  Mom had two Percocet to help manage the pain or muscle spasms that trigger the sciatic nerve and cluster of nerves the herniated disc is pressing on. It's a crazy thing. My sisters accompanied her for the trip,  my brother and I were going down when they figured out the surgery date which we thought would be this week.

[Gman]

Ron,
Sorry to hear about your mom - my condolences.

And, I can't believe the travails of dealing with those ham-fisted half-wits, who managed to mangle your bike.  Pretty sure ALL tank sealers require you to remove the old liner - here's a short excerpt from the Dragon's Blood Sealer directions directly from the Caswell site:

Application Instructions
All traces of oil and gasoline should first be removed by pouring about 1 pint of acetone or lacquer thinner into the tank, and rotating the tank several times to thoroughly sluice the sides with solvent. Dispose of the contaminated solution.
When recoating your gas tank from failed Kreem or POR-15 tank sealers, remove the old, failed coating using a paint stripper containing Methylene Chloride.

If the shop didn't follow the application directions, then any and all repairs (not to be done there) should be their financial responsibility.  Based on the cost of relining and repainting, I would think it's definitely worth pursuing.
Regardless, take a breather - you deserve one.  And, consider taking Cal up on his offer - if it comes out, then you have one issue dealt with.  It's very generous of him - he obviously appreciates what you have done for everybody here with your time and dedication to documenting your build for posterity.
Finally, if there's anything I can do, short of wringing some necks that need wrung, let me know.

Peace,
G

[MickB]

SR sad to hear of your loss and the disappointment with so called professionals.

I can offer no solution, but was very interested to hear of your father in law flying B24s 35 missions, he's one of the lucky ones that made it. The U.S. Air Force paid an extraordinarily large price for our freedom today. We owe him and his mates a huge debt of gratitude. Would we be able to find their type again today? I wonder.

On another note when working on my bike I listen to talking books from Audible. Com. I just finished listening to Hells Angels, the originals that flew missions over Europe in the 303rd Bomb Group. The bravery of those men and others that knew the odds were not in their favour speaks volumes.

http://www.8thafhs.org/bomber/grpimages/303bg.gif

[hank3841]

Ron, So sorry to hear about your Mom. All too often life deals us cruel circumstances that seem insurmountable at the time and for a time thereafter.  Take her life as a blessing and be thankful for it. We all need to look around occasionally and know how fortunate we are for what we have, including our SOHC cronies.

Re: your unfortunate encounter with the repair shop, check with your local District Attorney's Office about a consumer fraud division. If the shop didn't follow instructions from the manufacturer, they committed a fraud against you the customer. Do yourself a favor and take the time to make a phone call.

Glad you're back on line and again, your build is by far the best. Thanks again.

Hank
NYSP - Ret.

[Tews19]

Sorry for you loss Ron and if you want to talk feel free to PM me. Bikes can wait, enjoy yourself and keep life in general updates if you would like to share. Be well.

[SohRon]

Well, thanks for the replies, guys. All of you are quite familiar to me and have been solid champs over the years we've been going through this bike together. Your condolences mean a lot.

RE: the tank. You know, I could take the bastard to court, make his life miserable, etc, etc, but to be honest I just want to put the whole sordid ordeal behind me. I've been through enough lately and, frankly, just don't need any more grief. Maybe at another time I'd be going for his throat, but not right now...

I did talk to the manager at Honda who recommended the place and he was properly chagrined by my tale of woe and swore never to use them again. He said it had been a few years since anyone had asked for a referral, and that the shop had been competent at one time but, obviously, things change.

Mick, that's an interesting site. A couple of things you might be interested in are the movie "Unbroken", if you haven't seen it. Also, do a Google search for "Ploesti" to get an eyeful of mass destruction of our bomber forces. 53 B-24s and crew lost on just one mission. Incredible.

Thanks, again, to all of you. Couldn't ask for better Internet friends.


 

[MickB]

SR thanks for your reply, just a comment on the movie which I found very light weight, read the book, no comparison. Laura Hildebrand has left behind an amazing biography of Lou Zamperini for us.

Also Outlaw Platoon by Sean Parnell (there's talk he maybe a future President) and the tour in Afghanistan, Bravo 2 Zero by Andy McNab the SAS in Iraq, dropped 1000 kms behind enemy lines. Both are brilliant.

[calj737]

Ron - been meaning to post you some pictures of the tank. I've been out of town with work and what not, and finally got the tank wrapped up, plugged in the bottom, and filled with acetone. She'll do a really good soak until the liners are both fully dissolved.

[SohRon]

Thanks, Cal. Good to see progress and really appreciate the help. Don't worry about how long it takes - I know you have better things to do than fix my problems! Have a great summer! 

[calj737]

PM sent. 

[Moosey]

I purchased a 71 cb500 about a year ago and have been restoring it. This thread has been most helpful and is my goto thread upon reassembling the bike. I would like to thank you so much for taking the time and posting this thread!
Thanks, Lisa

[SohRon]

Well, thanks, Lisa. Glad the thread has been helpful. Unfortunately, this tank business looks to delay the final post for some time to come, so I'm not exactly sure when I'll be finishing it up.  Could be next spring, actually.

Cal - pm sent and it seems par for the course that the tank will need  repaint. It's been a PITA since the word go, so nothing surprises me anymore.    I appreciate all of your efforts... thanks again! 
 

[calj737]

Well, after a 10 day soak with Acetone, then a 3 day soak with MEK, I've got about 90% of the liners out. Refilled this AM, added some SS M12 Nuts and spent some time shaking them around to help beat up the remaining liner. A refill with MEK, and she's soaking again.

Here's a picture of some of what came out already. This is the 3rd pile already.

[Stev-o]

Redcote?

[calj737]

It was Caswell Dragon Blood under Caswell clear.

[SohRon]

NASTY! But no surprise. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all you've done, Cal! Now that I'm over the initial shock, I'm looking forward to getting the tank back and finishing up the project. Man, when I eff something up I do it to the max, don't I?

I think what happened with the Dragon's Blood was that, after I cleaned the rust out of the tank, on suggestion from a post on the site I added some two-stroke motor oil to keep it from further rusting and, in retrospect, that may not have been such a good idea. I suspect that when I cleaned the oil out prior to lining the tank I must not have done as thorough a job as I had hoped. I've since heard that Dragon's Blood doesn't do well with ethanol, as well, so I guess it got a one - two punch...

Live and learn, I guess.

When this is all over I'm starting a "Cal is DA man!" thread...

[RAFster122s]

It can be linked to the thread about Cal stealing Eigen's calipers.

Glad you are making progress on the tank. I have a CX500 tank a PO lined and it was failing.  They let a huge chunk set in the top. It broke free as I started removing the old liner and is quite thick.
POs!

David

[calj737]

It can be linked to the thread about Cal stealing Eigen's calipers.

It's hard to shake a reputation once it sets in 

I have a CX500 tank a PO lined and it was failing.

Is that the one you emaile me about? I'm sorry I couldn't help with that one. If I can get thru to October and get some other stuff done, I'll ping you back and see if you still need help then. I'm jamming as hard as I can right now trying to get my son's 500 frame, subframe and swing arm done before he heads back to school (end of month). It's a big ask, but it will allow me to put his bike in a roller before Xmas break so we can get the body work done and maybe fire it up over Spring Break. I'd like to have him riding it when he comes in May (I've got about WAY TOO MUCH $ wrapped up in it to let it sit another year).

[RAFster122s]

Cal,  I have a pair of CX500 tanks, one I had ask about was another. It is pristine condition inside but had suffered in a wreck denting the back right corner.
Get your son's bike done, family stuff should take precedence anytime.