Topic: Anyone use their cb as a non toy?

[andmoon]

I am thinking of selling my zrx1200 and keeping a 74cb550 as my only bike.  Are these things reliable enough to use daily?  I can't show up at places late w/ greasy hands all the time.

[kghost]

How well it runs and how reliable it is ....is really up to you.

[Gordon]

I am thinking of selling my zrx1200 and keeping a 74cb550 as my only bike.  Are these things reliable enough to use daily?  I can't show up at places late w/ greasy hands all the time.

They're as reliable as you are at keeping them well maintained.  Much of it depends on what kind of condition your bike is in to begin with.  If you have multiple parts/systems that are on the verge of failure, then you'll be working on it constantly.  If you've gone through the entire bike and replaced or rebuilt all parts that need attention, then it can be as reliable as any bike off the showroom floor, if not more reliable. 

[Gordon]

And to answer the original question, yes, I use my 750 as my daily rider.  The 550 is my toy.

[hapsh]

I agree.  They are very well designed bikes and if they are in good shape and tune they are just as reliable as a new bike.  The key is going though everything to make sure you wont be surprised by a failure on the road.  That means going through the shop manual and checking everything out that you can.  Compression, cam chain tension, valve lash, timing, points and condenser, carburetors, and fuel system just to start.  You can get by with less, but the unknown items can be the ones that cause a failure.  The less items you check out the more of a gamble you will have riding it.  No bike is completely fault free, its just that new bikes are more likely to be in good shape all around.  My suggestion is to go over the bike as well as possible and start taking it on longer and longer rides to build your confidence in the bike.  I used to ride my FZR everyday and only my CB once in a while, however, once I had a full week of riding to work on the CB without any problems my confidence grew enough for me to park my FZR and rely totally on my CB for daily commuting.  Mind you I spent 3 months of tinkering on the CB to make sure everything worked correctly.

[754]

Its not a toy..its a Motorcycle

T ;Doys are the ones  made of plastic...

[Klark Kent]

Riding these bikes every day MAKES them reliable- keeps the gas fresh and the carbs happy.  my 550 has taken good care of me over the past year it has been my only motor vehicle.  I havent had an issue where it made me late- greasy hands is another story, but get yourself some industrial hand cleaner and that should be minor.  

One time i thought i was going to be late for a job- it stalled and refused to start after getting off the highway in DC.  I called my boss, told him i was stuck- while on the phone with him i glance down at my #1 plug wire and its free- I told him what was up (he rides too) and he said that's fine get it sorted and make your way over at a safe pace.  I have been late because of cars breaking down and never would have been able to make that quick of a recovery- ok once when i radiator hose blew off my el camino on I95- took the immediate exit where there happened to be an auto parts store and got some new hose, clamped it on filled it up and wasnt late for my job interview, but had a great story to demonstrate my resourcefulness, coolness under pressure, and dumb luck- got the job.

 The trade off is that while it is an old machine, it is simple and a simple machine will be easy to diagnose and keep running if you take care of the maintenance.  

sorry you have to get rid of a bike- but keep the 550 you will not regret it.

[eldar]

Toys are the ones called cruiser and choppers.

[andy750]

Both my 750s have been rebuilt by me and are both daily riders. Reliable as any bike/car etc..if not more so as I know exactly what Ive done to them both. I say go for it!

cheers
Andy

[Gordon]

Just one of the many accepted definitions of the word.

Toy:

   something that serves for or as if for diversion, rather than for serious pratical use.



That pretty much sums up my 550 as I, the owner, see it. 

[DJ_AX]

Yes.. since I've had my 750 ('bout 3 years now) I've only taken one ride for the sake of riding (couple hundred miles to a biker bar in Ohio)

Other than that I've done well over 10,000 miles actually going someplace I needed to be.

One day two summers ago.. was going to take my car to a meeting.. it wouldn't run. As luck would have it, the bike wasn't wanting to run that day either. Guess how I got there... fixed the bike up quick! (only 30 minutes late)

... oh yeah ..wear gloves... I keep an extra pair in my tool bag. 

[754]

hey my 750 chopper did 5k in a month, in the first 3 months after I built it.. motor completely apart...fresh chopper that had never seen the road.

 What was your most miles per month Eldar?

[Patrick]

My K5 750 has been a reliable daily driver since I rebuilt it four years ago. I have no issues if I ride it regularly. And, with the price of gas these days, it has become my primary transportation, unless I need to haul something too big for the saddlebags.
I put more than 10,000 miles on it last year alone.

Patrick

[super pasty white guy]

I bought mine approx 2 years ago.  I use my 750F for nearly all my commuting as well as just for fun rides, did 12-15k miles last year.  I've only had a road side breakdown once-  about a month after I bought it I had a fuse melt down due to dirty connection to the incorrect autofuse (short type).  No problems since.

So as far as I'm concerned, no reliability issues at all, as long as you keep up with the routine stuff.

spwg

[Soos]

I use my '79cb650 as a commuter and for quick errands.
Even when The next bike is running, it's another honda CB650 as well, but it's getting bags.


I trust a old CB as long as everything is either verified good, repaired to usable condition, or replaced with NOS/Aftermarket/grafted part from other bike to make the bike as a whole, mechanically and electrically sound.
But that involves you learning everything you can do yourself, or pay out the wazoo to bike shops.


l8r

[eldar]

Guess I dont bother to keep track of my miles. Whats the point? All I worry about is I changed oil here, I change it again here and forget about it. Do you have a fascination with miles? I dont get as many as I like. I work 2 jobs and have 2 kids. I have more important thing to do than worry about the number of miles I ride. Does not make me less of a rider nor does it invalidate my opinion.

I am pretty sure the miles you ride are dwarfed by others here. As riding season has not really even started here, I get much less time than others to ride.

I feel that all cruisers and choppers made these days are nothing but toys, except for a few.

Just fyi, there are people here that ride plastic almost daily. That would then invalidate your statement now wouldn't it.

Aren't they all bikes?

Oh well.

[Klark Kent]

remember guys, when taking it out and measuring, use a metric ruler.   

[eldar]

Metric gives a bigger measurement!

[754]

I have been to Sturgis, many times, and there is a lot of choppers that are ridden, and some long distances.

I built mine with serious intentions to ride it and make miles and it did it well and in relative comfort.

The 750 was not a toy it was a serious motorcycle designed to change motorcycling.. and it did it..  so how many of the new ones can you say that about?

Are they going to be seen in the numbers that Honda sohcs are seen and used today when they are that age.. I really doubt it..

BTW bike restoration in a another 15 years will have plastic restoratiion as an ever groWing part of it.

[eldar]

Well the impact of the cb750 was immense. I think the V series had its impact as well though. As have other bikes. Motorcycle design as stagnated though in the last 10 years. The valk was unique but then got turned into the rune and seems gone. one of these days, cycle designers will come up with something new....I hope.
The NAS concept was really cool though and I would have jumped at one of those in a heartbeat.

[Geeto67]

my 1975 750K was my main means of transportation for several years. Now it needs gaskets and has a slight oil mist when I ride. Since I work in an office I can't show up with my pants all greasy so I have taken to riding my 1973 750 as the daily driver instead. However....

...In my nearly 10 years of ownership my 1975 cb750 (which racked up about 50K under my arse) proved to be more reliable than my 1995 wrangler, which i bought new in 1995 and now has approximatley 114K on the clock. Maintenance costs, fuel expenditure, insurance, has all been much much cheaper.  I have had to put a tranny in the jeep, but the cb750 motor never needed to come apart until last year when the valvecover and base gaskets both started to weep at the same time, it has needed a new seat, a couple of brake light switches, parts to fix the crash damage, a caliper rebuild, and several speedometers but all in all that still cost less than my junkyard tranny for the jeep (which I installed myself). In the entire time I have owned the cb750 she has never failed me or left me stranded. Even when I chucked her down a highway at 60mph I was able to pick her up (despite the broken foot and collarbone) and start her up. So far my 73 has given me the same reliability this year.

So is the bike reliable? yes....but there is something more to be said for gear you own in going "bike only"

I live in NYC, which has one of the best public transportation systems in the country. If I don't feel like taking the bike in to work I can hop a subway and maybe all I lose is 15-20 minutes on the commute (the train takes longer). I work a white collar job in an office so there are days where I don't think I can get away with riding in in a business suit in the rain, so I hop a train and arrive none the worse for wear. If you live in an area where you can sometimes rely on public transit then going "bike only" is fairly easy. If not then it depends - if you need to be dressed up for work you will need a good rain/riding suit and a way to carry a second pair of shoes. If not then there are other concerns, most of which a good backpack and saddlebags can cure.

I guess my point is there is a lot more to think about when it comes to going bike only than is the bike reliable enough.

[fonz]

When my '74 750 was still together, I rode it pretty much daily once the roads weren't too snowy. She'd still kick-start in December (though it took a few more times than I'd have liked...), but I never had a real concern that I'd be stranded, let alone be late-
As for taking it to job interviews, it helped me land two 

[merc2dogs]

I agree with the people who say the bike's as reliable as you make it.
 Mine has never let me down because it's an old sohc750, it has let me down when I've scrimped on maintenance (yeah, that cable will need to be replaced, ah, maybe another week or two.  ooops....) It's actually more reliable than my friends bike that's 20 years newer and easier to fix besides!
 I can't use my bike for work because I have to carry too many tools, but I'm certain it would be reliable for everything I'd need or want.

Ken.

[narcoticrex]

my 550 is my daily rider, and only vehicle.  i am a new bike owner, and my 550 is new to me for only a couple months.  It has only stranded me when I was an idiot, namely, running out of gas.

I think my inherent paranoia helps me maintain it - I am constantly checking it for issues/problems/things that dont seem "normal".

[Gregorymoto]

I ride my 75 F 250 days a year give or take.
Works fine, it shlts on me once every 2 years but i allways get it home on its own power and fix it in a day.