Anyone like the cafe? (78 CB550)
08-16-2007, 12:21 PM
#1
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Anyone like the cafe? (78 CB550)
Just thought some of you jerks would enjoy my project bike 
1
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1114738698/
2
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1114738376/
3
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1114737814/
4
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1113900593/
1978 CB550k, odometer reads 1,200 miles (whatever, lol), replaced a boat load of parts. Needs tires, and should be good for that vintage knee-dragging action, lol.
Actually needs rear signals and a rear marker light. Cop pulled up to me last night. "I'm not going to pull you over or give you a ticket, but you're riding a pitch black bike at night, wearing a black helmet and jacket....". Lights are for pssies and dead motorcyclists, lol. (i'll be putting in LEDs this weekend, heh)
1
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1114738698/
2
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1114738376/
3
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1114737814/
4
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1113900593/
1978 CB550k, odometer reads 1,200 miles (whatever, lol), replaced a boat load of parts. Needs tires, and should be good for that vintage knee-dragging action, lol.
Actually needs rear signals and a rear marker light. Cop pulled up to me last night. "I'm not going to pull you over or give you a ticket, but you're riding a pitch black bike at night, wearing a black helmet and jacket....". Lights are for pssies and dead motorcyclists, lol. (i'll be putting in LEDs this weekend, heh)
08-16-2007, 02:24 PM
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Re: (Gotcha)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Gotcha »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Looks nice. How much $$ have you invested in it?</TD></TR></TABLE>
Clutch Plates
Seat/Cowl
Bars
Cables
Paint (basecoat/clearcoat)
Signals and lights
Oil/Filter/Plugs (misc maintainence)
I'd say a good ~$400
It ran well when I picked it up. It was a small monetary investment, but a large investment of time and effort, especially with paint, polishing and fitting. Old bikes are typically affordable and easy to work on, but just takes a fair amount of patience and tolerance to being broken down on the side of the road
Thanks for the appreciation of the old school Hondas heh :D
I figure some of you guys like this kinda stuff.
Clutch Plates
Seat/Cowl
Bars
Cables
Paint (basecoat/clearcoat)
Signals and lights
Oil/Filter/Plugs (misc maintainence)
I'd say a good ~$400
It ran well when I picked it up. It was a small monetary investment, but a large investment of time and effort, especially with paint, polishing and fitting. Old bikes are typically affordable and easy to work on, but just takes a fair amount of patience and tolerance to being broken down on the side of the road
Thanks for the appreciation of the old school Hondas heh :D
I figure some of you guys like this kinda stuff.
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08-17-2007, 01:31 AM
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Re: (sup gurl)
What bars are those that allowed you to retain your factory brake master cylinder?
Is that an MC AGAIN exhaust, factory exahust or Yoshimura exhaust?
...if it is the factory exhaust, is it spray painted or powder coated?
Who did your seat and what materials were used?
You should look into getting rid of the points system entirely (unless you like adjusting dwell all the time) and go with a Dyna S ignition system. I put it in my 400 and love it. Definitely the best upgrade I've done to my old bike, thus far.
Is that an MC AGAIN exhaust, factory exahust or Yoshimura exhaust?
...if it is the factory exhaust, is it spray painted or powder coated?
Who did your seat and what materials were used?
You should look into getting rid of the points system entirely (unless you like adjusting dwell all the time) and go with a Dyna S ignition system. I put it in my 400 and love it. Definitely the best upgrade I've done to my old bike, thus far.
08-17-2007, 01:35 AM
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Re: (Haleiwa-Brando)
Oh yeah...if you didn't know already, check out this site:
http://www.sohc4.us
It's the biggest vintage Honda motorcycle website that I know of. Lots of smart people on there who have been screwing with these bikes for 30 plus years.
http://www.sohc4.us
It's the biggest vintage Honda motorcycle website that I know of. Lots of smart people on there who have been screwing with these bikes for 30 plus years.
08-17-2007, 04:02 AM
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Re: (Haleiwa-Brando)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JHenley17 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">It's awesome... and for that price, I'm tempted to try and do one... don't think I have the know-how to do it, though. Sexy, sexy bike.</TD></TR></TABLE>
Its not too bad working on this bike. Everything has been pretty straightforwards thus far. Things only get slightly more complicated when dealing with setting the points (as mentioned by Haleiwa-Brando), and adjusting the valves, but to me, it is still considerably easier than dealing with the H22.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Haleiwa-Brando »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">What bars are those that allowed you to retain your factory brake master cylinder?
Is that an MC AGAIN exhaust, factory exahust or Yoshimura exhaust?
...if it is the factory exhaust, is it spray painted or powder coated?
Who did your seat and what materials were used?
You should look into getting rid of the points system entirely (unless you like adjusting dwell all the time) and go with a Dyna S ignition system. I put it in my 400 and love it. Definitely the best upgrade I've done to my old bike, thus far.
Oh yeah...if you didn't know already, check out this site:
http://www.sohc4.us
It's the biggest vintage Honda motorcycle website that I know of. Lots of smart people on there who have been screwing with these bikes for 30 plus years.</TD></TR></TABLE>
I picked up a set of clubman bars from ebay. Although there are many different styles of "clubman", it seems that there is a standard of measurements amongst the many ebay retailers. I compared the rise, pullback and mount measurements, and all of them were the same, so I sprung for a set. Mounting the master cylinder required me to loosen the banjo bolt to reposition the angle of the brake hose, but other than that, all of the cables and accessories fit MUCH better than the drag bars I had before:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1056144713/
The bike came with the exhaust and pod filters, but from doing some looking around, the pipes may be Jardine. The previous owner sprayed them with high temp flat black paint, which has been holding up well, except for around the shifter, where your boot can scrub the pipes.
I was originally planning to make the seat with fiberglass, but did a quick cost analysis, materials alone, I was looking at spending a good $160. You need fiberglass matt, resin, hardener, misc. squeegies, potting foam block to make the shape, fabric and foam for seat padding etc. There was also a time issue. I decided to go with a seat cowl from http://www.hotwingglass.com ($185 shipped and upholstered), and the dealer was very responsive, and a pleasure to work with. I later found a cheaper site to pick up the cowl (about $165 or something), I believe the site is something like "CafeRacingParts", but their cowl was "designed for vintage ducati's", and did not have the buttons on the upholstery (I wanted them, I know a lot of people dont).
My points system hasn't given me any issues yet, however, as I am not well learned in the "old school", I may be having problems that I am not even aware of. I have never owned (at least known) a points system bike. I am a big time lurker on sohc4, and post pretty infrequently.
My latest post is in regards to a CB650 with charging problems which I will be tackling tihs weekend. The 650 is much less exciting to work on, and quite frankly, a hassle that resembles a couch on 2 wheels, lol. I'm sure with some elbow grease it'll be beautiful like the 550 :D
Its not too bad working on this bike. Everything has been pretty straightforwards thus far. Things only get slightly more complicated when dealing with setting the points (as mentioned by Haleiwa-Brando), and adjusting the valves, but to me, it is still considerably easier than dealing with the H22.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Haleiwa-Brando »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">What bars are those that allowed you to retain your factory brake master cylinder?
Is that an MC AGAIN exhaust, factory exahust or Yoshimura exhaust?
...if it is the factory exhaust, is it spray painted or powder coated?
Who did your seat and what materials were used?
You should look into getting rid of the points system entirely (unless you like adjusting dwell all the time) and go with a Dyna S ignition system. I put it in my 400 and love it. Definitely the best upgrade I've done to my old bike, thus far.
Oh yeah...if you didn't know already, check out this site:
http://www.sohc4.us
It's the biggest vintage Honda motorcycle website that I know of. Lots of smart people on there who have been screwing with these bikes for 30 plus years.</TD></TR></TABLE>
I picked up a set of clubman bars from ebay. Although there are many different styles of "clubman", it seems that there is a standard of measurements amongst the many ebay retailers. I compared the rise, pullback and mount measurements, and all of them were the same, so I sprung for a set. Mounting the master cylinder required me to loosen the banjo bolt to reposition the angle of the brake hose, but other than that, all of the cables and accessories fit MUCH better than the drag bars I had before:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenwong/1056144713/
The bike came with the exhaust and pod filters, but from doing some looking around, the pipes may be Jardine. The previous owner sprayed them with high temp flat black paint, which has been holding up well, except for around the shifter, where your boot can scrub the pipes.
I was originally planning to make the seat with fiberglass, but did a quick cost analysis, materials alone, I was looking at spending a good $160. You need fiberglass matt, resin, hardener, misc. squeegies, potting foam block to make the shape, fabric and foam for seat padding etc. There was also a time issue. I decided to go with a seat cowl from http://www.hotwingglass.com ($185 shipped and upholstered), and the dealer was very responsive, and a pleasure to work with. I later found a cheaper site to pick up the cowl (about $165 or something), I believe the site is something like "CafeRacingParts", but their cowl was "designed for vintage ducati's", and did not have the buttons on the upholstery (I wanted them, I know a lot of people dont).
My points system hasn't given me any issues yet, however, as I am not well learned in the "old school", I may be having problems that I am not even aware of. I have never owned (at least known) a points system bike. I am a big time lurker on sohc4, and post pretty infrequently.
My latest post is in regards to a CB650 with charging problems which I will be tackling tihs weekend. The 650 is much less exciting to work on, and quite frankly, a hassle that resembles a couch on 2 wheels, lol. I'm sure with some elbow grease it'll be beautiful like the 550 :D
08-17-2007, 07:52 AM
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Re: Anyone like the cafe? (BLKNBLUEG)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BLKNBLUEG »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> 
i like it.</TD></TR></TABLE>
i like it.</TD></TR></TABLE>
08-17-2007, 08:44 AM
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Re: Anyone like the cafe? (jdmslut1)
Nice, very nicely done. Photography aint too shabby neithers.
So you have 400 in to it, might I ask how much you picked up the bike for?
So you have 400 in to it, might I ask how much you picked up the bike for?
08-17-2007, 09:16 AM
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Re: Anyone like the cafe? (SWE3TDUDE)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mos »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Nice, very nicely done. Photography aint too shabby neithers.
So you have 400 in to it, might I ask how much you picked up the bike for? </TD></TR></TABLE>
I moonlight as a photographer for my friends and myself
I paid a over bluebook value for the bike (kbb is at $800). Bike is/was running well, starts on first kick and most importantly, was complete and able to be safely ridden 70 miles home.
$400 is the low end of my guess (large ticket items), as far as how much I have in the bike right now. My high end would probably be $600 (nuts, bolts, misc consumables).
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SWE3TDUDE »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Thats a sweet bike, if you ever want to sell it, let me know
</TD></TR></TABLE>Thanks, I'll keep this in mind, but I'll more than likely be burried with this bike, hahaha.
08-18-2007, 04:43 AM
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Re: Anyone like the cafe? (sohc_boy)
Thanks for answering my questions. Appreciated.
I'm in the process of trying to hunt down clip ons for my 75' 400F but am coming up short. Unfortunately the front forks are not a common size. Off the top of my head I think the 550's are 34 or 35mm in diameter. Mine are 33mm. Kind of an odd size.
I was considering getting clubmans and calling it a day, but favor the leaned out riding position that would be accompanied by some aftermarket rear sets in the future.
The flat black paint on the exhaust gives it a nice look. I had mine like that for a while, though recently wrapped the pipes with heat tape. Looks pretty good.
Mental note on the master cylinder. Currently I have no front brake as parts are scarce in Hawaii along with fitment issues. Scary I know, but it's a problem Im addressing.
Thanks for sharing the bike. Keep us updated on any new developements.
I'm in the process of trying to hunt down clip ons for my 75' 400F but am coming up short. Unfortunately the front forks are not a common size. Off the top of my head I think the 550's are 34 or 35mm in diameter. Mine are 33mm. Kind of an odd size.
I was considering getting clubmans and calling it a day, but favor the leaned out riding position that would be accompanied by some aftermarket rear sets in the future.
The flat black paint on the exhaust gives it a nice look. I had mine like that for a while, though recently wrapped the pipes with heat tape. Looks pretty good.
Mental note on the master cylinder. Currently I have no front brake as parts are scarce in Hawaii along with fitment issues. Scary I know, but it's a problem Im addressing.
Thanks for sharing the bike. Keep us updated on any new developements.
08-18-2007, 09:32 AM
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Re: Anyone like the cafe? (Haleiwa-Brando)
Clip ons-
http://www.woodcraft-cfm.com/S...12691
I've been wanting to do something like this.. I think It'd be fun.
http://www.woodcraft-cfm.com/S...12691
I've been wanting to do something like this.. I think It'd be fun.
08-21-2007, 08:08 PM
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GOD your bike looks alot like mine.
Here it is:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors...57949
I need to get rid of it. My CX650 Turbo is taking up my time now.
Here it is:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors...57949
I need to get rid of it. My CX650 Turbo is taking up my time now.
08-21-2007, 10:53 PM
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Re: (TTT)
Goodness, they sure do look similar. Both clean bikes 
Mos, thanks for the link. Got the clip ons ordered Monday. Should have them on the Cafe 400 by the end of the week. W00t!
Mos, thanks for the link. Got the clip ons ordered Monday. Should have them on the Cafe 400 by the end of the week. W00t!
