My friend just got a new bike, its a 1981 Honda CB 750 C. He got from a guy who builds bikes as a hobby, and the paint job is awesome. But there were some things we were wondering about and hoped you could answer.

First, the front right side tube of the frame has a gap in it that you could probably slide a penny in, it is at the location of the motor mount on that side, is this normal? We were thinking no.

Second, is this the stock gauge cluster? Looking at pictures of other similar bikes it does not look like it is. The horn, brake light, and turns are all wired hot at all times, we can tell that one of the PO's (my friend is the 3rd owner) bypassed the ignition switch, but we are trying to find out why.

Third, what is the normal amount of teeth for the front sprocket? When his dad was riding it he said it seemed like the rpms were too high for the speed he was at.

Lastly, does anything else look out of place? I have never studied these type of bikes and all I have to go by are pictures on bikepics.com

With the bike the PO gave a bunch of spare parts he said were from a friends bike that was similar.

We are also aware that the badges were removed, the front wheel is not stock, there is only one brake instead of the normal two up front, and that the turn signals are aftermarket.

I know that is a lot, but any help is MUCH appreciated, thanks in advance.

 

Sounds like your friend has a Frankenbike. Different part from this bike, something else from another bike...

If the bike is running fine, then I would just enjoy the bike as much as possible. Do routine maintenance on it, but leave it as is.

Try looking here:

http://www.sprocketspecialists....aspx

In the list you can find information on your friend's CB750, but there are different series (F, K, L...). All three say 46-teeth as standard.

 

I would have to agree that this bike is heavily modified... looks likean old school kerker header, seat, cluster, signals... not sure what else. if you do get it, keep in mind that you might be chasing parts down from several different bikes, and after market companies if anythign needs replacement. I have to wonder if this engine was avalible on this bike????

 

Go to a Honda dealership find the one old guy working there and ask him what the hell is going on with it.

 

It may be a Frankenbike...but it's so pretty!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by marmaladeboy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If the bike is running fine, then I would just enjoy the bike as much as possible. Do routine maintenance on it, but leave it as is.</TD></TR></TABLE>

We agree, thanks for the help, we are just trying to figure out what came from where, but its not a huge deal.

 

Yeah, tracing the parts history isn't gonna be fun unless the mechanic kept really detailed records.

Good luck with the bike!

 

you know the more I look at this, the CB series was a sport bike, not a cruiser... the engine DOES look like a mid generation CB

 

I take that back, this is the K version:




as opposed to the sport F version

 

Thanks for the help

We have figured out that the whole front is from a 750 K and the rest is the original 750 C. And the Gap in the frame is normal, it is there to aid in removing the engine, we were just supprised that there were no plugs there to prevent water from getting in.

 

[QUOTE=polishrifle]

With the bike the PO gave a bunch of spare parts he said were from a friends bike that was similar.

We are also aware that the badges were removed, the front wheel is not stock, there is only one brake instead of the normal two up front, and that the turn signals are aftermarket.

[QUOTE=polishrifle]

You seriously might want to check it at a dealer, cause similar is not the same. When he bought it did he sign a contract with a time or mileage clause? as in if anything goes wrong in 30 days he can return it, or have it repaired at that guys expense? Just wondering

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fishwgoose &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You seriously might want to check it at a dealer, cause similar is not the same. When he bought it did he sign a contract with a time or mileage clause? as in if anything goes wrong in 30 days he can return it, or have it repaired at that guys expense? Just wondering</TD></TR></TABLE>

I am not aware that he signed any such clause, I am assuming that it was more an "as is" type of sale. My friend's dad looked it over extensively with us, and he is the most knowledgable person I know when it comes to anything mechanical. We are not worried about the bike coming apart, as it seems very sound. It could use a little carb tuning though.

With all the spare parts, nearly all we would need is another engine and frame, and we could build a spare bike. We mainly just wanted to make sure the things in the first post were not indications of something worse, and to just get some sense of what parts are from what source. But like I mentioned before he is just planning on enjoying the bike, after all it is 25 years old...more or less.


Edit: I forgot to mention that the PO was on the build team for the MAC Tools chopper that was featured on the discovery channel.

 

uh it's fine. similar/same whatever. people have frankenbikes today. some stuff works some stuff doesn't. really depends on what stuff you're swapping. plus you're not gonna get any type of warranty on that type of bike either. looks to me like the only swaps were body work and gauges. the suspension geometry and what not hasn't been tampered with and is fine