'78 CB400T POS

I hear ya...

Yeah, it's stock. I removed the paint with stripper and just 'wheel wire-brushed' it to remove the rust and gunk. I'm hoping to keep it raw looking, but it's steel -- so it'll rust like hell I'm sure. Might have to clear coat it.

That ring on the bottom part was the housing for the lock that I chopped off. It's gonna be the mount for the headlight if I ever get to that point.

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Nice! Ya its going to need a coat of clear... My triple tree clamp on the XS400 is aluminum and I polished it up a little and left it raw. One of the nice things about aluminum! Also look into clear powder coat! might cost a little much but would be a strong coating.
 
Got the front-end put together. I stripped and "brushed" with maroon scotch brite. I was surprised how well it works on the aluminum parts. The top plate of the tree is steel and I did the same brush look, but had to clear coat it so hopefully it won't rust. I "brushed" the clear coat a little to give it a matte finish. Slowly, but surely...

Next step is the hang the motor and start on the carb rebuild. I also painted the front brake caliper...I'll try to get a picture next time.
 

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OK. So, I got the motor mounted. That son-of-a-bitch is heavy for a one man job. I finally figured out that it's easier to mount the frame to the motor vs. the motor to the frame. I shimmed it up on some 2Xs off the ground and then worked the frame in place on top of it. Once I had the bolts in -- I just picked the whole thing up on its stand. My back is jacked, though...

Also, I got the braces welded for the rear-end. I used a cardboard template and cut 1/4 inch flat bar to fit and welded it from both sides. It def feels really strong. I should get the shocks Monday and the plan is to just drill through the plate against the tubing joints and mount the shock studs. This should solidify the structure and I think its gonna be pretty solid.

Anyways here's the progress:
 

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Question. The CDI and Coil will have to be moved since they won't fit under the new tank on the frame. Can I lengthen the wires for the CDI? Or will it effect the ignition timing? What about the coil? Can I just install longer plug wires?
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I believe the '78 coil is the same as the '80 model, the plug wires are attached permanently to the coil. If you need longer wires, you will probably want to look into the GM coil mod and can then run whatever length wires you need.

The other reason for the weird hump on the frame is to allow the head to be removed without dropping the motor, or so the rumors say.
 
Jonny H. said:
I used a cardboard template and cut 1/4 inch flat bar to fit and welded it from both sides.


I always use CAD software when working on the bike!

Cardboard Aided Design
 
HandMeDownHawk said:
I believe the '78 coil is the same as the '80 model, the plug wires are attached permanently to the coil. If you need longer wires, you will probably want to look into the GM coil mod and can then run whatever length wires you need.

The other reason for the weird hump on the frame is to allow the head to be removed without dropping the motor, or so the rumors say.

Oh, I just assumed that you could replace the cables. I'll look in mod and see what's up. Thanks for the reply...
 
So I got the carbs disassembled and cleaned. Got impatient and installed them before the paint cured. Scratched the hell outta the new paint. Oh well...I'll have to redo it if it won't touch-up well.

The process is slow. I need to remind myself of that constantly. I'm a pretty impatient dude naturally. The introduction of more beer may be the solution.

I painted the caps and the braces this light gold color that'll hopefully be a nice accent with the chain and front caliper. It may be a little much, but we'll have to wait and see... ;)
 

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I know what you mean by slow this will be the 3rd summer that iv said ill be done with my first bike...

Love the gold by the way!

What are you thinking as far as the tank goes?
 
honda53rider said:
I know what you mean by slow this will be the 3rd summer that iv said ill be done with my first bike...

Love the gold by the way!

What are you thinking as far as the tank goes?

3rd summer!? Don't say that...

I'm not sure about the tank. I wanted to leave it raw, but it was just too beat up...so i've been bondo-ing the shit out of it.

I'd like to do something two-toned, but It'll def include silver. I'm getting the emblems blasted so that they can be raw. Any ideas?

This is one of my favorite tanks:
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The rear shocks arrived today. Is there such thing as too much black? I'm starting to think so...

Trying to figure out how to mount em to the top frame brackets.

The plan is: 1. drill through the bracket big enough for the bolt. 2. Then weld the coupling to the bracket. 3. Put the bolt through the coupling and the coupling in the shock bushing. 4. And, tighten it all with a nut on the inside of the bracket.

Maybe tack weld the nut to the bracket?

A nickel for your thoughts (via PayPal).
 

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I was referring to my build. Its been going for 3 years now and this will be the 3rd summer that iv said its going to be done.
 
I had to do something similar with the universal upper shock mounts. You can see how I attached them on page 3 of my build. Ignore the welds.
 
DoTheTodd said:
I had to do something similar with the universal upper shock mounts. You can see how I attached them on page 3 of my build. Ignore the welds.

Ok. So it looks like the studs go all the way through the bracket...and then you welded and hacked em off? Did that seem like the way to go?

Nice truck, man...
 
I cut the triangles like you did, then I drilled holes through them and put the studs all the way through. Once they are welded on both sides, I'm going to hack off the excess. It isn't done yet, but I'm thinking that it will be pretty strong since it will be welded on both sides.

Thanks, it's my dad's 56 Ford F-100. That's a project for a whole 'nother build thread.
 
OK. So, I got the shocks mounted finally. I used the original coupling as planned. I had to cut it down so the it would match the length of the shocks upper eye. I welded it to the triangle bracket and drilled a hole through for the bolt. It turned out a little better than I had hoped. I think its gonna be plenty solid:
 

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