CBX550-Brat/urban scrambler on a budget

my other opinion is the fender nedds rotating forward an hour maybe 2 hours
try that and stand back and look .....unless you are going for the snub-nose .38 revolver look
i am not a fan of the front fender rotated back/bobbed back that far ,obvuiously many are we see a lot of it
 
xb33bsa said:
my other opinion is the fender nedds rotating forward an hour maybe 2 hours
try that and stand back and look .....unless you are going for the snub-nose .38 revolver look
i am not a fan of the front fender rotated back/bobbed back that far, obviously many are we see a lot of it

Thanks Xbsa, it's turned out pretty much how I intended, it's not perfect but looks the part. I hadn't thought of P clips to mount the guard....hmmm, quite like the orange lined versions? I was to weld two centrally mounted shaped washers using buttonheads (smooth on the tyre side) and domed s/s nut on top. Abel clips not available on UK Ebay....but I could use some orange silicon tube I already have and line a bare clip instead?? ;-)

I pondered a long while the exact guard position and each 10mm either way makes a visual difference, you're right, position is everything. I have one eye on practicality and, working with a used item which had previously been trimmed, had to cut n shape the rear end as best I could with what I had.

I rather like the moderate 'snub nose' as I think it offers a balanced look with enough rear guard to offer some splash protection....I might even add a mud flap :)

Thanks for checking in :)
 
Well, from a few bits of metal I've managed to knock this guard mount out. Cut, weld, grind, fit, re-fit to the power of 10 and it's together at last.

I very pleased with the way it looks, I just hope there's enough real world clearance haha! What do you think?







I like the overall view from 3 mtrs, think I got it right ;)

Oh, I gave the tank a quick compounding and it came up a treat me thinks :)



The eagle eyed will have spotted the oil filter nut is now polished...well done. I drained the oil and changed an O ring in one of the oil cooler feeds and the filter. Resisted polishing the filter cover....must resist.

Old hawkeye may also have spotted the oval piece on the guard...it's an old ally metal label turned over and riveted to cover two ugly old mounting holes.

Question: I'd like to run some fuel through the carbs so check the float bowl gaskets hold. Is it just a matter of running a pipe direct to the feed spigot from a funnel/pipe?

Thank you.
 
Holy smokes, NoRiders, you've been busy these past few months :) Compared to where you've started it's quite a different bike already. Cool stuff, sir! Nice front fender; looks British :)
 
Northish said:
Holy smokes, NoRiders, you've been busy these past few months :) Compared to where you've started it's quite a different bike already. Cool stuff, sir! Nice front fender; looks British :)

Ah...well, I've been making the effort to find time....I can see it coming together now :)

I wanted an old Brit bike look, thank you.
 
Righto....the front guard was too low, Lord knows how it happened, but I've removed it once again (10th time I reckon) and...ahem adjusted the rear hoop to sit higher, this has the effect of raising the guard away from the tyre. I had to redrill the rear hole and pay more attention to the slight slack in the mounting, nipping up the bolts with it in the up position.





There's defo clearance now, the rear of the guard sticks out slightly but, ho hum, that's what you get for using used parts. I still like the snub nose and overall style so I'm pleased and moving on to other jobs.

Speedo mount first fit.....I'd like to rubber mount this but just wanted to see how it looks and the angle of the speedo head....happy with it so far :)



The four holes are for the LED idiot lights, I might paint the ally mount black...not sure about the ally finish? Have to get used to it sitting there as it was bare before.
 
A week of unbike related busyness has left me feeling slightly peeved. Family stuff is at a peak at the moment and there's no getting out of it. However, on the basis of 'every little helps' I've had my mate, Greg, turn a rev counter mechanism plug out of alloy.

Component parts including the drive housing, Greg made the plug and bolt.



There is an old oil seal wedged down the housing and the plug has been machined so I can wriggle an O ring down there to form a new seal. The housing is hollow, the geared drive shaft has been removed.
The O ring meant a bit of pressure to allow the locking bolt to thread correctly. I used a G cramp my son Matthew made during his Network Rail apprenticeship. Thanks Matt.



And, finally, here it is installed, hope it's oil tight :-/



Thanks for checking in.
 
NoRiders said:
A week of unbike related busyness has left me feeling slightly peeved. Family stuff is at a peak at the moment and there's no getting out of it. However, on the basis of 'every little helps' I've had my mate, Greg, turn a rev counter mechanism plug out of alloy.

Component parts including the drive housing, Greg made the plug and bolt.



There is an old oil seal wedged down the housing and the plug has been machined so I can wriggle an O ring down there to form a new seal. The housing is hollow, the geared drive shaft has been removed.
The O ring meant a bit of pressure to allow the locking bolt to thread correctly. I used a G cramp my son Matthew made during his Network Rail apprenticeship. Thanks Matt.



And, finally, here it is installed, hope it's oil tight :-/



Thanks for checking in.
that looks great having the machinist buddy is gold
but you could have gone low profile by deleteing the intermediate part and just capping off at the base
 
xb33bsa said:
that looks great having the machinist buddy is gold
but you could have gone low profile by deleteing the intermediate part and just capping off at the base

Thanx beeza, I had thought of chopping it down, but liked that it looks like a gidjet with nothing to do ;) Plus, if I ever feel the need for a tacho.....
 
NoRiders said:
Thanx beeza, I had thought of chopping it down, but liked that it looks like a gidjet with nothing to do ;) Plus, if I ever feel the need for a tacho.....
well yeah its cool having shit stickout,but c'mon how could you read into that, that i was suggesting cutting anything down ?
i was only stating that you could have done it clean and simple by just leaving it out (the tach cable receptacle)and capping off the actual hole,thats all
 
I'm still here......not quite zero progress since my last missive, but I have been extremely busy or too knackered to venture into the garage.

A job I've been holding back on was sorting the 'lectrics, not my favourite discipline. Anyhoo...t'was my son's birthday recently and by way of celebration I had him over for some scran and to help his old man out on the CBX.

I had a great day working alongside my son and thoroughly recommend it to all who have sons (or daughters), spending time just getting on with jobs is lovely.

Despite me and my dicking about, he duly delivered and I am very pleased to announce I now have fully working lights, indicators, horn, starter motor and an array of idiots lights (when I get them mounted), very pleased indeed, thank you matthewdavies.



I have a video short showing the indicators blinking.....we then went on to make everything work. (Will post it up when I can)

And, in other news, I ran a wet test on the carbs by syringing fuel into the main feed, they overflowed as they should and no visible leaks so far.

I've been banging on about 80:20 and how it's almost there....bollocks is it, loads to do as my job list will show.

Anyway, I'm very pleased and fired up to get on with it....here's to it!
 
Great progress getting made mate , bet its a good feeling getting your young -un helping out even if its only passing ya bits n bobs sure wish I had a little helper haha keep gong mate soon be there specially wiv lectrics done (hate that stuff)
 
yorkie350 said:
..... getting your young -un helping out even if its only passing ya bits n bobs sure wish I had a little helper haha

Thanx yorkie, in fact it was the other way around....me passing him bits n pieces, firing up the soldering iron, finding stuff I knew I had stashed somefuckingwhere etc. He's the electrical wiz.....I'm the grease monkey haha! Good to spend time with him though, and happy to now progress.

Mounted the indicators, secured the fork brace using the s/s spacers my mate turned up for me....upwards and onwards yay!

Just a few jobs to do:

Sort petcock from stock tank to replacement and mount
Paint frame in parts
Fit exhaust
Fit airbox
Re-fit rear guard/light, secure ignition switch etc
Paint speedo mount and fit/connect LED idiot lights
Bind/tape and secure loom
Replace mono-shock bolts

General fettling and sorting of so many small parts/fittings left to do.....

My final topping out will be fitting the chain. :D

Thanks for checking in guys.
 
NoRiders said:
Just a few jobs to do:

Sort petcock from stock tank to replacement and mount
Paint frame in parts
Fit exhaust
Fit airbox
Re-fit rear guard/light, secure ignition switch etc
Paint speedo mount and fit/connect LED idiot lights
Bind/tape and secure loom
Replace mono-shock bolts

General fettling and sorting of so many small parts/fittings left to do.....

My final topping out will be fitting the chain. :D

The list is getting short! Bet it feels great to have working electronics. You guys did a lot!
 
NoRiders said:
Thanx yorkie, in fact it was the other way around....me passing him bits n pieces, firing up the soldering iron, finding stuff I knew I had stashed somefuckingwhere etc. He's the electrical wiz.....I'm the grease monkey haha! Good to spend time with him though, and happy to now progress.

Mounted the indicators, secured the fork brace using the s/s spacers my mate turned up for me....upwards and onwards yay!

Just a few jobs to do:

Sort petcock from stock tank to replacement and mount
Paint frame in parts
Fit exhaust
Fit airbox
Re-fit rear guard/light, secure ignition switch etc
Paint speedo mount and fit/connect LED idiot lights
Bind/tape and secure loom
Replace mono-shock bolts

General fettling and sorting of so many small parts/fittings left to do.....

My final topping out will be fitting the chain. :D

Thanks for checking in guys.

Detailed some of the engine mount bolts under the airbox as well as refitted the filter box/battery carrier. Details, details....rear guard/light & exhaust tomorrow and maybe a cheeky go at starting it ;)
 
Northish said:
The list is getting short! Bet it feels great to have working electronics. You guys did a lot!

Ha, yeah, one tick at a time, thank you northish. Electrics bring the bike to life I reckon ...apart from actually starting it of course.
 
List:
Sort petcock from stock tank to replacement and mount
Paint frame in parts
Fit exhaust
Fit airbox
Re-fit rear guard/light, secure ignition switch etc
Paint speedo mount and fit/connect LED idiot lights
Bind/tape and secure loom
Replace mono-shock bolts

Getting it done ;)

Sorting out the loom was time consuming and fiddly, but I got it as good as I can for now. Tank is a squeeze to fit, but I think a bit of fettling will see it right. Had a good day working my way through my job list...seems strange to be fitting parts for the last time.....I hope?

Wiring is now a bit tidier,





Mounted the rear brake reservoir to the battery brace using the brace bolt, just had to cut down the rubber pipe 30mm. Motobatt appears to be working correctly. Had to splice in a new main 30amp fuse as the original had decomposed or I can't find the fuse bit?



Rear guard, lamp and numberplate all installed in it's final position, pleased with how it looks :D



I went for a start tonight, turns over sprightly enough, but no go :( I'll check sparks etc tomorrow).

That's it for now.
 
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