CB450 parts availability - and other Hondas?

Working with Justin at the shop on his CB450K2, we're at the point where the bike's fired up and he now turns it over to the senior mechanic at the shop for rejetting and setting of the carbs.  Of course, we run into a few small problems all based on the concept that the bike is running, but not well . . . . . . . and of course there's number of little problems that have to be fixed before Kerry (the mechanic) can actually set up the carbs.

Rather than just dive for my vintage sources, I go down the Honda parts fiche and realize that there's still quite a few parts available on Honda's warehouse shelves  - way more than I expected to find.  For example (and try and figure this one out) the intake manifolds are still available (at about $41.00 apiece), while the gaskets that go between the manifold and the head aren't.  Fortunately, Ohio Cycle still has the gaskets ($4.50 each, if memory serves me correctly).

If you're restoring a Honda, make friends with some guy at the local dealer's parts desk - he can look up any part number and get on Honda's dealer website and find out if they're still available. Of course, to make sure the request is correct, I'm going to need the Honda part number. If you don't have it, go to bikebandit.com and punch up the required parts fiche. Forget their part number, it has nothing to do with Honda's. However, they use the same picture as my parts fiche at work, so (for example) part number 3 on the carburetor fiche for a CB550K2 will tell me exactly what you're looking for.

If you're stuck with a dealer who isn't interested in the old stuff, drop me a line, and I'll be more than happy to look them up for you.  This is Honda America, of course.  I'm afraid I don't have access to other countries parts stock.

Awesome! If I can't find anything for my cb450 K7 I'll message you.

goodfornothing said:

Awesome! If I can't find anything for my cb450 K7 I'll message you.

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I normally check this board every couple of days, but if you need a quicker answer, try:

sykerocker@yahoo.com

My local honda dealer has a parts fiche on their website. I just call them and ask what they can get and they tell me in about a minute. I was very surprised as to what they still stock. Heard somewhere that honda is the best for this because the company made a commitment at some point to keeping their bikes on the road for as long as possible. If your local honda dealer says they can't get parts, they may just be being dicks, cause honda has a ton of stuff available....

Yes and no - you've got the story mostly right. From what I understand, back in the day Sochiro Honda took the attitude that "if a Honda's still on the road, we'll make parts for it". Needless to say, both the accounting and marketing departments verged on apoplexy. Sochiro died in, I believe, 1992 and the company has been quietly backpedaling from his philosophy ever since. Just the same, there's still a fairly good stockpile of parts out there, as long as you're no asking for exhaust systems and bodywork. And Honda is pretty good about keeping a lot of the basic engine parts on the shelf, although there's a definite dividing line: Pre-CB750K0 and post-CB750K0.

Now, in defense of the dealer, I can't really blame his disinterest in keeping the old bikes running. After all, he's in the business to sell you a new CB600RR, not keep your CB550K2 on the road. Nobody makes such a varied line of products, all with minimal interchangeability with other models, like Honda. And it can be maddening - I leave for work in about an hour, and I'm looking forward to a usual wonderful Saturday where I get berated for not having ball joints for a 1987 TRX250 ATV.

Just the same, there's something fundamentally wrong with any parts department who can't take a little time out (hopefully when the line isn't six deep at the counter) to check availability of parts. While not a large business, old bikes are still sales. I learned that while I was cleaning Ducati America's warehouse out of Paso parts back earlier this decade. Most dealers wouldn't look at anything older than a Monster or 916, Ducati had lots of parts on the shelf (they didn't sell), and I got involved with a couple of Ducati Paso groups (owned a blue and white 906). Damn if we didn't mail order a lot of parts.