Sweep The Floor Bike #2

Sweep The Floor Bike #2

scott s said:
Here's the new, lower profile master cylinder installed and a (possible) mirror solution.


At first glance, I thought the grey bucket was your "low profile master cylinder" LOL.

I do like the look of that. I'm looking to replace the master on my Honda for the same reason. Where/what's that master cylinder from?
 
It's a 14mm Grimeca from eBay. Something I picked up a while back and had sitting in my stash.
 
When I pulled the forks out of the pile, I cleaned them up and changed the oil, but not the seals. That was a mistake. They didn't leak badly, but they did leak.
I figured that if I had the front end this far apart reconfiguring the light and controls, it would be stupid to NOT do the seals.



I found some NOS Honda seals, the thicker ones that are the updated part number for CB750 forks (which are what I'm using, even though this is a CB550).



 
I also dug into the carbs. These carbs....and this engine....were in my '71 CB500 at one time. It ALWAYS ran rich and got poor mileage. That's the main reason I pulled it and why it got the overbore/rebuild.
However, I've since learned from working on another CB550 that the symptoms I was experiencing were most likely worn needles/emulsion tubes.
Installed four NOS Honda/Keihin needle sets and new 105 main jets. Still need to bench sync them and get them back on the bike, hopefully later today.


 
I've read about carb vents needing still air to work properly. Some people have said this can be a problem with the open triangle.
I also heard from one forum member that complained of tuning issues with the K&N plenum filter like I'm using.
I was sitting around in the garage one day and saw the ends of the vent tubes hanging there...



I figured, "why not?" and wrapped them lightly with some UNI foam from a sheet I had laying around. I'll see if this helps or hurts anything.

 
I did manage to get it back to a roller. Just waiting on some parts to show up so I can wire up the controls and lights and I'll fire it up and set the timing and vacuum sync the carbs.
After that, hopefully all I'll have left is to get the seat covered.

 
Well, here's the new headlight/dash/gauge combo. Whatta ya think?
It's just finger tight right now and the headlight needs aiming. I'm also up in the air over painting the cowl blue like the rest of the bodywork or a satin/matte black like the old headlight. The paint on there now is just spray bomb and it needs a little body work.




Mini tach and speedo and mini LED idiot lights. Blue = High Beam, Green = Neutral, Red = Oil Pressure.




The above pic is outside on the (overcast) daylight. They're very bright.

 
New brass cured the carb issues. I used NOS Honda emulsion tubes and needles and new Keihin 105 mains. Everything else is stock.
First, I figured out a way to get my timing light on it (harder to do with the lithium battery down on the swing arm) and set the timing. It was off a fair bit; too advanced. Got it dead on at full advance now.
I set the mixture screws at 1.5 turns out and that's where the bike likes them, more or less, with a couple of them needing maybe an 1/8th of a turn out. I put the vacuum gauges on the carbs and probably could have walked away at that point. I made some very, very minor adjustments to 1 and 2, since I had gone to all the trouble of setting it up (no trouble, really....but I was in there, so....).
Starts right up, idles at just over 1,000 (could bring it down a little, but it sounds good there), pulls great in every gear and all throttle positions. Even pulls away from a lug in 3rd or 4th gear. No bogging, snapping, popping, etc. I'm happy so far!

Oh, and that Kerker exhaust.... gives me a chubby every time I twist the throttle! It sounds like denim ripping or a MotoGP bike! Amazing.

I'll pull the cowl and get it painted. I have a message in to the upholstery guy for the seat. The front brake is a little spongy, like there might be some air still in there, so I'll deal with that.
Shouldn't be long now!




 
Very nice work. If I swept the floor I would end up with this:
 

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Picked up the seat today. Came out nice and the padding made a HUGE difference in how well I actually fit the bike. I was a little concerned that I had built a bike that was too small for me!
It's smooth vinyl on the side, perforated on top (with a backing) and graphite stitching.



 
And here's what she looks like "done". I say "done" in quotation marks because I'll probably change the mirror and master cylinder.
I was really trying to not run bar ends because they seem to be on everything these days, but I just can't find a mirror that works with the clip on bars. Sucks, because I kinda like the one that's on there now.
The master just seems weak. I have a DSS replica on the bench and I know they work great.
And I'm still kicking around ideas for an inner fender/screen/hugger of some sort.











 
And in case you forgot, this is what I started with two and a half years ago. This bike simply did not exist before I "swept the floor" and put it together. It's built with parts from multiple bikes.





You've come a long way, baby! ;D

 
I love it. I dig that you used the old school airbox mod. I have that same setup for my CB550. Seems so much better than just pods. What was it like to tune?
 
Like a stock 550. I went with 105 mains and stock settings everywhere else. I did I stall New emulsion tubes and jet needles.
 
The ride on this bike is way too stiff, bordering on brutal. Smooth roads are OK, but any potholes induce a pucker moment, and frost heaves set it into a bucking motion that blurs my vision.
It's probably because the springs in the shocks are for a 750, which is at least 100 pounds heavier than this bike, and it's amplified by the clip ons.
In the rear, the springs have been cut (to lower the 1100F they were on), which only made them worse. That bike, too, is at least 100 pounds heavier than the STF2 bike.

I called Progressive and explained the situation. They recommended their 11-1104 forks springs, which are 19.12" long; about an inch longer than the springs I removed (sorry, didn't take a measurement). They have a spacer that I didn't use and a 35/50 lbs./in. spring rate.
For the rear, they suggested their 03-1394 springs. They have a 75/120 lbs./in. spring rate and are 9.75" long.
You can see in this pic that they're much longer than the cut springs. In fact, I could disassemble the shocks without even using a spring compressor!



The front springs dropped right in. I put a jack under the bike to lift it just enough to relieve a little pressure on the forks and had my Dad steady the bike while I installed the caps.
On the rear, it took us a couple of tries to figure out the best way to use my new spring compressors without them slipping off, and then we realized we left out a spacer ring after getting the first one back together....DOH!
The first shock took us 45 minutes. The second one, maybe 15.... 8)

The front feels better but still seems somewhat stiff. I only rode it up and down the street in front of my house (it was 10:30 p.m. by the time we got done). The rear is definitely better. Dad says I actually have some sag when I sit on the bike now. It did raise the rear up a bit, but that makes the bike look better, IMO.
And in keeping with the "Sweep the Floor" theme, I bough the springs from a friend for $40 and found the shock springs on eBay for $50, so..... Progressive suspension for only $90!



The only little head scratcher is that I HAD to install the shock springs in this direction. Normally, the writing on the springs is on the bottom. Now they're "upside down". The perch on the lower part of the 1100F shocks is too narrow to install them that way. They would have slipped right over the end. This was the only way they fit and these are the springs that Progressive suggested.
Does it really matter what direction they're installed?
(And FYI: I installed the fork springs with the progressive, or tightly wound, section DOWN, at the bottom)



Plans for today are to swap out the master cylinder for a David Silver Spares unit and then ride later today.
 
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