I don't pretend to be an expert, but I've always been a fan of old motorcycles and customizing them to fit my style. I recently got the go ahead from the wife (after a 5 year motorcycle hiatus) to get another bike.....if I really wanted to. So, that day I started planning a CB450 build.
My dad had picked this one up for $275 out of a barn thinking he'd hold on to it until I was ready to work on it. The first thing we did was clean the carbs and sync them. Then we checked for spark, oil, etc. And after a few kicks it fired up and ran great (except for the floats sticking in the carbs, the tank leaking through the pin holes, and 30+ years of dirt in the pipes).
Relieved, we started cleaning it up and going over what I want to do to it. I've always wanted to do a Cafe Racer, and those old Honda twins run great and are easy to work on. I also want it to be safe and as low maintenance as I can get with a 40 year old bike.
He has a non-wrecked, mostly parted out VF500 interceptor sitting as well, so we've decided to pull the front end off of it and put on the 450. I'm also going to use the rear wheel/tire and disc brake setup as well. The great news is that the rear-sets from the VF will fit and the linkage is the right length to set up for my 6'4" 250lb frame. That will give me dual discs up front and one in the rear, it also gives me almost new tubeless tires. Oh, and the clip-ons and switches are all there from the 500 as well, so I won't have to spend a ton of money.
I'll post pics as I go along but with two kids (one on the way), and two jobs I only get a couple of hours every couple of weeks to work on the bike........I'm in for the long haul.
The first pic is how the bike was sitting. The second is after some cleaning and removing the ape hangers, sissy bar, and highway bar (tank and seat are just sitting there to mock up a starting point). handlebars are from a GL1200 to help with moving it around.
The last pic is of the mufflers that were cut and lawn mower mufflers shoved in.
Thanks.
My dad had picked this one up for $275 out of a barn thinking he'd hold on to it until I was ready to work on it. The first thing we did was clean the carbs and sync them. Then we checked for spark, oil, etc. And after a few kicks it fired up and ran great (except for the floats sticking in the carbs, the tank leaking through the pin holes, and 30+ years of dirt in the pipes).
Relieved, we started cleaning it up and going over what I want to do to it. I've always wanted to do a Cafe Racer, and those old Honda twins run great and are easy to work on. I also want it to be safe and as low maintenance as I can get with a 40 year old bike.
He has a non-wrecked, mostly parted out VF500 interceptor sitting as well, so we've decided to pull the front end off of it and put on the 450. I'm also going to use the rear wheel/tire and disc brake setup as well. The great news is that the rear-sets from the VF will fit and the linkage is the right length to set up for my 6'4" 250lb frame. That will give me dual discs up front and one in the rear, it also gives me almost new tubeless tires. Oh, and the clip-ons and switches are all there from the 500 as well, so I won't have to spend a ton of money.
I'll post pics as I go along but with two kids (one on the way), and two jobs I only get a couple of hours every couple of weeks to work on the bike........I'm in for the long haul.
The first pic is how the bike was sitting. The second is after some cleaning and removing the ape hangers, sissy bar, and highway bar (tank and seat are just sitting there to mock up a starting point). handlebars are from a GL1200 to help with moving it around.
The last pic is of the mufflers that were cut and lawn mower mufflers shoved in.
Thanks.
