'74 CB200 - Tall Dude, Tiny Bike

[byrdo444]

YOO I've been putting this off for too long, it's time to document what's going down on this little bike. It's in great shape, but I know I'm going to be messing with it a lot over time, so might as well put it in writing eh? I just graduated college so I'm broke and have around 20,000 dollars in loans to pay off...so that being said this bike will be done on a budget. The 50 dollar mod thread will be my friend. I guess the ultimate goal is to make this bike run better than it ever has, take care of it so it will last a long time, and make it comfortable for a 6'4" dude to ride on...or at least a little more comfortable.

How I got the bike (I did take some steel wool to the chrome before these pics):





Problem 1: No Air Filters


Found some stock airboxes on eBay for 25 bucks, they are in the mail.

Next Projects:
Add rearsets, and figure out a way to still go two-up with my fiancé I've been talking to viet, I'm pretty sure I'm going to order some from him plus the rising bracket.



Add CL pipes? possibly for the rearsets, we'll see though
Fix that ugly taillight
Do something with the stock seat
Go FASTER, kind of hard in a small town to make it over 65, but I'll find a way... There's nothing like going fast on a small bike! I came from the world of mopeds so this bike feels a lot bigger to me, but definitely still a "small bike"

[byrdo444]

Yesterday I did a little FREE seat modification. Took off the cover of the stock seat,



took a bread knife to the foam (there was a LOT more than this)


recovered the seat, had to cut little notches out of the cover so there wasn't excess material bunched up underneath, and BAM - free lower profile seat.


I like it because it still pops up and down like the stock seat did, and allows me to lock my helmet when I leave my bike places.
We'll see though, it might keep evolving, I might throw a more cafe-type seat on there in the future sometime, we'll see...
Now I really need to get those rearsets for sure, my knees are basically hitting my arms on the stock pegs haha

[byrdo444]

bought a cheap Chinese tail light, we'll see if i can fab it on there somehow when it arrives in half a month haha, anyone done this in a easy way?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230818888386#ht_1840wt_1413

[byrdo444]

Just ordered Viet's rearsets plus a rising bracket in case I decide to ditch the scrambler pipes idea.

I think it's annoying when people reference things in their build threads but don't link them, so I'm going to try and make an effort to always do that for future builders:

Viet's Rearsets: http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=32402.0

[bojica]

seems like a good start so far. I'll be starting on a 200 I just bought last week here pretty soon. subscribed!

[byrdo444]

seems like a good start so far. I'll be starting on a 200 I just bought last week here pretty soon. subscribed!

Sweet dude! There's so many new cb200 threads popping up right now, it's a good time to get one! I've found a lot of older completed CB200 builds/links that I've been learning and taking inspiration from.

Check em out:

sbaugz CB200 (blacknyellow): http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=29420.0
alec.korver CB200 (blacknwhite): http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=36806.0
flyswat2006 '77 CB200: http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=35351.msg382259#msg382259
CanadianBacon Cb200: http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=32874.0
904Cafe Silver Bullet CB200: http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=4568.0

Random stuff:
ABOUT: http://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/Honda/honda_cb200.htm
Carb Syncing: http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=3690x

[byrdo444]

Ordered tires into the local shop (yes! no shipping fee)...asked how much it would cost for them to install, they quoted 50 DOLLARS A TIRE!? haha no thank you, i am purchasing 20 dollar tire irons and doing it myself thank you very much.

Affordable Tire Irons Set of Three: { http://goo.gl/hlNEM } (...oh p.s.  if you ever see links like these, that means if you click it and buy something I make $$$. Amazon associates FTW!)

I got the Duro Classic Vintage Tires in 3.00 x 18 Front, and 3.50 x 18 in the Rear. { http://goo.gl/vWFKk }
I know the stock size is 2.75 in the front and 3.00 in the rear, but I've seen a lot of builds throw these bigger sizes on there. I'm a big dude, so I figured big tires too...why not.
The Classic Vintage Duros are about half the price of the Avon Roadriders I've seen other cb200 dudes use, and I've heard nothing but good things about both. I ordered the Duro's through my local shop and they came out to 100 bucks for both front and rear.
 
Another option I've heard a lot of people use on these smaller bikes is the Michelin Gazelle Moped Tires. { http://goo.gl/OzQw1 }
These tires will run you 40 bucks for the PAIR! Yes, $18.88 per tire. They are P rated up to 90mph, so it'd do the job for the cb200 easy if you're looking for some nice tires on a budget.
I opted for the Classic Vintage, because I'm hoping to get this bike to do the ton someday (I know...very wishful thinking), and I just felt weird buying moped tires...even though everyone says they are totally legit.

--------
How to Change a Tire (for future reference when I get mine next week):
http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=22369.0
http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=15921.0

[808shadow]

Throw up some pics of the new tires when you get em on!

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[deepwaterimports]

NICE ONE BROTHER GO THE 200'S 

[byrdo444]

Throw up some pics of the new tires when you get em on!

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Will do!

[Big Rich]

Top speed of 65? Man, you will be happy once you get the stock filters on there. Your bike is gonna go a lot faster just with them.

I want to add: keep an eye out for a CB or CL 175 front end. While the mechanical disc may look cool, it's stopping power ............. leaves a lot to be desired.

[808shadow]

I'm college so i feel ya on the budget thing haha. I was gonna go with the dunlop tires so I'm glad you mentioned the others!  If you ever want to make your own cheap seat you can always do what I'm going to do and make your own for about fifty dollars. Ill post the link on YouTube tomorrow when I'm not on my phone

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[cyclefreak]

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out. Btw the rearsets will help a lot, I am 6'1" and I actually fit on my wifes 200 pretty comfortably.

[byrdo444]

I'm college so i feel ya on the budget thing haha. I was gonna go with the dunlop tires so I'm glad you mentioned the others!  If you ever want to make your own cheap seat you can always do what I'm going to do and make your own for about fifty dollars. Ill post the link on YouTube tomorrow when I'm not on my phone

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Sweet dude, excited to see it.

On another note, I think I also want to throw some new rear shocks on there. I think it will improve the handling and for two up riding it won't sag as much. Today I was riding and hit a bump and the back scraped a bit. I've heard good things about Hagon Shocks, but I haven't really looked into it at all yet. Let me know if you guys have any suggestions

[Big Rich]

Hagon makes some quality stuff, but may be out of your budget. Some people avoid the $100 shocks from EBay and Dime City, but compared to the clapped out originals, they do a great job.