1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC: Lester Mags and Ikon Shocks Version 2.0

Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

I ended up having to remove the tank, seat, rear fender, exhaust, and the front tire/fender to get it to fit in the elevator. With all that done I had three inches to spare with the bike in diagonally. Not as bad as I thought it would be with a few friends to help with the lifting but still not ideal. Took about an hour to disassemble everything and get it in the apt.
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

DKB said:
Thanks Man:)

I've run into a few guys in NYC that have done apt bike builds in the past. Beats paying for winter storage or dealing with alt side parking over the coming months- plus the bike is going to be pretty solid come spring. I put around 3000 miles on before getting into the frame off rebuild and feel pretty confident in the bike and investment of time.

I'm still trying to figure out what to do about cleaning / painting as I'm sleeping 10 feet from the bike and gotta keep the fumes/ mess and chemicals to a minimum. I was painting small parts on the fire escape until the recent drop in temp. Gotta sort out a Plan B....

Don't suppose the makeover on your avatar is from MMA? I photographed an event in NJ a few weeks back that had to be one of the best photo projects I've worked on recently.

YEAH- my other avatar pic was from MMA.... I miss working out at the gym as much as I used to, but kids are way more important. I had a suggestion for you on chemical smells. build a plastic tent you can work inside and put a fan in the window blowing out for a short period of time if your working with something with a strong odor.
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Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

I split town for the holidays and headed south to visit family. Good times in the Sunshine State. Beats the hell outta the current 20 degrees and windy. I got back this week and have been keeping super busy with the project. Spent a ton of time getting into the engine and frame cleaning thing up and prepping for paint. Took a while and made a hell of a mess degreasing and prepping everything but as of today, the engines bolted up and finished.

I had a very slow leak from under the valve cover gasket which was addressed. I replaced all of the puck seals and installed new gaskets on the following:valve cover, breather cover, side tappet inspection gaskets, starter cover, points cover, dyno cover, and valve adjustment tappets. Everything's torqued back down to spec. Painted the parts and engine with Duplicolor High Temp Engine Paint and am curious to see how it holds up. Looks pretty good for now. Wish I had access to a better work area and parts cleaner/blasting cabinet, but for spraying everything under tarps 5 feet from my bed and 10 feet from the kitchen, I'm happy with the results. Still high on paint fumes, but happy nonetheless.

Before:

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During:

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And After:

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I have to finish cleaning up and painting the frame next and am hoping to reinstall the engine this weekend. Just ordered new tapered steering bearings and rear shocks as well as a ton new replacement bolts and screws for the rest of the bike, fork seals, headlight ears, etc...
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Holy crap man! That motor looks like NOS. Good job!
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

engine looks great! are the side covers polished or painted? im digging the semi-shiny look!
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

^^^^ yeah what he asked that sprocket cover looks tits. I like the flat shiny look it has. the clutch cover looks shinier more polished but that sprocket cover looks like something made out of magnesium and straight off a race bike
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Thanks! The Engine Block and Cylinder Head/Cover were painted. The rest of the parts and covers are just cleaned up a bit or polished by hand. I removed the sprocket cover as I wanted to clean out all the crud on the underside. Cleaned it up with 400 grit wet sanding by hand, some 000 steel wool and a bit of polishing compound, 600 wet sand, then some mag polish on a blue shop towel. I just experimented and quit when I got a decent looking finish. My first attempt at polishing metal. I put more time into the sprocket cover then the others which I guess is obvious. Gonna go back and spend a bit more time on the other parts to even things out.
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Man, that engine came out good...
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Beautiful work man. I for one am pumped to see this when finished...
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Thanks for the kind words! I'm stoked with how this build is turning out so far. Almost done with the dirty work, prep, reconditioning, and painting and on to reassembly and the finer details. Really can't wait to see how the bike performs and handles after updating the suspension components and going over the whole engine. The bike ran and drove insane before the accident and recent overhaul so I think it's gonna be worth all the time and effort.

On a parts note- UPS just showed up with a new set of rear shocks, Tapered Steering bearings, Fork Seals, Fork Oil, Healight Ears, a bunch of misc bolts and nuts from Z1 to replace the old junk. The last parts I need to order are sprockets/chain and a set of clip on bars and I should be all set. I also just picked up a NOS Jardine 4 into 2 exhaust kit for the CB500/CB550 that looks pretty nice. Super heavy chrome and seems to be well made. Curious to see how it sounds...

Does anyone have any suggestions for removing the old steering bearing cases from the frame without a brass drift? Trying to avoid buying more tools at present and was wondering if I could use something else I had lying around as an alternative without damaging any parts. I'm hoping to get around to painting the frame this weekend and install the new bearings and shocks.
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Youre talking about taking out the old bearing races right? If so you can use just about anything a punch long extension. if you aren't worried about hurting the old races that is, but if youre replacing them then you probably aren't. I used a punch with a blunt end on it. Just make sure you catch the race and not part of the frame or something.
Peace travis
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

thompsonmx100 said:
Youre talking about taking out the old bearing races right? If so you can use just about anything a punch long extension. if you aren't worried about hurting the old races that is, but if youre replacing them then you probably aren't. I used a punch with a blunt end on it. Just make sure you catch the race and not part of the frame or something.
Peace travis
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Thanks for the info. I should have something around the apt that will do the trick getting the old bearing races out. I checked a couple of local hardware stores and a set of 3 brass drifts were priced pretty steep. Gonna keep an eye out for a used set or a good deal but have a punch and some wood dowels left over from a surfboard rack that may work for now.

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It turns out that none of the larger metric screws or bolts I purchased will fit my bike. Oddly enough the 6mm and smaller stuff seems to fit dead on but the bolts I purchased to replace the bottom shock and engine mounts have a different thread pattern. Any suggestions on a source for replacements?

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All the new hardware for the carbs and intake/exhaust manifolds worked out well. I mounted up the finned dyno cover to find it doesn't mount with the fins parallel to the head. May go back to the stock cover if I can't figure a way to get it mounted proper. It's off just enough to bug the hell outta me.

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And here's a crap camera phone snap of my first class painting bay and repair facility conveniently located on the 4th floor of an old building. Not to brag- but I've recently upgraded the painting wing and added two more plastic drop sheets and some cardboard on the floor. It's stunning;)

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Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Youre crazy! Painting in your apartment. :eek: That bolt situation is tough though they are probably 10 mmx1.25 Which I found was tough to get but heres a link I used to get them. http://www.allensfasteners.com/default.asp
I called every bolt pace in town and none of them carried them. These guy do and there prices are good.
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Dude, that motor is beautiful and you are nuts! I love it, this is my favorite current build for sure. ;D
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Thompsonmx100- Thanks for the link to the bolt supplier. That place is great and has the remaining pieces I need. Much appreciated!



While not quite making it through the entire frame painting process, I did cover some ground this weekend. Spent a lot of hours sanding, prepping and priming but still have some work to go before it's ready for paint. I ended up using a brush vs spraying the primer coats to try and cut down on apartment toxicity levels and it seems to have applied well. I'm going to do another coat then a bit of touch up and the scotch brite treatment and I should be a solid foundation for the black semi-gloss paint. Apartment is starting to look a bit worse for the wear and has a wonderful aroma of body shop spray booth and gasoline tied together with motor oil undertones.

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Gonna work on the forks and triple trees while the frame dries for the night.
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

You need a frame sitting on a pedestal by the pictures on the wall... looks like a work of art, or bring your bike in every winter and worship it.
 
Re: 1976 CB550K Rebuild- Indoor Living, NYC

Glad I could help like I said they were the best I had found. I hope you are providing yourself adequate ventilation. We don't want you croaking before you finish building. If you do though you can will the bike to me I'll take good care of her. ;D
Peace Travis
 
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