My '73 CB350G

[Doc.]

Hey fellas,

I'm new to riding, and for my first bike i picked up a '73 CB350G. I love this thing, and just wanted to share it with you guys.

I purchased the bike as is, but i'm definitely not keeping it this way. I want to personalize it, change up the color, and possibly do some more work. I want to run a bigger tire in the back so i guess i would have to change the swing arm out. Relocate the battery, run pods, hide the wires, different seat, etc. ect. I might do a complete strip down and redo everything. And hopefully you guys can help me with all that . But it won't start till winter time.

Here it is now, and how i'll be riding it this summer. Cheers!

 

[CaTacl1sm]

nice bike, I wouldn't change a thing.

just be sure not to get in over your head with the mods.

 

[Doc.]

Thank you!

I'm definitely not trying to get over my head, just little changes to make it "mine", lol. I'm planning on repainting the frame and painting the engine block and tank and seat. Clean her up a little bit. I also want to shorten up the exhaust a bit, IMO it's sticking out too far back. The wiring looks old and weak, so i might go through everything and replace what needs to be replaced and clean up what needs to be cleaned up.

I definitely want to through a little bigger tire on the back. What are the common swing arms used on these bikes to be able to get bigger tires on the back?

 

[boingk]

Very nice, good score! Personally I reckon it looks ace as it is.

With the rear tyre, what is it currently running? I wouldn't imagine it'd need more than a 120 or 130 on the rear. Something with tread on the sides would be nice though, haha.

- boingk

 

[Doc.]

Very nice, good score! Personally I reckon it looks ace as it is.

With the rear tyre, what is it currently running? I wouldn't imagine it'd need more than a 120 or 130 on the rear. Something with tread on the sides would be nice though, haha.

- boingk

Thanks!

I believe its a 110, i'll double check it though. I wouldn't mind running a 130, im just not sure if it'll fit. And yea, i hate that tired, looks like a mini dirt bike tire, lol.

 

[loudest143]

Really like this one. All the right stuff in all the right places.

loudest143

 

[mysta2]

What are you thinking a bigger tire will do for you?

 

[Doc.]

More traction on the road? But honestly it will probably be mostly for looks. I want it to look like a motorcycle rather than a bicycle, if you know what i mean. And i want to get a better rated street tire, something that doesn't look like dirt bike tires, lol.

I like the front tire though ;D

 

[NJWanker]

All a wider rear tire will do for that bike is ruin it . With something like that you might want to keep the OEM rim but a top end tire . Keep it clean . Upgrade the suspension and brakes with that $$ you want to spend on a wider tire and rim.

 

[Doc.]

All a wider rear tire will do for that bike is ruin it . With something like that you might want to keep the OEM rim but a top end tire . Keep it clean . Upgrade the suspension and brakes with that $$ you want to spend on a wider tire and rim.

What do you consider a top end tire? I don't know crap about tires, lol.

And i can't seem to find a size on the side of the tire. I believe the previous owner said it was a 110.

And yea i definitely want to upgrade the suspension!

 

[NJWanker]

What do you consider a top end tire? I don't know crap about tires, lol.

And i can't seem to find a size on the side of the tire. I believe the previous owner said it was a 110.

And yea i definitely want to upgrade the suspension!

Answering that can be a Pandora's box . Grab a good Avon Venom or Roadrider , A Bridgestone Spitfire , etc . Any good rubber you can find for it . Suspension wise it's as deep as your wallet . From a good set of NOS , Monzas ,Progressives or YSS Bravos to a set of Racetechs , Ohlins , Penske , etc . With some research you can maybe find shocks and springs from another bike that will fit that ( that can be a good and cheap way ) .

 

[mysta2]

Skinny tires are cool

I put a 120 on my 360 and had to get a bigger rim... I bought the tire first having been told that it was the right size. Those tires you've got there do have a size on them but it's not in metric so it's something like 1.5 or some such not 110.

If you really want to swap stuff and I can't really blame you for it. I'd get some alloy rims and keep your tires around the same size, all bigger meats will do is wonk out the handling and add rolling resistance, you don't have the power to need them. Alloys are crazy light compared to the stock junk and the best places to lose weight are on the things that spin. It's already a beautiful little scoot, congrats.

I like Dunlops:

This is said 120, and it's as big as you're going to get within the swingarm and chain of a 360 (which may or may not be the case with your 350)

 

[Doc.]

Answering that can be a Pandora's box . Grab a good Avon Venom or Roadrider , A Bridgestone Spitfire , etc . Any good rubber you can find for it . Suspension wise it's as deep as your wallet . From a good set of NOS , Monzas ,Progressives or YSS Bravos to a set of Racetechs , Ohlins , Penske , etc . With some research you can maybe find shocks and springs from another bike that will fit that ( that can be a good and cheap way ) .

Thank you very much for this info! I'll look into those suspensions and tires.

Skinny tires are cool

I put a 120 on my 360 and had to get a bigger rim... I bought the tire first having been told that it was the right size. Those tires you've got there do have a size on them but it's not in metric so it's something like 1.5 or some such not 110.

If you really want to swap stuff and I can't really blame you for it. I'd get some alloy rims and keep your tires around the same size, all bigger meats will do is wonk out the handling and add rolling resistance, you don't have the power to need them. Alloys are crazy light compared to the stock junk and the best places to lose weight are on the things that spin. It's already a beautiful little scoot, congrats.

I like Dunlops:

This is said 120, and it's as big as you're going to get within the swingarm and chain of a 360 (which may or may not be the case with your 350)

Ahhh ok, i did see 3.5x18, but idk what thats similar to.

Alright sounds good. Where can i find these alloy wheels? And i'm guessing they're aftermarket? Maybe i'll get the wheels when i try to repaint everything on the bike and paint them while they don't have the tires on them.

And those types of tires are what i like, not this chunky tire. I'm definitely going to ride on these tires this summer, i just wan't something good and different when i do the transformation.

And thank you for your compliment and you guys' patience while i learn about these things!

 

[Terry]

Man, those tires look almost brand new! If I were you, I'd ride the piss out of the damn thing before I changed anything. You never know you may come to like the tires. Less rolling resistance, flickability, things like that. Just change all the fluids, adjust the valves and camchain, clean and lube the drive chain, maybe clean the carbs, do a complete tune up and ride. i never change anything on a new bike, other than the above, for the first month I have it. I just try to get a feel for it and let it tell me what it wants. A friend of mine has those same silencers on his BMW and they sound fantastic, widemouth Dunstall replicas, great pipes.

Terry
J'ville, Fl.

 

[Terry]

One more thing, I'd look into redoing the plate and taillight mount. in my opinion there are more elegant solutions to that problem, like a frenched light in the cowl with plate below.

Terry
J'ville, Fl.

 

[Doc.]

Man, those tires look almost brand new! If I were you, I'd ride the piss out of the damn thing before I changed anything. You never know you may come to like the tires. Less rolling resistance, flickability, things like that. Just change all the fluids, adjust the valves and camchain, clean and lube the drive chain, maybe clean the carbs, do a complete tune up and ride. i never change anything on a new bike, other than the above, for the first month I have it. I just try to get a feel for it and let it tell me what it wants. A friend of mine has those same silencers on his BMW and they sound fantastic, widemouth Dunstall replicas, great pipes.

Terry
J'ville, Fl.

Speaking of tune up, I want to do this, but I don't know if I know what i'll be doing (as far as adjusting valves and camchain, and drivetrain). I had a float problem so when I took the carb bowl apart it looked pretty clean. And also, I've been wanting to do an oil change, but I have no idea where the oil filter is for this bike :-\. Oh and what weight oil would I be using?

The exhaust, it sounds awesome, I actually love it, but it's so loud and I'm definitely not used to it right now, lol.

Here's a little vid i recorded of the exhaust...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2_33EsEJEs

 

[mysta2]

No problem man.

Enjoy the thing as is for as long as you can stand not to tear into it (and if you manage that more than a week you'll be a better man than I) The best thing about that is it will tell you what it needs, or at least when you start swapping stuff you'll know if you made a difference or not. I bought that tire off the shelf at a local cycle gear and didn't figure out till I brought it home that it wasn't going to fit the rim, but it did look like the chain would clear it. So I called up Dunlop America and through their phone tree you can talk right to a tire tech, she (that's right) told me what size rim to get. Which I bought from Buchanan Spokes You need to figure what type of rim you want, a lot of people like shouldered rims because that's what racers were running back in the day because they were stronger. Now days with advances in alloy technologies it's down to an aesthetic choice, and I personally don't like the thicker look of the shouldered jobs. You'll have to tell them what kind of bike you've got and they'll drill the rim appropriately. This is a good opportunity to get new spokes and nipples if you need them. I bought all new rolling stock for 69 a while back (Excel alloy front and rear rim, stainless spokes and stainless nipples) for just under $400 if I remember correctly.

Google tire conversion charts.

 

[Doc.]

One more thing, I'd look into redoing the plate and taillight mount. in my opinion there are more elegant solutions to that problem, like a frenched light in the cowl with plate below.

Terry
J'ville, Fl.

I actually like that mount, unless it will become a problem?

 

[Doc.]

No problem man.

Enjoy the thing as is for as long as you can stand not to tear into it (and if you manage that more than a week you'll be a better man than I) The best thing about that is it will tell you what it needs, or at least when you start swapping stuff you'll know if you made a difference or not. I bought that tire off the shelf at a local cycle gear and didn't figure out till I brought it home that it wasn't going to fit the rim, but it did look like the chain would clear it. So I called up Dunlop America and through their phone tree you can talk right to a tire tech, she (that's right) told me what size rim to get. Which I bought from Buchanan Spokes You need to figure what type of rim you want, a lot of people like shouldered rims because that's what racers were running back in the day because they were stronger. Now days with advances in alloy technologies it's down to an aesthetic choice, and I personally don't like the thicker look of the shouldered jobs. You'll have to tell them what kind of bike you've got and they'll drill the rim appropriately. This is a good opportunity to get new spokes and nipples if you need them. I bought all new rolling stock for 69 a while back (Excel alloy front and rear rim, stainless spokes and stainless nipples) for just under $400 if I remember correctly.

Google tire conversion charts.

Haha, will do! Like I said I probably won't touch the bike (cosmetically) until the end of the season. I'm definitely going to enjoy it as is before i throw any money on it.

And thank you again for the wheel and tire info. I'll look into those when the time is right. Cheers.

 

[boingk]

If I were you, I'd ride the piss out of the damn thing

Yeah, definitely! As for the tyres, Triumph Thruxtons (865cc twins!) get away running 130's on the rear...so I wouldn't be too worried about anything. I go with the fellow I quoted - you've got new tyres so just ride the hell out of them. If you want more, see if you can get Bridgestone B92's in a 110 or 120. I'm running one on the rear of my bike and its a dream. Otherwise my pick would be Dunlop Sportmaxx, a dual-compound thing with supersoft edges and a harder middle. Lets you cruise without hectic wear while still being able to enjoy the twisties.

Ride on, man, ride on! - boingk