New project CB360

[LazloH]

Guy dropped this off last night. I gave him some old computer stuff that someone had given me.... so that makes this free! 1974 CB360. Missing a few parts. Most notably the gas tank.. but no worries on that. I saw someone else on here use a lawn mower/leafblower gas tank as a temp fix to fire it up. no key/ignition. Debating on using it as a parts bike or trying to bring it back to life. I guess we will see how the title pans out.

Seat pan is in good shape. Engine turns over.. looks like the kickstart spindle might be stripped a little too much.. I am hoping that its like my old xs650 where its is separate from the transmission and pops out of the crank case.. rather than splitting the case. Wire harness is a mess.... dont know if I need to replace it yet. it does static shift though! I dont know about the clutch because the controls are all missing/broken.

If the title comes back alright.... the plan is to fab a seat.. grab a tank from BCR. Build or buy rearsets and move them back to where the pass footpegs are..
have not decided on swapping the whole front end or just rebuilding the forks and cleaning it up.

Paint scheme.. was thinking about doing a light brown for the frame and then white/silver for the tins... anyone have any ideas?

 

[teazer]

I am starting to hate free bikes. they always end up costing more than teh ones I buy. Probably because I won't pay for a POS. I have a couple of free projects here that cost me more than I care to mention - I consider that to the an installment plan.


Congrats on the deal. I think you have teh right approach - Title first because without one you just pour money down teh drain.

Second take the time to assess what you have and see how good or bad it is. Check out the suspension and forks and is there wear in the swingarm bushes and do the shocks have any damping. I like to prioritize things into:
- Must be done
- Should be done
- if i get around to it, it would be nice
- No way, it's fine as it is.

or something like that so I know what I absolutely have to fix. Tires, brakes etc tend to be on that list.

Things I should probably do something about include tins with small dents or castings that are gouged or scratched that will work but aren't pretty.

And so on.

Pitted fork legs where the seals ride are a no-no, but pitting behind the ears is OK etc.

By that time, you will have stripped cleaned and inspected everything and can decide what has to be replaced and where to invest time and cash. Polishing is just work, so that's a Keep it pile. Twisted or bent forks are probably into the Replace them pile and so on.

Try to determine as much as possible while it's still in one lump. I find it hard to resist stripping and cleaning everything. Work out a "look" and what is needed and that's easier if it's still more or less complete. I also hate having to cut bits off or weld new ones on after I had the frame painted or powder coated. Another approach is teh DRY BUILD where paint is added last.

In that scenario you strip and clean things and start rebuilding - but in the raw - the metal not you.... Add and delete parts as required until teh bike runs and handles and THEN you strip it and send parts out for paint. You have seen that at OCC. They build it first and then strip it for paint. One of the few things they usually get right.

And of course do teh research. Look for other builds of that bike and others to work out your unique look. You can choose to go all black and checkers and look like the crowd or head off in a sixties race rep look - light and powerful and RED or other bright go fast color. take your time with planning. It's often the most fun part were you are limited only by your imagination. Play with ideas and don't be afraid to take a different path.

Eventually you'll want to start to put the ideas into the bike and some of them just won't work, but that's OK. Some won't fit and some will look great on the bench and horrible on that bike. It's the way things work. Aim for lines that flow and style elements that work together to form a cohesive whole. That's COhesive not ADhesive, and WHole not Hole.

 

[LazloH]

In that scenario you strip and clean things and start rebuilding - but in the raw - the metal not you

I am tremendously saddened by that. Nothing makes you more of a man than grinding in your birthday suit.

Actually.. Ive got a few books coming that go into more depth of some of the history of cafe racing. Maybe I will find some inspiration in there. Gonna have a 4 hours plane ride this weekend anyways... hopefully when I get back I will have more info about where the title process is and start brain storming. I know what I like.. and I know what I like to see.. I hate when a bike looks like a bubble (think volkswagon beetle). so the lines are important to me. Even if I cant get a title and it ends up getting sold in parts.. I can still use them to brush up on my polishing skills... makes the parts worth more anyways.

 

[Erskine]

I am starting to hate free bikes. they always end up costing more than teh ones I buy. Probably because I won't pay for a POS. I have a couple of free projects here that cost me more than I care to mention - I consider that to the an installment plan.


Congrats on the deal. I think you have teh right approach - Title first because without one you just pour money down teh drain.

Second take the time to assess what you have and see how good or bad it is. Check out the suspension and forks and is there wear in the swingarm bushes and do the shocks have any damping. I like to prioritize things into:
- Must be done
- Should be done
- if i get around to it, it would be nice
- No way, it's fine as it is.

or something like that so I know what I absolutely have to fix. Tires, brakes etc tend to be on that list.

Things I should probably do something about include tins with small dents or castings that are gouged or scratched that will work but aren't pretty.

And so on.

Pitted fork legs where the seals ride are a no-no, but pitting behind the ears is OK etc.

By that time, you will have stripped cleaned and inspected everything and can decide what has to be replaced and where to invest time and cash. Polishing is just work, so that's a Keep it pile. Twisted or bent forks are probably into the Replace them pile and so on.

Try to determine as much as possible while it's still in one lump. I find it hard to resist stripping and cleaning everything. Work out a "look" and what is needed and that's easier if it's still more or less complete. I also hate having to cut bits off or weld new ones on after I had the frame painted or powder coated. Another approach is teh DRY BUILD where paint is added last.

In that scenario you strip and clean things and start rebuilding - but in the raw - the metal not you.... Add and delete parts as required until teh bike runs and handles and THEN you strip it and send parts out for paint. You have seen that at OCC. They build it first and then strip it for paint. One of the few things they usually get right.

And of course do teh research. Look for other builds of that bike and others to work out your unique look. You can choose to go all black and checkers and look like the crowd or head off in a sixties race rep look - light and powerful and RED or other bright go fast color. take your time with planning. It's often the most fun part were you are limited only by your imagination. Play with ideas and don't be afraid to take a different path.

Eventually you'll want to start to put the ideas into the bike and some of them just won't work, but that's OK. Some won't fit and some will look great on the bench and horrible on that bike. It's the way things work. Aim for lines that flow and style elements that work together to form a cohesive whole. That's COhesive not ADhesive, and WHole not Hole.

This should be a sticky.
Bloody good advice