1973 CB350... (she's getting there! new PICS!)

[cb350greg]

i've helped my dad restore a few classic vehicles including a 55 Chevy pickup, 68 Ford Falcon, and a 66 Chevy pickup, but this is the first bike we've ever really worked on. i wanted to do one the last couple years and my parents bought me this as my college graduation gift (BS in mechanical engineering woo!).
here it is the day we picked it up:

cosmetically it isn't horrible, but there was alot of rust in the tank, it wasn't running, and the front brake didn't work.
you can see my dad's 55 off to the side in this picture

only 13k miles on it.... my 2008 GSXR 600 already has over 14k haha

started stripping it down right away

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

i got bored late at night and started polishing. took the front fender off, scrubbed the inside, then polished it.
i also did the headers and one muffler and then realized the right muffler has a hole rusted in the very end only cosmetic, but i'm going to have to buy new mufflers

then i started on the fork lowers
before:

after:

this past weekend we went after the engine after getting the tank back from being cleaned and coated. it would sputter on starting fluid, but wasn't pulling any gas, so off came the carbs.
its been sitting for a while

after:

fired right up but was only running on the right cylinder at first. took the left carb back off, checked everything (was OK) and put it back on. same thing. choked the left carb by hand and after it ran for a while it finally started firing. my dad took it for a run around the block... said it was too dangerous for me to since the front brake isn't working yet. ran great and sounds good too.

 

[Rocan]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

not bad! off to a good start...

I want to study mechanical engineering... what university did you attend?

 

[diesel450]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

Thats the way to do it, get it running and see what you've got. what's your plan??

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

not bad! off to a good start...

I want to study mechanical engineering... what university did you attend?

thanks!
i went to Grove City, a really small college in Western PA. not the most recognizable name out there, but i had 2 job offers and accepted one well before graduation.

right now i'm just going to clean it up and put it back together stock so i can actually ride it, then start adding the fun stuff. don't know if i'm going down to the bare frame now or holding off on that til winter. not doing anything too wild (at least not now ) : clipons (or clubmans if the forks are nasty behind the covers, new, lower headlight brackets, lose the rear fender, get some cool taillights and signals, and do something with that enormous seat.

 

[kingofthenuggets]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

WOOP WOOP ... GCC in the house! I don't know why I am so excited, I went to Thiel College up in Greenville, PA for a year before I decided college wasn't for me yet. You have a nice bike to start off with and can imagine with your experience this thing is going to be rockin' in a couple of months. Yeah ... another western PA thread!!

 

[Rocan]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

thanks!
i went to Grove City, a really small college in Western PA. not the most recognizable name out there, but i had 2 job offers and accepted one well before graduation.

right now i'm just going to clean it up and put it back together stock so i can actually ride it, then start adding the fun stuff. don't know if i'm going down to the bare frame now or holding off on that til winter. not doing anything too wild (at least not now ) : clipons (or clubmans if the forks are nasty behind the covers, new, lower headlight brackets, lose the rear fender, get some cool taillights and signals, and do something with that enormous seat.

not bad!

i hate clubmans... just seems fake to me.

what are you working as?

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

not bad!

i hate clubmans... just seems fake to me.

what are you working as?

i'm a mechanical design engineer with a company that builds machine for inspection/ quality control of glass and plastic bottles.

i much prefer the look of clipons too.
here's my other ride... the CB is probably going to feel a little different to say the least haha

 

[diesel450]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

Nothing "fake" about clubmans. they were designed in the day to get around regulations that mandated use of stock stearing mounts. Clip-ons do help clean up the dash though. Nice Gixxer!

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

well i pulled the master cylinder apart a few days ago and it was all sludged up as suspected. also the rubber on the piston was torn. i did some looking around online and ending up finding a brand new master cylinder from a kawasaki something or other for less than what it would cost for a rebuild kit. still need to mess around with the brakes a little more, they're still not quite right

list of other things i've done since my last update
-degreased engine
-cleaned frame. i may strip it down completely and paint the whole thing this winter, but i touched up one small rust spot at the Y in front of the engine and other than that its really clean
-removed, cleaned, sanded, and painted battery box, tool box thingy, bar connecting the pegs (whatever thats called), kickstand, passenger peg/ exhaust brackets
-removed exhaust. one header is polished to like new, other still needs some work. one muffler is in great shape, other has hole rusted in tip and something (concrete?!) all over it. i'll be ordering new ones this week
-stripped clear off case covers and started polishing. they look alot better, but getting them to a mirror finish will probably be an ongoing process
-polished rear rim. still need to do spokes and hub, that should be fun.
-removed, polished, and reinstalled shocks
-ordered Avon Roadriders and new tubes
-changed oil
-polished gauges and headlight bucket (dunno if i'll repaint it or not, its in pretty good shape)

sorry i don't have any more pictures, i'll try to get some up tomorrow

 

[Big R]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

Don't know how I missed this thread before, but I'll be watching now. Let me know if you're gonna get rid of that front caliper - I've been looking for one.

And most people know Grove City for the outlets and not the college. It gets crazy up there.

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

Don't know how I missed this thread before, but I'll be watching now. Let me know if you're gonna get rid of that front caliper - I've been looking for one.

And most people know Grove City for the outlets and not the college. It gets crazy up there.

definitely need the caliper, it was the master cylinder that i got a replacement for.

crazy? grove city college? lol, really?

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

just a bunch of polishing and cleaning tonight.
-little more work on the frame
-airbox inner covers
-rear fender
-taillight (even though its not going back on)
-header pipe

ordered a whole bunch of new stuff too
-mufflers
-turn signals
-taillight and plate bracket
-headlight bucket
-headlight brackets

still need to buy clipons, bar end mirrors, grips, and get the seat redone

any suggestions for bar end mirrors? i want something better than ebay crap, but i don't want to spend over $100 on Rizoma stuff

here's the ever growing pile of finished parts in my bedroom:

 

[Big R]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

Dime City has some great mirrors along with a selection of grips.

I can't make it out from my phone, but is that tool tray chromed or just polished? Either way, that's a shiny pile-o-parts.

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

tires came in the mail yesterday; i went with Avon Roadriders in 90/90-18 and 100/90-18

stripped some more parts off and did even more sanding, cleaning, and polishing.
i got some pictures for you guys this time though

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

delivery man brought me a bunch of goodies today (thanks DCC! surprised how fast they got it to me). the only thing i'm going to put on right now though is the exhaust since it looks stock. i'm going to put everything back original first so i can get antique plates for it, then put the fun parts on.
finished up the case covers today. i'm sure they could be a little better, but i'm doing this all by hand so i'm more than pleased with the results.

 

[diesel450]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

Polishing looks great!

 

[cb350greg]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

^^ thanks!

so it seems like i took a step backwards somehow.
couple weeks ago we cleaned the carbs and had it running great after alot of tinkering. well since then i removed the headers and a bunch of other stuff to clean and polish.
put everything back together and now the darn thing won't stay running.

any ideas?
i know the thing calls for 91 octane and i only had 87 in a jug for the lawnmower, but thats what it ran on last time. could something this little really cause me these issues?

 

[Big R]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

Nope - it's almost certainly something with the carbs. Try and back track and think about what was touched / removed. Like the coils, ignition switch, etc.

When you say it won't stay running, do you mean won't run at idle or through the entire rpm range? Most likely the pilot jet got clogged up. The octane of the gas shouldn't have an effect.

 

[HerrDeacon]

Re: 1973 CB350... my first bike build

...a bunch of other stuff to clean and polish...

What's included in this 'bunch of other stuff'. Just wanted to know if something in this list could affect the running of the bike.