Right on! I love a happy ending.
1982 CB750F...Better Devil
- Thread starter Jimbonaut
- Start date
Umm-ed and ahhh-ed about picking up some new carb boots - mine are showing every one of their 38 years. Decided against the Chinese cheapies (although at $30 I was sorely tempted) and stumped up for the good ones from vintagecb750 instead. $80 US for 4 small pieces of rubber definitely hurt but shit. The last thing I need is an air leak from a cheap or cracked old insulator. Also have a new +ve battery cable, speedo and tach cables and a few other needs in the mail too.
Finished up the carb rebuild, glass beaded top hats and tails and bench synched -
- so once the boots arrive I can sling them in, hook up the cables and airbox and I'll be close to firing her up for the first time. Corona is slowing some things down of course, but also probably speeding others up - I've been spending some quality time in the garage that I would not normally have. Bought a gas cap from a guy over on cb1100f.net that was in great shape but in it's factory duds. Stripped the hardcore paint off the thing, 10 grades of sandpaper and a couple of polishes later and it was ready for its close up -
Also got the rotor installed. Don't have the rear brake lines installed yet so jammed a breaker bar through the comstar and braced against the swingarm to jam up the rear wheel, stuck the engine in gear and torqued down the rotor bolt, no drama. Realized then that I'm missing a small cable bracket to secure the rotor cable but I'll make something out of a p-clip -
Finished up the carb rebuild, glass beaded top hats and tails and bench synched -
- so once the boots arrive I can sling them in, hook up the cables and airbox and I'll be close to firing her up for the first time. Corona is slowing some things down of course, but also probably speeding others up - I've been spending some quality time in the garage that I would not normally have. Bought a gas cap from a guy over on cb1100f.net that was in great shape but in it's factory duds. Stripped the hardcore paint off the thing, 10 grades of sandpaper and a couple of polishes later and it was ready for its close up -
Also got the rotor installed. Don't have the rear brake lines installed yet so jammed a breaker bar through the comstar and braced against the swingarm to jam up the rear wheel, stuck the engine in gear and torqued down the rotor bolt, no drama. Realized then that I'm missing a small cable bracket to secure the rotor cable but I'll make something out of a p-clip -
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chickenStripCharlie
Coast to Coast
Those carbs look great. I spent way too much time polishing the tops on mine and wish i had just painted them.
Yours look great though - time well spent. I'm finding I'm having to draw the line somewhere though or this bike will never - literally never - get finished. Luckily I have access to a bead blasting cabinet - the hats and bowls on my carbs got the treatment and then just a polish with Simichrome on the wheel. Job done.
Playing around with some ideas for the side covers. Something like this is leading the charge at the moment -
I have some 16 gauge sheet steel, a beater bag and shaping hammer and that's about it. I'm thinking if I can shape the intake scoop on the bag well enough then I'll weld it onto the main panel with some steel mesh in the intake. Fabricate is the name of the game here - any excuse to use that word and I'm all over it. I'm no welder (did a weekend course last year) but did pick up a Lincoln Electric MIG welder on the cheap. I'm also thinking some Loctite steel epoxy putty might not be a bad idea - if/when my welds look like shite I can run a bead of that putty over them to clean up the lines. Paint the thing satin black to match the engine with a small stainless steel oval detail.
Swinging for the fences.
I have some 16 gauge sheet steel, a beater bag and shaping hammer and that's about it. I'm thinking if I can shape the intake scoop on the bag well enough then I'll weld it onto the main panel with some steel mesh in the intake. Fabricate is the name of the game here - any excuse to use that word and I'm all over it. I'm no welder (did a weekend course last year) but did pick up a Lincoln Electric MIG welder on the cheap. I'm also thinking some Loctite steel epoxy putty might not be a bad idea - if/when my welds look like shite I can run a bead of that putty over them to clean up the lines. Paint the thing satin black to match the engine with a small stainless steel oval detail.
Swinging for the fences.
Had some scrap 18 gauge sheet steel so got the bag out and tried to thump out a scooped intake - hard, hard fail. The guys on youtube make it look like a cakewalk. Not so. Getting the thing curved on one axis was easy, but bowling it was a different story. So balls to that. Plan B looks more like this -
CAD skills in full effect. The intake will be a bit bigger and a bit more enthusiastically shaped but I think this concept has legs. I still need to figure out how to mount the panel onto the frame. One mounting point idea is to weld a nut onto the back of the panel, and bolt into it through a hole (4mm-ish) I'll drill through this gusset on the frame -
On a scale of 1 to 10, how awful an idea is that? It'll only be a small hole so I don't think it'll compromise structural integrity. What say you?
CAD skills in full effect. The intake will be a bit bigger and a bit more enthusiastically shaped but I think this concept has legs. I still need to figure out how to mount the panel onto the frame. One mounting point idea is to weld a nut onto the back of the panel, and bolt into it through a hole (4mm-ish) I'll drill through this gusset on the frame -
On a scale of 1 to 10, how awful an idea is that? It'll only be a small hole so I don't think it'll compromise structural integrity. What say you?
3DogNate
"You Meet the Nicest People on a Honda"
Did you anneal the steel? 20 Gauge might be a better choice too. 18 is pretty thick for that kinda work.
Hmm, in that case the 16 gauge plate I had lined up for the job is even thicker. The 18 gauge was scrap and only for the mock-up.
The 18 gauge is pretty thin - if I did make it out of 18 (and more so 20 gauge) I think it would/could get dinged and dented pretty easily.
I didn’t anneal the steel (didn’t even think about it to be honest), just had at it.
Sent from my iPhone using DO THE TON
The 18 gauge is pretty thin - if I did make it out of 18 (and more so 20 gauge) I think it would/could get dinged and dented pretty easily.
I didn’t anneal the steel (didn’t even think about it to be honest), just had at it.
Sent from my iPhone using DO THE TON
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chickenStripCharlie
Coast to Coast
To shape a piece that small, out of 18 gauge, is going be tough. It might seem thin, but it isnt for that kind of work.
I am also going with side panels rather than to try for that "empty triangle" look.
I was planning on adding 2 more gussets in the other 2 corners. Dont think that single one will do.
I'd love to do stainless or aluminum, but I cant weld either of those well. Might try stainless with 309L stainless electrodes and see how that works. Though , my miller stick welder has a hard time getting an arc started at lower amperages. Ugh.
I am also going with side panels rather than to try for that "empty triangle" look.
I was planning on adding 2 more gussets in the other 2 corners. Dont think that single one will do.
I'd love to do stainless or aluminum, but I cant weld either of those well. Might try stainless with 309L stainless electrodes and see how that works. Though , my miller stick welder has a hard time getting an arc started at lower amperages. Ugh.
chickenStripCharlie
Coast to Coast
And no, that small of a hole is not going to compromise anything on that gusset.
That is exactly the kind of answer I was hoping for. +/-0.05 error range though? Sheesh. You're telling me you're not sure??
