Junkyard dog CB175-Project Murdercycle- slow build

[timbutterfield]

So I have been lurking here a while, watching and learning. I am new to cafe bikes, but not new to motorcycling. Been riding for about 20 years. My current daily driver is a 1995 honda nighthawk 250. Which some may call a baby beginners bike. I love it, and hope to never sell it. I have ridden many different bikes, and owned a few. I am of the mindset that less is more. Originally I wanted to cafe my cb250, but after much research, decided it was not worth it. So it remains stock. One day while riding some back roads getting lost, I spotted a ratty rusted bike in front of a junkyard. I stopped and talked with the owner, and got some information on it. It is a 1972 honda cb175. After some research, and finding out I could still source parts, I went back and haggled with the owner. I gave him 100 bucks and loaded my cb175 into the truck. Non running but with a title.

 

[timbutterfield]

The bike has been completely torn down, everything has been disassembled except the motor. My plans are to build a rolling frame then proceed with an engine teardown and rebuild.

 

[timbutterfield]

I was very happy to learn that the cb160, 175. and 200 are raced in the northwest, and parts are readily available

 

[timbutterfield]

This is going to be a slow build. Money is tight and I can only afford parts in small spurts.

This will be an around town kicker. I do not plan on building a race bike anytime soon. I have learned that even racing small vintage bikes is expensive. And extra race money will not be in my budget for a few years.

Anyway, Junkyard dog has been deemed project murdercycle. I am not a big fan of chrome or polished aluminum, so most everything will be black. I am on a budget, so I have decided to paint myself, and forgo powdercoating. pretty much everything will be black. I havent decided if I will paint the forks black or attempt to polish them.

I am still undecided on Paint for the front fender, tank, and seat. It will either be black(surprise!) or silver with black racing stripes.

 

[timbutterfield]

The main purpose of this build is a brand new bike. (or as close as it can get). I cannot afford to rebuild a muscle car at this point, but I want a vehicle that doesn't have a speck of dirt on it(just at first). With no rust and a nice paint job.

 

[timbutterfield]

Stage 1. disassemble-complete.

Stage 2 build a roller-in progress

So I have removed the old tires and unlaced my wheels.

 

[timbutterfield]

So my tire irons would not work on the 30-40 year old rubber, even after heating it up with a heat gun. So they tires got sawed off.

 

[timbutterfield]

So after getting the bike home, I thought the engine had seized. But once disassembled, I discovered that one carburator slide was stuck. Luckily the motor turns over by hand. The side stand is broken. (going to be ditched anyway). And the previous owner had snapped of one of the heads of the carburator adjustment screws. I went to harbor freight and purchased a drill press and some easy outs. With some patience and a little luck I was able to drill out the Adjustment screw. I was very happy to not need to buy a new or used carb.

 

[timbutterfield]

some wheel pictures.

 

[timbutterfield]

I was truly amazed at how much rust came off of the wheels with a wire brush drill bit.

 

[timbutterfield]

there is a spot of rust on one of the wheels that went through the chrome. But I am impressed with honda's chroming process from the 70's

 

[timbutterfield]

I was quite happy to see my cb250 wheels are laced exactly the same as my cb175 wheels, So there should be no big issues getting them back together.

 

[timbutterfield]

I will have all the parts i need for a roller within a few weeks. I asked for motorcycle parts for christmas. It was a good christmas!

 

[timbutterfield]

more pictures of dirty motorcycle parts

 

[timbutterfield]

I still need to get a strap wrench so I can get the forks apart, Then I should be able to pull them apart and clean them up and replace the seals.

 

[timbutterfield]

So I am still undecided on clip-ons or clubmans. I like the look of clip-ons better, but the only ones in my price range are on ebay from china. I don't know if clubmans would be much more comfortable to make them worth it.

Oh I am planning on getting a set of the rear sets from Viet on DTT. Stock footrests are gonna go!

 

[timbutterfield]

I am planning on honing the cylinders and re-ringing when I tear the engine down. Not sure If I should just go ahead and bore it out and get oversize pistons.

 

[timbutterfield]

I am planning on adding a rear hoop to the frame. It seems that it may be cheaper and easier to buy a pre fabbed one from here or DCC. Since I need a really small radius bend, I think itll be hard to find someone locally to do it.

 

[timbutterfield]

One of my forks is toast. The spring is rusted to the fork tube and the valve is rusted to the fork tube as well. Now I gotta find a set on eBay for hopefully not too much $