Down under, an idiot and a 400F

[neevo]

We have a confirmed pick up time. Tuesday 6.30pm, give it an hour or two to get home and I should be posting some piccies!

 

[andycafe]

Sweet

 

[neevo]

Well it's fair to say that today has been a much anticipated day for me in the building of my custom 400... the motor came back from vapour blasting! For those not knowing this is a process of glass bead blasting in a water slurry. Its claimed to get amazing results and not be tough on the metal, the finish is smoother than bead blasting alone and this leaves a smoother shinier finish that is more impervious to grease and stains.

I did a fair bit of research when looking for someone to blast my cases in Sydney and one name kept cropping up time and time again:

Dave Mac
vapourblasting@yahoo.com.au (he will usually respond within a day or two)

Despite Dave's stellar reputation there wasn't much on the web in regards to pics of his work, so I hope this acts as an illustration of the sort of work Dave can do on a motor such as mine. I let Dave take his time, as we were in the middle of bushfires in Sydney, but all in all it only took about 4 weeks (bang on schedule for what I asked for) and the cost was exceptional given the results!

I did try and get the motor prepped as much as possible as per Dave's request by splitting the motor completely, removing all moving parts and cleaning and degreasing. As a gentle reminder here is what Dave was starting with:

So enough of the yacking!!! I suppose pictures are in order





















But before I do... I quickly wanted to say how impressed with Dave and his service I was. Not only is Dave a cracking chap, happy to talk all things motorbikes (especially old Ducati's and motorcrossers) but his attention to detail is exceptional, making sure I got what I wanted in the finish I wanted. The pics you will see are a little shiny at the moment, but it will dull down a touch to a flat Alu... exactly what I wanted!

So on to the pictures!

The parts:

Some close up work:

And the motor on the stand:

So would I say I'm happy? Well its only November, but I feel like Santa has come early for me this year. I temporarily buttoned the motor up using my new SS bolt kit, which takes some working out which bolts go where, still haven't got that one worked out, but I'm hoping the manual may point me in the right direction.

 

[crazypj]

Damn that looks nice.
Almost seems a shame to remove the modern art from living room

 

[andycafe]

Are you kidding me? Awesome

 

[stroker crazy]

So would I say I'm happy?

Beautiful job!

I now know who to go to when I get back to working on the DT400.

Crazy

 

[Maritime]

Wow Neevo that turned out beautiful! oh, and remember to put never sieze on the ss fasteners and careful on the tightening as the hex heads can have way more torque applied and gual in etc. I am sure you already know that but hate to see anything bad happen to that piece of mechanical artwork on the off chance you didn't.

 

[ronnie]

Wow, I didn't think it would look that good! Awesome!

-sent from sea via corked bottle

 

[neevo]

Wow Neevo that turned out beautiful! oh, and remember to put never sieze on the ss fasteners and careful on the tightening as the hex heads can have way more torque applied and gual in etc. I am sure you already know that but hate to see anything bad happen to that piece of mechanical artwork on the off chance you didn't.

Cheers Bud. Will do! Any tips on torquing the hex heads? Should I get a hex head socket for my torque wrench?

Also anyone know how to easily identify which bolts go where, on the head for example there are 4 different lengths/types, I popped them in holes and eyeballed getting the same length above the surface, but not sure on correct process. Are the bolt lengths in the manual somewhere?

Cheers for all the comments gents, Dave would be pleased to hear all the comments.

 

[bobminkwell]

Also anyone know how to easily identify which bolts go where, on the head for example there are 4 different lengths/types, I popped them in holes and eyeballed getting the same length above the surface, but not sure on correct process. Are the bolt lengths in the manual somewhere?

hey neevo cool build, been quietly following along. you can find the bolt diameters x lengths in the parts manual - CMSNL (and others eg Partzilla) have page images, part numbers and part descriptions you can view at:

http://www.cmsnl.com/honda-cb400f-australia_model14644/partslist/E01-1.html#results

for cyls/heads and

http://www.cmsnl.com/honda-cb400f-australia_model14644/partslist/E01-2.html#results

for crankcases. I used these when i did the same bolt conversion for my GT185 cases, helpfully the lengths were also listed in my owners manual anyway though. and yeah I got hex adapters to use with my torque wrench- ~$15 from the cheap parts bin at repco from memory.

Hope that helps
Adam

 

[neevo]

Thanks Adam, that's a huge help.

 

[patak]

Wow that looks great, was thinking of doing this with my motor now my mind is made up.

You said it will dull down a bit from being so shiny, what about after that? is it just a matter of keeping it clean and it should keep the look you are after.

Great build so far well done.

Cheers Ken

 

[bikeboy]

you can find the bolt diameters x lengths in the parts manual - CMSNL (and others eg Partzilla) have page images, part numbers and part descriptions
Hope that helps
Adam

Looking good fella. Let me know if you want a parts PDF. Bolt info is all in there. Yeah, grab a hex head socket, you won't regret it.

cheers
ian

 

[neevo]

You said it will dull down a bit from being so shiny, what about after that? is it just a matter of keeping it clean and it should keep the look you are after.

Cheers Ken

Pretty much Ken, Dave offered to blast it shinier but I asked for a flat Alu, shinier just takes more time I think.

Dave also recommended CRC spray to keep it clean rather than something like wd40 which has a yellow tinge. That way it should repel a few stains etc. The odd bath and it should keep nice and clean.

 

[swan]

Beautiful work. Start going clockwise, build that beast and ride the wheels off her.

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

OUT-FUCKING-STANDING!

 

[andycafe]

How you getting on my man

 

[neevo]

Nada to report I'm afraid my amigo! Vapour blasting was the last thing, although I have a mate working a pretty number of CNC items for me which will hopefully be revealed in the new year.

Saving my pennies for the motor internals, plus I'm heavily weighing up painting the fins on my freshly vapour blasted motor. It's a shame to cover them up but I just love the black fins/polished edges look.

Pretty close to pulling the trigger on an exhaust setup too, as always it's not a CB typical part, but sure it will look awesome with some custom bent headers

 

[neevo]

Here's a teaser of some of the billet goodness to come:

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[andycafe]

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