My first bike, 1975 Honda CL360, HELP!

[jeremiah.chaney]

This is my first bike, and i really do not know much. I just bought it a few days ago. I plan to cafe it out.


The bike starts up but will not idle for longer than a few minuets? I drained out the old gas and put in fresh gas as well as put on clear fuel hoses and fuel filters and it seemed to flow smooth and clean with no muck and dirt but it still died out after a few minutes. The guy that i bought it from said he sort of cleaned out the carbs but didn't sound very reassuring on it. I have not used any starter fluid nor have i changed out the oil yet. Not sure how much of a difference that would make?


I also noticed when it was running that the upper exhaust pipe was blowing much harder? I did not change out the spark plugs because they still looked pretty new.


In addition, the previous owner must have tightened the upper triple clamp on the tree stem way too tight because both sides are cracked. Any suggestions other than eBay for upper triple clamp? Also, do I have to search for fork clamps that are from 1975 only? or is there a range of 70's honda clamps that will fit the same?


Any suggestions, or things I should be looking for as I try to get this bike fully up and running?


Please feel free to ask any questions. I'm clueless on this stuff, but I want to learn. Any thoughts, advice, or suggestions will be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!

 

[CarolinaBoy]

Good luck finding a top triple. These are known for cracking. The year won't matter with these. You can use any from the cl, cb, or cj 360. CM400 triples also work.

I'd clean the carbs to start.

Also, let me know if you end up getting rid of that exhaust. I've been looking for one.

 

[13thenewblack13]

I second the carb cleaning.


My bike would barely start, running on one cylinder and wouldn't idle. Sprayed some carb spray and the second would start up, but still no idle, and gushing gas from an overflow tube. my carbs didn't even seem that dirty when i took them apart, but after i put them back in, all my problems were fixed.


Its my first bike also, and i'm learning that the most important thing is to do things right the first time. ( i took my carbs apart 3 times )


also look for rust in your tank

 

[frogman]

What kind of compression readings have you gotten or have you tried? My 360 had a soft left cylinder that barley made any thing around 30-40 and it would NOT idle for very long as such. AND it barely puffed out that side of the exhaust. IF you haven't checked yet do so, pull the plugs make sure the choke and the throttle are wide open and kick the fire out of the thing until the pressure in the gauge stops rising. You WANT 165 COLD on both sides and at least 170-175 warm with no more than 10% between each side. They will run on lower, just not very well. I know been there have that coffee cup and the bill to prove it.

THEN look at the carbs. I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned my effing carbs but made no difference until I gathered up a compression tester and figured out the real problem. The off balance of the exhaust pressure is a good indicator as well that the carbs are out of sync so that may be the next step to check once you clean them and check them out.

The clamps wander across eBay now and then some go high $ some sit unsold depending on how badly ppl need them. ASAIK, any model 360 will have the same triple clamp. Do some research, I believe that a CM400 will work as well, but I forget right now. :

As far as the rest, get yourself a manual, preferably a shop manual. Get an IMPACT SCREWDRIVER. And have fun. ;D Looks like a great starting place for a cafe or a resto since you look to have a mostly complete bike.

EDIT= Did you or the PO put the added fuel shut offs in line? These bikes need the fuel shut OFF when you are not riding them or they can possibly fill the crank case full of fuel and all it does is thin the oil and cause parts to WEAR OUT. STOP running it right now and check your oil for FUEL smell or feel. IF it does CHANGE IT right away and pray that something bad hasn't happened.

 

[VonYinzer]

Step 1: Change the oil.

Step 2: Compression test. If its bad, really bad... You need internal engine work.

Step 3: Check valve clearances. Put them to stock.

Step 4: Check the points. Put them to stock.

Step 5: New plugs. Use the right ones. Your manual will tell you what those are.

Step 6: Replace the plug ends. You can get new ones at Auto Zone. Cut about 1/4" off of the leads, and screw in new boots.

Step 7: Make sure you have a good battery. Old Hondas HATE bad batterys.

Step 8: Pull and CLEAN carbs. Make sure the jets are ok. Clean all passages. Etc...

Step 9: Make sure that the carbs are reinstalled correctly, and that there are no vacuum leaks in the intake boots.

Step 10: Clean the (probobly) filthy air filters as well as you can with compressed air or replace them if you can.

Step 11: Make sure the exhaust is tightened correctly.

Step 12: Start bike.

Step 13: Set timing. Again, refer to your manual for this.

 

[VonYinzer]

After that, you will have a better idea of what you need.

 

[jeremiah.chaney]

Sorry it took me so long to reply, but thanks for everybody's advice, it definitely helped push me in the right direction.


First thing I did was take off the carbs, and as I was sort of expecting they were pretty gunky all the way through. The diaphragms looked great with no tears though! I took off the jets and all the little screws inside and soaked them overnight in a mixture of water and degreaser which helped a bunch and then the next day soaked the entire thing in one of those 1 gallon carb cleaners. it worked great! I then rinsed everything in the hose and used compressed air to dry off. I of course made sure i took off anything that had rubber o-rings or plastic before soaking in the carb cleaner.


Here is the finished result.

I put the carbs all back together and reinstalled onto my bike. Anyone have any suggestions on new air filters? I also heard that if you get new smaller air filters you have to buy new jets?


Next, I opened up my crank case and cleaned out my oil filters. Not terribly dirty but definitely in need of a cleaning. One problem when opening the crank case, the gasket was so stuck to the case that it ripped on both the top and bottom. so now I need to order a new gasket...any suggestions other than ebay? they seem a bit expensive everywhere i look.


Lastly, I was able to find a tree stem with a complete upper and lower triple clamp off of a 1978 Honda CM 400 for $20 on ebay. I bought it, installed it, and it fit perfectly! Thanks carolinaboy!

I did end up doing a compression test and the readings were very close to where they should be, so I dont think I have any internal engine problems. Thank God.

My next task is just ordering parts. Air filters w/ new jets?, crank case gasket, and new tires and tubes. Looks like she should be almost fully up and running!

 

[bobjohnson]

If youre using ebay anyway, that will be the best place to get gaskets. I got a full set for one of my bikes for 15 bucks, 5 dollars shipping in a nice sturdy box straight from england. This was after i spend 40 dollars on ONE gasket that i needed which was shipped in a plain brown envelope that ended up getting bent in half by my stupid mail man trying to jam it into my mailbox

 

[frogman]

Once you get the gasket, grease it before you put it on. They will not stick and come off every time. As long as you don't tighten the hell out of them you can use them a few times before they get completely smashed.

If you keep the side covers, get the foam UNI filters and put them on. They are just like the pods or the K&Ns but they will bend around the battery and still work as well as the originals did. I have been told that if you oil them correctly, you don't need new jets. I used to run them on all my atvs and sometimes we had to put a sock on them to get them to work right.

 

[uncletwisty]

If you are still having idling issues, as I did when I bought my 75 360, their may be some carbon build up in your exhaust.. you'll note shitty performance though the whole range and when it spits the carbon out you'll realize that you've bought a quick little bike.. took me about 20 miles to get it hot enough to spit it out. I did everything that everyone suggested and I was still having issues.. so if you get to wits end, just take that fucker out on the road and rip around for an hour or so.. and have fun with it, these bikes are awesome.