New guy with a CB400t

S

snypler

New Member
Hey everyone, my name is Tyler and I just picked up a 1979 CB400TII! I live in little ol Delaware. Fun.
I recently decided I wanted to upgrade from my moped to a motorcycle so I bought one. I apparently like to frustrate myself by biting off more than I can chew, haha. I'm going to have tons of questions I'm sure, so bare with me. This is going to be a project and an adventure.

Bike:
There's not much wrong with it cosmetically and it runs. However, I do have a slight bog and I'm having trouble getting it from first to second. It keeps just going back into neutral. The carbs probably need a cleaning but they look like they're going to be a pain in the scrotum to get to (if anyone has an easy way to do it, speak now please). I'm hoping to get it running well and then start making it look a little "cooler". I think it looks pretty nice as it is, but I want to change the tank, bars, turn signals, seat and make it a little lower (I'm not a tall guy).

Oh yea, I'm missing the front brake caliper. Does anyone know if there are any replacements that fit? Or should I just fetch a 'new' one off of ebay?

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That's a neat bike. Can I make a suggestion or five, this being your first bike and all? You seem to realize it makes sense to get it running perfectly first, so I will skip that part.

Ride it the way it is just a bit longer than you can stand it. This will help you prioritize your mods. Needs more power, then why spend time making it look fast? Having trouble stopping, then why make it faster? Have a tendency to use your signals, why take them off? Getting lots of comments on your mostly original vintage bike, why change it? It is only original once.

Your shifting issue could be a number of things from clutch adjustment to shifter position to bent shift forks, worn gears or dogs, to just weak toes. Try shifting with more authority.

Brake caliper, get the correct one. Welcome to ebay.

Do not lower the bike unless it is a safety issue.

snypler said:
bare with me.
Click to expand...
Oh and by the way, no thanks. Ha.
 
Thanks for the reply, DohcBikes!
I appreciate the input. I planned on doing everything in the order you mentioned pretty much. In my mind, getting it to run well included all of those things, haha.

I tried shifting with more authority and it didn't help. Or my toes are just so weak that I thought I was doing it authoritatively. I probably shouldn't have been riding with running shoes so I could put a little more ass into it. I'll put my boots on and if it persists then I'll try adjusting the shifter positioning and go from there. I was, however, able to shift into it maybe three times without and more noticeable force.

Ebay: your best friend and your worst enemy.
 
Uh... Better get a front brake in that ride before you ride it. No safe-O without a front stoping piece.


Yeah Son!
 
it looks like it might have the wrong left hand footpeg fitted and also the gear lever looks a little high,could it be catching on the case?,it could also be that the distance between the peg and gear lever is too short giving you less leverage.
 
That's a classy bike. Well done.

I'm not calling you short, but check out this article: http://lanesplitter.jalopnik.com/the-short-persons-guide-to-motorcycle-riding-1726042532 It might give you some good ideas.

Like Loctite said, don't ride the bike until you replace the caliper. That's insane. I'd get the other mirror on there, too. Then consider keeping it stock, or as close as you can in making it comfortable (bars). At that age, original is often "cooler" than molested, and yours is looking really sweet as-is. A little dorkiness is charming.
 
"A little dorkiness is charming"
Never heard it that way but it's so true
That bike looks like it's in good shape and could just use a little finesse to make it dorky cool again
I would ride it silly!


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Thanks for all the input everyone! Haven't had a chance to log on over the holiday. I'm going to try and take the carbs off after work tomorrow and clean them.
Oh, and the caliper came in over the weekend too. So I guess I'll also be messing with that.

bigchap: The peg seems right, its just missing the rubber. Gear shift isn't hitting the case. I can easily shift when the bike is off. But when running, I just can't get it. Probably an operator error.

iatethepeach & Kamn:
haha, I guess dorkiness is a little charming. I do like it the way it is, but I definitely need to do something about the bars. I'm just not comfortable on it right now. I did cut a little bit of seat foam off though and I feel a little bit better about it.
 
i don't know if this bike was restricted by your emission laws but in the uk the later model cb400n was hugely under-rated.i had an rd400 and a friend had the cb400n,his bike would murder mine on top speed and stop better due to having twin discs on the front.his was really crappy in the twisty stuff though so i could always catch him. :)
 
One other thing I didn't see talked about is your clutch adjusted right? My FJ clutch was real weak causing it to not want to go into gear smoothly Once I got it worked out had NPs ! Good luck and nice looking bike and by the way if your going to do any mods once you get it running right try not to do anything you can undo !
 
I did mess with the clutch adjustment a little. It didn't help.
Carb was removed and cleaned with no improvement. I found out that someone had removed the original airbox so I think I'm probably running a lean. And I'm also idling very very low. I'm going to research which jets to buy, swap them out, and do a few test runs.

Front brake caliper came in the mail, but I haven't put it on yet. Kind of don't know what I'm doing but I'll figure it out, haha.
 
I hope you have a manual. Have you changed the oil? The type of oil in these machines does affect shifting. If you think you're lean, then you may have a vacuum leak around the boots or somewhere. Certain cleaners will also negatively affect seals and O rings. Get the manual, run through all of the maintenance procedures, get your caliper on, then put a shitload of miles on. Don't tear anything apart until you've ridden a couple thousand miles, especially the handlebars. Don't be tempted by snake oil upgrades or clubman handlebars.


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I haven't changed the oil yet, so I guess I should do so. I rode up and down my street about five times with only getting into second gear once. Still bogs down real hard.
I was really careful with the seals and O rings because I know cleaners can affect them. I have a pdf of the manual, so I'll start skimming through it soon. Probably won't be able to work on it for a few days though.
 
Good news: I changed the oil, and moved the shifter arm and now I can shift normal. Big thanks to everyone for the feedback. Much appreciated.
Bad news: still bogs pretty hard and my lights stopped working. Maybe a bad regulator/rectifier? Any info on replacing that would be much appreciated. New jets are on the way.
 
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