It's in bits---now what do I do?

Yesterday I took a CB550F2 down to the bare frame. Then I had a long
hot soak with a Romeo y Julieta and a good book (`The Damned United',
highly recommended).

My question now is what do I do with the bits. I don't need the bike
for transport so I'm in no hurry and I would like to bring it back to
great niceness. I'm planning on powder coating for the frame and
possibly rechroming some bits but is there anything else I should be
thinking of?

 

Depends what you want. I'd set up some searches on Ebay to find a bike
for parts: donor bikes are very useful. If it hasn't been run for a
long while, I'd also think about cleaning the carbs.

 

Before you spend money you need a reality check.

Is the bike complete and original.Can you demonstrate proper provenance.
The engine and frame numbers should match the V5 and the bike should
still have its original registration number. Without this it is not
going to be worth a lot regardless of how much money you spend.

Is the condition truly original with the correct parts such as seats,
exhaust, headlamp, tank, etc. Any aftermarket parts could indicate that
the correct parts are either expensive or unobtainable.

Is the bike mechanically sound, a pretty paint job with a noisy gearbox
is a sad case of all mouth and no trousers. Expect to replace sprockets
and chains.

By now you should be able to figure out a budget for your restoration.
Make up a fully costed list of what you need to spend and compare the
total cost with the going price of a good example.

Add a sizeable contingency for the inevitable surprises and double the
time that you think it will take.

Now ask yourself if you *really* want to commit to the task.

 

The carb job was already a definite and I'm on the look-out for
parts. David Silver seems to have a lot of what I need.

 

I'm not doing it because I think that it will be valuable when I'm
finished so I'm not too worried about `correct' parts. It's my own
bike which I've had for eight years but haven't used for two, so I
have all the documentation. I really just want to bring it back to
being a nice bike and I'm not too worried how long it takes.

 

Has Sir read the FAQs??

 

I played with a CB550F2 a couple of years ago, and I've owned another
such as well as a K in the past. The thing to watch is the rear hub -
they have a nasty reputation for corroding and cracking, and new ones
are £Eeek. What happens is that corrosion creeps in between the cast
iron liner and the alloy hub.

That apart, the engines are solid and the only hassles are in getting
decent tinware, as ever. I don't think OE exhausts are available any
more, for example.

Only downer about the CB550 for me was its voracious thirst. The K was
much more economical - I think they changed the carbs on the K. I
struggled to better 40mpg on my Fs, and all time low was 29mpg on one
thrash.

 

What I've touched looks sound if manky. I rebuilt the engine a few
years after a minor bin but the rest hadn't been touched since Mr
Honda screwed it together.

I have one of them (bought for the rebuild). The real problem is going
to be getting a clean crankcase and top end to replace the chipped one
I rebuilt into. I could put that back in, but I'd rather not.

 

M J Carley wrote

Stick on anything that works and looks good.
Rebuilds are best done in the kitchen.

 

SWMBO has moved to France for work: I can degrease in the
sink. Splendid.

 

This reminds me of that awful episode when I put a 400 Four sump in the
dishwasher, a couple of years back.

 

<chortle>

 

I hope you don't use that trick of cooking fish in the dishwasher.

 

Using the patented Mavis Beacon "Hunt&Peck" Technique, Champ

I'm always amazed that people don't take that exit route more often. I
visited a lap-dancing joint in Cape Town *years* ago with one of my
company's salesmen. I told Mrs WUN all the (not too) gory details that
night. She chortled, called me a fucking old perv and that was that.
Salesman made me *swear* never to tell his wife.

I can still make him leap three feet in the air just by mentioning "Cape
Town" to his missus.

--
Wicked Uncle Nigel - Podium Placed Ducati Race Engineer as featured in
Performance Bikes and Fast Bikes

WS* GHPOTHUF#24 APOSTLE#14 DLC#1 COFF#20 BOTAFOT#150 HYPO#0(KoTL) IbW#41
SBS#39 OMF#6 Enfield 500 Curry House Racer "The Basmati Rice Burner",
Honda GL1000K2 (Falling apart) Kawasaki ZN1300 Voyager "Oh, Oh, It's so big"
Suzuki TS250 "The Africa Single" Yamaha Vmax Honda ST1100 wiv trailer

 

Oh right.

"Princess, I've just degreased a dismantled motorcycle engine in our lovely
dishwasher."

"Heh. Fucking old perv."

That'll work.

--
platypus

"Merely corroborative detail, intended to
give artistic verisimilitude to an otherwise
bald and unconvincing narrative."

 

Using the patented Mavis Beacon "Hunt&Peck" Technique, platypus

<rolls eyes>

You may need to change the script slightly. The exact wording is left as
an exercise for the student.

--
Wicked Uncle Nigel - Podium Placed Ducati Race Engineer as featured in
Performance Bikes and Fast Bikes

WS* GHPOTHUF#24 APOSTLE#14 DLC#1 COFF#20 BOTAFOT#150 HYPO#0(KoTL) IbW#41
SBS#39 OMF#6 Enfield 500 Curry House Racer "The Basmati Rice Burner",
Honda GL1000K2 (Falling apart) Kawasaki ZN1300 Voyager "Oh, Oh, It's so big"
Suzuki TS250 "The Africa Single" Yamaha Vmax Honda ST1100 wiv trailer

 

http://tinyurl.com/34l92t might help ...

(Argos dishwashers ...)

 

Ah. You mean:

"Princess, I've just degreased a dismantled motorcycle engine in our lovely
dishwasher."

<fx:stab stab stab stab stab stab stab etc>

--
platypus

"Merely corroborative detail, intended to
give artistic verisimilitude to an otherwise
bald and unconvincing narrative."

 

Using the patented Mavis Beacon "Hunt&Peck" Technique, platypus

3/10. Please try to pay attention in class.

--
Wicked Uncle Nigel - Podium Placed Ducati Race Engineer as featured in
Performance Bikes and Fast Bikes

WS* GHPOTHUF#24 APOSTLE#14 DLC#1 COFF#20 BOTAFOT#150 HYPO#0(KoTL) IbW#41
SBS#39 OMF#6 Enfield 500 Curry House Racer "The Basmati Rice Burner",
Honda GL1000K2 (Falling apart) Kawasaki ZN1300 Voyager "Oh, Oh, It's so big"
Suzuki TS250 "The Africa Single" Yamaha Vmax Honda ST1100 wiv trailer