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cb550 first attempt - restore and modernise

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aled:
Thought i would share my build with you and seek some much needed help and advice as i progress with my build. first a little background on myself and the bike, by trade i am carpenter from south wales and have no prior mechanical knowledge besides maybe putting an air filter on my first car and changing the alloys when i was 17, as for the bike it is a 1977 cb550 which i purchased for a fairly reasonable price in December 2016. My main priority when looking for a honda was that it was running , which this one was, BUT barley, after bringing the bike home i think i was able to fire it up maybe twice after countless attempts.

After a closer inspection and giving the bike a well needed clean it was obvious that the engine and bike were not in the best condition, anywhere there was a gasket, there was a leak. Not sure what to do and after a few months on debating if i should find a mechanic to carry out the work or attempt it myself, i decided i would attempt to rebuild the top-end myself, i knocked up a quick bench for the bike so it could be easier to work on and to have as much space as possible when not working on the bike in my garage.

Before i begin any cosmetic work or touch the frame my goal is to make sure that the engine is running as good as possible (to my skill at least) seeing as this, in my opinion is the most important part of the bike.


below are a few pictures of the bike before and during the project.

Clunker:
Hi Aled and welcome. The bike doesn't look too bad in the pictures but I do know from experience that pics can be misleading. I like the idea of your bench but how did you get the bike on it, unless you have a ramp not shown in the pic. You can't beat doing the work yourself, I personally wouldn't buy a bike that was in perfect running order as I like to fix them up......and they are generally a whole lot cheaper when not running. :D

Nurse Julie:
Welcome Aled. Good luck with your project. I love the bench, that's brilliant 😊😊

hairygit:
Hi Aled and welcome. To be perfectly honest, looking at the state of the oil you've drained from it, and your description of a leak from every gasket, I'd suggest a complete strip down, including the bottom end. After all, will be very disappointing for you if you rebuild the top end, only to find the main bearings rumbling, the big ends knocking, or the primary chain lashing about, or worse cutting through the main oil gallery in the crankcases (500's and 550's primary chains can do that if run too slack, and that's replacement engine casings time! :o) The bottom end is not as scary or daunting as you might imagine, and there is plenty of advice and help on here. And NOTHING beats the feeling of your first full strip and rebuild coming back to life. Far easier to sort all the possible issues now than do the top end and find something in the bottom end failing.

MarkCR750:
First a few coments on your carpentry (joinery), obviously butt jointed and would have benefited from a few mortice and Tennons 😄, only kidding, welcome to the forum, restoring a bike is almost as much fun as riding one so you'll have a good time with that, good choice of bike too, look fwd to seeing it progress 👍

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