CB550 K0 1974 Original colour?

[SteveW]

Been trying to find out if this was the original colour on my 74 K0?

Been looking on the net, can't find any Blue models in 74

[Nurse Julie]

Unless I'm mistaken, I don't think they came in blue. Also, once again, I could be wrong but that doesn't look like a 'Honda' blue.

[Menno]

It is always a bit confusing to me because the 500 and 550 are quite different in Europe.
The cb 550 US version (with the 500 tank) came in 1974 in the following colours:

- Sunrise flake orange
- Boss maroon metallic
- freedom green metallic

I'm affraid the bike on the picture is not in an original Honda colour.
It looks like a plain blue metallic. But it is of course a bit difficult to see on a picture.

[SteveW]

This one is a USA model, build date Dec 73

[Nurse Julie]

This one is a USA model, build date Dec 73

So what Menno says is correct, your model only came in the orange, maroon and green.

[SteveW]

Wonder if Honda customer services would know the colour it left the factory from the vin number?

If it was repainted, it must have been a long time ago. There is a small dent in the tank about the size of a 5p, the paint is all cracked in this area but no indication of another different colour underneath.

[Nurse Julie]

Maybe it's not the original tank, a lot can happen to a bike over it's 45 years. What colour would you go for if you had to choose between the 3 original colours?

[SteveW]

Possibly the Orange

[Trigger]

Here is the original colours for the USA CB550K0 in this vid >>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Y7YkacdGEI

[SteveW]

Thanks for the vid.

So no matter what colour, there should be a black panel on the tank?

[Trigger]

It is not a panel, it is paint, then two white lines 

[Bryanj]

Nobody can tell you the original colour Honda only recorded the frame(vin) number and date

[SteveW]

It is not a panel, it is paint, then two white lines 

Were the white lines originally painted on or is it a decal?

[Menno]

The us version has: a black side with 2 different colour lines: From inside to outside Black - gold - black - white - black.

Don't buy decals without having seen them. Or buy them from Diego - Piki - his decals are ok.
I always paint the lines.

Here is a sunrise flake orange I did for James in 2016:

[Menno]

The video on yutube has a lot of misstakes in it. It already starts of with starlight gold but the next picture is candy custom gold. Candy jade green in this video is not a candy colour. Than candy custom gold instead of simpley candy gold. Again candy jade green although the colour in the picture is no candy colour. The maxim brown metallic should have the same lines as we talked about in this topic; with gold in it. Next picture is interesting: candy bacchus olive: this is actualy candy jade green. Candy bacchus olive for 1973 cb 500 is correct but much darker than the colour pictured in the video. The european version of the cb 550 was never painted in candy garnet brown but candy kent brown 1977. A much darker brown. Etc, etc..