Honda-SOHC

Now that the 500 is about done bar a longer journey I have been doing worth while but pointless tasks like tidying up the garage that needs little or no tidying. If the forecast of a dry warm day tomorrow in Derby are true it will be a decent ride out on the 500 then for as many days that September will allow.

I think I'm suffering from some sort of empty nest syndrome or like when a pet dies but it's too soom to buy another. Fortunately I'm skint until probably January so for now as it's safe to look at what if any project I might embark on.
Stafford show next month -  any ideas of a Maico Letta project are firmly binned - parts are just too hard to source plus the ride will not meet my faded nostalgic memory. Great thing about the 400 & the 500 is they are neat to ride in their different ways.

Then there is the space issue where can I fit a third bike? It would mean the 400 would have to go. I like the idea of a nippy 250  or even a single cylinder small engined Honda with parts not as rare as Dodo Eggs.

I like the idea of free road tax and something lighter. I have hinted that the 500 would be my last project - I may have to eat my words.......any suggestions would only encourage me.

Saddo that I am I went to sleep pondering how I was going to keep the 500 stand from contacting my new exhaust pipe.
As finding the right extra thickness stand grommet looked impossible I decided it would be easier to make an adjustable stopper using a SS bolt of a suitable length. The images in the photo are distorted due to the angle my phone was at when image taken.
For now I have slipped some vent pipe over the bolt to act as a buffer. When the right buffer comes along I will pull off the tubing & fit a full rubber end. The stand when up now follows the curve of the recess in the silencer beautifully at the moment there is a clearance of close to half an inch. If I want the stand to be a tad closer I can turn the lock nut a turn or two,

.adjustable stop by Macabe Thiele, on Flickr

.adjustable stop with tubing by Macabe Thiele, on Flickr

I need to squeeze some grease into my swing arm shaft using the original style nipples.
Yes, had I thought it through I would have tapped out a thread and fitted the modern type.

Is there a specific end I can fit to my Sealy Grease gun that will work on this old presumably Japanese design or is it a case of holding the gun against the nipple and keep on pumping until I see grease appear somewhere?

Over the decades I somehow accumulated about three or four manual grease guns - all of them would work after a fashion.
They all had one  common characteristic in that they wasted one way or another about 75% of the grease that was loaded into them.
As the number of grease nipples on cars fell to close to zero about ten years ago I binned the lot as they would leave a wormcast of grease sometimes emptying the gun in an act of spite.
I only needed to grease the drive gates once a year so I bought a cartridge type gun that inherited the same wasteful characteristics. It came with the standard end connection that will not work on these old Honda type nipples.
No instructions came with the gun - loading the cartridge was a messy nightmare - it's never really been any good.

Looking at some previous posts for this topic I think I need a K type nipple adapter - more importantly I need a grease gun that will actually work. I've seen mention of the brand Wanner but the price range looks hefty.

Can anyone recommend a manual gun that works & a supplier of the right nipple adapter. Links would be appreciated - thanks in advance.

Does this look like a suitable adapter? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/165560796579

As my rebuild has spanned almost two years with some parts taken off  & put back again more than once I  am doing some basic safety checks before I take the 500 out for a shaked down run.

I'm now having a senior moment when checking the front fork clamping arrangement as the terminology I find confusing.
In the Chassis section the  500F  shows the various Torque settings.

Item 16 front fork bolt (2)  (bolts with O ring seal - fork tubes) - 39.8 - 47.0 ft lbs.
Item 17 Steering stem nut (1) - 57.9 - 86.7 ft lbs.
Item 18 Steering Stem bolt (2) - 21.7 -  28.9 ft lbs  Is this the bottom yoke pinch bolt?
Item 24 Fork Top Bridge bolt (2) - 13.0 - 16.6 ft lbs. Is this the nut and bolt on the top tube clamp?
Item 30 Bottom bridge (2) 21.7 -28.9 ft lds No idea what this is referring to?


There is a pinch bolt on the stem nut - please what is this setting as I can,t see it listed?

Two accidents last Sunday in the Peak District, a triple fatal involving allegedly three Ducatis and two other vehicles followed by a double fatal involving two motorclist a couple of miles away on the same road. Not the first of such incidents this year.

We all know how vulnerable we are when out riding - stay safe everyone.

I'm going to have a go at improving the appearance of my tank badges before I fit them back in place.(Boy are they expensive).
I did have some paint that I was given me but I can't find it, I might have binned it as it had gone solid just can't remember.

Any tips as to the shade of white Honda used?

.500 tank badge by Macabe Thiele, on Flickr