1978 CX500 recommissioned

[Bryanj]

I was working at Mead and Tomkinson in Gloucester when the CX came out and it got to the point that i could do the cam chain tensioner mod inside the allowed factory time which as anybody in the trade knows is pushing it. As an example Hondas factory time to replace a crank in a 500 is 8 hours from wheeling in to riding out!

[Honda enthusiast]

Thanks guys 😁👍 I didn't realise how many people like them, I remember my friends one and the exhaust note sticks in my memory...that's the thing, Johnny there's sometimes little warning of an impending engine catastrophe, that's a risk we take with all these old motorcycles!

Yes, Ian Gareth Johnny and any guys who can make it this time, I'm up for a meet again ....maybe somewhere else to make a change...let's firm it up over the next few months  🤔😊👍

Great to hear your CX500 comments and tips

Hubert 👍

[Oddjob]

Never a big fan but easy to work on and service. Done hundreds of them in my time. That looks like an original first series, I remember the CX500a coming out and the main differences were the small fly screen on the clocks and the change from flat paint to metallic. We did hundreds of camchain mods on the early models, in fact I remember one turning up at 5:40 one night and we were all washing up getting ready to leave at 6:00. Foreman comes down the ramp and says he’s ridden all the way down from Scotland to have the mod done and hasn’t got the money for a hotel etc, anyone interested in staying behind so we can get him on his way tonight, we all looked at each other to see who’s going to volunteer and no one did, so I said, if we all chip in and work together we can get this done in no time. 6 mechanics all working on it, air tools whining, people running to the spares dept for the kit, in 5 mins the engine was on its radiator on a bench, in 10 we’d removed the rear cover, changed the tensioner etc and in 15 mins it was being ridden away by the owner. Still proud of that to this day. Whether it made it back to Scotland in one piece we never found out 😁😁

[Johnny4428]

Very impressive Ken, although not sure I would have wanted mine done that quick!😳 I’m sure it was in good hands.😜

[Honda enthusiast]

I found it easy to work on too,Ken... definitely not up to those speeds here but I get there 🙂👍

[McCabe-Thiele (Ted)]

Similar memorable engine out feat. Back in 1970 I lived with my parents in the countryside. I needed to remove a mini engine at home. I had a chain block & tackle that I had borrowed using a tree branch near the trunk as a hoist point. From a cold engine start I undid the long center branch exhaust,  removed whole exhaust, undid the Hardy Spicer drive shaft joint, removed the carbs and manifolds, removed the starter motor, removed the dynamo, removed the brake servo, removed  radiator, removed the distributor, undid the various electrical connection, undid the engine mounting to subframe bolts, removed the gear lever , removed the gearbox remote unit, removed the clutch slave cylinder, removed the one pushrod cover plate with the oil separator, attached the engine removal brackets to the rocker cover bolts, pushed said car out  onto the road to align the engine with the block & tackle suspended from tree. Removed engine and pushed car off the road onto driveway.
On my own except my Dad helped me push the car and he operated the block and tackle as I tilted the engine to clear the bulkhead. All done in a tad under 2 hours!

PS Worked on my back for the underneath jobs, no trolley jack.

[Bryanj]

I take it that was, shall we say several, years ago mate, takes me two hours just to find the tools and open the door now

[Spitfire]

I take it that was, shall we say several, years ago mate, takes me two hours just to find the tools and open the door now

That pretty much sums it up for me too Bryan

[K2-K6]

Nice work in recommissioning Honda enthusiast.

Quite a different note for a V twin too, much more bubbly  ?  and general soft loping demeanour.

I suspect the seat, possibly one of the most comfortable originals, played a part in both it's couriering and touring life. Like rolling along in a soft marshmallow 

Wonder if you could stick a magnet on the wheel spokes to see io what material they are formed. I know definitely the CB750 F2 are steel and satin chrome, thought these were maybe the same too, and prior to aluminium base in early market bikes.

[taysidedragon]

I take it that was, shall we say several, years ago mate, takes me two hours just to find the tools and open the door now

Same here. I work at a very slow pace these days. Mind you, my nickname was Lightning when I  was young so I've always done things slowly! 😂

[Skoti]

Never a big fan but easy to work on and service. Done hundreds of them in my time. That looks like an original first series, I remember the CX500a coming out and the main differences were the small fly screen on the clocks and the change from flat paint to metallic. We did hundreds of camchain mods on the early models, in fact I remember one turning up at 5:40 one night and we were all washing up getting ready to leave at 6:00. Foreman comes down the ramp and says he’s ridden all the way down from Scotland to have the mod done and hasn’t got the money for a hotel etc, anyone interested in staying behind so we can get him on his way tonight, we all looked at each other to see who’s going to volunteer and no one did, so I said, if we all chip in and work together we can get this done in no time. 6 mechanics all working on it, air tools whining, people running to the spares dept for the kit, in 5 mins the engine was on its radiator on a bench, in 10 we’d removed the rear cover, changed the tensioner etc and in 15 mins it was being ridden away by the owner. Still proud of that to this day. Whether it made it back to Scotland in one piece we never found out 😁😁

I've memories of very familiar work, did you remember to centre punch 2 dot marks preceding the engine number tho?

[Oddjob]

No, don’t remember doing that but another mechanic may have, it was a little hectic at the time. I remember the owner stood at the door watching the action, must have looked like an F1 pit crew to him.

[Johnny4428]

Remember me and my mate (a fellow biker) back in the 70’s cruising about in his Cortina Mk2 1600e.
Friday night country run coming home from a dance and blew a frost plug and boiled the engine just made it back to town and parked it up at his rented garage. The next morning me and him tore the engine out and replaced with another engine (which came from a donor 1600e) which he had for spares. We were back cruising about on Saturday afternoon. No nitrile gloves in them days! Grease and oil up to the elbows! 🤣🤣

[florence]

I had a 1978 CX500 in the late eighties and loved riding it, newest bike I've ever owned.  It handled really well, happy to lean to ridiculous scraping angles, great front brake. As it was in a mess when I bought it I made a few modifications.  I slid the fork stanchions about 2.5 centimetres up through the yoke to lower the front end.  Hagon shocks on the rear, turned the handlebars upside down, took off all the plastic, made a seat which was basically a piece of aluminium with some carpet glued to it.  I replaced the headlamp with two CB125s units bolted together, and made my own two into one exhaust system which went into a BSA A10 silencer.  I had never seen one made into a cafe type racer before but now there are lots of them around.  It was great fun apart from the fact that it leaked water, never managed to seal the water pump properly, despite various attempts with ceramic seals.  It lived on Radweld and cost me a fortune in antifreeze.

One invisible modification which was recommended to me by an auto electrician after he had rewired my alternator was to put fuses in the three wires which come out under the seat.  Alternator burn-outs were a common fault on the early bikes.

[Honda enthusiast]

Sounds and looks like you've had great fun on yours, that's what it's all about not just getting them shiny 😀...I'll look into doing your fuse mod, ta 😁

Hubert