Project CB350F

[McCabe-Thiele (Ted)]

FWIW you might find the spongy front brake improves with use or even overnight whilst standing - on my 400 & 500 as I used repacement DS master cylinders the lever has amost zero free travel.

I hope so - I get the impression that the sponginess is a characteristic of silicone fluid


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Definitely not anything to do with the fluid imho.

[Laverda Dave]

That is looking fantastic Alan, you must be very proud, hard work (and frustration!) pays off in the end😁.
Well done that man, have a beer to celebrate 🍺👍

[Johnny4428]

Nice work, bike is looking great the final fettling will follow. Laughing about the rolling pins!😂😂 “fork handles” spring to mind!

[magpie114]

I'm collecting the chain guard from the powder coaters tomorrow which oddly I'd overlooked. However I couldn’t resist taking the bike on its first outing today as otherwise I won’t get a chance for a few days. A pleasant short ride, but it threw up a couple of problems. After it had warmed up I ran out of adjustment for the tickover which was steady at around 2500 rpm so looks like the carbs will have to come off. Otherwise the carbs seem ok and it ran fine.
The other problem was totally unexpected. It was a flowing ride on quiet country roads with gentle bends and little need for braking but after a few miles the front disc began to bind. You can just make out some discolouration on the disc in the photo. I’m fairly confident that the caliper is fine (good condition, new piston and seal), but suspect the master cylinder may be the culprit and I’m starting to wonder if I’ve not assembled the repair kit correctly or whether the mc itself is faulty. Could this prevent pressure from releasing?

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[Bryanj]

At the bottom of the reservoir there are two "dimples" one obiously is a hole into the bore, the other looks likejust a blanked hole BUT there is a tiny hole at the bottom about the size of two thin strands of multicore cable twisted.
If this hole is blocked you get exactly your symptoms.

Two other possibilities are
1 swinging caliper pivot pin
2 in flexi hoses are original they can block or collapse

The first us 500 i did i had to rod out the flexis with a welding rod as they were that blocked

[magpie114]

The caliper pivot pin is fine and the hose is new. I think your suggestion about the fine hole is most likely. Thanks, I’ll investigate that further.


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[Bryanj]

Down and dirty test is carefully cover everything arround the master then remove cap and diaphragm pull in lever and let go and if hole is clear you should get a small fountain( hence the coverings!)

[magpie114]

All sorted thanks, exactly as you described. Took a little while and some patience but unblocked it with wire strand and got a fountain. Fortunately silicone fluid but covered everything anyway. Thanks Alan


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[Laverda Dave]

Great photo Alan. You must be very pleased how the bike turned out . Good news with the brake, great piece of diagnoses Bryan and you didn't even have to see it to know what the problem was, experience you cannot buy👍

[Bryanj]

After crud behind caliper seal its the most overlooked problem, as you said been doing Hondas now close on 50 years so seen quite a lot of obscure problems

[magpie114]

Yes really pleased with it Dave. Was great first ride, good weather, road to myself but the brake problem cut it short. Bryan hit the nail on the head which enabled me to fix it. Can’t wait to take it out next week.


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[magpie114]

Apart from one or two niggles, mainly the carbs, the bike’s running fine and now just needs some fine tuning. The front brake, disappointing at first, is getting better with use and has more bite than I expected. Hopefully I can put some miles on it if the weather remains good.
The forum has helped me immensely including NJ’s engine thread, various parts/service from NJ/Trig, Peter Horton, Oddjob, hard to get part from Orcade-Ian and not forgetting Ash’s Dropbox. Plus of course advice and encouragement from members along the way.
I’ve made a site donation - its saved me more.

[Nurse Julie]

Well done. Now enjoy 🏍️🏍️🏍️🏍️

[magpie114]

Just to finish off I've finally found some handlebars that I'm happy with. My search for EU model bars, which seem to have been on French and German models only, has drawn a blank. So looking for alternatives I gambled on Euro spec 500 bars and they fit fine. The only change I had to make was to fit a shorter top brake hose. No need to change existing throttle and clutch cables. Feels just right now, not too upright, and looks better too.
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[McCabe-Thiele (Ted)]

That looks good - I like the silver rear sprocket plate in silver it lightens up the rear end.