Honda-SOHC

Getting closer to looking complete! Since last post, only 2 things out of the ordinary for me as I continued to rebuild:
- even with new bronze bushes, the swingarm had some play i.e. the tube was also worn. I experimented on some scrap tube to see if I could add a layer of weld then turn down to size on my old lathe but my skills are not up to it. As a temp solution, I wrapped some 0.05mm shim stock around the tube ends. This cured the play nicely but obviously this is not a long term solution so I'll search for a new tube.
- the front forks felt very stiff/sticky. I checked for straightness and alignment but it ended up being extremely tight fork boots and a light smear of lubricant helped enormously.

Rattle can paint job came out ok (Rustoleum sunrise red with Spraymax 2k clear - and yes I was careful with correct PPE), although my filler skills are as bad as ever. No matter how careful I am with my sanding blocks, I always seem to end up with the filler level a fraction low such that you see the outline of the filled area through the paint. Anyway, it stands the 3 metre appearance test ok. I did end up shortening the rear mudguard a bit to get the aesthetics to my liking.

Everything else was more or less standard re-furb/re-fit. I pulled the valve cover and thoroughly checked the cams, journals and also the rubber faces of the cam chain tensioner blade and guide. All seems good so as mentioned before, I'll run the engine as is for a bit then see if anything warrants a re-build. It starts and runs and I've been riding it around my neighbourhood. If you recall how bad the front brake cylinder and caliper were, miraculously it works great!

Immediate to-do list is:
- throttle response is a bit fluffy just off idle. Also, the float valves occasionally stick. So, it's off with the carbs for another go through...
- the chain is occasionally flapping against the chain guard so that needs a tweak (the guard is not actually a 400-4 item so it's already a bit of a kluge).
- find some correct mirrors.
- front brake works great once the lever contacts the MC piston but there's quite a bit of wasted lever motion before that happens. I seem to recall using a 1p coin as a shim in my original bike!
- indicator flash rate is far too fast (it's got some generic car item in it) so need to find a proper flasher.
- after a few miles I'll go over the valve clearance, timing, carb balance etc. again.

Ok, I'm officially giving up trying to post progress. Stuff I've posted before is now missing and every time I try and post new updates with even 1 picture, it just times out :-( Have tried shrinking picture files and different browser to no avail. Shame...

We fly into Manchester to stay with relatives near there, but also often drive down south to visit other relatives. Do you have particular parts in mind? Going towards UK is usually our lighter luggage direction so it could work. I don't even particularly want to make a profit if it helps people get what they need, as long as we can work out how the parts get paid for.

Continuing to clean/paint/refurbish/fit parts. Nothing much out of the ordinary worth reporting except for 2 points that might help others:
1) The new bronze swingarm bushes I had bought seemed VERY tight in the swingarm, even when frozen. I double-checked that the insides of the swingarm itself were clean and not marred from the removal of the old bushes - all good. I didn't want to risk getting stuck half-way so I chose to shrink them ever so slightly with some wet-n-dry while spinning them in the lathe - see pic. Then with freezing and grease they went in beautifully using the threaded rod method.
2) I had read that I should fit the rear brake pivot assembly before fitting the swingarm but I would add to that to fit the pull-rod to it as well, especially if you want to insert the clevis pin from inside to outside so you have access to the hole end. I tried to do it with the assembly in place and it was a fiddle.

Back from UK trip with a suitcase full of goodies! The above mentioned exhaust looks pretty good so I might re-visit whether to paint black or not. I think I now have most of the clips/brackets/grommets that were missing. Also got some correct handlebar switches as well as an ignition switch. The handlebar switches check out fine on the meter but the ignition switch didn't show any continuity and wouldn't even turn to the park position. It has clearly been opened before but not cured. I found two issues inside:
- one of the springs that press the little "bridging" pieces onto the contacts was not in place. Maybe this was meaning it didn't sit properly and was preventing the switch from turning properly? Just a guess...
- the strips that form the connector spades are attached to the actual switch contacts by a sort of rivet affair. I found continuity to the rivet head but not on into the strip. I cleaned the rim of the rivet and adjacent strip with a dremel wire brush and bridged the two with solder (being quick so as not to melt the plastic holder). I only did the 3 that are easily accessible - the other 2 seem fine.

The combination of those 2 things resulted in correct operation and continuity in both key positions. In my haste to try it I forgot to take pictures of the solder fix but they are on the back side of the piece in the top-right of the picture with the fabric background (not my picture - just one I found). The other switch picture shows what I believe is the correct orientation of that piece into the housing to get the correct connections for each switch position (TBV when finally fitted to the bike). Continuity testing is made a bit confusing by the fact that there are 2 brown wire locations which are not connected when the switch is stand-alone but are connected in the loom, so you need to try both.

A huge "thank you" to people who have posted colour-coded wiring diagrams, including what wires should be connected in each switch position - they are invaluable for this sort of testing.

Few more pics that wouldn't fit on prior post:

Steering as received had a very noticeable notch in the straight ahead position so new bearings required. For the steering tapers, I plumped for the All Balls kit. Maybe not the ultimate quality bearings but as a kit, it seemed to be the one people had fewest issues with in terms of the height. The thinner washer gave a lower stack height very, very close to the originals (18.6mm for lower washer plus complete bearing). In the first picture below, original washer plus seal plus bearing is on the left. The freezer trick for the outer races and the stem worked well and fitting was very easy. At the top, I chose not to use the extra washer between the new seal and the adjuster nut, just to get some extra thread as well as bring the dust cover closer to the headstock. The very top nut had plenty of thread to work with.

The forks themselves were dismantled, seals replaced (very stubborn!) and everything flushed with brake cleaner. One of the seal retaining clips was too corroded to re-use which is why you see shop towel wrapped around it until I can add it to my next parts order (ok, I could have used the rubber cover itself but I wanted a visible reminder!). The stanchions have a few blemishes but the chrome is complete so no immediate attention required.