GB500guy
Well-known member
After a bit of mechanical work and cosmetic upgrades the bike is just about where I want it. The main initial problem was a dud rear shock with zero dampening in half of its travel. The stock shock is known to be too flabby anyway, and various styles of CBR shocks can be fitted with minor changes. I found a low miles CBR1100XX Blackbird shock on ebay to transplant. It is 4 mm longer which would have raised the rear about 3/4" higher. Being inseam challenged I decided to make a new bushing for the top end with the bolt hole offset to approximate stock shock length. After turning a piece of Delrin to the correct OD I used a 4 jaw chuck to offset the piece 3 mm for drilling the hole for the steel collar.
A socket set screw threaded through the shock and into the Delrin keeps the bushing from turning in the shock eye.
And viola, the shock bolts right in. From this camera angle the shock appears to touch the frame but there is actually adequate clearance.
Even though made for a heavier bike, springing for this shock is a good match because of the difference in mounting geometry. And unlike the original, this shock has adjustable damping plus about 1/3 more travel.
There was some corrosion and peeling paint on the leading edges of the forks and clutch cover and a few rust spots and scratches on the swing arm, so I stripped off the old paint, glass bead blasted, and repainted.
Before:
Stripping and blasting - I like how bead blasting leaves a perfect fine texture for good paint adhesion:
It was fun to get my first peek inside the engine.
Dupli-Color BFM0225 Medium Charcoal Metallic turned out to be a perfect match to the original color. I followed up with two coats of SprayMax 2K gloss clear coat for fuel resistance and toughness. This catalyzed clear leaves a much higher gloss than the original paint, but I like a little tasteful bling. I buffed all fasteners and clear coated most of them as well. The after:
I went ahead and replaced the chain and rear sprocket as well.
I like shiny clean hardware because.....bling!
I have Oxford heated grips on two other bikes and really like them, so......
The front dampening felt too stiff, so while I had the forks apart I used a viscosity cup to measure the current oil. It took 34 seconds to empty which is quite high compared to typical fork oils. I changed to synthetic ATF which measured 21 seconds. The front feels much more compliant now while still having good dampening.
Stock gearing is really low, like 7,300 rpm @ 65 mph low. Perfect for the drag strip but way buzzier than needed for normal riding. So I dropped 4 teeth on the rear sprocket which feels much more normal. But in the "what were they thinking?" department, Honda chose to drive the speedometer off the countershaft, so gearing changes affect speedometer and odometer readings. But it turns out that in sixth gear the tachometer reading is very close to mph, i.e. 6K rpm is 60 mph. The speedo drive cable:
So for now the bike is basically where I want it except for one dent in the tank. It's not bad enough to warrant repainting so I might check with paintless dent repair shops and see if anything can be done. Unfortunately due to the inside shape of the tank the dent is not accessible from inside. Anyone have experience with similar dents?
It's been great fun getting to know the ins and outs of the bike by working on it, but more so by riding favorite local twisty roads!
-Bill
A socket set screw threaded through the shock and into the Delrin keeps the bushing from turning in the shock eye.
And viola, the shock bolts right in. From this camera angle the shock appears to touch the frame but there is actually adequate clearance.
Even though made for a heavier bike, springing for this shock is a good match because of the difference in mounting geometry. And unlike the original, this shock has adjustable damping plus about 1/3 more travel.
There was some corrosion and peeling paint on the leading edges of the forks and clutch cover and a few rust spots and scratches on the swing arm, so I stripped off the old paint, glass bead blasted, and repainted.
Before:
Stripping and blasting - I like how bead blasting leaves a perfect fine texture for good paint adhesion:
It was fun to get my first peek inside the engine.
Dupli-Color BFM0225 Medium Charcoal Metallic turned out to be a perfect match to the original color. I followed up with two coats of SprayMax 2K gloss clear coat for fuel resistance and toughness. This catalyzed clear leaves a much higher gloss than the original paint, but I like a little tasteful bling. I buffed all fasteners and clear coated most of them as well. The after:
I went ahead and replaced the chain and rear sprocket as well.
I like shiny clean hardware because.....bling!
I have Oxford heated grips on two other bikes and really like them, so......
The front dampening felt too stiff, so while I had the forks apart I used a viscosity cup to measure the current oil. It took 34 seconds to empty which is quite high compared to typical fork oils. I changed to synthetic ATF which measured 21 seconds. The front feels much more compliant now while still having good dampening.
Stock gearing is really low, like 7,300 rpm @ 65 mph low. Perfect for the drag strip but way buzzier than needed for normal riding. So I dropped 4 teeth on the rear sprocket which feels much more normal. But in the "what were they thinking?" department, Honda chose to drive the speedometer off the countershaft, so gearing changes affect speedometer and odometer readings. But it turns out that in sixth gear the tachometer reading is very close to mph, i.e. 6K rpm is 60 mph. The speedo drive cable:
So for now the bike is basically where I want it except for one dent in the tank. It's not bad enough to warrant repainting so I might check with paintless dent repair shops and see if anything can be done. Unfortunately due to the inside shape of the tank the dent is not accessible from inside. Anyone have experience with similar dents?
It's been great fun getting to know the ins and outs of the bike by working on it, but more so by riding favorite local twisty roads!
-Bill
Last edited: