Winter Projects...

I used the time spent indoors this winter to clean and polish a few different parts for both the CB750 and the CA160. For the 750, I spent some time on a stock air box that would replace the individual air "pods" that are currently installed. Switching back to stock air should require me to "rejet" the carburetors. Upon removing the carbs and pulling off the bowl it appears to have jets marked with "120". DA didn't think we needed to rejet but we would see how the bike ran. The airbox took plenty of cleaning and the rubber boots that connect it to the carbs maybe to too hard to use and ultimately needs replacing. Here is a photo of the airbox. A boring addition to the blog indeed!

I also worked on an old rusty battery box that I had laying around. This box was hardly in "good" shape when I started but the previous owner of my bike did a pretty idiotic thing by cutting the old one in half in order to get a larger battery under the seat.

Here is a photo of the old battery box. pretty lame...

The new battery box was in pretty poor shape when I started but once it was sand blasted, primed and painted, it looked pretty good considering how bad it was and how long it rolled around in the back seat of my car.

I also did quite a bit of work for the CA160 too. I spent some time and removed a couple of parts that were made from solid aluminum. I removed the front wheel and completely took the break drum and the spokes out of the rim. The original rim was too rusted to use but I still had that blue CA90 that had good rims. So with a little musical motorcycle parts I came away with a complete wheel that looked really nice. Unfortunately the break drum wasn't going to shine itself, so I spent many hours wet sanding and finally polishing the parts. Included with the wheel I also wet sanded and polished the handlebar mounting bracket and the speedo mechanism. I think they both came out looking really nice and I plan on removing the rear wheel and some other flair and doing the same thing. Its slow work but I find it relaxing and rewarding.

Very shiny now. Better than chrome because you can always re polish it...

New Project "Little Blue"

Just a quick update to let yall know what Western has been up too...

I picked up a Polaris atv last year for some trail riding. It needed some work as do most 20 year old quads. This 250cc atv is a 2 stroke with a CVT (automatic) transmission. The thing ran great until a friend of mine buried it in the mud and rev'd the engine too high. 2 stroke motors are made to run at high rmps but this engine was made in 1990 and still had the original piston and crank bearings. The stock piston broke apart inside the cylinder and that was bad news. Well I decided to rebuild the entire motor myself since the repair cost would be well over $500. This would be the first time I've ever opened up an engine for repair. I've already come pretty far on the project but I plan to recite some of what I've done.

Here's a look at the shattered piston after removal. I've replaced the original piston with a Wiseco brand forged piston along with new crank bearings and seals. The new piston is much stronger and much better quality. The second pic is of the engine after rebuild.

The quad with some new decals, patiently awaiting its rebuild engine. 1194 is the perfect compound for gluing the cases (engine halfs) back together.

The bearings are located on both sides of the engine case. I had to pry the to halfs of the engine apart very carefully. The crankshaft runs through these bearings as it spins from the movement of the piston. The bearings were badly worn and contained fragments of the shattered piston. I had to push the first hearing out with a hammer and punch. After it was removed I washed the engine case in solvent. The other bearing was still attached to the crankshaft itself which you can see in the pictures below. In order to install the new bearing into the engine case I had to freeze the bearing in a freezer and heat the engine case with a heat gun. As metal warms it expands and as it cools it becomes smaller. The bearing then fell easily into the case and as it warmed it expanded into the engine case causing it to remain in place.

I had to use a bearing separator and puller to get the old bearing off the crankshaft. After it was removed I froze the crankshaft and warmed the bearing in order to place the bearing on. It's the same idea as listed above.

Heres a look at the crankshaft with the bearing installed. Next I put the crankshaft in a freezer again and headed the opposite case. I had to move quickly as i placed the 1194 gasket maker on each side of the engine case, placing the crankshaft in between and pushing the two sides together. Next I would install the new piston, rings, gaskets, and engine head.

Spirits from the Past are calling me....

zen......

Wrenching on the Benly (trying to find its original shine)

The red one needs some work but it's nothing a little elbow grease and a parts bike can't fix.

Work done so far: replaced handlebars/reran wiring
replaced throttle cable
replaced tank rubber
replaced battery
fixed some wiring problems (not all)
replaced headlight

Work yet to be done: WAY to much!

Also, I had to include a picture of the Red Dragon Del Norte. Riding that downtown Lincoln after a Husker game is as exciting as any motorcycle ride.

New Shop!!

I moved to this new apartment with a few friends of mine. Came with a garage and the old lady that lives downstairs doesn't use it because you have to lift the doors by hand. We quickly took it over.

New Project. CA 160 Honda Benly

This bike is so full of style! Ive been looking for one for a while now and I think I've finally found the right one.

I will update more as we tear into this thing. Currently looking for parts and a time to take it up to the shop.

Scouting out Colorful Colorado

So i took a short trip to the Denver and surrounding areas with my friend Kelly to do some biking and hiking. While I was not on my Honda motorcycle, the car I rode in was a newer Honda Fit. They are great cars by the way. It was great on mileage and with the hatch back, combined with the bike rack on top, it easily carried all of our gear. I didn't get as many pictures here as I would have liked but the ones I did get were really great.