The story of my CB550 ratbike - Now hardtailed!

[jandjsnh]

Love the scoot and I get the feeling you and I are kindred spirits.

My karma isn't enough to rate but its primo posting as far as I am concerned. Later, CRASH aka: Jamie P
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ride it like you stole it cause choppers RULE

[Andy C]

yea i dont really like rat bikes but theres something quite cool about yours

And 20k km?! how long did that take?
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99 RS125 --> 02 SV650s --> 03 Speed Four --> 92 RXS100 --> 93 CB400sf --> 01 CB600f Hornet

[growler]

biker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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DILLIGAF

[Embalmer]

I was googling for a cb550 mudguard and this link appeared to here, after reading this I had to reg with site to post and say well done m8 what an adventure, beats Ewan Mc Gregor with his back up crews doctors helicopters etc. I have been riding bikes for 25 years and the furthest I have been is the Isle of Man . Also I have a cb550 rat/chop myself and I wouldnt go any further than the chippy and back on that . Heres a pic. of when I bought it for 32 quid a non runner

https://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a328/Dodgy_Embalmer/DSC01006.jpg

this is it as work in progress

https://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a328/Dodgy_Embalmer/honda001resize.jpg
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SP2,Z1B AND CB550 RAT/CHOP

[JackDietrich]

Superb thread mate, properly inspirational. I've not long been riding, largely inspired by my Granddad's tales of going round Europe on a war-wounded BMW R/75 he nicked off a disbanded regiment in '45. Neither plastic sportsbikes nor £10,000 cruisers have any appeal to me; in my eyes this is what it's all about. I'm already looking on eBay for a rusted garden ornament to call my own.

[b-f-c]

[richard green]

excellent and a big thank you from me for writing such an interesting thread , really really really enjoyed that .
All the best for your future projects and i hope to read about them on here

[mr.z]

Updates?

I'll bring me camera tonight, you going to be able to make it?
Actually looks pretty nice out for once..
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>RidingSkills<->Tech Tips<->MyBikes<

[Nath]

Well okay then, here's an update on what I've been doing with the bike lately.

I spent all of last winter buzzing around the peak district making a nuisance of myself on the bike, but took the bike off the road at the start of summer to lend my carbs to me dad. When I brought my sidecar outfit back from a two and a half week European tour with knackered rear shocks I realised I could nick the shockers off the 550 and turn it into a hardtail. In the end I didn't use the 550 shocks on the sidecar outfit, but by that point I'd set my heart on hardtailing it, so went ahead anyway.

Stripping down the bike, ready to begin work:
https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-1.jpg

https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-2.jpg

Buying steel new from a steel merchants is not that cheap, plus you have to buy it in fixed quantities, eg steel flat comes in 6m lengths. Since I don't really have a source of scrap steel, I decided to do the hardtail using the steel of the existing frame. The seat rails/subframe were not long enough to reach down to the end of the swinging arm, but if I added on the lengths of tube I would have to cut off the the diagonal upright bits, they'd reach. I decided to do a proper job, and slugged the joins with steel sheet bent into a tube which would be a tight fit. I wasn't very happy with the strength of the very thin-walled tube in the way that I was using it, so I really went to town gusseting the corners. I also made an effort to do this neatly with smart curves, to get a more professional looking result that on other things I've made.

https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-3.jpg

Neater welding than on previous work, and nice clean curves:
https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-4.jpg

I was originally going to make a rear mudguard which hugged the wheel very closely, then stick the numberplate and rearlamp on that. However I realised it would be much quicker to just stick the plate and lamp on the side and not bother with a mudguard, and that this would also give the bike a far more extreme look.

Looking well 'ard:
https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-5.jpg

https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-7.jpg

I didn't have any ideas on where to gets springs to make a sprung seat from, so I decided to weld on solid seat-rails (the old pillion footrest mounts), and make do with a sore arse till I could pickup a sprung seat from an autojumble. However once I actually rode the bike I soon abandoned this plan as every little bump in the road was painfully jarring my spine. A member of the RBZ forum came up with the solution which he'd used on a previous hardtail, a doorhinge and an old shock spring welded to the seat and and the bike. Now I don't weigh very much so after cutting my shock spring in half I found both half-springs would have been too stiff, so I had to go for a mono sprung seat. I think I'd prefer the look of the traditional twin springs, but this seat works really well and makes a massive difference to the pummelling received by your back going over bumps.

Dodgy sprung seat, plus even dodgier electrics lurking underneath.
https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-8.jpg

No room for niceities like airboxes on a bike like this:
https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-6.jpg

I also took the time to weld on the old pillion footrests to the engine bars, so I now have fold-down highway footrests And I just had to weld on an ammo crate - This bike just wouldn't be the same without some army surplus stuck on the back.

Ready to rock!
https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-9.jpg

https://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven.coy/images/cb550_story/part-two-10.jpg

The bike is not just a project though, and I hope to put it back into use as a daily commuter at some point. I figure the exhaust is the only thing that takes the piss too much for this, so I have plans involving twin high level pipes going down the left side of the bike, into a big ugly silencer that looks like it came off a tractor mounted horizontally above the rear lamp. Also gonna make a bobber-style short mudguard. Before that though I will be riding it over to Holland next month for a ratbike rally - I have no doubts that the bike will get me there
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Hard livin', hard luck.

[Nath]

[virus]

fuckin hell nath that looks mean

Will make sure to look out for you when i take the whore to R+S 2008


Cheers
John
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own: 81 xs1100g...
owned: 85 rat CG (sold), 91 GS500e (stolen), 84 gsx400f (scrapped), 81 z250 (siezed, siezed, scrapped), 83 cb250rs (sold), 84 gpz750r ratfighter (killed) 84gpz400 (sold), '80 cb650 ratfighter (wrote off) 95gsx6/12f ratfighter (killed) 91 xj900 (sold)
stinkwheel Well I just had my hands up a pigs fanny. Which makes your concerns pale into insignificance.

[Nath]

[Jenks]

and somebody on a nicey nicey GSXR750 or FZR600 lol!
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1978 MZ TS 250 1 Supa 5
1992 yamaha fzr1000 exup
1998 aprilia af1 sintesi

[virus]

[vruumvruum]

yow mate,
it is absolutely awesome to do that very impressed stunning ratbike i wish i could do that would u lend it to me to do a europe trip with?!?!?!!?

[Bru]

So, does that hardtail skip off the line when you hit bumps in the road? Does it not make the ride skittish? I am not talking about racing here, but even blatting around some slow bends, I have been upset by bumps, and that's on a 'standard' bike. How do you deal with that?

[Petrovitch]

Excellent mojo points to you I look forward to ratting a bike soon myself

[virus]

im starting to look forward to the freeze up now mate

Just getting some knobblies sorted for the cg and some 'touring' kit (jerry can and 2 .50 cal tins instead of the pillion seat )


Cheers
John
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own: 81 xs1100g...
owned: 85 rat CG (sold), 91 GS500e (stolen), 84 gsx400f (scrapped), 81 z250 (siezed, siezed, scrapped), 83 cb250rs (sold), 84 gpz750r ratfighter (killed) 84gpz400 (sold), '80 cb650 ratfighter (wrote off) 95gsx6/12f ratfighter (killed) 91 xj900 (sold)
stinkwheel Well I just had my hands up a pigs fanny. Which makes your concerns pale into insignificance.

[brockster]

Nath,

Thanks for the inspirational post.

I too have landed a '76 CB550 for US$235. When I checked it out, I was able to get it to run with starting fluid, so it's not quite a birdbath yet.
https://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t177/Brockster22/Posted%20to%20ADVRider/1976-Honda-CB550-garage-600h-rr.jpg
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Brockster
1977 Vespa P200 body / P125 engine w/177 Pinasco kit, 1985 Honda Elite 150 w/ '84 CH125 engine, & 1976 Honda CB550K 'Chong'. Bureaucracy abhors a vacuum.

[brockster]

More: powerwashed it this past weekend.
https://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t177/Brockster22/Posted%20to%20ADVRider/Chong-powerwashed.jpg
Nasty, nasty carbs!
https://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t177/Brockster22/Posted%20to%20ADVRider/Chong-carb-fly.jpg
https://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t177/Brockster22/Posted%20to%20ADVRider/Chong-carb-bowl-mung.jpg

How do you clean something as filthy as these buggers?
I've got carb cleaner soaking in the bowls. And I am cleaning the rest of the mess with spray carb cleaner.

Any proven ideas appreciated!
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Brockster
1977 Vespa P200 body / P125 engine w/177 Pinasco kit, 1985 Honda Elite 150 w/ '84 CH125 engine, & 1976 Honda CB550K 'Chong'. Bureaucracy abhors a vacuum.

[Big Pete]

Alloy wheel cleaner, available from most car places. BTW, I reckon you have a set of Yam wheels on your bike.
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Trust me, I`m an engineer
GarageOfPower.co.uk

[brockster]

They're a set of Lesters.

I've got the rear of the bike stripped to just the swingarm and rear wheel is on it. Carbs needs rebuild kits, but I have the float bowls near spotless.

Just have to force myself to properly label all the bits and doodads. I know if I don't, I'll be regretting it later.

Picked up a '82 XJ750 Midnight Maxim with under 2800 original miles for $50 bucks last weekend with only two issues.

1. No title (but have the phone number of the last legal owner).

2. This is a bit more problematic - it has been parked outside, uncovered since god knows when. It's about the same shape as the 550 that started this thread. The sticker on the license expired in 1994. I believe the engine is locked up. I've got a withces brew of WD40, PB Blaster, and Seafoam in the cylinders to work on that.

Even if the engine is screwed, and if I can't get the title, I'll still have more than $50 worth of fun fiddling with it.
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Brockster
1977 Vespa P200 body / P125 engine w/177 Pinasco kit, 1985 Honda Elite 150 w/ '84 CH125 engine, & 1976 Honda CB550K 'Chong'. Bureaucracy abhors a vacuum.

[brockster]

Sorry! I'm not trying to hijack this thread - I have a how to question.

The exhaust is off of the bike and being painted black with BBQ spray bombs.

I have the rear of the bike stripped to the frame now. Once I have the front of the bike supported, are there any other precautions that I need to watch for before tearing into removing the front end?
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Brockster
1977 Vespa P200 body / P125 engine w/177 Pinasco kit, 1985 Honda Elite 150 w/ '84 CH125 engine, & 1976 Honda CB550K 'Chong'. Bureaucracy abhors a vacuum.

[Shaane]

08 Nov 2006


Why not make a new thread and let this one die mate?
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EMRA Roadstock #92 - Paperwork Permitted.
Previous: 1992 DT125R
Current: ~ 2005 ZX6R C1H

[DidierD]