Honda cb125 - non runner

[mk-lighting]

Ive just brought a non-runner to learn bike mechanics and hopefully ride lands end to john o'groats on....

its been standing for six years in a garage, the old boy I brought it from said it needs

new battery
new points
new spark plug
clean the carb
clean the tank
timing needs doing

are these quite basic jobs? how muh money do you hink I'l need to invest?

[typonaut]

They are all very basic jobs... if you know what you are doing, and you have the right tools.

Parts are going to be less than £50 (guess) - for what you state.

But if it's been standing that long (depending on conditions), I would imagine you're going to have brake cylinders seized, various other corrosion problems and probably tyres perished too.

If you really want to get into it, buy a Haynes manual and some tools, if you're reasonably mechanically competent (you can fix a push bike without anyone's help), then you should be ok.

[Teflon-Mike]

Which CB125 is it? What year? Theres the CB125S and derivatives, basically an over-head-cam CG125, single, made from the early 70's thu'. Then there's the CB125T, which had the twin cylinder OHC engine, in a Twin-shock rear suspension frame, made from 77-81 (I think) Then there's the CB125TD or 'super-Dream' with a slightly detuned twin cylinder OHC motor, electric start, electronic ignition, and mono-shock rear suspension, made from 82 to about 1992.

From comment it needs points, suggests earlier CB125S or T, singular for the plug suggests CB125S single....

And on THAT premice, your starting point is to get yourself a Haynes or Clymar work-shop manual for it. (About £15)

Jobs listed are pretty rudimentary, and covered in the book, and with a little common sense shouldn't pose a problem.

New battery, check which one you OUGHT to have, THEN check what you DO have or what you need. If early CB should be 6v electrics but common to convert to later 12v electrics.

Then for costs, battery should be around £15-20; Points less than a tenner, tops, but get a new condensor TOO. Cost about a fiver, tops. Spark-Plug roughly £2.50. A gasket set for teh carb, DONT use Tubie-Gloop RTV or anything, fuel dissolves it and it'll clog all the jets in the carb. You can if clever make new gaskets from gasket paper, for a few pennies, but here and now, buy a carb-kit for about a fiver.

But THAT is just to get the motor running.

After that, it'll be a piece of string job.

Once you have it running, you might be able to tell if the motors OK or rough and needing a rebuild, with a ratly cam chain etc.

A full rebuild on a CB single is do-able, but typically you'll be looking at around £250 worth of bits, by the way of bearings, seals, gaskets, new cam-chain & tensioner slipper, possibly a new cam, maybe a new piston if it needs a rebore, new valve guides aand possibly reground valves and seats etc.

However, you should be looking more closely at the chassis and running gear, first.

Tyres, budget about £100, and BUY NEW ones. dont care how good they look. Bikes been stood for six years, you have NO IDEA how old they are, they could be twenty or more years old, and hard as KFC chips, even if they dont look badly worn, squared or perished.

Chuck in new inner tubes and rim-tapes while you are at it... should come in under the ton.

Next up, and still on teh wheels, inspect them closely. Think they are steel rims and double sectioned and can rust from the inside.

If you aren't happy wioth them, you need new wheels or at least new rims. Budget about £30 a rim & another £30 to have them built up with new spokes, per wheel.

If you are happy with them, get them proffessionally trued and tensioned. About £30 a wheel.

THEN fit new bearings and seals.

And while your in the district, wise to overhaul the brakes which should be old fasioned drums, and pretty straight forward, and you may as well for around a tenner a time fit new shoes.

Having done that, you need to look at the suspension.

Forks are a pain on little bikes. Reconditioners charge about £150 to rechrome old stansions no matter how big the bike, and they nearly always need doing. You can get away with new seals in teh sliders, but if the stansions are a bit pitted they cut up toot-sweet. New seals are about a tenner a pair.

Rear suspension, pretty simple, you have a hinge for the swing-arm, and that benefits from new bushes, about £10 for both. And a new pair of shock absorbers, for the T-Shokc about £30-£40 a pair.

THEN you can make the job good by fitting new head-race bearings for the steering, about £25.

And with anew cables for the front brake, clutch & throttle, you are pretty much 'set' on the safety critical stuff, and without looking at the engine, or having the frame blasted or coated or chucking any paint or finishing touches at it......

You are looking at the thick end of a grand all up, to be comfortable.

NOW, I've put a LOT of 'new' bits in that list, and you probably reckon you can 'get away' without a lot of them.... and to be honest, you probably can, BUT.....

Bikes that have been standing DONT get the lubrication moved around thier moving parts, so the bearings in wheels suspension and steering, the safety critical bits tend to go notchy, if not noticeable straight away, then shortly after re-commissioning.

How much you tackle and how contientiousely, is really up to you, BUT, IF you want to learn mechanics, it IS worth doing it, and doing it all by the book.

Costs aren't ecconomic, BUT you have to look at it as the price of your hobby... how much would you spend on a season ticket if you were interested in soccer, and not have anything to for it at the end of the season?

You get the pleasure of seeing a bike come together from a pile of parts and the satisfaction of knowing YOU have created it, and done a good job, and the pride & confidence in riding it... and THAT is where the value lies.....

and THAT is worth doing it 'properly' if NOT the safety and performance you'll get from it.