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My first motorcycle: 1976 Honda CB550

8704 Views 27 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  joe c, 
M
Hello all. I just purchased my first motorcycle thtis past Saturday and although the bike has seen better days, I feel confident that I'll be able to restore it to it's origional glory. The motorcycle is a 1976 CB550. It will take a lot of time to fix since I don't know much about motorcycles but I think it will be worth the challenge.
Anyway, I got the motorcycle from a neighbor who has had it for a few years. He rode it last fall but let it sit outside all winter and now it won't start. (We live in Atlanta, so the winters aren't that cold) It gets power from the battery and acts like it wants to start but it just won't get there. I added fuel additive and some fresh gas, so I hope that will help. I checked the plugs and they look pretty good. Also, I'm getting a new battery today.
If anyone has experience with a CB550 and you wish to share any tips for getting this bad-boy into shape, please feel free. Thanks!

http://home.comcast.net/~mwierm1/index.html

There is one thing I found odd about this bike. The engine ID is CB550E. I haven't been able to find any information on this model number. Is this the same as a CB550F or CB550K? If anyone can help with this, it would be greatly appreciated.

Edited by - mwierm on May 21 2007 12:27:05 PM

Edited by - mwierm on May 21 2007 1:04:14 PM
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J
im going to chime in here since this the 2nd or 3rd time ive seen this. i am now a fully converted screw guy. none of the hardware on any of my bikes now has allen case bolts. nothing that is original bits. all of my engine cases now have the correct #3 screw heads. why, well, allen bolts are known to have stripped out many case holes. the reason they used screws was because you can only exert a given amount of pressure on the screw head. before it strips the head off or wont tighten anymore. if you strip it tightening it, you are over torquing. there is no reason you should strip the head of one of those screws. yes, they do occasionally get real stuck, but i have never had one that wouldnt come out with an impact driver if needed. the important thing is to use a #3 driver. too many of those screws get destroyed using the incorrect tools. a stainless screw in an aluminum case. if you mix up the screw lenghts, will damage the case. (ie short screw in longer hole. if it was good enough for pops, its gotta be good enough for me! the second reason, its correct for the bike. they may look cool, but for a guy who is against clubman bars on cb550's for the reason they are not period, you sure do get hopped about allen bolts! now i look at bikes and think allen bolts just dont look right. i for one will never use them again on an engine case. just my opinion.

jc

"tex, if your bikes a cheater, its not a very good one"
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J
I use nothing but socket head allen screws on all my bikes. Never stripped out anything, never had any problems. About 1976 many japanese manufacturers started using allen screws and they still do. Yamaha was the first. You'd be hard pressed to find any phillipes screw on any modern bike except for crap like body work and brackets.

If you use a torque wrench you don't have worry about stripping anything. First thing I do to every engine I build is replace all the crap screws with allen screws. Never seen a problem of any kind with them as long as someone uses the right thread pitch and doesn't tighten them with a ratchet.

But that's just me. I'm a pro :)
JohnnyB
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J
I use nothing but socket head allen screws on all my bikes. Never stripped out anything, never had any problems. About 1976 many japanese manufacturers started using allen screws and they still do. Yamaha was the first. You'd be hard pressed to find any phillipes screw on any modern bike except for crap like body work and brackets.

If you use a torque wrench you don't have worry about stripping anything. First thing I do to every engine I build is replace all the crap screws with allen screws. Never seen a problem of any kind with them as long as someone uses the right thread pitch and doesn't tighten them with a ratchet.

But that's just me. I'm a pro :)
JohnnyB
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G
Most street bikes won't get torn down more than a couple times in their life. I can see how damage can occur when you have a race bike and are stripping the bike down every year, but for a street bike that may have the covers off once or twice in its life, I don't think is it an issue.

You make an extremely vaild point about overtightening but that really goes toward anything. If you miss use your fastners or tools you end up with crap.

I am not agains clubmans because they are not period, I am against them because too many newbies screw up their bikes installing them (clubman rash).

I have too bikes in my garage right now, cb750s of about the same year that have both been in the same shed since 1989. One was a cafe bike built back in 1976 with stainless fasteners all over the engine, the other a stocker. Both have about the same amount of corrosion, Guess which one comes apart easier.
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G
Most street bikes won't get torn down more than a couple times in their life. I can see how damage can occur when you have a race bike and are stripping the bike down every year, but for a street bike that may have the covers off once or twice in its life, I don't think is it an issue.

You make an extremely vaild point about overtightening but that really goes toward anything. If you miss use your fastners or tools you end up with crap.

I am not agains clubmans because they are not period, I am against them because too many newbies screw up their bikes installing them (clubman rash).

I have too bikes in my garage right now, cb750s of about the same year that have both been in the same shed since 1989. One was a cafe bike built back in 1976 with stainless fasteners all over the engine, the other a stocker. Both have about the same amount of corrosion, Guess which one comes apart easier.
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J
jb, for the past 9 years, on my race bike, i used them. i never had a problem either. i just like to have the exact correct length in the correct spot and the screws are jus cool man. plus, it just looks damned cool. im not saying its not doable, or damage will definietly occur, but its more likely i think. new suzukis dont use them. yamaha uses their own weird one that is like a flanged allen or an 8mil. and honda usues a mix sometimes. also something to remember is youre spreading the load out a tad more with the screws. the allen is quite a bit smaller. my cb550, all of my dirtbikes, my kz, all had or have screws. screws are just right. im converted. i have been sayved! screw now, do it, save yourself!

jc

"tex, if your bikes a cheater, its not a very good one"

Edited by - joe c on May 24 2007 9:42:00 PM
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J
There are some situations where I believe the added contact area is an issue, I'll typically use 6mm washers there. I'm also very careful to trim all the allen screws to the proper length. One of the reason people probably strip holes with allen screws is they either use them too long or too short. I keep cabinets full of allen screws in 5mm increments so I can usually match the OEM lengths. I will agree that improperly installed allen screws are worse than the OEM screws.

On the 175's where the engine is a stressed frame member I lap all the case and cover surfaces and use a torque wrench on all the case and cover screws to make a nice rigid engine unit. Allens are also a whole lot easier to drill for wire...and I drill a lot of shit.

Yeah, the surface area is a issue on some parts...I've seen allens dig into a part because they are not wide enough at the head. If I was re-doing my Giro 160 I'd probably use OEM screws.
JohnnyB
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J
i was contemplating using an allen near the oil fill for that very reason. but then i thought to myself, im just being lazy. its not wired yet, but i have to figure it out. im sure theres a nice little spot to wire to. on things like a cover that holds back oil, obviously the more surface pressure you can exert the better. so its probably better for the gasket too. like i said, its not that you cant do it, or shouldnt for some reason, i just think its looks cooler to have the screws. even the old ones that arent bunged will take a really nice polish and can look almost brand new. i polished alot of them one day just to see. and ended up using most of them.

jc

"tex, if your bikes a cheater, its not a very good one"
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