Do I really want to keep a bike this old? Yesterday I went out for a ride and the flasher unit failed (as far as I could tell). OK, no problem... I picked up a new one ($3.99 at Advance Auto Parts -- I think they said it's a #552, and all of them should have it in stock) and installed it. Huh. Well, that's different. When I turn on either turn signal, all four lights flash.
After a fair amount of tracing old wiring, I've got things to a point where the front turn signals work more or less correctly, and the rear lights both blink no matter what.
Oi.
Further updates as I figure things out...
Update: OK, so I didn't figure anything out, but it's working now.
Here's what I can say.
When I disconnected the rear blinkers entirely (unplugged the connection under the seat) the front started working. That seemed to imply there was a connection problem somewhere. So I started unplugging things. I started at the front of the bike, and undid every connection between the turn signal switch and the rear filament. That means a couple of connections in the headlight bucket, the two under the seat, and a pair hidden behind the license plate. Then I pulled the bulbs and put new ones in, despite the old ones clearly working. Anywhere I found corrosion I scuffed the connectors with 220 grit paper (note: doing this may make connections not fit anymore. Be prepared to ruin electronics if you make a habit of this). I found quite a bit of corrosion in the left rear light socket, and cleaned it out as well as I could with a piece of sandpaper wrapped around my finger. It didn't work very well, but it made me feel better.
Once I'd done all of that, I turned the key on and tried the signals... and now they work. I put everything back together, testing after each step (I figured if a wire was being pinched, I could find out that way), and with everything back the way it's supposed to be, everything works. At least, for now...
As a side note, a big thank you to folks on http://hondatwins.net -- their advice and encouragement has been a huge confidence builder on this. Also, to whoever rewired this bike in the past... please learn to do things right. You're just making things harder on the rest of us.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Friday, May 17, 2013
Buying an old bike
This post is being written about 8 months late, but I didn't have this site 8 months ago.
Last fall, I found a 1982 Honda CM450C up for sale for $450. Of course, the guy selling it thought it was a Nighthawk, and didn't seem to know what he was talking about, but I went to take a look anyway. As it turned out, while he was kind of clueless, he DID have a good mechanic, so it was in reasonably good shape for a 30 year old motorcycle.
After some closer inspection, I bought it. I knew at the time that the front brake probably needed some work, and a few other things were going to need maintenance, but it seemed OK. (Spoiler: It actually is, though it needs more work than was originally obvious.)
I paid for it, put the plate off my Honda Rebel on it, and drove it home. On the way, I discovered that the brake REALLY needed work, so did the clutch, and the speedometer just didn't work at all. It's not too inaccurate below 20mph, but above that there's basically no connection to reality. Right.
After assorted other trials and tribulations (it turned out the title wasn't quite so clear as it looked like it was), the thing was finally registered, insured, and legal to ride... in late November. In Massachusetts. *sigh* Well, seasons change, and now I can get to work on the thing...
Anyway, here's the bike, with the addition of a small windscreen I had available...
Looking pretty good for 30 years old!
Last fall, I found a 1982 Honda CM450C up for sale for $450. Of course, the guy selling it thought it was a Nighthawk, and didn't seem to know what he was talking about, but I went to take a look anyway. As it turned out, while he was kind of clueless, he DID have a good mechanic, so it was in reasonably good shape for a 30 year old motorcycle.
After some closer inspection, I bought it. I knew at the time that the front brake probably needed some work, and a few other things were going to need maintenance, but it seemed OK. (Spoiler: It actually is, though it needs more work than was originally obvious.)
I paid for it, put the plate off my Honda Rebel on it, and drove it home. On the way, I discovered that the brake REALLY needed work, so did the clutch, and the speedometer just didn't work at all. It's not too inaccurate below 20mph, but above that there's basically no connection to reality. Right.
After assorted other trials and tribulations (it turned out the title wasn't quite so clear as it looked like it was), the thing was finally registered, insured, and legal to ride... in late November. In Massachusetts. *sigh* Well, seasons change, and now I can get to work on the thing...
Anyway, here's the bike, with the addition of a small windscreen I had available...
Looking pretty good for 30 years old!
Who am I, and why am I writing this?
I'm a motorcyclist, woodworker, photographer, IT guy, and all-around-dabbler. I have another blog, Cheap Sawdust, for talking about my experiences as a cheapskate woodworker trying to figure out how to save a buck, but this one is for talking about motorcycles.
I'm starting it because I've just started doing some of my own work on an old bike, and I thought it might be interesting, if only to me, to document some of what I do over the next couple of years. There will also likely be some ranting about the state of current motorcycles, motorcycle riders, and government and lobbyist foolishness, and possibly occasional rambling about things totally unrelated to riding.
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