Motorcycle Progress

I woke up at 9:30 today and put an hour and fifteen into my bike.

I managed to get the rear tire from the 1973 CB550 onto my '77 without there being a huge gap. I used some washers and bearings; the bearings inner diameter was too small so I widened them out and managed to get them over the axle with just the right clearance. It added a total of about 1 cm to the spacer, 2 washers and 2 brass bearings. I hope this doesn't screw up the tracking too much, but from the looks of it the chain side of the wheel is exactly the same it was only the brake side that was different between the models. I'll have to draw some lines and do some measurements to be sure, but for now I'm just happy that I have wheels and brakes on it. I'll be able to get it out of the basement and back into the light of day. In regards to this, I have ordered a brake panel assembly from ebay so eventually I will have the proper hub and rim back on the bike without the need for spacers. The whole idea of that seems mildly unsafe (even though I know it's really not that dangerous) and I'd be more comfortable with the proper hub. For now, this will be good enough. I probably won't switch back to the other rim until I need new tires. The same goes for the front so I don't have to switch the tires from the '73 rims over to my '77 rims. They're just stock tires from 1973 so it's not a big deal, I don't really need them on my good rims.

The other work that was done was the front brake caliper. The original one that was on the bike I managed to crack, damn aluminum casting. I ordered a nused one on ebay but the pistons from both were rusty/pitted. That ended in me buying a new piston and seal. Anyway, I finally got the piston in the mail (it arrived while I was in London) and I put that much back together. I struggled with the brake pad however. I couldn't get it to line up properly because of the guide in the caliper. The pad is recessed into the caliper and it's round with a flat side; on the flat side there is a little round indent for a guide pin. The pin can't be removed from the caliper really and the top of it had a bit of a gouge in it. I think that was the main problem, I sanded it down a bit and used a C-clamp to properly push the pad in. Initially I managed to get it in there severely crooked. I used the piston/brake pressure to push it back out. Thankfully the piston, caliper housing and pad were not damaged. I have front brakes, huzzah! Soon enough I'll have a daily rider.

In regards to the Goldwing which I inheritted from my great uncle - It does not turn over. Something in the wiring is bad or the starter is bad. We'll see, right now this one will remain on the backburner as I want more riding experience before I put his pride and joy in the face of risks.