1966 CB77 Frame-Up Restoration (or part-out if fubar)

G-Man · Post by **G-Man** » Tue Oct 28, 2014 2:03 am

The Emgo "Dunstall Style" mufflers look good but have a reputation for weak brackets.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/EMGO-DUNSTALL-R ... 0764236901

G

smccrory · Post by **smccrory** » Tue Oct 28, 2014 8:20 am

G-Man wrote:The Emgo "Dunstall Style" mufflers look good but have a reputation for weak brackets.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/EMGO-DUNSTALL-R ... 0764236901

G

Thanks G! I managed to re-tap a stripped header stud last night (previous owner didn't drive the stud all the way into the head) so I'm riding again, and have time this winter to improve the looks.

As a side note, I really need to learn how to weld.

G-Man · Post by **G-Man** » Tue Oct 28, 2014 10:58 am

Scott

Good effort! It's great learning new skills and these bikes are a great way to do that. There are a number of different technologies for welding steel, stainless steel and aluminum, thick and thin sections.

Take a look at Youtube videos to get some idea of what you need. For aluminum repairs to engine parts I have had some good results with this stuff. But, as with everything, preparation is king...

http://www.techno-weld.co.uk/home.html

Enjoy your journey!

G

smccrory · Post by **smccrory** » Thu Nov 06, 2014 8:57 am

G-Man wrote:Scott, Good effort! It's great learning new skills and these bikes are a great way to do that. There are a number of different technologies for welding steel, stainless steel and aluminum, thick and thin sections. Take a look at Youtube videos to get some idea of what you need. For aluminum repairs to engine parts I have had some good results with this stuff. But, as with everything, preparation is king... http://www.techno-weld.co.uk/home.html, Enjoy your journey! - G

Thanks again G! It's a really fun project and I'm developing new skills and confidence in the process. My mistakes are teaching me things too :-) and I'm sincerely appreciative of y'all with far greater knowledge about these bikes.

I ordered a set of headers and mufflers costing more than the Taiwan sets but a lot less than the Emgo ones. They should be here next week - we'll see how it goes. I'm happy that my re-tapped muffler stud is holding well so far.

It's getting pretty chilly in Ohio :-(, and while I ride into the 40s, that's a lot less frequent, giving me more time to spend wrenching. My other bikes (a '13 V-Strom 650, '09 CRF230L and a girlfriend's Sym Fiddle 125cc scoot) are very low maintenance, so I'll get to re-focus on the CB77 as soon as my head cold goes away.

My list of mechanical things already done is quite long, but I'd to improve the bike's shifting (offset cotter, you say? Tell me more! :-)), find my clutch cover oil leak, figure out why the speedometer suddenly pegs above 50 mph, replace my speedo's rubber seating, adjust cam chain tension, repair the rear shocks because they don't dampen at all right now, reassemble the front fork "gaiters" correctly, reinstall the steering dampener, tighten a couple wheel spokes and probably some other things I'm forgetting.

Oh, has anyone put turn signals on their CB77? I know that's bad juju for the purists, and I'm OK with going without, but I'm of the mind that lighting yourself up is a best practice. I can get hold of late 60s signal lamps and relays but I'm having a hard time finding appropriate control switches.

Anyway, once those mechanical things are sorted, I need to make a decision about whether to strip everything down to the frame and repaint it or not. In any case I know for sure I'll be repainting the tank, fenders, side pieces, headlamp, etc. so I picked up soda blasting and painting tools for my compressor. It'll be another set of new skills to pick up. :-)

smccrory · Post by **smccrory** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:30 pm

I'm making winter progress. I decided to go with the black/grey/silver color combination that most of the bike's parts started with. It's funny because in preparing each part, I've discovered black, red, green, white and primer colors - indicating and long and, um, colorful life.

The tank was bondo'ed smooth, primed, and painted black, same with the headlight, chain guard and swingarm. I've decided to stop dis-assembly at the swingarm and not paint the whole frame at this time. I've been sanding between coats, especially on the tank, to make it as smooth as possible with home painting supplies.

The fenders and side covers were bondo'ed smooth, primed and painted grey. I used JB Weld to repair a metal crack. The engine well cover was painted silver.

Now I have everything lightly sanded with 800 grit wet-dry, ready for 2K gloss clearcoat. Yea, I know the grey parts weren't glossy from the factory, but I love a glossy finish, and I can always dress out the shine if it turns out too sparkly.

I did give up on the stock speedometer and ordered a working replacement. The odometer reads 8k fewer miles, so I'll declare the difference on the title or adjust the ticker if I take apart the new instrument to clean up the face a bit. I'll probably just leave it alone at first.

I'm also thinking about replacing the worn-out stock rear shocks with a pair of TECs. I don't have the tools to rehab the stock ones, and folks seem to think TECs perform as well or a little better than the stock shocks even if they're not the same build quality. Having actual hydraulic dampening would be nice.

Waveblaster · Post by **Waveblaster** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 9:12 pm

Side covers and guards are cloud silver as far as I know not grey. Is this what you meant?

smccrory · Post by **smccrory** » Tue Dec 23, 2014 8:42 am

Waveblaster wrote:Side covers and guards are cloud silver as far as I know not grey. Is this what you meant?

Whoops, yep, thanks, though I'm not using Imron on this rehab, opting instead for Duplicolor Ultra Silver Mica rattle can. Sanding between coats and laying 2K clearcoat over top makes it really hard to tell a spray gun wasn't used. I'll have some pictures in a few days once the clearcoat has cured.