slowbird
Well-known member
If they were as plentiful here as they were everywhere else in the world it would be a fun project for sure.
Yeah. I want one.
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My new JDM "Super" Bike
- Thread starter slowbird
- Start date
If they were as plentiful here as they were everywhere else in the world it would be a fun project for sure.
Yeah. I want one.
slowbird
Well-known member
Haven't posted in awhile but lots of work going into the Super Cub. Thought I'd put some of it up here for those that are interested.
Where we last left off I was beginning to dig into the Cubs innards.
Compared to all of the V4's I have owned, this bike is quite simple. But, at the same time compared to all of the V4's I have owned this bike is quite filthy. It's obviously been sitting for some time, and occasionally I am finding a missing fastener here and there. No problem though. that's what I am aiming to fix
Airbox is off:
Such a weird intake design. 4 little chimney like snorkel tubes.
Well this doesn't look right. can't have that.
Getting a replacement doesn't look possible so lets see if I can fix it.
Removed the intake hose from the airbox:
After setting overnight with some adhesive:
Finished off with some black silicone:
There! Hopefully that holds for some time.
Where we last left off I was beginning to dig into the Cubs innards.
Compared to all of the V4's I have owned, this bike is quite simple. But, at the same time compared to all of the V4's I have owned this bike is quite filthy. It's obviously been sitting for some time, and occasionally I am finding a missing fastener here and there. No problem though. that's what I am aiming to fix
Airbox is off:
Such a weird intake design. 4 little chimney like snorkel tubes.
Well this doesn't look right.
can't have that.Getting a replacement doesn't look possible so lets see if I can fix it.
Removed the intake hose from the airbox:
After setting overnight with some adhesive:
Finished off with some black silicone:
There! Hopefully that holds for some time.
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slowbird
Well-known member
With the Intake hose repaired, time to see what the air filter looks like:
I wonder when was the last time this Air Filter was changed.
If I remember correctly, when I bought the bike the Ad did say it had a new air filter installed....oh well. Can't dwell on that now. Time for a new one.
After some searching online the cheapest and fastest was from Ebay.
While I waited for the filter to arrive I slapped on a cone filter I had laying around and tried that in the meantime.
The bike didn't like it at all. It would idle, and it would run on part throttle, but anything more and it would stutter or bog down...I should have known it would have been too much air for the stock carb setup.
So the bike remained parked while I waited.
Eventually the new Air Filter arrived:
Well now I know that the filter is supposed to be yellow. I thought it was orange lol. Or perhaps they used to be redish/orange color back when this filter was installed.
Cleaned up the airbox, polished up the clamp and slapped in the new Air Filter. Quite the difference
I wonder when was the last time this Air Filter was changed.
If I remember correctly, when I bought the bike the Ad did say it had a new air filter installed....oh well. Can't dwell on that now. Time for a new one.
After some searching online the cheapest and fastest was from Ebay.
While I waited for the filter to arrive I slapped on a cone filter I had laying around and tried that in the meantime.
The bike didn't like it at all. It would idle, and it would run on part throttle, but anything more and it would stutter or bog down...I should have known it would have been too much air for the stock carb setup.
So the bike remained parked while I waited.
Eventually the new Air Filter arrived:
Well now I know that the filter is supposed to be yellow. I thought it was orange lol. Or perhaps they used to be redish/orange color back when this filter was installed.
Cleaned up the airbox, polished up the clamp and slapped in the new Air Filter. Quite the difference
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slowbird
Well-known member
So over the winter I brought the bike down into the basement. Made it a bit more convenient to work on it. I removed the seat, fairings and fuel tank which made the already featherweight 170ish lbs bike that much easier to bring down.
Time to get that carb out and get cleaning.
At my request, the wifu brought a suitcase full of Honda parts back with her from Japan
Some replacement parts, and thankfully a Carb Kit. I really wanted all new seals/o-rings. It was needed as the seller used some gasket goop to seal the float bowl and pieces of sealant made their way inside the carb and the float bowl.
Quite a filthy little Carb. Some time in the parts cleaner will fix that.
Reassembly was smooth. The parts cleaner made it quite easy to clean everything. I was glad to have all of the proper seals and O-RIngs from Honda.
Part of the long list of parts I asked to wife to bring from Japan were the manifold Gaskets. The one between the carb and the manifold was a proper gasket and the one between the manifold and the cylinder head was a thick O-Ring.
Bolted it all back on. While I was at it I replace the fuel hoses. One of the originals tore when I tried to pull it off the carb so I had to get new ones. I originally went with the stock i.d. hose size but couldn't find any decent fuel filters so I went a size up. I used the same style fuel filters on my old VF500 and they worked well.
Here's hoping the fresh and clean carb, plus the fuel filters will help keep the jets clean.
Time to get that carb out and get cleaning.
At my request, the wifu brought a suitcase full of Honda parts back with her from Japan
Some replacement parts, and thankfully a Carb Kit. I really wanted all new seals/o-rings. It was needed as the seller used some gasket goop to seal the float bowl and pieces of sealant made their way inside the carb and the float bowl.
Quite a filthy little Carb. Some time in the parts cleaner will fix that.
Reassembly was smooth. The parts cleaner made it quite easy to clean everything. I was glad to have all of the proper seals and O-RIngs from Honda.
Part of the long list of parts I asked to wife to bring from Japan were the manifold Gaskets. The one between the carb and the manifold was a proper gasket and the one between the manifold and the cylinder head was a thick O-Ring.
Bolted it all back on. While I was at it I replace the fuel hoses. One of the originals tore when I tried to pull it off the carb so I had to get new ones. I originally went with the stock i.d. hose size but couldn't find any decent fuel filters so I went a size up. I used the same style fuel filters on my old VF500 and they worked well.
Here's hoping the fresh and clean carb, plus the fuel filters will help keep the jets clean.
Having the petcock integrated into the carb is neat
slowbird
Well-known member
It is neat huh....and it's new to me. I'm used to having the Petcock in the tank. I wonder how many setups are like this
Yeah she's a gem. Parts for cubs are so plentiful and cheap in Japan she was able to get them easily.
slowbird
Well-known member
Pulled the side cover off to get at the battery. It's been sitting awhile so I wanted to put it on a tender.
Considering how slooooow the bike is I was toying with the idea of getting a lighter anti-grav battery. Especially since there is no starter motor and it only needs to run the lights I could get the tiniest one. Checking the sizes though even the smallest one wouldn't fit in the existing battery tray. Probably for the best as I don't want to spend $200 on a battery.
With the battery out, I removed the tray to expose the innards of the frame.
It's real filthy. I took all of the electronic bits off the battery tray and gave it a wash. Inside the frame was super dirty. Very musty and old smelling.
I gave it a good clean.
Frame is in good shape. No rot that I can see. Just the occasional surface rust.
Speaking of rust. I came across this stuff while doing some research:
Rust Check. Rust Wash
They have it at Canadian Tire. It's supposed to be non-toxic and even reusable. Some of the videos I saw of it looks promising.
You're just supposed to soak the rusty items. The rustier it is, the longer it needs to soak.
The bolts of the side covers were quite rusty, so I gave them a soak:
Before:
After:
You can see the chrome has been damaged by the rust, which I can't do anything about, but the rust itself is gone. Bolt is left nice and shiny, and way easier than trying to scrub with the Autosol.
One of the replacement items the wifu brought from Japan are a pair of used shocks. (One of the ones that came with the bike has a broken plastic cover)
But the shocks have some surface rust on the top, so I poured some of the Rust wash into an old thermos and put the shock in there upside down to soak.
Before:
After:
Using the same method, I tried the Shifter "pedal"
Before:
After:
Next I tried this front rack the seller gave me with the bike. It's quite rusty.
This needed a bit more soaking as well as the occasional scrub with a bristle brush to help persuade the rust to go away.
Not too shabby. I gave everything a wash and some polishing with the Autosol. Hopefully that keeps them looking decent.
Considering how slooooow the bike is I was toying with the idea of getting a lighter anti-grav battery. Especially since there is no starter motor and it only needs to run the lights I could get the tiniest one. Checking the sizes though even the smallest one wouldn't fit in the existing battery tray. Probably for the best as I don't want to spend $200 on a battery.
With the battery out, I removed the tray to expose the innards of the frame.
It's real filthy. I took all of the electronic bits off the battery tray and gave it a wash. Inside the frame was super dirty. Very musty and old smelling.
I gave it a good clean.
Frame is in good shape. No rot that I can see. Just the occasional surface rust.
Speaking of rust. I came across this stuff while doing some research:
Rust Check. Rust Wash
They have it at Canadian Tire. It's supposed to be non-toxic and even reusable. Some of the videos I saw of it looks promising.
You're just supposed to soak the rusty items. The rustier it is, the longer it needs to soak.
The bolts of the side covers were quite rusty, so I gave them a soak:
Before:
After:
You can see the chrome has been damaged by the rust, which I can't do anything about, but the rust itself is gone. Bolt is left nice and shiny, and way easier than trying to scrub with the Autosol.
One of the replacement items the wifu brought from Japan are a pair of used shocks. (One of the ones that came with the bike has a broken plastic cover)
But the shocks have some surface rust on the top, so I poured some of the Rust wash into an old thermos and put the shock in there upside down to soak.
Before:
After:
Using the same method, I tried the Shifter "pedal"
Before:
After:
Next I tried this front rack the seller gave me with the bike. It's quite rusty.
This needed a bit more soaking as well as the occasional scrub with a bristle brush to help persuade the rust to go away.
Not too shabby. I gave everything a wash and some polishing with the Autosol. Hopefully that keeps them looking decent.
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Robbo
Well-known member
Pulled the side cover off to get at the battery. It's been sitting awhile so I wanted to put it on a tender.
Considering how slooooow the bike is I was toying with the idea of getting a lighter anti-grav battery. Especially since there is no starter motor and it only needs to run the lights I could get the tiniest one. Checking the sizes though even the smallest one wouldn't fit in the existing battery tray. Probably for the best as I don't want to spend $200 on a battery.
With the battery out, I removed the tray to expose the innards of the frame.
It's real filthy. I took all of the electronic bits off the battery tray and gave it a wash. Inside the frame was super dirty. Very musty and old smelling.
I gave it a good clean.
Frame is in good shape. No rot that I can see. Just the occasional surface rust.
Speaking of rust. I came across this stuff while doing some research:
Rust Check. Rust Wash
They have it at Canadian Tire. It's supposed to be non-toxic and even reusable. Some of the videos I saw of it looks promising.
You're just supposed to soak the rusty items. The rustier it is, the longer it needs to soak.
The bolts of the side covers were quite rusty, so I gave them a soak:
Before:
After:
You can see the chrome has been damaged by the rust, which I can't do anything about, but the rust itself is gone. Bolt is left nice and shiny, and way easier than trying to scrub with the Autosol.
One of the replacement items the wifu brought from Japan are a pair of used shocks. (One of the ones that came with the bike has a broken plastic cover)
But the shocks have some surface rust on the top, so I poured some of the Rust wash into an old thermos and put in shock in there upside down to soak.
Before:
After:
Using the same method, I tried the Shifter "pedal"
Before:
After:
Next I tried this front rack the seller gave me with the bike. It's quite rusty.
This needed a bit more soaking as well as the occasional scrub with a bristle brush to help persuade the rust to go away.
Not too shabby. I gave everything a wash and some polishing with the Autosol. Hopefully that keeps them looking decent.
That’s amazing stuff. I added it to my CT shopping list.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
slowbird
Well-known member
I’m quite impressed with this stuff too. It comes in a “Gel” and this Rust Wash. Bottles are almost identical so look carefully
slowbird
Well-known member
Next on the list of things to do is clean the tank. It isn't the worst tank I have ever seen, but it can be better.
Researching all of the ways to DIY clean the tank I decided to go with plain old White vinegar. Inexpensive, non-toxic, easy to dispose etc etc.
I watched some online vids and got to work. Tank is only 4 Liters so I didn't have to buy much. I dropped in some bolts to help with the agitation/scrubbing.
After a few hours I dumped out the contents:
Pretty nasty. Bits of rust and crud.
I decided to dispose of this first batch and pour in some fresh vinegar. Next day the contents looked like this:
Still gross.
However, no matter what I did the contents of the tank always came out like this. Even when the inside looked fine.
After a few flushes with the vinegar I came across a problem.
When I tried to remove the cap it wouldn't budge. The key would turn but the cap wouldn't loosen from the tank. After some messing about it finally came off and a quick look at the underside of the gas cap showed that the locking mechanism had turned to slag.
I know vinegar is acidic but I never imagined it would melt the metal of the gas cap locking mechanism. I even had to fish out a screw from the tank as the threads dissolved in the vinegar and the screw just fell in.
Oh well. Time to order another cap and wait patiently for it to arrive. Lesson learned.
I washed the tank out with some baking soda to neutralize the Vinegar. I gave the inside a good scrub with a toilet brush and flushed it with water till it seemed completely clear of vinegar, baking soda, or anything else. I know I had to work quick to prevent the tank from flash rusting. Original plan was to install the tank and then fill it with fuel but I don't want it sitting full of fuel without a gas cap. So I decided to fill the tank with the Rust Check Rust Wash and wait till the cap arrives.
In the meanwhile the bike come out of it's basement hibernation so it can return to the garage.
Researching all of the ways to DIY clean the tank I decided to go with plain old White vinegar. Inexpensive, non-toxic, easy to dispose etc etc.
I watched some online vids and got to work. Tank is only 4 Liters so I didn't have to buy much. I dropped in some bolts to help with the agitation/scrubbing.
After a few hours I dumped out the contents:
Pretty nasty. Bits of rust and crud.
I decided to dispose of this first batch and pour in some fresh vinegar. Next day the contents looked like this:
Still gross.
However, no matter what I did the contents of the tank always came out like this. Even when the inside looked fine.
After a few flushes with the vinegar I came across a problem.
When I tried to remove the cap it wouldn't budge. The key would turn but the cap wouldn't loosen from the tank. After some messing about it finally came off and a quick look at the underside of the gas cap showed that the locking mechanism had turned to slag.
I know vinegar is acidic but I never imagined it would melt the metal of the gas cap locking mechanism. I even had to fish out a screw from the tank as the threads dissolved in the vinegar and the screw just fell in.
Oh well. Time to order another cap and wait patiently for it to arrive. Lesson learned.
I washed the tank out with some baking soda to neutralize the Vinegar. I gave the inside a good scrub with a toilet brush and flushed it with water till it seemed completely clear of vinegar, baking soda, or anything else. I know I had to work quick to prevent the tank from flash rusting. Original plan was to install the tank and then fill it with fuel but I don't want it sitting full of fuel without a gas cap. So I decided to fill the tank with the Rust Check Rust Wash and wait till the cap arrives.
In the meanwhile the bike come out of it's basement hibernation so it can return to the garage.
slowbird
Well-known member
When the gas cap finally arrived I got working on the tank. Flushed out the Rust Wash and was quite surprised with the results. Unlike the vinegar the tank wouldn't start flash-rusting immediately after being emptied. Pretty good stuff.
I made sure to give everything a good wash and scrub before getting the tank bolted back on and filled with fresh ethanol free fuel.
New gas cap is really nice. Looks just like stock.
A bit too shiny compared to the rest of the bike
One of the new parts the wifu brought with her was a new fuel gauge. Old one was quite cruddy looking.
The bracket was rusty. I couldn't buy a new one so I stripped the paint from the original and gave it a fresh coat. Replaced the bolts with new ones and it turned out quite fresh looking.
Cross your fingers that it will start. (and run)
I made sure to give everything a good wash and scrub before getting the tank bolted back on and filled with fresh ethanol free fuel.
New gas cap is really nice. Looks just like stock.
A bit too shiny compared to the rest of the bike
One of the new parts the wifu brought with her was a new fuel gauge. Old one was quite cruddy looking.
The bracket was rusty. I couldn't buy a new one so I stripped the paint from the original and gave it a fresh coat. Replaced the bolts with new ones and it turned out quite fresh looking.
Cross your fingers that it will start. (and run)
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Japanese domestic market. More typically used (and more often misused) for cars.
slowbird
Well-known member
I actually hadn't heard of UJM before. Now I do.
Much obliged.Yeah I never thought about that. You don't see the term JDM used for bikes often, do you.
slowbird
Well-known member
So Bike is back together. Full of Fuel. Ready to go.
Key on.
Petcock to on.
Unfold the kickstarter and start kicking.
kick.
kick.
kick.
kick. kick. kick. kick. kick. kick. kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick. kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick
Hmmmm. Why won't it start?
Ok. Time to troubleshoot:
Do I have Fuel?
Fuel Filters have fuel in them. Lets crack the float bowl drain screw....yup fuel is in there.
Do I have spark?
Pull the plug. Still new. Put it back into the boot, hold it to the engine and crank the motor by hand.
Hmmmmm no spark. Why is that?
Oh wait! I turned the Key off while I was checking for Fuel.
Turn the key on, crank the Engine. I got Spark.
Ok, I got Spark and I got Fuel. So WTH. Better get back to Kicking.
After A LOT of kicking while trying various throttle positions it stumbled to life, but won't run. It doesn't want to idle. During these brief moments of it running it doesn't sound right. Not like it's broken but sounds like there's an air leak somewhere. I run my hand along the intake and find something. A small leak between the Carb and the Intake manifold.
I pull it apart and can't see the issue. Gasket is brand new.
After some googling I notice in one of the pictures there should be an O-Ring on the Carb that presses against the gasket on the intake.
I slap one in there and the leak is gone. Bike starts and runs, and with some minor tweaks runs fine. I reinstall the leg guard and go for a test ride.
It feels.......exactly the same as before I rebuilt the carb. lol
It even has the same problem I had before. A stumble/stutter at part throttle. Runs great at WOT but part throttle makes it stumble. I think I'll pull the needle jet and see if I can move it up a notch.
Key on.
Petcock to on.
Unfold the kickstarter and start kicking.
kick.
kick.
kick.
kick. kick. kick. kick. kick. kick. kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick. kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick.kick
Hmmmm.
Why won't it start? Ok. Time to troubleshoot:
Do I have Fuel?
Fuel Filters have fuel in them. Lets crack the float bowl drain screw....yup fuel is in there.
Do I have spark?
Pull the plug. Still new. Put it back into the boot, hold it to the engine and crank the motor by hand.
Hmmmmm no spark. Why is that?
Oh wait! I turned the Key off while I was checking for Fuel.
Turn the key on, crank the Engine. I got Spark.
Ok, I got Spark and I got Fuel. So WTH. Better get back to Kicking.
After A LOT of kicking while trying various throttle positions it stumbled to life, but won't run. It doesn't want to idle. During these brief moments of it running it doesn't sound right. Not like it's broken but sounds like there's an air leak somewhere. I run my hand along the intake and find something. A small leak between the Carb and the Intake manifold.
I pull it apart and can't see the issue. Gasket is brand new.
After some googling I notice in one of the pictures there should be an O-Ring on the Carb that presses against the gasket on the intake.
I slap one in there and the leak is gone. Bike starts and runs, and with some minor tweaks runs fine. I reinstall the leg guard and go for a test ride.
It feels.......exactly the same as before I rebuilt the carb. lol
It even has the same problem I had before. A stumble/stutter at part throttle. Runs great at WOT but part throttle makes it stumble. I think I'll pull the needle jet and see if I can move it up a notch.
Wow that’s awesome! Thanks for the details and follow up.
And also for the rust removal. Got some tools that have light rust on them I’d like to get cleaned up.
And also for the rust removal. Got some tools that have light rust on them I’d like to get cleaned up.
slowbird
Well-known member
My pleasure. Thanks for the reply.
That rust wash stuff would be great to soak tools in. I've been dropping random rusty nuts and bolts into the bottle and fishing them out the next day. Good results.
slowbird
Well-known member
Nice and clean! It couldn't touch that blue locktite though, huh?
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