Return of the CB

I am not making this up; the CB360T I found on Craigslist is the one I bought last year!
The guy I sold it to sold it to a guy in McKees Rocks and he sold it back to me! He did add clubman bars and new air filters, but other than that, the bike is exactly the same.

Another CB

As I am now divorced, I am getting ready to purchase another CB 360T.

Just as before, I found it on Craigslist. This bike apparently runs and has had some modifications, but it does include various spare parts.

Reinstalling the Components

I finally got the left case to stop leaking oil by removing it one more time and putting gasket sealer on both sides of the gasket. After torqueing the bolts, I added the oil and no leaks after three days.



It was a 50 degree day today and we washed both cars. It was also a perfect opportunity to wash the bike, the sprocket cover and the carburetor. I removed the diaphrams, bowls and chrome diaphram covers from the carbs. I polished the covers to remove some stubborn rust.

I also had a chance to polish some of the chrome bits and it really paid off.

Since I am down to the rebuilding and installing the carburetors, I decided to rebuild the bike.

I installed the headlight bucket, the tank with the new petcock, the seat, the rear fender, the rear turn markers, and the rear light.

The bungle of the day was removing all of the bullet connectors inside the headlight bucket and it was not necessary.

As soon as the rebuild kits come in the mail, it may be possible to start the bike next weekend.

I still need to replace the right side throttle control housing so I can use the electric start.

Sprocket Cover and Rear Case with Rodents

Just out of boredom and curiosity, I took off the rear crankcase/sprocket cover. I had heard of pests making nests out in motorcycles and cars and here is the proof. It does not appear that they did any damage to wires.

There were three of my new stainless allen head bolts and old phillips head screw holding it on. The phillips head came out easily and I am replacing it with the last stainless screw.

The cover itself did take more than a little force to be removed.

There is quite a bit of gunk in there, so I am glad I took the cover off.

A Good Day to Wrench

I started the day in my new Simpson pajama bottoms, checking the torque specs on the right side of the crankcase that I installed on December 31. I had also installed new stainless allen head bolts into the case. When it was completed, I still had the remainder of the bolts for the other shifter side of the case, so I decided to put them in to the case one at time.

The new allen bolts on the case

Of course, it is never that easy. Three of the phillips head screws needed the dremel tool assist to back them out.

The "old" bolts

Once I had completed the left side, I still had two bolts remaining. I calculated that they were to hold the electric starter on the front of the case. The lower phillips head came out rather easily, but the top totally sheared off during the dremel tool/flat head technique. Luckily, once the head was sheared and I loosend the lower bolt, I used an eyeglass screw driver to back out the broken bolt.

The starter with new allen bolts

I then installed the the new allen bolts and torqued them to spec.

The other issue that was bothering me was the lack of Neutral Light when the battery was attached. I had expressed my concern to Spencer and Clint. Spencer said "how the wiring on CB's is a mess." Such a statement is not good for my sleep.

So this afternoon, after I had completed the allen bolts, I ran over all of the wiring to check for loose connections. I also looked toward the case where the shifter is located. A small mass of wires was coming from the case and going toward the location of the carburetors. It was disconnected.

The wires in question reconnected

I could barely contain myself as I hooked up the battery and turned on the key. Success. The Neutral Light shown brightly.

I also removed the reflectors from the forks today. A little weight here and there.

One of the small successes of yesterday was getting the rear brake lever reinstalled. I lubricated with bicycle grease and checked the photos in the manual for proper spring location. It is now working smoothly.

The rear brake lever assembly and spring

The next step is to work on the carburetors. Hopefully it goes well.

Right Side Crankcase Installation

Happy New Year, 2010!

I cleaned up the old gasket on the right side of the crankcase and put the snap ring back on the oil filter, checked the torque of the lower filter, and then went to Walmart to purchase oil.

I went with the 10w-30 synthetic. The specs call for 2 quarts.

After searching for Torque Specs and not finding anything, I just hand tightened them for the moment, and then put the oil in the case. I put a newspaper under the bike to check for leaks.

As of January 1, 2010, it is leaking, but I am hoping the seal takes and the torque setttings of 8 inch/lbs. does the trick.