Honda CB250n SuperDream Refurb: BEFORE #50

Thursday, January 01, 2009

BEFORE #50

Started cleaning the engine today. This is gonna be a very unpleasant, difficult job and I'm not looking forward to it one bit. But, it's gotta be done!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...: Any tips on what to use? Mine's in the frame and isn't coming out so I know it'll be fiddly and time consuming anyway. - John; 3 January 2009 at 20:39
Tom McQuiggan said...: Hi John,
Get ready for some sore fingers! First of all, remove any removable panels and decide and either send them to your local metal-polishing shop (recommended) or buy yourself a polishing-kit and do it yourself. If you've got lots of patience, time and determination, you'll get a great finish, but personally, I think it's better to give the job to someone who does it for a living, while you utilise the time to prepare the rest of the engine.

I paint my engines with MANY thin coats of Sperex Very High Temperature silver paint. It's extremely simple, but you have to resist spraying on too much at one time. Lots of thin coats, lots of drying times and repeat the process.

Needless to say, prior to painting, you MUST clean the surface and for this I always use Scotch-Brite pads and stainless-steel wire brushes AFTER giving the engine a thorough degreasing.

Whatever method you use, be DOUBLY SURE to clean off any remnants of abrasive material THOROUGHLY and be sure not to allow any of it to fall into orifices which lead to the inside of the engine and/or oilways.

Tom.; 3 January 2009 at 21:29
Tom McQuiggan said...: Sorry, forgot to say, use lots of old newspapers and do a good job of masking off surrounding areas such as the frame, etc.; 3 January 2009 at 21:30

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IN THE BEGINNING....

Way, way back in August 1980, I was working as a young steel-erector in Newcastle Upon Tyne and around the corner from where I worked was "Ken's Motorcycles" on the West Road. In the window was a brand new CB250N Superdream in shiny black - and I wanted it! So I got got the brochure (shown below), begged my future father in law to act as guarantor and signed on the £820 dotted line.

I loved that bike - it got me back and forth between Bolton and Newcastle with no problems or hiccups and lots of fun. From memory, it did something like 60 miles per gallon and could burn off most cars. What else does a young lad want?

Anyway, 28 years later, I decided to get another one and refurbish it over the winter months. I've done similar projects in the past and really enjoyed them, so I'm hoping that this one turns out as well as the others. Having said that, this project will be a REFURB as opposed to a rebuild.

The donor-bike looked to be in pretty good shape at first glance, but as usual, it all turns pear-shaped when you remove your rose-tinted glasses and start to see what's REALLY there!

The first thing that I want to do, is spend a little time finding out whether or not the engine needs a rebuild. If it doesn't really need it, so much the better. If it does need doing, then there'll be a significant delay as I spend time clearing out the garage to give me a lot more space.

I estimate that this project will take 3 or 4 months to complete but due to other interests/hobbies, it may go longer.

So, I'll start off with a few photos of the bike in its current condition and then log the progress of the refurb as I go along. Please feel free to comment or offer advice. Hope you enjoy!

Tom

http://www.mcqart.com/

SEE ALSO... HONDA CB450 K1.