So, first the affirmation:
I think the CX500 and its 650 brothers are the greatest bikes around.
The 500 is one of the longest lasting motors made, and nearly impossible, without being silly, to kill.
There are a lot of examples of them being dug out of barns, fields, or basements, with very few to 10’s of thousands of miles put on them. Many of us have simply cleaned the carbs, changed the oil, done a high miles service, jumped on them and driven the crap out of for years.
Here is the rant:
There are some nice newer members on the forum who are from the "let’s take it all apart and put everything new into the motor so I won’t have problems later" school.
Now while that is fine if they feel they need to do this, they are welcome to do so. But here is an example that rubs the wrong way.
Recently, I got off the phone with a new member from Utah (who can chip in if he wants) that was going to ship me his motor for me to go through.
I asked him “how many miles on it”. “20k” says he. “Does it make any noises?” “Nope.” says he. “How does it run?” “Good” says he.
“Why are you sending it to me?”
…………………Because people on the forum tell him he should tear it all apart and go through everything……………
So I tell him his motor might need a triple, he says he has already done the mechanical seal and is going to adjust the timing chain.
i gently (and no offense here) told him that the people telling him it needed a complete tear down were also new to CX’s, and in fact, while there were quite a few that have their motors completely torn down, NONE HAVE YET TO GET THEM BACK TO A RUNNING STATE
Now while I have no doubts in the skills of these people, some of whom I have been helping, it belies why we all love our CX’s to think they need complete tear downs and inspections at low miles.
Do the service work, get on them, and ride!!!
Now, the advice to all………
Read the posts of people that you think you need to take direction and advice from. It’s like any other kind of shopping, look around! See what they have done, how long they have been doing it, and if it has been successful.
LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF POSTS a person has. You may not want to listen to someone as closely if that person only has 3 posts, compared to someone like blindstitch that has almost 15k.
Last of all, to new members……
We at this forum think these bikes are awesome, and we want to help anyone in the world keep them running. And we will all tell you that even though you don’t know what a crank shaft looks like, you can overhaul your motor yourself.
Now, while that may be possible, I can say it is not always true.
So, please…… research everything before you start, ask tons of questions, and read some more. Then make sure it’s something you want to tackle, and that you feel you have a high probability of doing right.
I buy 3-7 bikes a year off the forum that are apart, something is broken, and/or the whole project was abandoned by over-reaching.
There are many members here who will even come help. All you have to do is ask.
So if you are not sure you can rebuild your brakes, DONT DO IT! Ask for more help or get it done for you.
All right, I will shut up now!!
I think the CX500 and its 650 brothers are the greatest bikes around.
The 500 is one of the longest lasting motors made, and nearly impossible, without being silly, to kill.
There are a lot of examples of them being dug out of barns, fields, or basements, with very few to 10’s of thousands of miles put on them. Many of us have simply cleaned the carbs, changed the oil, done a high miles service, jumped on them and driven the crap out of for years.
Here is the rant:
There are some nice newer members on the forum who are from the "let’s take it all apart and put everything new into the motor so I won’t have problems later" school.
Now while that is fine if they feel they need to do this, they are welcome to do so. But here is an example that rubs the wrong way.
Recently, I got off the phone with a new member from Utah (who can chip in if he wants) that was going to ship me his motor for me to go through.
I asked him “how many miles on it”. “20k” says he. “Does it make any noises?” “Nope.” says he. “How does it run?” “Good” says he.
“Why are you sending it to me?”
…………………Because people on the forum tell him he should tear it all apart and go through everything……………
So I tell him his motor might need a triple, he says he has already done the mechanical seal and is going to adjust the timing chain.
i gently (and no offense here) told him that the people telling him it needed a complete tear down were also new to CX’s, and in fact, while there were quite a few that have their motors completely torn down, NONE HAVE YET TO GET THEM BACK TO A RUNNING STATE
Now while I have no doubts in the skills of these people, some of whom I have been helping, it belies why we all love our CX’s to think they need complete tear downs and inspections at low miles.
Do the service work, get on them, and ride!!!
Now, the advice to all………
Read the posts of people that you think you need to take direction and advice from. It’s like any other kind of shopping, look around! See what they have done, how long they have been doing it, and if it has been successful.
LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF POSTS a person has. You may not want to listen to someone as closely if that person only has 3 posts, compared to someone like blindstitch that has almost 15k.
Last of all, to new members……
We at this forum think these bikes are awesome, and we want to help anyone in the world keep them running. And we will all tell you that even though you don’t know what a crank shaft looks like, you can overhaul your motor yourself.
Now, while that may be possible, I can say it is not always true.
So, please…… research everything before you start, ask tons of questions, and read some more. Then make sure it’s something you want to tackle, and that you feel you have a high probability of doing right.
I buy 3-7 bikes a year off the forum that are apart, something is broken, and/or the whole project was abandoned by over-reaching.
There are many members here who will even come help. All you have to do is ask.
So if you are not sure you can rebuild your brakes, DONT DO IT! Ask for more help or get it done for you.
All right, I will shut up now!!