[Crewie-CX81]

The Courier showed up an hour early and delivered my new project.
A 1981 CX500B.
She's a little worse for wear but what can you expect, for a 42 year old bike she is in very good condition. Once the paper work was sorted and the photos taken, she fired up like a Good'un.
She ran and idled very well, I was well pleased.
A few pics to be going on with for now.
Crewie.

 

[D-Fresh]

Doesn't look too bad to me, like the color also. And... it's a runner! Can't beat that.

 

[Crewie-CX81]

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Doesn't look too bad to me, like the colour also. And... it's a runner! Can't beat that.

Thanks Mate. I bought her without seeing her in the flesh, so very pleased so far.

Crewie

 

[PDC-500B]

Looks OK, and complete as fast as I can see. What are your intentions with it?

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Gentle restoration. No mad ideas. I would like to source a Rack for it. I also need to do something with the filler cap, lock is missing.

Crewie

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Just printed forms (V112) for applying for tax and MOT Exemption.
"R" is the relevant paragraph re the age of the vehicle.
Just a trip to the PO and hopefully it's done.

Crewie

 

[Crewie-CX81]

I had a shufty around the Bike and it all looks pretty good.
She was last MOT'd in Dec 2021 in Slough, so it has only just run out.
Looks like a lot of work was done at that time.. fork seals look new, tyres are new, everything works as it should lights indicators etc.
The worst bit is the tank, the second worst bit is the collector box, and the whole exhaust needs a bit of TLC.
A few pics of the scraggy bits.

Crewie

Screen is terrible, are they available ?

Collector rusty, hopefully its solid, but they are available and quite cheap.

I need a solution for this, they are like rocking horse poop it seems.

Badges in good nick, little grub screws came pit and cleaned up well.

Hopefully there are no holes under here. Badges have held water over the years. I might go for decals when the paint goes on. The badges are in excellent nick, just need a bit of black paint.

 

[PDC-500B]

Original Honda screens in good nick are very hard to come by. They usually craze, sometimes badly, and impacts from small stones and bigger insects, while not leaving any marks at the time, seem to cause stress cracks to appear in later life. Lots of strong sunlight doesn't help either. A few years ago there was a genuine New Old Stock one for sale on ebay for £200! It didn't sell at the time... aftermarket screens are available, but they don't have the same curvature or the moulded beading to the edge.
If it's not holed, the collector box should clean up and repainted without too much difficulty. David Silver Spares usually has pattern collector boxes for the standard CX (like yours) for a reasonable fee..
If you're serious, and can justify it, it might be worth getting the rank professionally restored. Can't advise on the lock though, but shouldn't be too hard to find one.

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Bike is insured now, cost nothing to add to my classic policy with an agreed yearly mileage, but there was an admin fee.
I also applied for the Tax and MOT free status, historic vehicle status I should say.

If it's not holed, the collector box should clean up and repainted without too much difficulty.

I haven't bashed it with a screwdriver yet (cos I want to ride it) but it does look solid, and is not blowing.
New one is £65
Complete system £393.36 inc vat.

Crewie

 

[PDC-500B]

As new genuine Honda exhausts are no longer available, where is the £393.63 exhaust from? Is it complete with all six gaskets and four clamps?

MoT exemption is automatic at 40 years, so there's nothing to 'apply for', but until it is registered as Historic (from 1st April in its 41st year, so yours qualifies now, as you know) you can only tax it at a PO, with the V112 (which is a pointless form as they only throw it away or give it back to you - they can see when it was first registered on the V5C you give them!), not tax online. Once registered as Historic, you still have to 'tax' it every year, or SORN it, as before.

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Yes, I was surprised when they gave me the V112 back, as the DVLA seem to imply that The PO need it.

I didn't realise MOT was automatic, The DVLA site is very vague in places.

The Lady at the PO said I could do tax online !!!!! We will see !!

The price for the exhaust is from David Silvers and includes:-
Down pipes X 2 49.00
Silencers X 2 190.00
Gaskets X 4 24.00
Collector Box 65.00
+ 20% VAT
I have the copper header gaskets and the clamps. He does sell clamps.

Crewie

 

[Crewie-CX81]

I took the seat off to have a look, as you do, and replaced the tank cushion while I was there.
Everything is very tidy, no evidence of the wiring gremlins.
I have a new seat cover to go on. The old one is pop riveted on in places, is this the norm ?
I was pleased to find the seat has release levers and not nuts and bolts, cos that is a complete faff every time you want to charge the battery etc.

I have a Volt meter I am going to fit, so I can monitor the charging system for piece of mind.

I have bought a new screen, PDC-500B is correct when he says the new screen is different (I had already bought it then).
But I had the idea of using some edge rubber I had left from my 600F project, I think it looks good.

Crewie.

Nice bevelled edge above, new rubber below.

Nice and gunk free in the tail end.

Tidy.

New versus old.

New.

 

[Blurredman]

If you call that a 'little worse for wear' then you see my bikes! That looks like a lovely little bike despite it's minor defects! Well done.

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Thanks Blurredman, I think I have been very lucky to be fair, as I bought it without viewing.
Good Old Cosmo Classics.
Thanks for your kind, and amusing words.

Crewie

 

[Crewie-CX81]

I made a start on the seat today, a weird place to start I know , but I wanted to see if the foam was ok.
I had to sacrifice a few of the side trim fixings as they were rusted so badly, so need to source some square headed M3 bolts.
I drilled out the pop rivets.
Took off the seat strap.
The foam is very good, I just need to fill the sides where the old foam had perished, with some thin stuff.

Crewie
Foam looking very good.

The old cover.

Most of the M3 bolts are unusable.

These look freakishly like door stops to me.

The foam that used to be here had disintegrated to dust.

The seat is in very good condition.

 

[llrelease]

What a great find! It’s a beautiful bike. It seems she found an owner that will restore and take good care and of her. I was relieved to hear you don’t plan to turn her into a cafe racer!

 

[Crewie-CX81]

What a great find! It’s a beautiful bike. It seems she found an owner that will restore and take good care and of her. I was relieved to hear you don’t plan to turn her into a cafe racer!

Thanks.
It was suggested by a couple of my friends , but no !! I love the way it looks.

I have completed the seat cover change (my first one).
I added some extra foam on the sides where it had perished, and a "u" rubber edging strip all the way round to prevent what happened to the previous cover. It had rubbed on the seat edge and worn through. If it hadn't have been for that it would have stayed on.

Crewie.

New Foam.

#
New Foam.

Masked to take the spray glue. See the rubber surround. If I do another I would mask this to keep the glue off it, so the cover slides over it, to make life easier.

All the holes for the M3 bolts marked with tie wraps.

Finished seat.

 

[Randall-in-Mpls]

The later Standard seat covers were glued on? All the examples I've seen use stamped barbs in the seat pan. And the chrome trim is held by aluminum rivets with push nuts, rather than bolts and threads nuts.

 

[Crewie-CX81]

Interesting, I have just replaced like for like on this one.
The trim fitting you mention would have been way easier.

Crewie.