[Bluebeast69]

I have recently purchased a 1981 cx500 ( I'm pretty sure) does not run. Not sure how many miles are on it. I bought it for $200 so I know I will have to do a lot of work just to get it put back together. I have ABSOLUTLY no experience with anything mechanical ( my dad however is a certified mechanic ) ( that and everyone in my family rides bikes and drives pickup trucks, I drive a topaz hahahah) anywho I don't really want to ask my dad for help as I want to do this on my own. I would appreciate any direction as where to start. I do know the engine is not seized so that's a step in the right direction I think. I will post any information you need to help me. Thank you

 

[emtcustoms]

Well, you have come to the right place. The people on this board are some of the best and brightest you will find anywhere. What have you done with the bike so far... Have you tried to start it? Do you know how long its been since it has been run last?

 

[emtcustoms]

Also, where are you located?

 

[SiriusBlackOp]

I have recently purchased a 1981 cx500 ( I'm pretty sure) does not run. Not sure how many miles are on it. I bought it for $200 so I know I will have to do a lot of work just to get it put back together. I have ABSOLUTLY no experience with anything mechanical ( my dad however is a certified mechanic ) I bought it as kind of a way to prove my ability to do something remotely mechanical ( that and everyone in my family rides bikes and drives pickup trucks, I drive a topaz hahahah) anywho I don't really want to ask my dad for help as I want to do this on my own. I would appreciate any direction as where to start. I do know the engine is not seized so that's a step in the right direction I think. I will post any information you need to help me. Thank you

That's the way I purchased mine. $300, beat-up, rusted, missing parts and didn't run. That was almost 3 years ago now... but I was mostly done with it last spring.



So, make sure you have a good battery.

Put in the key and turn the key on... Do you have lights?

If so, put it into Neutral, pull in the clutch and press the start switch... Does it turn over? Click?



Also, how long has it been sitting?

Look inside the tank for corrosion.

 

[bandit]

hi Blue and a warm welcome.

your gonna have to start at the bottom and work up.

a couple of photo,s will help determine the overall condition.

if you cant post them,send them to me,ill do it for you.

1st...battery,if its old,just replace it

buy 2 new plugs.change the oil and filter.get rid of any old fuel.top up the rad..

no doubt the carbs or other issues will want looking to...but with the above done,you could fire it up....and see what 200 bucks has brought you

 

[Bluebeast69]

Michigan. Well when I bought it the gas tank was not attached, the battery is disconnected and I'm sure a whole bunch of other things are not connected. The guy I bought it off of said he got in a trade from craigslist for a snow plow. He never did anything with it but store it in his garage. He said it's never leaked anything and the guy he got it from said it was running before he disassembled it to do some customizing. So I've never seen it run. I just dont know where to start. Maybe I've bitten off more than I can chew but I'm determined to do something with it

 

[Bluebeast69]

I'm heading to my brothers house after work to snap a few pictures of it so maybe I can give you guys an idea of what I'm working with

 

[SiriusBlackOp]

It's probably not that bad. Hook up the battery. It's only two cables.



I am wondering WHY the previous owner took it apart though.

 

[adventureCX]

After you post pictures we will be better able to offer direction. But as some have said already, hook up the battery and see what happens. By your comment of " he disassembled it to do some customizing " I'd expect that nothing will happen. No click no turning over ( if he's disconnected the gages and such. )



anyway, just relax about the whole " a way to prove my ability to do something remotely mechanical " issue. If you need to prove to yourself then go for it, I doubt anyone is judging you by what you may perceive as a mechanical inability.



Have fun with it.

Peace

 

[Bluebeast69]

Hahah I'm just saying that I'm like the only one in my family not mechanically inclined. My brothers could build a car out of a pile of toothpicks and and old refrigerator. So now I think it's my turn to discover the wonders of building anything by myself.

 

[bandit]

Hahah I'm just saying that I'm like the only one in my family not mechanically inclined. My brothers could build a car out of a pile of toothpicks and and old refrigerator. So now I think it's my turn to discover the wonders of building anything by myself.

go for it,the guys here will get a kick out of making it happen with you

 

[Bluebeast69]

I'm super pumped to see what comes of this!!

 

[Bluebeast69]

this is exactly how i recieved the bike. I do have an extra wiring harness and carb

hooray for extra parts.

 

[Blindstitch]

Looks like a good project. Mine was similar but missing even more parts.



Where in Michigan are you. It isn't exactly a small state. So big it had to be broken into two parts to make it fit.

 

[Bluebeast69]

westland

 

[Blindstitch]

I think there might be a few guys in your area.

 

[VtypeV4]

Looks like a good starting point for a project; the bike is largely complete and its come with an extra box of bits including from what I can see, a spare set of carbs. It all looks good to me..

 

[nolavox]

I have recently purchased a 1981 cx500 ( I'm pretty sure) does not run. Not sure how many miles are on it. I bought it for $200 so I know I will have to do a lot of work just to get it put back together. I have ABSOLUTLY no experience with anything mechanical ( my dad however is a certified mechanic ) I bought it as kind of a way to prove my ability to do something remotely mechanical ( that and everyone in my family rides bikes and drives pickup trucks, I drive a topaz hahahah) anywho I don't really want to ask my dad for help as I want to do this on my own. I would appreciate any direction as where to start. I do know the engine is not seized so that's a step in the right direction I think. I will post any information you need to help me. Thank you

The most helpful thing my "Wrenching" father taught me about mechanics was how to use the correct tool the correct way... and that although one could use a pair of Vise Grips and a Ball Peen wrench to "repair" almost anything, it was usually not the "Best" way.

amazing that if you never forget to wrap a rag around your knuckles while busting bolts, how much skin is saved.

Ohhh... it looks like an extra set of carbs in the box, Less than 8k miles on the clock! Wow!... nice score!



I'd start by downloading the manuals from the linked google docs in Blindstich's signature. Study up a bit, read here at random and ask questions.





Have fun...



J

 

[Bluebeast69]

ok, I charged my battery, and went to reconnect the negative wire and got a huge spark, so I'm thinking i have a short in my wiring harness? perhaps. so I guess what I'm planning on doing is just stripping everything down, cataloging everything in baggies and boxes, and rebuilding according to a service manual. does this sound like a bad idea? I mean I am basically going to have to strip it down to check my wiring right?

 

[Trickster]

I have recently purchased a 1981 cx500 ( I'm pretty sure) does not run. Not sure how many miles are on it. I bought it for $200 so I know I will have to do a lot of work just to get it put back together. I have ABSOLUTLY no experience with anything mechanical ( my dad however is a certified mechanic ) I bought it as kind of a way to prove my ability to do something remotely mechanical ( that and everyone in my family rides bikes and drives pickup trucks, I drive a topaz hahahah) anywho I don't really want to ask my dad for help as I want to do this on my own. I would appreciate any direction as where to start. I do know the engine is not seized so that's a step in the right direction I think. I will post any information you need to help me. Thank you

Not sure why you would not ask for your fathers help since he is a mechanic. Would it not be fun to share in the



building project with him. You are not really doing it on your own if you asking for help here are you?



Don't get me wrong though, I admire your desire to try it on your own, and you will get plenty of help from this



forum. As mentioned earlier, reference section is awesome, read, read, learn, read, read, learn. If someone before



was attempting to customize (Frankenstein), you really have no idea what they have started/created/mutilated. As you



said, it might be best to do a tear down and start fresh.



Good luck