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| *Vultures Knob>>>Bike Repair |
Will you please give repair advice on my 1970 HONDA CB350. It has been a wonderfully dependable bike, but...? |
It has a FLAT SPOT in the fork bearings at the center (straight ahead) position. (wants to stay straight) Thus, I think they will have to be replaced. Correct? I am adept with mechanical repairs and have good tools, but I FEAR taking apart the fork assy, because maybe I will mess up. (no experience) What is the BEST disassembly sequence to get at the bearings ? Should I remove the front wheel and brake assy to lighten things up ? Are these CAGED bearings, or will I have hundreds of tiny steel balls falling all over the place ? I know 300,000 CB350 were sold in US, So are parts easily accessible? Sources? Used parts ? Motorcycle junkyards ? Do you know if the fork bearings from CB, CL, or SL 350s are the same? Will bearings from model years other than 1970 be the same? THANKS in advance for your help with ANY ASPECT of this. I am CAUTIOUS because I LOVE this bike, and other than the steering problem, it is in very excellent shape, and really clean, too That bike doesn't have caged bearings. There are 37 individual ball bearings. You'll not only have to replace the bearings, you'll have to replace the bearing "races". That will be the biggest problem. The upper and lower races in the frame are knocked out with a punch and hammer. Then the new ones are pressed in (tap them in with brass or bronze punch so as not to damage them). The difficult part is, getting the lower race on the steering stem off, and putting the new one back on. Before even attempting any work, get all the parts. http://www.mrcycles.com/ Go to - Steering Stem You'll need all the ball bearings. All 4 races. Lower dust seal and washer. The parts for all 3 models are the same- CB (K,F&G), CL & SL. The same parts are used in the 350's, 400F, 450T, 500T, 550K&F models Purchase a shop manual here - http://www.motocom.com/motorcycles/... When you have the parts in hand, contact me for step by step procedures and tips & tricks. The headset is easy and self explanitory as you tear it down. First thing to do is find new bearings and races so you are'nt stuck without the parts to reassemble. The bars, and the forks need to come off, if you have a disc brake the resevoir can be removed along with the forks to eliminate the need to bleed. The bearings are not ringed, so you will need to get a count on them. put a blanket or towels on the floor so they can't roll away. On reassembly be sure to grease and there should be 0 free play . After assembly of forks check free play again and then again after 50 or so miles. Better to have the headset a hair too tight than too loose. The bearings, races and dust caps are all still available through Honda. Check Ebay. There are lots of folks disassembling motorcycles and putting the parts up for sale there. You might be able to find someone there selling a PDF of an old Clymer manual or shop manual for your motorcycle. Clymer manuals have how-to-disassemble guides for the motorcycles they cover. All good answers. But be sure not to over-tighten, you will end up with a flat spot again. |
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