Honda CB750 Sandcast

Restoration of Sandcast #97

markb · 814 · 325538

markb

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I've finally started this project after picking the bike up this past spring.  I spend my summers boating and fishing and do little if any work on the bikes.  I've got two other 750's that I've restored, an early diecast and sandcast #5383.  I'm going to post this on this forum and the SOHC4 forum so some posts by me will be identical but the replies will probably steer it in different directions so I'm not sure how that will work out.  But I figure that way I can get feedback from two different audiences.  My goal is to make it as correct as possible which I realize may be next to impossible because of the rarity of some of the missing parts.  There's plenty of work to do and plenty of missing parts.  I'm looking for all the advice I can get and if anyone has a part that I'm missing and you can part with please contact me.  I know they won't come cheap.  So for my first post, here's what it looked like when I picked it up last spring.






What a great motor number
« Last Edit: November 06, 2010, 01:17:26 pm by mark1b »
Mark B
1969 CB750 sandcast #97 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1969 CB750 sandcaxt #576 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1553 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1990 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #5383 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1970 CB750 K0 restored - Sold
2010 H-D Tri Glide Ultra Classic (Huh?)



markb

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First thing is to start the tear down.  I hoisted the bike up and dropped the front wheel and the three exhaust pipes that were there so I could put it on my cart.  I have a stand but it only puts the bike 18” off the ground and I hate kneeling and bending over.  The pipes disintegrated during removal.  I soaked all the nuts and bolts with a 50/50 mix of acetone and ATF.  I’ve used it before and seems to work great.  It separates though so you have to keep shaking it.


It must have been set up as a cruiser.  It has old running boards and crash bars.  I’ll get rid of those first.






Then I pulled the front end, fender and forks.  The headlight bucket and ears were completely broken as well as the speedo.  Good thing I have one of those.  Looks like someone took a baseball bat to them.  I think the tach is salvageable.


The tops of the fork tubes look pretty gnarly.


At least the front fender is correct and solid.


It looks better without all the junk and broken parts on it.


It’s missing the kick-starter so I put one on just to see if the engine would turn over.  Nope.  Tried moving the shifter too.  Nope.  After that I drained the oil…and water.  A cup of water came first then about a quart and a half of oil.  Nothing in the oil tank (although it is well coated inside with a layer of oil and dirt) or oil filter housing.  Ruh-roh.  Not a good sign.
« Last Edit: November 06, 2010, 01:29:13 pm by mark1b »
Mark B
1969 CB750 sandcast #97 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1969 CB750 sandcaxt #576 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1553 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1990 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #5383 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1970 CB750 K0 restored - Sold
2010 H-D Tri Glide Ultra Classic (Huh?)


hondasan

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You are in a very exclusive part of sandcast territory with your 2-digit "project" - I will be fascinated to follow the progress. Looks like the frame and cases are sound, so the rest of it is just a matter of time and patience (money permitting of course!).
Have fun! - Chris R.

Chris R.
302/338


markb

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I agree, I'm glad it's not my first project.  And yes the frame is unbelievable good and except for heavy oxidation the engine looks great-no broken or bent fins, etc.  Feel free to jump in if you have any suggestions.  I'm far from an expert but I might be close when I'm done.
Mark
Mark B
1969 CB750 sandcast #97 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1969 CB750 sandcaxt #576 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1553 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1990 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #5383 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1970 CB750 K0 restored - Sold
2010 H-D Tri Glide Ultra Classic (Huh?)


markb

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Just a bit more history before I get too much further.  The license plate on the bike was 1979.  The seller told me that it had been sitting and then an attempt was made to get it running again in 1986.  They never succeeded because they couldn’t get the carbs right.  So, I was told, it sat in a barn (don’t they all) until he obtained it.  (If it was in a barn it was a leaky barn.)

Anyway, one of the first things I discovered was it had the 19 liter tank and in pretty good shape at that.  The badge recesses had been filled in and unfortunately the cap and short-neck petcock were missing.

By the way, does anyone have a short neck petcock they could sell me?  This is a high priority for me because it is one of those really visible things.

Note the lack of dimples in the area where the carbs tops are.


I could tell from the bottom of the tank that it was originally candy red and after some debate I decided to keep it the color it was born which happened to be the same color as my later sandcast.  It’s already been internally derusted and coated and repainted and looks great.  Blake Conway who did my others did this one too.

My K0 was the blue/green so I put that tin on the other sandcast (so I could have one of each color) and I plan on using the red where I need too and borrow parts off the K0 so I can maybe get #97 put together while I hunt for correct parts.  Eventually I’ll probably do the K0 in gold (even though the VIN is a little low for that).  Can’t even think of that right now.
« Last Edit: November 06, 2010, 01:34:15 pm by mark1b »
Mark B
1969 CB750 sandcast #97 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1969 CB750 sandcaxt #576 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1553 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1990 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #5383 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1970 CB750 K0 restored - Sold
2010 H-D Tri Glide Ultra Classic (Huh?)


Wayne

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Mark
You can bet I'l lbe following this project closely as I work away on mine. I think if you keep your pictures on PhotoBuxket at around 700 pix wide max we won't have to scroll around here to see the whole image.

I tested one at 681 pix wide here:
http://cb750sandcastonly.com/smf_forum/index.php?topic=228.msg1901#msg1901

Sorry for the hijack, just want this thread as pretty as that bike will be!  :)

I uploaded Coppermine image gallery on our server if you want to try it for hosting your images.
[size=


markb

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No problem Wayne.  Thanks for the heads up.  I have a wide screen on my computer so it wasn't an issue.  I've resized them.  Do they fit better now?  I'll check out Coppermine.
Mark
Mark B
1969 CB750 sandcast #97 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1969 CB750 sandcaxt #576 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1553 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1990 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #5383 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1970 CB750 K0 restored - Sold
2010 H-D Tri Glide Ultra Classic (Huh?)


Steve Swan

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Mark, you likely already know about Forking by Frank - http://www.frankmain.qpg.com/  You can replace those rusty fork legs with a beautiful new pair from Frank, they are a perfect fit install.


Wayne

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No problem Wayne.  Thanks for the heads up.  I have a wide screen on my computer so it wasn't an issue.  I've resized them.  Do they fit better now?  I'll check out Coppermine.
Mark

Perfect for everyone now Mark. You can find Coppemine on our server at: http://cb750sandcastonly.com/coppermine/

You just get the link to the pic by viewing the full size image, right click it and go to properties.
[size=


markb

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Steve,
I actually didn't know about Forking by Frank.  That's the main reason I'm posting this in hopes that I will get great advice and feedback.  I'm willing to listen to any comments.  Thanks for the heads up!
Mark
Mark B
1969 CB750 sandcast #97 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1969 CB750 sandcaxt #576 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1553 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1990 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #5383 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1970 CB750 K0 restored - Sold
2010 H-D Tri Glide Ultra Classic (Huh?)



Steve Swan

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Mark, I like Aero Kroil penetrant made by Kano Laboratories, it's been around before WWII.  Getting some Aero Kroil inside the spark plug holes or between the pistons and the the cylinder walls after the head is removed along with giving the penetrant time to do it's work might at least allow for easier dis-assembly.  I know some guys have their home brew of penetrant as well, i cannot remember what's been said to work well.  Assuming the engine is not locked up from running out of oil (your story sounds like this is not the case) and if the bike sat on it's sidestand, most likely the #1 piston is "stuck" the worst, as water/condensation tends to run down hill....  I've had engines that were locked up, along with squirting routinely Aero Kroil into spark plug holes, i put it in 5th gear (i realize you may not be able put the transmission in gear, perhaps if you take of rear chain and try moving front sprocket back and forth you may be able to get the gears to engage) then i looped a cranking type tie down strap thru the wheel and frame, applying pressure to wheel to apply pressure to primary drive and to crankshaft.  Periodically, i would loosen strap, rock wheel back and forth and then apply tension to strap again along with more Aero Kroil.  With the one engine, after about 3 weeks of this treatment, things started turning.  In the case of the other engine, began turning after a few days.  Not being able to free the pistons from the cyl.walls, i have seen somewhere (on the internet) guys that submerge the entire engine in a penetrant bath, in order to free things up.  I understand there are restorers who have use these penetrant baths for these "frozen" engine conditions.  It's going to be pretty important to free the pistons in order to remove the cylinder without risking damaging parts. 


markb

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Steve,
More good advice.  I hope to start pulling the engine apart this weekend.
Checked out Frank's, $259/set.  Sounds pretty good compared to $398 from Sudco and $333 from Honda and I'm not sure they'd be correct.
Mark
Mark B
1969 CB750 sandcast #97 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1969 CB750 sandcaxt #576 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1553 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #1990 - Sold
1969 CB750 sandcast #5383 restored - Sold Restoration thread link
1970 CB750 K0 restored - Sold
2010 H-D Tri Glide Ultra Classic (Huh?)


Steve Swan

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i was able to use the orig.tubes for 4363 & 2157, but 232's looked like 97's, so i bought a set from Franks for 232, the machine work and fit is perfect.