anyone fiddle with older honda bikes?

chuck buck

chuck buck

Joined
Nov 4, 2007
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looking to start my first motorcycle project thats been sitting in the garage for a while. i bought honda CB350FOUR a couple years ago from a friend of a friend who was going to make it into a cafe racer. it already has the race seat and clip on bars (that i hate) but other wise is pretty stock. it started an ran ok when i bought it but of course not after sitting for 2 years. so the battery is charging now and ill gas it up tonight but my question is....
this will be my first bike and engine tinkering. i THOUGHT this bike was a cb350twin when i bought it (yeah i know... i dont know much about bikes). i thought maybe tinkering on a twin would be a good bit easier and learner friendly than 4 small cylinders and carbs. also of course the 350twins are WAY more common the fours were only build for 3 years. so i have the 350FOUR on craigslist now to see what kinda bites i can get. thinking of maybe selling the four and buying a running driving twin that i can "customize". not really looking to do full cafe thing but close... or should i just settle with and try what i have since it COULD be worth more restored?

so just kinda looking for any advice/ knowledge from any motorheads on the forum. thanks.
 
Just curious, how many miles are on it? The 350f is a good bike and it should sell pretty fast. The 350f and 350 aren't that much different though, and I'd just stick with the 250f if I were you.
 
anyone fiddle with older honda bikes?
Click to expand...
I used to, though it's been a long time.... I restored a CL350 twin, the same as a CB but with upswept exhaust pipes for off-road use, lower gearing, maybe a few other minor differences. You will notice more vibration with a twin than with a four. It tends to numb your hands and arms.

Later I restored an air-cooled four cylinder, a CB650. I wouldn't say it was any harder to work on than the twins.
 
That 350 was way slower than the 350 twin. My Dad had a twin and he said the guys with the fours thought they'd be a lot faster and it wasn't so.
 
I had a '71 CB 500Four. My friend did most of the mechanical work and I did the paint. Nice bike.
 
i have heard that as well. four was "better running" but the twin was faster/ lighter.

cougar, i should rephrase easier to work on... i meant not in turning wrenches but finding parts and such. i figure 4 cyl/ and 4 carbs for a bike that was made for 3 yrs would be WAY harder to find that 2cyl/ and 2 carbs for a bike that was produced until yesterday :) that is promising though for sure!

got all excited to get her goin today and turned the petcock and got wet! looks like my carb floats are stuck. lots of fuel dumping is it common for all four to be stuck at once??
 
Yeah you will most likely have to rebuild all four carbs. You will need a vacumn tester to adjust all four carbs also.
 
I don't know about the US, but here in Australia, the CB350/4 is approaching the "classic collectable" class, and sell for far more than their original price.
Probably because they are fairly rare and unless raced, are generally in very good condition, being owned by either enthusiasts or older riders.
The mechanicals are complex, as are all four cylinder bikes, but if you can find a factory workshop manual, most standard repairs are not beyond the average shade tree mechanic. I wouldn't dismantle the gearbox or attempt a carb(s) rebuild, these really need a specialist touch. Just opening them up and freeing up the floats should not be big problem, but tuning them is a black art without special equipment.
With only <4000 miles on the clock, nothing much should need extensive repairs anyway. Seals, oil filters, gaskets and brake lines should be replaced. These are easy to find in Honda dealer circles. Honda has an amazing supply of old spares, but you may have to hunt for them.
Also I recommend that you clean out the fuel tank and replace all the filters and fuel lines before crud gets sucked into the shiny internal bits.
Good luck with the project. These were sweet little bikes in their day, and should last you many years with care and maintenance. Oil and filters are cheap, engines are expensive.
 
^^ What Bluey said.

I wouldn't look twice at a CB350 twin. So common. But the RARE and complex CB350 four you will find is very sought after. Disregard which is faster, etc.

Do yourself a favor. Sell the four. You will get enough money to purchase a more decent twin--one which a newbie can service.

Either of these will have the usual predators: rust in the fuel tanks, hard leaking fork seals, old dry-rotted tires, congealed fuel dried in the carbs, clogging the miniscule pilot jets, dead battery poor contacts on electrics.

The twin is easier to fix, period. Neither is a really smart buy, though, if you plan on riding one. Old skool, old headaches.

As a past M/C shop mechanic, I made a smart living from these evils.

Coop
 
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