The NOS wiring harnesses were laid over the frame and little aluminum wire bands installed. With the rear fender in place, the modified tail light was bolted on, then the wiring problems began. The tail light wires feed into a channel on the left side of the bike, where they meet the wiring harness next to the rectifier and fuse holder. Feeding the blue and white tail light wires into this channel always seem to be a problem. In this case I had to insert a piece of thick steel wire to clear out any blockages in the channel, then attached a smaller thin wire to one end and pull the wires back through the fender channel successfully. Trying to feed the wires in, one at a time, were not successful. Of course, all the attachment points for the tail light base, the tail light bracket, the rear fender and then to the frame all had to be ground away so there would be a sufficient ground path for the tail light functions.
Up at the headlight shell, the wire connections were made but the starter button wire was a thin, 22 gauge wire that had been spliced in with some tape over the little plate that holes the contact button. I pirated a new wire from a Benly starter button housing and filed it down to fit. Reusing the dimmer switch which was on the bike required some extra wire repairs.
The NOS, newly powdercoated front fender installation was a chore as the mounting bracket hole on the right side was off about a millimeter. Then, the fender braces had to be wrestled into place. One end of one brace needed to be filed down to clear the end of the fork slider.
With wheels, an engine installed and fenders attached, it began to look like a real motorcycle once again. The bike was picked up on November 19, 2025. So, three months later, it is getting closer to completion.
More challenges arose as the incorrect speedo, having been just freshly rebuilt wouldn’t fit into the correct 1961 CB headlight shell. Part of the front end replacement included a later headlight shell which isn’t a match for the speedo with a high beam indicator. I really didn’t pay attention to how it was installed previously, but it wasn’t a match anymore. I contacted my good friends at Foreign Speedo to request putting the other 1962-63-ish speeedometer into the hurry-up queue. They responded with a finished product in about a week and it was a beauty with an HM logo on the face and a stainless steel bezel. A correct speedo packing came in from Thailand, so it was finally taking shape again with the correct headlight shell nestled into the fork bridge.
Incorrect speedometer fitted into a later model headlight shell. Now replaced with correct parts.
For some reason, a correct clutch and throttle cable seemed to be in short supply for the early handlebars, so I ordered a set from www.cmsnl.com. They normally are able to deliver parts from Holland in a few days, but I got a note from FedEx stating that the parcel was held up for inspection of contents, probably meaning tariff charges. The package was delayed a few more days, then finally arrived looking like it had never been inspected unless they repackaged it at FedEx. A few days later a letter came from FedEx, which I feared was the dreaded tariff charges. Instead it stated that the fees were $.75 and it was not a bill. ?????
Moving along, the installation of the left side one-piece muffler was shockingly a mismatch for this engine and frame for some reason. The muffler was one of a set that was purchased from a seller back East for $300. Then there was $150 in shipping fees, but when they arrived, the chrome surfaces were all pitted. The mufflers went down to Mexico for replating, as they were new items and wouldn’t contaminate the chrome vats with old oil and gas deposits. Plating was $200 each, so now the “value” of the muffler systems was nearly $1,000. When the one-piece mufflers are created, the joint between the muffler body and the header pipe usually allows for some rotation of the muffler, but not any fore-aft motion. The left side bolt hole into the engine cases was about an 1/8” off and the rear mounting points were also incorrect. I had to slot the mounting bracket holes to get a bolt into the inside mount, but it still didn’t match up to the footpeg bracket hole.
I tried to double gasket the header into the head to see if that would pull the muffler forward, but it didn’t do much to alleviate the problem. More bracket mods finally got the rear inside bolt to fit into the bracket, but it was somewhat in a state of tension.
Once the clutch cable arrived, I could fit up the kickstarter cover, which had a machined bushing installed to remedy a loose kickstarter gear shaft fit. That was another $150 repair. With the kickstarter cover in place, the clutch adjustments were made and that allowed for the installation of the right side footpeg, the new rear brake cable and new brake light switch to be mounted in place. I prepared my self for another tussle with the right side muffler and was prepared to be disappointed.
To my great surprise, the right side muffler pretty much matched up to where the mounting points were on the bike. HOWEVER, I had overlooked the fact that the hole in the engine case where the long 8mm bolt holds the muffler to the engine was bored out to about 10mm. The hole was too big to fit an 8mm Heli-coil in and make it fit. Finally, I drilled the hole out to 12mm, found a 12mm bolt then cut the head off in order to make it fit flush into the engine case. I drilled a hole all the way through the bolt’s length to fit a 8mm bolt, but in the end the SAE drill bit was a little too big for the 8mm tap to catch threads fully. As a last resort, I drilled out the 8mm hole with the 8mm Heli-coil kit and was able to finally anchor an 8mm bolt into the engine case.
I discovered that I only had one exhaust baffle for the set of mufflers. Apparently I sold a set along with some CB used mufflers and only had one NOS one left. I put out a plea to the forums and a kind man offered to ship a good used baffle to me for free! So, finally we are getting towards the end of the long project, but then an electrical mystery arose. The tail light bulb comes on when the ignition switch is in PARK, but not when the running lights are ON. Everything else works except for that! The white wire goes from the tail light directly to the terminal on the ignition switch.
So, now it is left with installing an ignition system and firing it up! The carbs were cleaned and rejetted. A new correct thottle cable was secured and installed. The drive chain was installed and I can finally see light at the end of a long and dark tunnel.
Bill Silver
aka MrHonda
www.vintagehonda.com
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