'65 Honda Trail 90 Rebuild - Filed under 'Honda'

January 18, 2010

Metal parts are out for surfacing, head and cylinder come off

A few pieces of good progress to report today: First, the frame, front forks, and other metal body parts are now offsite at a powdercoating facility getting sandblasted and then resurfaced. They should return shiny and like-new in a few weeks.

While the carburetor parts soaked today, I ran up to my Dad's metal fabrication and machining shop to work with him and a buddy on a plan for the wheels and main engine components. After really examining the wheel rims, we decided that there was enough rust that the process of stripping them would render them structurally unstable. Since i want this bike to be rideable after this project, I bit the bullet and decided to toss both the original and second set of eBay wheels and buy a new set. They rim and spoke sets come out of Thailand, and I'll order them shortly.

Since the cylinder head needs to be stripped, we went ahead and pulled the whole thing off. I brought the motor's lower unit and valve stems home. The lower is in great shape and doesn't need a complete tear-down, so I'll just store it until the head is resurfaced and then do an exterior cleaning after I put the head back on. This will keep foreign stuff out of the lower unit. We got some photos of the broken down motor, including the teeny tiny little piston.

(download)

Loading mentions Retweet

Filed under // cylinder head Honda Honda90 piston valves

Comments [0]

September 19, 2009

Twin carbs, both need work to yield one good one.

While body pieces are out for refinishing, I wanted to get started on the carburetor rebuild. I bought a second complete use one online in case I need any parts, which I certainly will. Unfortunately, both have similar problems. I disassembled the original carb and found exactly what I expected: a lot of gummy gunk in the float bowl. The good news is that the floats are intact and fill valve appear to work. The bad news is that the throttle insert is stuck tight -and I mean TIGHT- in both units.

I had hoped for this to be a one-day project, but it'll take several at my pace. First I've got to strip all of the gunk out of the float bowl and jet insert. I've got some great chemicals that are helping with that. In fact they're soaking over night. Once I get them stripped and can see what I'm dealing with, I'll attach the problem of the stuck jets. None of the industrial lubricants have worked thus far, so the next step is some brute force. I have to be careful not to break the housing, but then again I've got a spare if I need it!

In the photos, the top one is the one I bought online, the bottom is from the bike itself. The purchased one has a rusted source value so I will wind up rebuilding the original rather than the new one. Though the original is dirtier, it's actually in better mechanical shape.

Click here to download:

Twin_carbs_both_need_work_to_y.zip (1575 KB)

Loading mentions Retweet

Filed under // carb carburetor fuel gas Honda Honda90 rebuilt restore throttle

Comments [0]

June 7, 2009

Headlamp, speedometer, and front-end wiring removal

As you read this post, you can play a fun game of "count the number of insect carcasses and nests."

I pulled the headlight, speedometer, and front-end wiring. That's basically everything that was inside the plastic housing that bolts to the front forks. The plastic is chipped but likely salvageable. I plan to replace all of the wiring anyway. The speedometer is a closed unit and is in remarkably good shape. Provided it stull functions, it'll be saved for the rebuilt bike. In fact, I cleaned it up a bit and it looks great!

Individual parts that can be made to shine again provide motivation for the overall project:

Here are the documentation shots. It's kind of neat to see the front forks completely bare:

Click here to download:

Headlamp_speedometer_and_front.zip (3122 KB)

Loading mentions Retweet

Filed under // headlamp headlight Honda Honda 90 housing plastic rebuilt speedometer

Comments [1]

May 18, 2009

Throttle and entire handlebar assembly removed

Today I disconnected the throttle and removed the entire handlebar assembly. It's looking less like a motorcycle every day. The cables are definitely all going to require replacements. This was also a reminder that when I last worked on this engine back in 1984, I broke the throttle cable retainer. I wedged the two broken pieces into the handlebar tube to get by, but it was a short term fix. Back then, there was no worldwide web for average people to use, and certainly no eBay nor Craigslist. A replacement is < $5 on eBay, which would have been nearly impossible to find back in the 80s.

Dad is now clued into the project. It was going to be a surprise, but it'll be more fun to have him helping with it. And as you can see from the bars below, his expertise in metal fabrication will help when it comes to refinishing chrome surfaces like the handlebars.