Yeah, like I ever read a manual unless I absolutely have to... :lol: so I've never seen that passage before, though it makes perfect sense.
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Blue Dream CA78
- Thread starter ballbearian
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- old men dream dreams
Yeah, like I ever read a manual unless I absolutely have to... :lol: so I've never seen that passage before, though it makes perfect sense.
fxray
Veteran Member
Tom, you are not alone. That bit about the silicone grease for the sprag clutch is sort of buried in the electrical section of the manual, between the electric starter and the solenoid. It is a mechanical item, yet it sort of makes sense to place it there in the book.
Rsy
Rsy
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Well I took it up and down the alley, then up and down the block. The brakes are pitiful, so the search for shoes is on, but it does sound glorious.
So THAT'S what was making the wonderful sound... sweet.
Are you going to stick with that seat?
Are you going to stick with that seat?
bilbikek411
Veteran Member
Your 305 Dream is looking real good sitting outside in the sunlight Tom;I hope you get the brakes sorted soon but hope that won't keep you from taking a ride with Charles. How does the clutch & trans. feel ?
ballbearian
Veteran Member
It seems to shift great, only barely got third gear on our little street. Clutch is strong and no drag so I guess the extra plate is good to go.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
I made the brackets for this seat for Charles, after he was not liking his old beat OEM seat. Then I loaned him the old 350 KO or K1 seat that Blue had on it, which I rebuilt the foam inside. This seat is probably temporary for awhile.
I wasn't sure what these fishtails would sound like, so I kind of kept it hidden. I think they fit the Dream styling. They're not near as harsh as the aftermarket open megs on the CB160.
There is not much conclusive jet specs out there, so I punted and went up from the 120 main to a 130 and up just a bit on the idle from 38 to 40, kept the stock needle.
This is a PW22 round bowl without any power jet.
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ballbearian
Veteran Member
Continuing the seat comment, the cheapy cafe seat is temporary till I figure out what I want to do but the original shocks are pretty soft so it'll do for now.
It starts one kick and no choke so it's probably too rich. I'm going to get that bowl gasket changed and check the level.
The rear brake seems to be getting a little better on this 4 mile ride to the post office. I can't remember if I lightly belt sanded the surface of the shoes, I think so. If not, I found a new rear set in our mutual parts stash but I can wait until these bed in better.
Having fun in the sun.
It starts one kick and no choke so it's probably too rich. I'm going to get that bowl gasket changed and check the level.
The rear brake seems to be getting a little better on this 4 mile ride to the post office. I can't remember if I lightly belt sanded the surface of the shoes, I think so. If not, I found a new rear set in our mutual parts stash but I can wait until these bed in better.
Having fun in the sun.
You're gonna need to take and post a longer video of the bike, going down the road would be nice. I need to hear those pipes more.
bilbikek411
Veteran Member
The bike must be happy being on the road;those Fish-Tails should give it a Big Bike sound 
The Yamaha? mirrors must give a good rearward view.
The Yamaha? mirrors must give a good rearward view.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
The bike must be happy being on the road;those Fish-Tails should give it a Big Bike sound
The Yamaha? mirrors must give a good rearward view.
So far these mirrors aren't too bad. I've spent more $ on cheap mirrors than I care to admit. Charles was complainig about his stock small rectangular mirrors because they vibrated so much, they were bad. These have 10mm stems (had to use adaptor to 8mm) and do seem steadier.
I'm going to find some HD guys and see if this little 305 gets a notice.
Time to get a cell phone holder for some vids.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
These are the new cheapy mirrors. Not Yamaha.
Amazon.com: ORAEVY Motorcycle Mirrors, Universal 10mm 8mm Chrome Motorcycle Rear View Side Mirrors Handle Bar Bar End Motorcycle Mirrors : Automotive
Amazon.com: ORAEVY Motorcycle Mirrors, Universal 10mm 8mm Chrome Motorcycle Rear View Side Mirrors Handle Bar Bar End Motorcycle Mirrors : Automotive
ballbearian
Veteran Member
My round side float, original to the round bowl carb had a leak, so I put in the last new flat side float (same as CB350). Hopefully it won't change the level, seems ok for now.
Another, play with it later, project. I've never tried to solder a float, heck it's hard to find where it leaks.
Another, play with it later, project. I've never tried to solder a float, heck it's hard to find where it leaks.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
A couple old men dreaming dreams. 40 is the number of probation and it ran good for all 40 miles.
In truth it did stumble a bit near the bottom, so I will swap back down the main jet from 130 to 120 and may as well drop back to the 38 from 40 on the idle or slow jet. Even the brakes seemed to settle in from horrible to the standard sucky for Dreams.
I bought the cheapest handlebar phone mount so look out Fellini, I'm gonna remake La Strada with better exhaust sounds.
In truth it did stumble a bit near the bottom, so I will swap back down the main jet from 130 to 120 and may as well drop back to the 38 from 40 on the idle or slow jet. Even the brakes seemed to settle in from horrible to the standard sucky for Dreams.
I bought the cheapest handlebar phone mount so look out Fellini, I'm gonna remake La Strada with better exhaust sounds.
Looking forward to seeing the Dream-y video.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Upholstery time for an OEM trampoline seat. If it turns out good I may end up using it. First step was getting the frame straightened out (it was a little twisted from the rear) in my big vice with blocks of wood, long pipes to bend with, etc.
Next was to cut the scavenged gymnasium flooring (you can see the faux wood grain against the springs) and tie wire it in place for shaping with a sanding disc on the angle grinder.
I ordered a cover from gumtwo on ebay for about $50 shipped (they are on sale now).
UPDATE: The bike has 90 miles on the new motor and I'm still messing with jets and float height but it's getting better, at least it didn't conk out every 2 miles. The lower mid range response is not there yet.
Next was to cut the scavenged gymnasium flooring (you can see the faux wood grain against the springs) and tie wire it in place for shaping with a sanding disc on the angle grinder.
I ordered a cover from gumtwo on ebay for about $50 shipped (they are on sale now).
UPDATE: The bike has 90 miles on the new motor and I'm still messing with jets and float height but it's getting better, at least it didn't conk out every 2 miles. The lower mid range response is not there yet.
But those pipes... :dizzy:
ballbearian
Veteran Member
I know. There may yet be a pair of pot scrubber shish kabobs in their future.
Another friend, Mark ("all Hondas should be red") says that the straight pipes should have better low end but won't rev as high. He put the baffled fish tails on his Road King for that. He actually was a patched member of the HA corporation riding his 80 Honda 750 with 180K on it until he T-boned a phone zombie in a car and took the insurance $ and bought the HD. A wrench by trade, so they let him ride at the rear of the pack. Funny to listen to him whine about the HD and spew Honda love at the same time. Kind of a greasy savant, so I have to be careful asking him for help. He actually enjoys busting tires!
Well, I do agree with him about red on all Hondas.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
I secretly agree.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Upholstery progress. I shaped the underlayment with the angle grinder and a fresh flap disc and separated the curved and contoured upper original foam rubber (black) which still wasn't at the crumble state from the squashed and crumbly red foam rubber and hard plastic layer. Then I cut the 1 inch new foam sheet about an inch oversize all around to help hide the edges of the underlayment. It'll end up being a little thicker than the original cushioning but the foam sheet is not as dense so it should compress enough to fit the new cover.
:lol:
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ballbearian
Veteran Member
Plugged gas cap blues. It's been cutting out intermittently on the last few rides. I thought I had blown out the breather holes in the cap but there must have been some debris/rust that shifted to re-plug the vent. Finally noticed so bubbles moving in the fuel line after being shut off for a couple minutes, probably sucking air from the carb bowl vents trying to equalize the vacuum. Rode home with the cap loose, no problem, mystery solved.
The CA95 and the CA77 use the same caps so I decided to dismantle all of them and found junk in all, especially the one on this blue Dream. Held by the bottom in a vise the chrome tops can be gradually worked off with the merest tip of a flat blade screwdriver.
Now I can focus on float bowl and jetting issues with a stable fuel level coming in. The upside of not getting the simple stuff right in the beginning is that the fix is pretty obvious.
Another Homer award to add to the collection. :lol:
The CA95 and the CA77 use the same caps so I decided to dismantle all of them and found junk in all, especially the one on this blue Dream. Held by the bottom in a vise the chrome tops can be gradually worked off with the merest tip of a flat blade screwdriver.
Now I can focus on float bowl and jetting issues with a stable fuel level coming in. The upside of not getting the simple stuff right in the beginning is that the fix is pretty obvious.
Another Homer award to add to the collection. :lol:
stl360+450
Veteran Member
Is a Homer award supposed to be good or bad? You knew to watch out for the plugged cap, made an effort to prevent it, and recognized it quickly when it occurred. Seems good to me!
I bought a second hand tank once which had been sealed. The cap vent was sealed, too, and I figured it out by accident. It died, wouldn't restart, and when I checked the gas level out of frustration it was magically fixed and started right up. Live and learn.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
The Homer award is good, in that it is a humbling experience. My full confession should have included that it took me about 20 miles of stopping every 2 miles when it died and scratching my head.
stl360+450
Veteran Member
Fair enough. I actually tried to research it by searching 'Homer award' and was expecting to see a Simpson's reference. Much to my surprise, Home Depot apparently has or had an employee award by that name that I took to be a positive reward for good service.
Are those caps as easy to put together as they were to get apart?
ballbearian
Veteran Member
The gas caps go back together real easy. Irwin Quik Clamps make this trim job, not only easier but possible. How did I ever survive before Quik Clamps? This brand of trim for trucks is not just better but thicker (.4") than the thin cheap stuff and it really sticks.
Amazon.com: Cowles S37204-8 Feet of Chrome Truck/SUV Door Edge Guards, U-Shape PVC Edge Trim Stays on with Self Adhesive Hot Melt Glue Protects from Scratches/Dings and Opening into Walls or Other Cars : Automotive
Amazon.com: Cowles S37204-8 Feet of Chrome Truck/SUV Door Edge Guards, U-Shape PVC Edge Trim Stays on with Self Adhesive Hot Melt Glue Protects from Scratches/Dings and Opening into Walls or Other Cars : Automotive
bilbikek411
Veteran Member
The seat looks awesome . Can't wait to see it complete.!! What was the reason for the added wood(recycled gym floor)?
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old timer
Veteran Member
The seat looks fantastic .thanks for the heads up on the edge trim.
Bill H
Bill H
ballbearian
Veteran Member
The original seat had a layer of tough thick plastic against the bare springs then 2 slightly different layers of foam rubber on top of the plastic. This gym flooring is a top layer of very tough almost linoleum type material bonded to some very dense foam. I just flipped over the gym flooring so the fake wood grain is against the springs. The original plastic and the first layer of foam rubber were goners, so I put the top layer of original foam rubber over the gym floor dense foam and topped that off with the 1 inch thick modern foam (cut bigger by an inch around to cover the edges). You need something pretty tough against the springs or they will end up cutting through your foam layers and you'll feel them.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Thanks for the compliments. I'm pretty pleased the way it turned out. I'm surprised it's actually comfortable, it's probably a bit plumper than stock.
Awesome job, especially considering you had to use what you could find for replacement parts that are no longer available. Beautiful result.
fxray
Veteran Member
Congratulations on a nicely executed project throughout! The seat came out great and looks very good on there. You will need to factor extra time into each ride to account for the strangers who will come up to ogle your Dream. I think the last one I saw being ridden on the road was in Rocky Mountain National Park at the Visitor Center, 42 years ago! It was the last thing I would have expected to see up there, and I have not seen one since.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Not sure how this tale of two seats is going to end. Charles and I rode about 70 miles on a good mix of road quality and swapped bikes for a good bit. He loves the new seat too. Since it was from his 65 and mine had the K1 (?) CB350 seat on it, I may pass it back to him for the price of materials. It was a good learning experience and showed me that the spring suspension seats can be made pretty comfortable.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
It's been a long time since I went over Trail Ridge Road in RMNP, but that would be an awesome ride on anything, especially a Dream. You never know, but this year, with all the snowpack, it will be at least July maybe August before the road is open.
fxray
Veteran Member
^^^What man has done once, man can do again! Sounds like it is time to build another seat.
It was July when I saw that Dream in RMNP. It was being ridden by a young college girl who was out touring around by herself. I was on a long ride myself, with a couple of friends. We were surprised to see the little Honda being used that way. We were on what we considered "big bikes", which were XS650G Yamaha twins. Mine was a 1980 model that a dealer still had in 1981, so it was brand new.
It was July when I saw that Dream in RMNP. It was being ridden by a young college girl who was out touring around by herself. I was on a long ride myself, with a couple of friends. We were surprised to see the little Honda being used that way. We were on what we considered "big bikes", which were XS650G Yamaha twins. Mine was a 1980 model that a dealer still had in 1981, so it was brand new.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Update: It's fast, I'll say that, Charles has to ride his CB350 to keep up. It was still pulling when I hit 80mph.
First oil change at 340 miles. Found this rubber washer bit in the end of the oil filter pipe, must have been in the pipe or the cover passage coming up from the pump. Who knows what it is or came from. I thought I'd blown everything out with compressed air. It may have slowed down the flow into the centrifugal filter, but there was a very small amount of in it, so it must have been working.
Still got to readjust the valves. Then I think it's a bit rich so will try to down size the main jet and double check the float level. Cam chain is still tight.
It's not charging very good. Start a ride at 12.7 volts and watch it slowly drop, over about 3 hours riding to 12.1 volts. This little phone adapter is handy to monitor as I ride.
I may need to swap to the spare stator to see if that takes care of it.
First oil change at 340 miles. Found this rubber washer bit in the end of the oil filter pipe, must have been in the pipe or the cover passage coming up from the pump. Who knows what it is or came from. I thought I'd blown everything out with compressed air. It may have slowed down the flow into the centrifugal filter, but there was a very small amount of in it, so it must have been working.
Still got to readjust the valves. Then I think it's a bit rich so will try to down size the main jet and double check the float level. Cam chain is still tight.
It's not charging very good. Start a ride at 12.7 volts and watch it slowly drop, over about 3 hours riding to 12.1 volts. This little phone adapter is handy to monitor as I ride.
I may need to swap to the spare stator to see if that takes care of it.
bilbikek411
Veteran Member
I'm glad to see your Blue Dream on the road again Tom and being well sorted-out.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Thanks Bill. All the valves tightened a thousandth, so reset to .004", no loosening of cam chain that I could detect and no loosening of head bolts. I did drop from 130 to 120 for the main and should baffle it some for more (some) backpressure, hopefully get better mid range power. Compression about 165, for both, a hundred miles ago.
The roll pin limits, I put in, on the advancer might be a little to limiting as my max advance was about 40 BTDC. It's idling at 10 BTDC, so I should probably just cheat it more advanced. Now it starts instantly with no choke. I also nudged the float level down just a bit (how scientific!).
What's the max advance spec? 40° seems like it should be close.
bilbikek411
Veteran Member
I like what your doing with getting the fuel mixture/float level set to give you the most power. I find it much more difficult to 'read' the plug color with the mix of gasoline they use now;I look down to the bottom of the inside center porcelain(a magnifying glass can help)in bright incandescent (sun)light to get a view of the color of the porcelain. I like a nice light tan color;difficult to see especially on new plugs.
Do you run Ethanol fuel mainly? or Ethanol-Free gasoline ?
ballbearian
Veteran Member
The two max lines are 45 and 48 degrees. Bill Silver warns against over 50.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Have just started using E-free, seems to run better. I forget the octane rating. I just wire brushed the plugs real clean.
bilbikek411
Veteran Member
I like fresh 89 oct. E-Free when I can get it;not possible out here in Ca.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
Wow, what a difference dropping from a 130 main jet to a 120 made. No more stumbling in any of the middle or lower rpm ranges.
Now, if I can only figure out it's insufficient charging issue. I continuity checked the stator coils and found no grounding issues with them but I'm not sure how to further check the output.
Now, if I can only figure out it's insufficient charging issue. I continuity checked the stator coils and found no grounding issues with them but I'm not sure how to further check the output.
stl360+450
Veteran Member
The battery monitor you mention earlier is across the -/+ of the battery? Does increasing the engine speed increase that number at all without load? Does this change if the headlight is off?
Have you tried measuring the AC output directly? Looks like it's pink, yellow, and brown on these stators? There are also resistance numbers available for later bikes (CB350/450 etc.). I could only guess they are similar for the earlier 12V stators. My later stators use white, pink, and yellow. White to pink is roughly 0.6 Ohms while the other two pairs are 1.5 Ohms for white to yellow and 1.1 Ohms for yellow to pink. The white to pink is the parallel combination of the other two (reciprocal of the sum of reciprocals). I'm not sure how the color coding matches up to your bike.
Maybe the rotor has lost some if its magnetic personality? My CB450 stator had no discernible problems yet the bike was not charging well, so I gambled on a high-output rotor from Rick's and it solved my problem. You'd probably have to find another used rotor to find out if it makes any difference.
ballbearian
Veteran Member
This issue will be a challenge for me, much to learn.
Yes the monitor is wired directly to batt via the charger SAE connectors and an extension so I can watch any changes as I ride. No changes in upper rpm's, lights on or off doesn't matter much (0.1 volt ).
Next step is to measure stator outputs, I guess. I've just never done it. Do I leave everything connected and measure voltage from the three stator wires to ground?
I've already done the resistance checks before I installed the stator and attempted to gauge the magnetic strength of the rotor in a way prior post.
If the stator output shows low, then my options are to get a better stator or rotor (from Rick's?) or both?
OR... I've heard (not sure where) that a CB350 set up can be used. This would be new territory to explore, if even possible.
Has anyone ever had a rotor re-magnetized? Who does this?