Finishing the 1970 Honda CT70 custom and the 1972 Honda Z50 Cafe racer.

It did not take too long with so many of the parts on hand. Although mostly stock in appearance, there are custom touches that set it apart from the stock ride. The 108cc engine with race head and heavy duty clutch is the biggest modification, doubling the stock horsepower. Wider aluminum wheel rims, heavy duty rear shocks, tighter front fork internals, slotted brake pads, a grab handle, and the heel-toe shifter round out the list.

This bike is the same color and model my buddy had when I was a kid. Though I never got the chance to ride his, it was stuck in my memory like a first love. The Honda candy colors and chrome are still like jewels to me. The styling, while a little wonky to some, was smooth 1970 pop culture gold. A bike almost anyone could ride (and wreck) without too much trouble. The paint, while less than perfect, still looks fine for fifty years old!

With the small nicks and scratches, there is little fear of messing up a perfect restoration. The saying is; “a slice off a cut loaf is seldom missed.”

An online buddy, Kirrbby, set me up with a nice used speedo, some fork extensions, and a side stand. Some of these parts are getting really hard or at least, expensive to find. So many parts in this picture are still available from Honda, like all the throttle parts, triple tree hardware, reflectors, top beauty trim, knobs, grommets, straps, and electrical parts. Even the horn is a brand new Honda piece.

Even with the custom parts, the rest of the bike was put as close to stock form as far as the parts selection. All the rubber and hardware was replaced with OEM Honda parts.

Honda knew how to make a sexy little bike!

The front forks were slightly bent, binding the forks enough that straightening was needed, This is the rig that did the job. No paint was disturbed in the process.

The last moments on the assembly table. There is always a little excitement when one finally moves from the table to the ground.

The “Golden Boys.”

Since we are doing gold, it seemed appropriate to trot this one out.

Stay Gold.

1970 Honda CT70 K0 custom build begins, and 1965 Triumph TR6 update.

A frame purchased long ago. The original paint is in fair shape, with some nicks and scrapes. One of the six engines built last year in “The Festival of Engines 2020,” a 108cc stroker with race head and heavy duty clutch, has been dropped in, and tons of new OEM Honda and reproduction parts are going into this custom rider.

The frame as purchased. Some scrapes and dings, but for 50 year old paint, not bad.

After the frame was broken down, cleaned and buffed out, Reproduction shocks, handlebars, and fenders are going on.

Aluminum rims and Bridgestone tires. The hubs are originals, rebuilt with new bearings, seals, dampers, and sprocket, and repainted with Honda cloud silver paint.

Many of these original parts were gathered a piece at a time, like the tail light bracket, brush guard, and engine, and replated or rebuilt along with other projects over the last couple years. Every time I head to the chrome shop, there is an extra piece or two that gets thrown in from another bike. Over time, enough parts get accumulated to start the build. This particular project has sat on a shop table 2-3 years, slowly increasing the hoard of parts, till the engine completion was enough of a tipping point to get started.

A new OEM muffler and guards from Honda are going on. The seat is a high quality reproduction.

A simple tool made to spread the lower frame tubes on the 1965 Triumph TR6 project to allow the spacers to fit in on the main motor mount bolt. Works well.

The engine is in the 1965 Triumph TR6.

The 1965 Triumph TR6 SRT Scrambler build starts.

A mock-up picture from last August, when the forks and wheels were worked out. The forks and triple trees are Ceriani, with a vintage Cal-Customs fork brace. The frame needed some work at this point, and the engine needed to be taken out of the coffee cans and boxes it came in, rebuilt and pieced back together.

The rear shocks look like they could use another 2-3cm. There are some reproduction competition folding pegs that will replace the originals. The wheel rims, gas and oil tanks and fenders are aluminum.

A side-stand repair that was working okay, but stuck way out to the side. Not too sure about the weld quality, as the original lugs were brazed with brass, and the brass flows everywhere, inhibiting welding, making for crappy welds. I took the block off with a cutting wheel in an angle grinder, and got the rest of the bung off using a propane torch and hammer.

A new lug was tacked on and then brazed, like the originals were. This is a reproduction lug that comes with squared edges that I sanded down to look a little more like the original. The angle for the lug was taken from a 1970 model frame here in the shop.

The head has the seats ground, new valves, guides, and springs. One of the exhaust spigots had to be repaired as well, but it is now ready to go. Still waiting on a carb moun stud to get plated.

A Morgo oil pump just went on. There are new bearings, bushings, and thrust washers on the transmission. Waiting on seals to get the covers on, tappet blocks to get the top end on, and then it will start to look a little like something.

Rockers are rebuilt.

Hand reaming the cam bushings. The exhaust cam initially was a little tight while turning, but is fine after reaming. There is a “half race” cam set-up in the engine with new R grind followers going with the 3134 intake cam, and a 9989 exhaust cam and followers. Still waiting on tappet blocks to get the top end on. The crank was turned .010” and balanced with the rods and pistons. New main bearings, wrist pin bushes and shell bearings were used. The cylinder was bored .020” over and new pistons and rings are waiting to go in..

This was a true basket case bike, with bunches of disassembled parts. Unfortunately, some of it is junk like this chainwheel. The inside grooves for the clutch plates are so chattered out it, it is better to just replace it. A new UK made one is on the way along with new discs, plates ,springs, and center hub.

Every last piece…A crapped-out chain wheel, spent clutch discs and plates, broken primary front sprocket, I thought maybe the damper could be rebuilt, but halfway into the process, I found this monster crack. There was already a new primary chain, so every last piece of the primary drive will be new.

Alloy shouldered rims, Buchanan heavy duty spokes, a new brake drum and bearings along with re-plated original hardware.

An original front hub with the same treatment as the rear. The brake plate is also rebuilt and waiting.

Some of the polishing for this build, plus the fork lowers for a T140 Triumph. The tail on the original transmission cover is broken off, so a 1967 cover was used.

Some of the rear backbone had been ground deeply on the frame, and needed to be filled with weld. When welding it up, the deepest ground portions blew through, exposing a section that appeared about a sixteenth of an inch thick. Some more grinding on the backbone near the steering tube will need filling to a lesser extent.

The frame before stripping.. The side stand lug has been removed at this point. The ground spots on top of the backbone can be seen.

It took a couple full days to strip this frame and make repairs. The seat hinge pivots were missing, but the holes were still there, so replacements were brazed in. The lower mounts for the rear engine plates were also missing from the sub-frame, and new ones were fashioned and welded on.

The sub frame lower plate mounts. Don’t know exactly how they went missing, but it looks like they were ripped off. I didn’t have a model to measure the dimensions on these mounts when they made, but estimated based on online pictures…they are a little less than one eighth of an inch too long, comparing to the 1970 frame now in the shop..

The rear alloy fender and mount.

Still not 100% on the oil bag. It will either be this one or a custom aluminum one. The mount is custom and is completely rubber-mounted on top and bottom.

Some brackets being made from stainless to mimic the early 1970’s originals.

Some of the aluminum polishing for the recently finished Norton Commando 850.