500W project nearing completion

Maestro, SEI-V
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Canuck750
Posts: 111
Joined: 29 Jan 2018 22:14
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, C

500W project nearing completion

Post by Canuck750 »

I bought a 1978 500W a little over a year ago and have almost finished the rebuild short of new hand grips and a pair of carb slides. NLM has provided a large number of parts for the drive line.

Bike came with home made rear set brackets, all the stock lugs were cut off the frame so no choice but to keep the rear sets.

I have yet to fire it up, any suggestions on base tuning settings of the carbs? I have yet to read up and understand how to static time it.

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Mepstein
Posts: 147
Joined: 27 Apr 2016 02:38
Location: Newark, Delaware
Location: Newark, Delaware, USA

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by Mepstein »

Nice job. Looks great.
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72degrees
Posts: 1549
Joined: 31 Aug 2007 21:24
Location: West Midlands

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by 72degrees »

There are 'standard' carb settings in the 'blue book' manual.

As to static timing, see the 'Evguru' Youtube video (paying attention to the different flywheel markings on an electric start 500).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99OyzfdVd8g
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Ming
Posts: 798
Joined: 01 Aug 2014 16:32
Location: France
Location: Central France

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by Ming »

Mepstein wrote:Nice job. Looks great.
Certainly does. Just a heads-up, though - check you have clearance between the key fob and the side panel! On my 3½, the enamel Morini badge just caught the edge of the side panel when riding and chipped the paint... :roll:
Canuck750
Posts: 111
Joined: 29 Jan 2018 22:14
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, C

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by Canuck750 »

Thanks for the reply's!

I will do some reading on the ignition set up, will check that key fob as well!
texaskitty
Posts: 89
Joined: 17 Jan 2016 06:37
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by texaskitty »

If my 500 ever looks like that I would be very happy. Mine has the same paint on the tank, side covers and tail - red with white and black pin striping, but with a red frame, gold wheels and red-painted steel mudguards - not stainless steel. I could swear that the mudguards received one coat of paint at the factory - the red coat; no undercoat. (It has not been running since perhaps 1993/94; I have owned it since 1981/82.)

One very, very small tip regarding the wiring that comes from the pick-up on the left end of the camshaft: consider routing the wiring so that after it comes out of the pick-up cover, it just curves around a little towards the centre of the bike and to the rear/top of the left front engine mounting bracket, then under the top edge of the bracket, forward to the frame's front left down-tube - then up the frame tube. That's how the factory did it; it hides some of the wiring under the top of the engine bracket; you get rid of the wiring loop hanging down and it just cleans up the look.

Maybe I am being anal and neurotic and pedantic but try it and see the result.

(Do you know if that is the original factory paint on the tank, side panels and tail? It looks like it is.)
acemorini
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Location: buxted east sussex
Location: Uckfield, East Sussex.
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Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by acemorini »

Very nice job, looks loads better than mine.
Regards Pete.
Canuck750
Posts: 111
Joined: 29 Jan 2018 22:14
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, C

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by Canuck750 »

texaskitty wrote:If my 500 ever looks like that I would be very happy. Mine has the same paint on the tank, side covers and tail - red with white and black pin striping, but with a red frame, gold wheels and red-painted steel mudguards - not stainless steel. I could swear that the mudguards received one coat of paint at the factory - the red coat; no undercoat. (It has not been running since perhaps 1993/94; I have owned it since 1981/82.)

One very, very small tip regarding the wiring that comes from the pick-up on the left end of the camshaft: consider routing the wiring so that after it comes out of the pick-up cover, it just curves around a little towards the centre of the bike and to the rear/top of the left front engine mounting bracket, then under the top edge of the bracket, forward to the frame's front left down-tube - then up the frame tube. That's how the factory did it; it hides some of the wiring under the top of the engine bracket; you get rid of the wiring loop hanging down and it just cleans up the look.

Maybe I am being anal and neurotic and pedantic but try it and see the result.

(Do you know if that is the original factory paint on the tank, side panels and tail? It looks like it is.)
Thanks, I appreciate the wire route tips, I try and get the builds as close to original as I can, having never seen one of these before all I have is pictures I can find on the internet,

The paint colour and stripe scheme is how it came on the parts I got with the bike, this bike was the grey paint scheme but previous owner also had a red painted set of tank, covers and tail in decent shape other than the big dent in the tank that needed repair.

As found condition

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Previous owner claimed the engine had been rebuilt

So much for rebuilt!

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The grey paint scheme is nice but the red just pops.
Canuck750
Posts: 111
Joined: 29 Jan 2018 22:14
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, C

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by Canuck750 »

After getting my 500W on the road I found a couple problems, first off the previous owner had assured me the engine had been rebuilt, after digging into the project I found the cases had not been split and the bottom end needed a crank grind, shells and bearings. I finished the restoration and got the bike on the road last month, performance is sluggish, disappointed to find the front cylinder compression is 80 psi and the rear around 110 psi! So much for ever believing the claims of a previous owner, I should know better.

The piston the cylinder gap is way over spec as is the ring gap and the cylinders are over bored beyond spec.... that about sums up the poor compression.

I have a pair of new +.2mm oversize piston kits but to make use of them I will need to find a pair of good standard bore cylinders or cylinder liners that I can have bored to fit the new pistons.

Other problem was a transmission thrust bearing collapsed and this threw out the shift mechanism, burnt out the clutch discs, not sure its directly related but the shifter got stuck between 2 and 3rd and the shift pawls would not fully rotate the drum because the stack height was off due to the shot bearing. I have new bearing so I hope once fitted with new clutch discs that issue will be resolved.

If anyone has a pair of standard bore cylinders or liners that would fit the bill please email me or pm me, I am in Canada and will pay shipping from anywhere so I can make this right once and for all.

jcarey@br2architecture.com
Canuck750
Posts: 111
Joined: 29 Jan 2018 22:14
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, C

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by Canuck750 »

Can the iron liners be removed and replaced from the stock aluminum barrels? Will heating the barrel in an oven to 400 ~ 450 F be sufficient to drop the liner out of the barrel?

Just wondering of the liners are cast into the aluminum heads and can not be heated and removed.
MickeyMoto
Posts: 2415
Joined: 22 Nov 2008 17:41
Location: Even further oop North

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by MickeyMoto »

Canuck750 wrote:Can the iron liners be removed and replaced from the stock aluminum barrels? Will heating the barrel in an oven to 400 ~ 450 F be sufficient to drop the liner out of the barrel?

Just wondering of the liners are cast into the aluminum heads and can not be heated and removed.
Hello,

According to the blue book he answer is yes. Heat to 200C. Cool the liner and press out.

The liner has a separate part number on the 350.
AntietamClassicCycle
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Location: Rohrersville, MD, US
Location: Rohrersville, MD, USA
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Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by AntietamClassicCycle »

Possibly have the iron liners Nikasil plated (by Millennium) to match the new pistons? Worth contacting them.
Canuck750
Posts: 111
Joined: 29 Jan 2018 22:14
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, C

Re: 500W project nearing completion

Post by Canuck750 »

I took the cylinders, old pistons and new pistons to a machine shop that does plated coatings. The old cylinders have been grossly over bored to the pistons that were fitted, the piston to cylinder gap is 4 ~ 5 times over the tolerance. Machine shop says the over bore is not consistent between the two bores and the bores are not true! The plating would be too thick and would flake. Ring end gap was more than twice over spec, ring fit to old pistons was sloppy.

JUNK

The previous owner 1st assured me the motor had been rebuilt when he sold it to me. When confronted with the shot bottom end he claimed "that's what the 'guy' he bought the bike off told him. Last week when I told him the compression was crap he swore he had oversize pistons fitted but the rings would not seal so he found some Mitsubishi fork lift rings that fit once he machined the pistons.... Trouble was his machine work was about as good as his storey telling.

I just can not understand why someone would make such bold statements when they knew it was crap and that to think I was not going to find out I had bought a dud motor!! You would think a mans reputation would be worth more than a lousy motor bike.

I contacted L.A. Sleeve and they can fit new liners and bore them to match the mew +.2mm pistons I have, the cylinders and pistons go out by courier tomorrow. I am looking at around $600 for the pair for new liners and boring to suit.

Another $1K into the motor, the new owner is going to have a good engine.

I am also replacing the transmission thrust washers and the worn shift pawls with NOS parts.

Oh well you live and you learn.
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