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Zero and the C-monster

19K views 91 replies 18 participants last post by  DRIVEN 
#1 ·
A few weeks ago I became fixated on building one of these -- A misfit bike with no specific designation. Kinda cafe, kinda dual sport, kinda scrambler, kinda rat bike. It seemed like it might be fun so logic would dictate that if I could get a buddy involved it'd be even more fun. It wasn't too tough to get my buddy, Marc on board. We talked over the end goal and contemplated what would be a good platform. At first he was ready to cut up his Nighthawk 750 but it really wasn't an optimal platform. We eventually focused in on the CX500/GL500 platform.
These have a lot of good things for the end result we're looking for;
-Short wheel base
-High ground clearance
-Shaft driven
-Mid-sized displacement
-Tough and reliable
-Enough produced so that parts are easy to get.
The rest is up to us.


We'd been watching CL for for a few days and Marc went to look at a couple. I stumbled across one that was tagged oddly enough that it hadn't popped up in our normal searches. So not only was it an obscure listing, it was a stalled project that was already being taken in the right direction (so we thought), most notably the monoshock conversion. Some pics from the ad...





Marc went up to Woodland after work to check it out. I got a text from him late that night. It was just a single pic...


Then the pressure was on me to find the right bike. I was holding out for a GL650 since there are some minor differences that I'd like.


Well, Marc brought his by my house the next afternoon so I could check it out. Lots of pretty janky stuff that needs to be undone (no surprise there) but it's a good base. Only took about 10 minutes to get it running (pods plugging the atmo ports -- super flooded). The guy called him before he went to look at it to let him know it wouldn't start. Worked out good for Marc -- he was able to get the price down another $150.

The ammo can on the left holds the battery and the one on the right holds the wad-O-wiring. Both are going away. The seller also included the frame parts that he'd cut off along with the rear fender and original shocks.
 
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#2 ·
Bam!!! Found mine a couple days later.

Rode it home.



This thing is honestly pretty rough as it sits. I wouldn't have considered it if I were shopping for a cruiser but it's got everything I need for this project. Ran pretty decent but rode horrible. Add to that the loose fairing and it was a bit tense for the 90 mile ride home. It's pretty complete though. Even had the original owners manual and tool kit in the saddle bag. The luggage is scuffed but not in bad shape. The right side of the fairing is crunched from being dropped. I'll have a huge pile of stuff to sell when I'm done.





Spent a couple hours cleaning it up and giving it a closer going-over. Fluids all looked good. Plugs don't have many miles on them and look to be burning really clean. Looks like a newer K&N air filter. There is a little tick in the engine that I was hoping a valve adjustment would cure. It didn't. I'm not going to worry about it much unless it gets worse. The inside of the valve covers were amazingly clean. Tires both had <15psi and the front suspension had no air charge at all. No wonder it rode like a wet noodle.


We were both in research and parts gathering mode at that point.
 
#3 ·
Marc brought his by last Sunday and we put in a few hours. More accurately, he put in a few hours while I played shop teacher -- which is exactly how he wanted it. The starting point...

The previous owner had cut the rear hoops out in an attempt to make it looks cooler. Fortunately he had saved almost all the pieces and Marc got them in the deal. You can see that the rear struts had been cut off and rewelded up higher at some point also.

Started stripping down the rear...

Shaved off all the unneeded brackets from the hoops...

Dropped off the exhaust, rerouted the rear wiring harness, cut off the hokey seat mount and rear gas tank mounting stud...

Cut some slugs/sleeves (not pictured) for all the weld joints and rewelded the hoops and seat area back together and tacked it in place. I didn't weld it to the frame yet because we are 99% sure that the rear shock will be getting changed out and it'll just be easier to work around it without the rear frame structure in the way.

Last thing we did was mock up some parts and discuss placement and future tasks and design aspects.



Only thing we did to mine was take turns buzzing it up and down the driveway.
 
#4 ·
Sounds like you guys are gonna have some real fun!
Just finishing my own brat/cafe and looking to do my next build with a good friend. Considering the k75 as a platform. They seems more common in Sweden than the cx unfortunately :) will follow your thread with great interest.
 
#9 ·
Nice.
 
#10 ·
More progress on the C-monster. Stopped by Marc's place on the way home from a ride last Sunday. He had picked up a CX650 roller that we decided might make a good fork donor. Since he's about 6'4" the extra 3" in fork length might work out well. Plus, it had the fork brace too. He had also been bodyworking the tank.


As for project Zero, I have a pretty complete pile of parts.

I'll spend the day cleaning up and rearranging the shop so I have room to work.
Seems like it's going to be hard to slow down and pace myself through the winter. Marc already has a huge head start so I feel like I'm playing catch-up.
 
#11 ·
Started breaking down Zero. Also picked up a set of newish Sportster mufflers. Not sure if I'll use them but couldn't pass up the $15 deal.


Took my tires in to a local bike shop to have them swapped out and they refused to do it. Liability, blah, blah, blah. Also said they would have dangerous traction issues on the street and I'd end up in the ditch. Really? The manufacturer developed them as a 50/50 dual sport tire. Whatever. Ended up buying another set -- same manufacturer but considered a 70/30 tire. When it's all said and done there's about a $30 difference. No biggie, I guess.
 
#12 · (Edited)
Well, that didn't go as planned. He called me later and said that he, in fact, couldn't get the tires he wanted to sell me because they don't exist in that size. To add a little more Eff-you on top, he told me again that he not only refuses to mount up my originals but that if I were to find anyone else who was willing to do it, they were trying to kill me:rolleyes:. Whatever, I just got some tire irons and did it myself. Then it sat for the rest of the week.

This morning I peeled off the rest of the rear bodywork and reinstalled the wheels/tires. Threw a blanket on the frame and blasted up and down my street a few times. New knobbys are waaay grippier! Made a couple loops down behind my house through the dirt just for good measure and it grabs like a dirt bike...almost. I think I'm gonna like it. Sportster mufflers sound great too.

Plan for tomorrow is to do my fork seals and maybe start surgery on the rear suspension and frame. Possibly even put the new bars on. We'll see how the day pans out.
Marc should be over here around noon but only has about half the parts he needs so we'll just do what we can on his.

Stay tuned.
 
#15 ·
We did about 6 hours today -- mostly working. Always seems like there's as much BSing as a actual work done. I got my forks rebuilt/resealed, boots installed, and the stock gauges removed. Also tried the chrome fender from the CX650 donor bike just to see if I like it. Changed out the bars along with the new grips and mirrors as well. Took a couple more bomb runs up and down the driveway and around the back yard.


My Silverwing pile is getting pretty big. I may actually list this stuff sooner rather than later.


Marc got the old mono shock mounts cleaned up and ready for re-engineering to accommodate his new Ninja unit. We also mounted his new front tire. Most of his new parts aren't scheduled for delivery until tomorrow so we couldn't make any real progress.
 
#16 ·
Another 8hrs yesterday on Marc's C-monster. Mounted the other new tire and balanced both. He installed the new drag bars and all the controls. They hit the tank at full travel so we're debating on whether to modify the stops or dimple the tank. Mocked up the cheap Chinese headlight. Got the upper and lower shock mounts done and the replacement Ninja shock installed -- still pretty soft though so he's on the hunt for a stiffer replacement spring or else a complete replacement. Welded in the rear frame loops too. Last thing we did was mock up the Mac's exhaust system.




 
#17 ·
I'd want a proper sleeve and bushing in that shock mount. As it is, it's riding on the bolt. Expect a high amount of wear.


R
 
#18 ·
Duly noted. The whole monoshock thing is work in progress. We researched it quite a bit and found that it's been done a ton of different ways with varying degrees of success. Since there doesn't seem to be any one proven combo, we're just faking our way through it. At this point we've learned that this combo isn't "the one". Stay tuned.
 
#21 · (Edited)
I have a custom bearing holder in the works for my GL500 project. Though "in the works" may be something of an exaggeration, as I've had very little garage time to devote to it this summer. It's set up to use the stock Honda bits, including the dust seals, that fit the XL200 shock I'm using. I'll share the design when I have something to show.


R

P.S. This post has a basic description of the idea.
 
#23 ·
Tore down the rear suspension on Zero and modified the shock mounts. I forgot to take any before and after pics of the actual part but the results speak for themselves. Still has full articulation with the benefit of about 4" extra height.


Then I bobbed the rear of the frame.

It's coming along. I'll be setting up the rear of the frame to accept a removable rack for adventuring before it's over. Planning on another work day with Marc Tomorrow.
 
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