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First motorcycle build! 1980 cx500

1K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  Fonzie Scheme 
#1 ·
Well I've been in the market for a motorcycle since I was able to press a gas pedal.. or pull one, but never could afford what I really wanted (hayabusa) hehe! I've grown up riding crf450s and and any quad i could get my hands on but now it's time to grow up!

My dad recently got a 1982 cx500 custom off of a good friend of ours that put some TLC into her to get her back in shape.. including a blue rattle can paint job! Welp only had 9k miles on it so my dad couldn't pass it up!

So with only being 22 and doing a contracting internship I could finally afford my very own cx500! I was searching craigslist for weeks looking for cx500 or cx650 etc.. because i knew i couldn't go without liquid cooling and that lovely shaft drive! so what do you know, I came across the first cx500 I found and ending up taking her home for $800!

The lady that sold it was so kind she went out and got a new battery because it wouldn't start. Anyways it has carb issues and the temp gauge doesn't work but it started right up and idled quite well with full choke.

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That's what it looked like after hauling it off the trailer. I'm now about two weeks into the build and in that time I've been so lucky to find a set of comstar wheels with the 18 rear and 19 front for $25 locally! They have a much cleaner look than the other kind imho! And he sold me a brand new dunlop d404 for $50 and mounted and balanced for an additional $15

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I was also able to find a deluxe tank off a 79' that was in almost perfect condition for $75 from a local cycle recycle here in indianapolis! The inside was so clean i could poor my coke in it and take a drink! Along with new headlight, blinkers, handlebars, and grips! That store is awesome!!

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After some paint and patience with all the prep work that goes along, I managed to clean the front end up.

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I loved the way the tank looked after the paint was gone I think I wanna keep it polished. any tips on how to do so? I heard clear coat doesn't really help.

So here's my stumping point. The fairing that I took off included the headlight and blinkers etc, I've gone through wiring diagrams religiously and I believe I have the turn signals hooked up right. The running lights work when I turn the key but when I flip my blinkers on they just get brighter and don't blink.. I thought maybe my relay is bad but I put the one from my dad's on and it does the same thing.. Also they get super hot in the aluminum housing if left on for a while (10 min or so).. is this normal?

my next question is how do I diagnose the temp gauge not working? My 7v regulator looks okay but how do you know if that's the culprit? I'm going to end up using gps for speed and no tach I just want to have a good working temp gauge to know if my waterpump is working.. my valve covers got pretty hot pretty quick when I first rode it around and I've heard it's a pita to change one?? Or just a seal??..

Anyways here are some more recent pictures and some include my dad's bike as well. Thanks for looking and listening I hope to hear from you all, and hopefully someone that lives near by. I'm currently in gosport IN.

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#4 ·
Easy to test the 7v regulator.
Start it up and check voltage output to the yellow and green wires separately to ground.
You should get exactly 7vdc on both.
Check that when warm that there is circulation in the radiator.

I ended up pulling my radiator and have to have is cleaned as it seems to be full of a gel of some sort.
 
#5 ·
I have the carbs out not and am saving up for some mikuni carbs so it'll be a while before I am able to start it. Thanks though! And ideas on the turn signals? Do they have anything to do with the taillights not hooked up or is the original relay not strong enough for the new lights?
 
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