Howdy / Tokyo

[wrk2ride_ride2wrk]

Howdy,  looking forward  to some knowledge, and the benifit of site members experiances.

I've picked up what seems like a good enough FT500 at an auction as a none runner. Looks like its been sitting for at least a couple of yrs, so began a bit of a teardown today to see how it was, and why.

All good so far;
no seal leaks
clean carb & tank
Oil clean and gas free
plug clean.
New airfilter
New tires, still good not cracked or hardened

Thought I'd clean up the starter as I'd read on the issues.... oh hellooo.... no bendix pinion, shaft or spring..

I'm guessing it wasnt there cause it not available. So I doubt I'll have any luck getting the parts new,
but the local Honda dealership sent the parts inquiry, they'll let me know in a few days

All good, Neil

[J6G1Z]

Welcome to the forum & congratulations on finding an Ascot. Nice looking bike! I'm sorry to hear that someone has monkeyed with the starter & lost vital parts for you. I sure wish Honda had seen fit to leave the kick-starter on the bike as a back up to the electric starter.

I don't know if the parts you need are available any longer. If they are not available, see if you can at least get the Honda part numbers for the parts. That way you can use the part numbers in your eBay searches. I found an NOS (New Old Stock) triple clamp that way once. I ran the Honda part number on eBay & this NOS new in box triple clamp popped up that cost less than most of the used ones that were available from the bike salvage yards.

Another good source of info is the Yahoo FT Ascot Owners Group. https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/honda-ascot/info
I believe that you may have to sign up for a Yahoo e-mail account to sign up for the mailing list. They have a "FILES" section with lots of helpful Tech Info. Here's a link to the "FILES" on Starter issues & repairs. https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/honda-ascot/files/Starter%20Issues/

Good luck
J.

[wrk2ride_ride2wrk]

Great J,

Appreciate your welcome and the advice.
If I can't get the parts, I'll look out for kickstart & cases.

Very much looking forward to this project, havent had a thumper since I was kid, which was a Matchless single, so this'll be a big leap in comfort!

Cheers.