Ratty and bratty FT500 -83

[Ampari]

Hello, and greetings from Finland. Finally started working on my FT and decided to make a topic. Got the bike last autumn, did ~700km before winter and it didn't miss a beat. Snow's starting to melt so it's time to start preparing the bike for the 2016 season.





Pics are from last year, sorry for their abysmal quality.

Recharged the battery and tried to start the bike, couldn't. Took the carb off and apart, need new screws to hold the top lid and float bowl on since old ones were rounded off.

So, since my bike is EU spec it has a Keihin VB11, all instructions for suitable jet sizes are for the American model which has a VB10 and thus has different jets. Mine has a #78 and a #128, M5 thread and I had an old jet from my previous bike which fit the carb but was the wrong size, a #97,5. But at least I now know which jets I need to get. How much bigger they need to be, no idea just yet. Thinking of ditching the stock airbox as well, any guesses? This is just to fix it for now, probably getting a roundslide Mikuni in the future but for now jets are cheaper than carbs.

Also noticed this when I took the carb apart. There are 2 "big" jets and a rubber bung, and under the bung is another jet that looks like a pilot jet. The bike's been working fine, a bit harsh to start when cold but runs and idles fine once warmed up. Why is there a "hidden" jet? Am I the only one or is this something done to all EU-spec Ascots? Also the screw in the front is adjustable, but I have no idea what it adjusts?





Thinking of doing a street tracker, but first I need to address the necessities; the brakes are most likely original, as is the clutch. Since the bike has done ~66000km's these are something I feel are much more important than cosmetic modification. I already have new clutch plates, heavy duty springs and brake pads. Brake discs are too expensive so I'll be looking into getting some custom-made. I have no idea about the condition of the starter, the previous owner has done something to it and it works fine for now, but I don't want it to break down, and there's something inside there that needs cleaning and lubricating every once in a while, if anybody has pictures or even instructions on how to do this I'd be super happy. Also the adjustment of the balancer chain, pics and instructions if you have any.

The engine has a small oil leak, probably from the front valve cover since the oil drops hit the exhaust. Also someone has bodged a part of the wiring loom, need to properly re-do the ruined bits. Clutch feels like it's slipping, that's why I'm replacing the plates and springs.

I already have some new parts for the bike, including a round headlight and a universal speedometer. Hope these work, but if not it doesn't really matter since I got them cheap off the Bay of E. Doing a rev counter delete since I don't think I need it, even my car doesn't have one



As for the looks, I'm thinking of dropping the front forks slightly and getting shorter shocks for the rear. Rear and side plastics need to go, I'll keep the original tank for now. Probably some frame modification and a brat seat, higher handlebars and smaller mirrors. Powdercoating the frame, swingarm, rims and front forks black, replacing seals and bearings and maybe add gaiters. I want the bike to look cool but still be functional.

As for the performance, a bigger carb and a custom exhaust should be enough.

I'll post better pics when I get the bike back together.

[ftnorway]

What brand/maker is the round headlight from?

[Ampari]

What brand/maker is the round headlight from?

The cheapest possible chinese no-brand one off Ebay. It's quite large since it's as wide as the original, but at least it bolts to the original headlight bracket.

[J6G1Z]

This is the one that I used: http://www.speedmotoco.com/product-p/smc.404.mofo.htm

Here are all the headlights that they offer: http://www.speedmotoco.com/Motorcycle-Headlights-Headlight-s/48.htm

I requested a pair of small black bodied turn signals instead of the shiny ones in the picture. The headlight mounts are a bit fat & just barely kiss the fuel tank when the forks are turned to the stops. Here's a few pictures of my bike: http://ascot500.com/index.php?topic=79.msg1718#msg1718

Good luck
J.

[J6G1Z]

Here is another potential source:
http://www.emgo.com/index.php/catalogs
http://www.ebay.com/bhp/emgo


J.

[Ampari]

Got bigger jets for the carb, a #82,5 and a #132,5. Still didn't start. I was afraid I would destroy the starter motor if I kept trying this hard.

Today I got a new spark plug and some starter spray. Tried with old plug and spray, didn't even try. Swapped the old plug for a new one, fired right up without spraying starter fluid into the carb. It's probably the fastest I've ever fried a plug since I replaced it about 6 months ago. I think if I've used starter fluid from the beginning it would still be functional, guess the gas flowing into the cylinder but not firing up fouled the plug.

Reminder: even if a plug has spark when out, it might not have one under pressure.

Next I need to sort the sketchy wiring, get some fuel hose and put the bike back together. The weather took a turn for the worse so still not in a hurry

[murdo]

Hello form Aus.
When you take the sidecover off the engine to change your clutch plates (I used Barnett kit from US) there is a bolt under the crank gear that you loosen and the spring will move a plate that tightens the balance chain. Don't force it as this will put too much pressure on the chain and cause it to wear more.

[Ampari]

I got EBC friction plates and springs from a local shop, no new steel plates but I guess old ones will suffice.

Rear brake lost all pressure, I rebuilt the rear brake master cylinder and replaced the pads. Also replaced the front pads, gotta get my car fixed and inspected so couldn't afford new discs but still had to replace the pads since the old ones were basically a compressed pile of dust. Sanded the discs lightly since they are at minimum thickness so can't really get them machined either.

And after that I snapped the pull throttle cable. To be fair it was super worn already, it felt quite sticky at times but definitely didn't expect it to snap. Luckily I was just leaving my house when it happened

Yesterday I lubed and installed the new throttle cable and when done with adjusting the movement of the throttle I couldn't get the bike to start, spark plug was black and wet with gas so I just fried another plug new one in and it fired right up, apparently the accelerator pump had sprayed some gas into the cylinder while working on the throttle cable and it fouled the plug. It's amazing how little it takes to destroy a spark plug with these bigger bikes, during my moped years I only had one faulty spark plug, and that was because I ran the bike too rich. And before you ask, the plugs are proper NGK.

Also located the oil leak. Apparently one of the valve cover bolts leaks oil like hell when the bike is running. Took it out and was greeted by this:



Looks like a thread insert. The handwritten service history that came with the bike mentioned a repair of some stripped threads on the cylinder head, guess I found one. I just wish people would do these properly if they're ready to go through the hassle of repairing them. Since fixing this would require me to drop the whole engine I did exactly what a lazy person would do; got some Loctite and liquid gasket and bodged it



Not my proudest moment and I kinda hope it leaks so I'll have to fix it properly soon. If not then I'll fix it when the weather's better (yeah right, that's when it's time to ride the damn thing ).



Also got rid of the original plate holder/rear mud guard. The deeper I delve into the bike the more I realize it isn't as original as I thought, there's some horribly bodged repairs and installs all over the bike. And no, the Alfa Romeo isn't mine

Really sorry for the shit pics, but I'm way too lazy to get my DSLR when working on the bike. I promise I'll get some better pics of the bike and the new plate/rear light setup.

[Ampari]

Well, #*&%. When I bought the bike it only had one key and it's quite worn too so I got new blank ones. They're for a Honda Z50, since FT500 and Z50 have roughly the same size keys. Too bad the groove is on the wrong side and I can't use these.



It isn't really the seller's fault, since I basically ordered them for the wrong bike and they had the "wrong" side groove on the pictures too but I didn't check my key if it's identical. So it's my mistake but bummed nevertheless, these were the only reasonably priced ones on Ebay. Back to searching I guess...

Also had a pic of the rear brake master cylinder rebuilding process, nothing fancy.

[Ampari]

Got tired of trying to find reasonably priced original Honda key blanks, so I just got a universal one cut.

Fitted the round headlight, required some modification. Had to cut another hole for the wires on the back and the case also interfered with the black "grille" under the lamp, so I cut a piece out of it and painted the whole thing matte black since it was all sunburned and faded.





The headlight's disproportionately high, as evidenced by the lower pic. The plan is to get rid of the grille and find a new place for the horn so I can mount the light lower. Also the exhaust pipe's butt-ugly, I'll probably paint it for now but I really would like a new, better flowing exhaust system



Rear end's also temporary, I'll deal with it when modifying the frame for the tracker seat.



New handlebars and mirrors are next. Valve cover doesn't leak oil anymore so the only oil leak left is the gear shifter axle's oil seal. I really need to pull the engine out and replace all oil seals and fix the stripped threads

Did 100km's yesterday, filled her up when I left and then again after the trip, about 50/50 highway and small unpaved roads. Speed on highway was 80-100km/h (100km/h = 60mph), on smaller roads around 50km/h (30mph). Consumption was 5,7l/100km or 41 mpg, so it's really not much more economical than my old Nissan but the amount of Smiles Per Gallon is through the roof with the Honda

Also got to try the new headlight in the dark, I replaced the cheap bulb that came with it with a premium one that was left over from my car and was actually surprised how good the new light is. Despite being really cheap it has better illumination than the original, designer's rectangular brain fart

[Ampari]

Well, it's been a while. Unfortunately not much has transpired since my last post, moved to an apartment and had no space for the bike so didn't ride it too many times during 2017 since it was stored at my parent's house. I did however fix the leaking front end with new seals and dustcovers, also tackled what I thought was the gear shifter axle leaking, turned out to be the seal for the axle that drives the sprocket. Took the old one out and realised I have to SPLIT THE DAMN CRANKCASE TO REPLACE IT because of the outer lip on the seal. Just magnificent, so that happened and ended the 2017 season.

Took a quick pic after doing the front forks, there were some homemade custom raiser pieces of pipe inside the forks on top of the springs, took those out while I was in there. (later edit: well, I guess I'm an idiot since CMSNL shows that those "pipes" I took out were actually originally there. No wonder the front forks felt like sh*t. Too bad CMSNL only has one of these in stock, so I'll have to order it and take measurements of it to get another one and refit those.)





... aaaand here's how it looked for the whole season of 2018. I didn't really want to take the engine apart on the yard, also waited the whole summer for a gasket set. Finally last fall I got a place to actually do some car and bike stuff with a few friends, so I took the engine apart.



Did the valve seats as they were kinda crusty, needed to change the valve guide seals anyway.

Nearing the end of the teardown, I ran into a small problem with this oil passage preventing me from removing the timing chain. I do have a new one so cutting the old chain isn't a problem but installing the new one would be kinda difficult, so any advice? Checked CMSNL and it seems to be just a small pipe, so do I just pull it out?





Slightly off-topic but I'm trying to fix up the bike so I can have something fun to drive around in the summer since this blue hunk of junk will take at least a year to complete

[FT500R]

Nice project you've got going there.
The stripping bolts on your camcover are a honda regular issue. I had to put new inserts in 5 of mine.
About your jet questions.
That rubber thingy needs to stay in that tube, it's standard on all euro bikes. The jet under the rubber thingy is your main jet so the one you need to replace.
I've replaced my pilot and main jet when I went for an aftermarket open filter. Still need to do some fine tuning but she runs quite alright now.
The other screw on your carb is the air mixture screw. This can help with fine tuning the carb.
Do yourself a favor and find a workshop manual a lot of the questions you have can be solved with it.

[Ampari]

Engine has been rebuilt with fresh seals, gaskets, balancer and timing chain. Had to convert some of valve cover bolts to studs to make it all work reliably. Runs like a dream, no more grinding noises made by a slacking timing chain and also feels like it vibrates less than before, which is good since I had some doubts whether I lined the balancers all up correctly.

Next thing is to ditch the original airbox, looking at making a smaller one since I'm really not a fan of running an open filter, also would like to incorporate the crankcase breather into this new smaller airbox to avoid water/dirt/cats/dogs getting into the engine. Battery relocation is also something I'll have to think aboot. Otherwise it's just some tidying up, refitting the original gauge cluster, new sprockets and chain and some new rubber for the summer. Not in a hurry since the snow will be here for at least another two months.

Oh, and the exhaust has several leaks starting from the headers all the way to the muffler. Need to do something about that too

[Ampari]

Been a while, still alive tho. And the bike's running too. Although it has developed an occasional knocking/grinding engine noise that seems to occur whenever it pleases (seems to happen more frequently when under medium load or engine braking hard), and it usually goes away by hitting the redline, or by just keeping on driving. Rarely makes the noise when driven WOT. First time this noise occured was when I was downshifting without the clutch. No metal shavings or anything unusual in oil. I've had the engine covers off and nothing seems loose. Truly baffling. Guess I need to do compression and leakdown tests next winter as it also consumes some oil. Most likely needs engine opened again

Got some pics for you special few who care about these bikes. Fabbed up a new exhaust some time ago, made some seat brackets along with frame mods and welded some tabs for rear light and turn signals. Also did an electrical/air box and battery box which can be considered prototypes aka they suck and I'll redo them in the future. New (same as old) China special headlight, secondhand speedo from a Suzuki TU250X. Chain, sprockets, rubber, some other small things here and there. The whole bike needs some mechanical care, tidying up and repainting but it'll do for now. Been doing about 3000-4000km each summer, so probably closer to 10k since I last posted

New tail light:


Seat brackets:


New exhaust almost done:


And couple scenic ones from this summer:




Edit: just noticed in an older post that the fuel consumption used to be "5,7l/100km or 41 mpg". I have a sample size of about five to seven tankfuls this summer and it's now around 4,4l/100km or 53mpg after new exhaust, airbox and rejetting. Doesn't seem to matter if it's wide open throttle highway blasting or slow forest crawl, consumption stays pretty much consistent between tanks.

[murdo]

Nice work.
Haven't been well enough to get out on mine lately, hoping to be fit for summer.

[hellblom]

Nice looking bike! I do love mine and had a great summer on it. Was able to hit 160kph or 100mph on the highway so the 10,5:1 Wiseco piston does improve performance for sure.

https://player.vimeo.com/video/590564847