Enough of the excuses … here’s the latest. Over the past few days I’ve completed the truing of the wheels and have mounted the new tires. Once I find my set of balancing weights, I’ll balance the wheels. 2 years ago the hubs were vapor blasted and look like new. Also, the stainless steel spokes are a nice upgrade from stock. The hubs have new bearings pressed in as well. The aluminum rims are from Borrani in Italy and match the flanged style of the original steel rims.

The new old stock (NOS) engine side covers got several coats of ceramic aluminum engine paint, followed by a heat treatment. The original covers had damage and needed replacing. The right side cover is hard to find, too, as it contains a cast-in kick starter shaft bushing, which tended to wear over the decades on these kick start-only bikes.

I’ll focus on completing the frame pieces and panels that will be painted their original light silver. I’ll get the sanding and prep work done next. Since the warm weather is fading, I’ll outsource the painting to the pros, which will allow me to put the engine back together during that time.

My goal is to work on this during the off-season and have it ready to ride when the snow clears in Spring 2021.

That said, my neighbor Don decided that I was just the right person to take ownership of his “baby”.  He priced it low, too, after I had initially passed on the offer.  Sure, twist my arm, Don.  Today, the 1966 Honda CL77 Scrambler was rolled into my garage, waiting in line for its turn for a rebuild.

The Honda CL77 Scrambler was a 305 cc twin-cylinder motorcycle made from 1965-1967, although some bikes made in this period were titled with a later model year.  Like most 50+ year old motorcycles, this example has accumulated a fair number of modifications that I’ll need to correct to bring it back to near-original condition.

While the vibrant blue paint is well done and striking, it’s totally wrong for this machine, which came from the factory with a light silver color on the fuel tank, fenders and side covers.  Since the CL77 had at least some light-duty off-road inclinations, I found it rather odd that a previous owner added “highway pegs” to the front, allowing the legs to rest straight forward as with a chopper-style bike.  Likewise, the handlebar is a tall, cruiser-style mini ape-hanger that looks out of place here.  The seat was unprofessionally re-covered at some point and looks like a tall sack of potting soil, so that will go, too.

Some changes I’ll be making will be to improve reliability and durability.  This engine used a twin set of points in the ignition, so I’ve already acquired a nice electronic ignition module to replace it.  Once the ignition timing is set, I’ll never have to touch it again.  Electronic ignitions, with their modern circuitry, require a fairly constant, spike-free voltage level, and this CL77 didn’t come with a voltage regulator.  I’ll install a combination voltage regulator/rectifier that is matched to this model’s alternator.  The original ignition coils will be replaced with high-output coils that will produce 2 to 3 times the voltage at the spark plugs, improving starting and engine performance.

I’ll replace the wheel bearings, but the wheels and spokes are in great condition, and the tires were replaced 2 years ago, so those will stay.  Gaskets and seals will get the usual attention, and because they are cheap, all the cables will be replaced.

Fortunately, I should be able to clean and re-use the exhaust pieces.  That’s good, because as motorcyclists like to say, this exhaust system is made from “unobtanium” and when good pieces do show up online, they get bid into crazy price levels.  While it may be possible to replace the high-rise exhaust with a standard low set of pipes from the CB77, it would obliterate the key feature which defines a Scrambler, so I’ll do everything I can to retain this exhaust.

With travel planned for April and May, and the Dnepr waiting to be completed, I expect to start this CL77 rebuild later in the Summer.  I’ll post the updates here.