'91 resuscitation
 

Hey guys, I've had a few CBRs in the past (a 600F2 and a 900RR, to be specific) but just picked up my first hurricane this afternoon ... a 1991 that was perilously close to being taken to the dump: PO pulled the engine and swapped out the starter clutch but then it sat in the corner of the shop for a year or so, being neglected. My plan is to have it up & running within a month ... first step will be to get the motor back into the frame, and then I can do the usual "bike-that-has-been-sitting-for-awhile" stuff. There's a great wealth of knowledge in this section and I hope to contribute if/where possible ... if nothing else, perhaps I can entertain with pictures & misadventures! :D

Anyway, just wanted to post up & say 'hi' before diving in. And if anybody has tips on how best to get the motor & frame lined up for easy installation, I'm all ears ... I played with it a bit once I got it to my place today, and have some ideas, but experience trumps theory. :)

Dave

PS I'd have pictures posted already but my phone decided to eat the micro sd card ... way to go, samsung.

Welcome
Get the manual from
www.blackbears.ru (free)
Getting the engine in is a bit of a mission, but you'll get there.

Thanks for the link to the manuals! Unfortunately, there isn't a whole lot of detail spent on "install" of the engine. However, I had today off and spent a few quality hours with the bike ... got the motor into the frame (or, more accurately, the frame over the motor) and actually got the rear mounts (bolts) in place! Next up is making sure I have all of the remaining hardware and/or replacing any rusty pieces, plus associated extras like o-rings, gaskets, etc. Fun!

Anyway, here are a few pictures of the progress thus far.

Good work !
You don't perhaps know why the motor had been removed in the first place ?
I hope it doesn't need too much work like primary chains and/or other big bits.
Good luck and keep us in formed ! :)

Ummm +1 good going with it.

Looks like it's coming along pretty well, man. Good deal.

The starter clutch was bad, so the PO pulled the motor, replaced it with a good, low mileage unit, then lost momentum and it sat untouched for a while. I got it for a song and set out to get her up & back together.

Honestly, I'm kind of surprised I've gotten this far in just a few hours .. it surely would've been easier with a real workspace and tools (i.e. a hoist) but my bootleg setup seems to be working ok. :D

Unfortunately I won't be able to do anything else to it until Sunday but I'm planning to track down various bits & pieces between now and then. I also would like to replace the rear shock/spring as the one on it got in a fight with battery acid and isn't looking too good ... are they interchangeable for all years? (haven't searched yet but am about to)

G'day Dave. Looks like you're doing well with it..would've been a waste if it'd gone to the wrecker!

I notice from a couple of the pics that the front clamps have been shifted waaayyy down the forks. You might have done it yourself to lower the machine for the motor to go in. I thought I'd just mention it in case that's how you got it and when you ride it, you may find the handling a bit weird at high speed.

Man, that's a narrow workspace. I hope you can get out when she's all together..:D:D

Dave.

I'm glad you mentioned that, Dave ... how she sits is how I got her and I was thinking they were awfully low. I'm more used to clip-ons mounted below the triples so I knew the old girl would be sitting higher than that, but this just seemed absurd. I'll certainly rectify it prior to taking her out for the first ride!

And she fits through the doorway ... barely. :D

Another hour of work, another good bit of progress: the motor is now completely bolted into the frame and the front wheel is back on. Next up: reinstalling the rear wheel & chain, then cooling system & fluids ... she'll be up & running in no time!

I'd say remove those "chrome" things above your bars, on the triple tree, and slide your forks up so the bars are at the top of your shock legs (where they should be. Previous owner must have had arms like an orangutang :)

Haven't update the thread in a while (and didn't have a chance to take any more recent pictures) but I've made decent progress:

wheels are back on
carbs are cleaned and installed
oil lines are installed & the bike once again has oil in it
wiring harness is hooked back up (for the most part)
cooling system is installed

I need to reinstall the master link on the chain, align the rear wheel, finish installing the airbox and it should be ready to run! Unfortunately, not all has gone perfectly ... I got the cooling system re-filled only to find the front hard-pipes are leaking (slowly, but steadily), so I had to re-drain the system ... going to search (the forum & manual) to see what may be the cause. Oh, and I got the forks & bars back into their normal position(s). :)

Rust and or ORINGS imo

Could be the 3 way plastic connector near the radiator - they are inclined to fracture when getting older and leak under pressure, which just gets worse.....easy fix tho'
:)
So no more gorilla arms, huh ? :)

Ha, the gorilla arms are no more!

The bike is pretty well rust-free so I'm thinking it's definitely the o-rings (thanks for the input!). And the little 3-way ball was leaking at first, too, but I traced that to a too-loose clamp. Thankfully it (the "ball") looks to be in decent shape still, no signs of dry-rot or over exposure to the elements.

I'll be working on (and hopefully finishing) it tomorrow and Monday, so will be sure to report back again.

Put new ones in boiling water prior to install will help a lot and avoid pinching 'em

Well today was a good day: I heard her run for the first time! Got the o-rings swapped out and everything else wrapped up, then got her running on starter fluid (figured having her run might get the fuel flowing into the carbs quicker than just hammering on the starter). Of course doing so killed the battery I was using (which was on its last leg anyways) so I need to pick up a new one ... and I didn't get it turned over/running enough to get fuel through the carbs yet ... anyone have a ballpark on "time" to do so? I've been spoiled with FI'd bikes the last few years. :)

If you pull the vacuum pipe off the side of the LHS carb and suck on it, fuel will flow straight into the carbs. Do than for 10-15 secs and replace the tube - bike should fire up straight away......:)

Awesome, thanks very much for the tip! I'm so excited that she actually started up & ran (and sounded good in the process) ... it's almost like I know what I'm doing! Almost. :D

And it actually looks like a motorcycle again.

Sounds like it's coming along nicely. Good work man. Love the Chinese garage.

Very cool, man. She's gettin' there. :)

Looking good, and it did fit through the door too! Good to see you've got a 'supervisor' keeping an eye on your workmanship:D:D.

Well wonder of wonders, I rode her home this morning! Turns out I wasn't getting any fuel to the carbs because I had mistakenly hooked the vacuum hose to the downward port on the petcock ... somehow didn't even notice the rear-facing one until I looked a bit closer.

She's cold-blooded, has a slight coolant leak (from the thermostat housing) under pressure, I need to re-seat the speedo drive in the sprocket cover, and a few other little issues (not to mention plastics) but she's rideable! Seems to run pretty well, too.

And LOUD ... the can is nothing more than a hollow shell ... no packing or other contents to be found, so I'll have to do something about that eventually.

Here are a few pics of the momentous occasion (and yes, the tires -- especially the rear -- were way low on pressure ... I didn't ride her far before filling up :D):

https://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061...c8c93499_o.jpg https://farm5.static.flickr.com/4059...95ed50cd_o.jpg https://farm5.static.flickr.com/4072...4926d219_o.jpg