'84 Nighthawk: My winter project

[Rossco]

Because Kenn157 wouldn't quit nagging me to get a newer bike, I decided to get one. I have now gone from a 1983, to a 1984 . This here is the 1984 Honda Nighthawk cb650sc, this is what it's supposed to look like:


And heres the one that I bought off TheIglu for a hell of a good price ($100).


I'll get some more pics later. But for now, here's a checklist of what it needs.
-New battery cable DONE
-Tune-up
-Carb rebuild DONE
-Rebuild brake master cylinder DONE
-Obtain clutch master cylinder DONE
-rebuild/replace clutch slave
-new back brakes DONE
-new tires
-change fork oil
-obtain sidecovers DONE
-repair/relplace tailsection DONE
-repaint "tins" DONE
-replace turn-signals DONE
and some other odds and ends

[e30addict]

Those bikes are a trip

[andrew]

I ownd a blue 1985 one in 1991 . It had a superteap header & exhaust with lower bars on it . almost to superbike bars . It was a fun bike . the 700S night hawks are a favorite of mine . I would like one still .

[Rossco]

Well, got the first order of business sorted.
Out with the old, crusty, and frayed battery cable.


And in with the new home-made one


I know, it's not much, but it's a start! Just waiting for my parts to come in, then the fun begins!

[schleppy]

That looks like a fun project!

[Sheppo]

Rosco... done a lot of work on those, holler if you need a hand.

Doug

[Kenn157]

Because Stinger157 wouldn't quit nagging me to get a newer bike, I decided to get one. I have now gone from a 1983, to a 1984 . This here is the 1984 Honda Nighthawk cb650sc, this is what it's supposed to look like:


And heres the one that I bought off TheIglu for a hell of a good price ($100).


I'll get some more pics later. But for now, here's a checklist of what it needs.
-New battery cable
-Tune-up
-Carb rebuild
-Rebuild brake master cylinder
-Obtain/rebuild clutch master cylinder
-rebuild/replace clutch slave
-new back brakes
-new tires
-change fork oil
-obtain sidecovers
-repair/relplace tailsection
-repaint "tins"
-replace turn-signals (LEDs?)
and some other odds and ends

Moving up in the world! Nice! Good luck with the restore!

[Rossco]

Well, I've got a few things done with this. The carbs are all put back together. I've started on the bodywork and should have that done in about a week. I was also able to get in touch with someone who sold vintage Honda parts out of his garage, and obtain a few odds and ends.

I also went ahead and replaced the back brakes. I figured that since the front master cylinder is off of the bike, waiting to be overhauled, that I should at least have some brakes on the damn thing.

When I bought the bike off of Clayton last September, he told me that the back brakes were so shot, that they were seized in place.

He wasn't bullshitting.



Yes, that's right, a piece of the brake shoe had actually broken off.



Well, I got some new ones on now and they're good as new. I 'll have pics of the bodywork up soon in a few days.

[Kenn157]

wow! He wasn't bullshitting! BUt good work so far! MCN next month Ross!

[TheIglu]

wow! He wasn't bullshitting! BUt good work so far! MCN next month Ross!

I'm Honest Abe when selling vehicles!

When I got the bike, the previous owners thought the clutch was locked up (hence the missing master cylinder) since the back wheel was locked up completely. I showed up, loosened the rear brake rod and rolled it onto my truck. Of course, that was only AFTER I agreed to buy it and the paperwork was signed on the "seized up" bike

Keep up the good work! Can't wait to see how it comes out!

Can I take it for a spin when it's done? I'll let you ride the Rex......

[Rossco]

Can I take it for a spin when it's done? I'll let you ride the Rex......

Hells yeah!

I'd be willing to bet there are some nice roads where you live.

BTW, If anyone else here needs info on where to buy obscure and hard-to-find parts locally for their old Honda, PM me and I can give the name of a guy who sells old Honda parts.

[jwm2k3]

What color you going with Ross?

[Chippertheripper]

There's plenty of nice dirt roads around clayton's house..

[Rossco]

What color you going with Ross?

Rattle can red.

[Rossco]

Layin down some color....



Should be looking more presentable by the end of the weekend.

[nhbubba]

Sweeeeeet.

[schleppy]

More pics!

[Rossco]

More pics!

Haven't been able to get any decent pics because I haven't had access to a good digital camera lately. Here's a crappy camera phone pic of the tins. I got the color laid down on them this weekend. Unfortunately, I ran out of time before I could spray the clear.

[Rossco]

After a lil bit of wet sanding and some rubbing compound. Got a somewhat decent shine from a rattle can finish.



Oh Hai!

[Rossco]

BUMP!

When this bike came from the factory, it had alot of polished aluminum/alloy parts on it. Unfortunately, after nearly 30 years, they lost most of their luster.

So I found a cheap Buffing wheel from Harbor freight, brought it home, and got to work.

Here's the passenger grab handle.



Alot of the engine side-covers were polished. Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, someone molested the engine with a can of flat black. So I've been stripping it back and returning it back to it's original shine.

Here's the stator cover after a bit of Tripoli polish.



As you can tell, I still have some work to do on this piece, but it's getting there.....

[Rosco61]

That's cool as hell. nice work.

[carsick]

the 700S night hawks are a favorite of mine . I would like one still .

I had a blue one as my second bike. It was great fun! The engine was sweet, but I had to move up from the 80's vintage brakes/tires/suspension. I loved the look though.
To the OP- keep the resurrection thread pics coming, I love those low buck rescues!

[StrayNut]

Nice! Keep the pics and project log coming. Sweet job on the paint and polish, it's gonna look pretty

[Rossco]

When I got this bike, the brake master cylinder was in tough shape. As they are with most 70's and 80's Japanese bikes, aside from the usual need for a rebuild kit, they usually have at least one of these problems.

1. These flush cover screws that rust out and strip as if they're made of butter. Making servicing a PITA



2. The polycarbonate sightglass. that has become yellowed, cracked, opaque, or in my case, blown out completely.



Luckily there is an aftermarket supplier that has one kit to solve both these woes, New River Cycle Salvage. For about $15, you get a new sightglass, made of watch crystal, so it won't yellow and crack. Not to mention 2 stainless steel cover screws!

So after installing this, along with a rebuild kit, my master cylinder was good as new!




Another thing, I found some sidecovers, with the mounting tabs still intact! They'll get painted the same cherry red as the rest of the tins come springtime.



And I also scored some hard-to-find engine case guards!



Sorry for the lousy photos. I don't have access to a decent camera at the moment, so I'm trying the best to work with what I got!

[backinthesaddle]

Awesome. Remember when they actually had bike commercials on TV? The 650 was a cool commercial it was like "imagine a road that curves and twists and curves again" and "how did it get so strong? it eats 750's for lunch." Good luck with it.

Not the same commercial but same bike:

1983 Honda Nighthawk commercial - YouTube

1984 Honda NIghthawk - YouTube