'76 Yellow Wing - Winter '24/5 Project is On

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

Moving along.

We had a freakishly warm 78-degree Saturday. I took the opportunity to paint the replacement fuel tank, which had a significant amount of bare metal. And today, I managed to pop the tank back in, which is a good thing.

PXL_20250419_192911104.jpg

PXL_20250420_151058484.jpg

The black is more glossy than the original, which I sort of regret. I did manage to scratch only two small places reinstalling the tank, which is something of a feat.

I also primed and painted the seat pan. I have a '78/9 seat that I'm going to use, and my reproduction cover is in the mail. The foam is mostly good, with a little wear from exposure to the elements where a seam gave way right by the passenger strap. It'll be fine. And I cleaned up the aluminum seat trim, so I can button it all up when the cover gets here.

And the braided stainless brake lines are also mounted up - though not yet tightened down.

Once my copper exhaust gaskets arrive, I'll be in a position to bolt up the headers and move to a carb sync.

I'll need to ponder the right time to mount the horseshoe muffler, perhaps before I bolt on the headers. Not sure yet.

I'm also not sure I'm going to use the Progressive shocks I picked up a couple months back. Maybe I'll ride the originals and see how she rolls.

I can see daylight at the end of the tunnel, and I can now tell that it's not a train bearing down on this project!

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

I hooked up and bled the front brakes, which wasn't that hard even with the retained splitter. The rear brake will sit until I mount the tire and install the wheel.

My punchlist on this Sulphur Yellow '76 still runs a couple pages, with most of it pretty straightforward.

I took a little time to clean and wax the panels and get a good look at things. The paint is really gorgeous, though it is pretty obvious that the shelter lid has a bit more UV fading than the other panels. It's not bad, but jumps out a bit next to the shelter sides.

PXL_20250420_202337410.jpg

I didn't take a photo of it, but my ABS-cemented fix for the broken tab on the left side panel is solid and holds up well. A little of the black cement is visible right where the tab hooks onto the frame. It could be brought down flush if I were going to repaint, but I'm not.

I used a sacrificial ABS side panel and cut a suitable chunk from it to reform the "hook" portion of the tab. I then shaped the mating contours to closely fit the broken part of the side panel. Using ABS cement and some fiberglass cloth to help hold some goop together on the underside, I bonded the pieces. The "angle" of the hook is not quite a match for the original, which means it requires a little fidgeting and care to install/remove. But that's true for almost any motorcycle side panel.

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

I took a little time this week to recover the seat I'll be using on this build, a '78/9 number with good foam.

I had to do a little work to clean the rust, prime, and repaint the pan. The metal prep left me with a couple cheese-grater size holes out near the edges on one side. But it was plenty solid to withstand a wire brush mounted to a drill. It should last another 45 years if it isn't stored outside and in the harsh rainy/snowy New England elements.

The cover is a high-quality reproduction of the OEM cover, down to the pattern and lettering. I've sourced a couple other repro covers from that vendor and have been quite pleased. This Honda GL1000 cover is quite good and came with the strap. I reused the original hardware.

The trim pieces went back on nicely, and it all looks quite nice. There are few smudges of anti-seize visible in the photos. They'll wipe off. The few creases in the vinyl are from shipping and will likely disappear or become less notable in the coming weeks.

PXL_20250429_225811401.jpg

PXL_20250429_225826834.jpg

[Fred Camper]

Wow, post a link to the source. BADDOG's cover is doing a second seam separation and a new cover would be a good idea.

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

Fred.

I've sourced a few reproduction covers from an outfit called Pit Replica - couple Hondas and a Suzuki. They're on eBay.

I think I paid about $65 with shipping, which is a great price for that level of attention to detail. (I don't work for them or get any sort of price break.)

Shipping is pretty quick, though that might change with what I think is the elimination of the US sub-$800 import loophole utilized by many Asian vendors.

I've purchased other covers as well. They've been fine but have not advertised exact reproduction - and they have not been nearly as close to the original.

Pit Replica also does a thing with other vintage bits. They have contacted me before about sending a poor condition vintage bike component, which they will use as a template for a faithful reproduction. You pay shipping to them. They make a reproduction and send you a free new one - and, I think, the original. I almost sent them a '70s CB grab bar a couple years back but didn't end up doing it mostly due to laziness on my part.

I think they may now make a repro grab bar for the early Wings.

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

I've made some progress but seem not to have documented much of it with photos.

I think the "big" news is that the exhaust is mounted up. I have a photo.

PXL_20250503_172909179.jpg

I scored a horseshoe muffler in truly great condition early in the winter parts-acquisition period. After mounting it, I sort of wish I had gotten out the high-temp black paint and resprayed it. It still looks really nice.

After snapping the photo, I mounted up the plastic splash guard under the rear seat, attached the rear fender, and bolted up the blinkers - front and rear.

Wheels are now out for tire mounting and balancing, and I added fluids.

Next up, I'll reinstall a battery, check for glitchy wiring on the reassembly, fire her up for the first time since December, and synchronize the carbs.

When the wheels are back from the shop, I'll be ready to button up the rear brakes, mount the front fender, and hopefully roll her out of the shop. I can almost taste the bugs getting caught in my teeth as I smile all the way down the road.

Fun fact:
My youngest son graduates from college this coming weekend, which will delay progress on the '76. He and I tackled our first naked GoldWing project back when he was still in high school: the Blue Phoenix build of 2020-21 (https://www.ngwclub.com/forum/viewtopic ... ue+phoenix). Time flies!

The Phoenix is still very much alive and well. I pulled it out of winter storage last weekend, opened the petcock, cranked her about 3 times, and she woke right up! After 30 seconds, I threw a leg over her and rode off. Love it.

[Lucien Harpress]

Every time I see a decent looking horseshoe muffler, I have to recommend looking into getting it ceramic coated. Prices aren't much more than powdercoat, it's a great way to preserve a relatively rare part, and it sure beats re-spraying the exhaust every year or two to keep it pretty.

I did mine, and it was the best money I ever spent.

[Fred Camper]

Good idea Lucien. I have one in storage and may get it done.

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

Long time, no reports on my end. I have been irresponsible.

Here's the update:

• After lots of tinkering, I still had a slight popping when holding steady at 5k on the center stand.

• All else seemed good, so I got her out of the shed, registered, and on the road last week - maybe she works herself out over a couple tanks of fuel.

• She definitely exhibits that known off-idle stumble, which isn't that big a deal once you're ready for it.

• She pulls hard all the way to redline.

I'm having a couple issues with air/fuel (probably):

• Early on, she'd die coming off throttle and down to idle. Adjusting warm idle to about 1100 on the tach seemed to address that problem

• More bothersome, to my mind, is the somewhat slow off-throttle response from 3k down. She doesn't hang up at 3k, 2k, or whatever. It's more like a slower-than-expected return to idle. Mostly, I notice it as an issue when accelerating, rolling off throttle, and clutching. Because the motor hasn't come down closer to idle, I find myself giving too much throttle twist relative to clutch release. It has to have been an issue before.

I'm sort of playing around with the issue without digging in too deeply yet:

• Cables are not binding, and there's no delay in the external mechanicals snapping closed.

• I pulled the plugs and things looked to be running lean. Over two rounds, I backed the air-fuel screws out a half turn. It could be a placebo effect, but I may sense a subtle quickening of the off throttle return.

• I have fire in all four cylinders, as evidenced by my hand-on-header-right-after-start gauge.

And I need to share some photos. She's pretty easy on the eye out on the street.

PXL_20250812_192931306.jpg

PXL_20250812_192947456.jpg

PXL_20250812_193020690.jpg

PXL_20250812_193034630.jpg

[gltriker]

Complaint? Petulant when requested of to behave accordingly on public streets.
Diagnosis? Insufficient energy fluids available.
Remedy?
reset all four atomizers' air/energy fluid mix, flow rate adjuster screws at 3 full revolutions anti-clockwise from lightly seated ...

[Rat]

Cliff is a trekky …

Gord(me too)Jones

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

I can almost speak Klingon. I get it.

Back in the early twenty-first century, Cliff is suggesting that I adhere to the 3-turns-out model. I think Mike Nixon has that advice as well, and I've used it before to good effect. Oddly, it's not aligned with my Pistol Pete advice guide, and maybe I went with Pete when dialing things in. Seating and backing out 3 revolutions on the air/fuel screw is easy enough. It surely won't hurt to try.

I'll do that and report back!

What gets me is what Scotty might do NEXT if adjusting the anti-matter in the intermix chamber doesn't address the somewhat sluggish drop from warp 2 to impulse. Captain Randakk of the USS Soichiro Honda sort of points to everything all at once: https://www.randakksblog.com/lazy-slow- ... high-idle/ And I get that ignition issues can masquerade as air/fuel issues, which is part of the point in that guide.

Fun fact unrelated to this motorcycle: I am assigning George Takei's graphic memoir (They Called Us Enemy) for one of my classes this fall. Star Trek isn't the focus of the book (or the course), but there's a panel drawing of a scene from The Undiscovered Country. Those who know just know. My plan is to help my students get Sulu a bit by showing the scene:
https://youtu.be/VPz-6HuM8Sc?si=sImDl4YES_xQM5Ab[/youtube]

Of course, the film is so old that they won't get it. The graphics aren't even CGI, so it won't be action-packed enough. Maybe we can at least laugh about a Clingon captain who quotes liberally from Shakespeare.

There's also another panel with a scene from The Naked Time episode of the original series, where Sulu is fencing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M58aP5DtNqY[/youtube] Maybe we'll watch that one as well when we get to it in the book.

And maybe Cliff is right: a 50-year old bike has a right to be a little petulant on the road. All in all, she isn't giving me trouble.

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

So I dialed in the air/fuel screws and backed them out 3 turns. Not much noticeable improvement. I have yet to pull the plugs again to get a reading: lean/rich/goldilocks.

I noticed the fuel pump had a slight weep. I swapped in another one this morning. I confirmed that it was pumping fuel and not leaking. OK.

This evening, I went for a ride to stretch her out a little. All was well for about the first 6 miles (some back roads, some slow going, some stop/go vacation region traffic). About 6 miles out, as I went by Walker Point and the Bush Compound, I suddenly lost something: fuel starvation (I think not, but maybe), loss of spark in 1-2 cylinders (maybe failed coil). Not good.

It was a little tricky to nurse her home, as she was running rough and I really needed to try to wend my way home without landing in the vacation stop-go traffic.

By the time I got home, it was dark. I'm hoping the replacement (old, '75) fuel pump gave up after 5 miles.

These things happen.

[Fred Camper]

Maybe failed coil or maybe module 1 of an electronic ignition module. On my BADDOG, it was the Dyna at fault and it was only 6 years old with 10K or so miles. They do not make them as they used to.

[leonardhcross]

NSLC thanks for all the updates and the great photos. I am trying to figure out some issues on my 77 project and it is comforting to read that your project also has ups and downs.