Honda CB400F2 Restoration Part One

I've just discovered a 1977 Honda CB400F2. It was  lying under a pile of seed boxes, old  coats, bits of carpet and other debris. With the rubbi sh removed, I could survey the full  extent of my find. Painted in a weird combination of metallic green and brown, it looked  rather sorry for itself. Who could have done this to a classic 70's middleweight? OK, I confess, it was me!

The Honda has been sitting in a dark corner of my workshop, undisturbed, for over  twelve years. I have owned it from new and couldn't bear to part with it when it was pensioned off in 1982. I have  been 'getting around to it'  for the last ten years, but there was always something more pressing. This year though, things will be different. I have promised Bob that it will be restored to usable order and that I will write about the trials and tribulations of  doing so.

HISTORY
Early models of Hondas first Euro-Sportster were designated CB400F and came with pillion footrests mounted rather comically on the swinging arm. This was Honda's first foray into active suspension, as passengers could assist the rear shocks when required!  The 'F1' got rid of this little niggle and added a few other developments, such as longer cylinder studs for improved oil-tightness. The 'F2' was the last model in the range and  added fancy paintwork to the other improvements. In the liberated seventies you could  choose between canary yellow with blue and red stripes, or metallic burgundy with gold  and red. Certainly more 'sophisticated' than the earlier models, the F2's colour scheme  lost some of the stark racer look of the earlier models.

I bought my yellow 'F2' on a sunny Friday in September 1977.  I was £450 and a Honda Cj250T lighter, but those first few miles were pure magic. This was a machine that you  could have real fun on; four cylinders, six gears and 10,000 rpm. It could have been  straight off the race track a few years earlier.

Despite the 'Super Sport' label on the tank I used it as daily transport in all weathers at I  time when  cossetting was out of the question. 14,000 miles were covered in the first year  in all weathers.  In the first week it was knocked over by a bus, which caused an unsightly  dent in the petrol tank. After saving up all my spare cash to buy the 'bike in the first place I was in no position to afford a new one, and my 'occupation' of student meant that
it was unwise to involve the insurance men!

The tank was straightened out by poking a bar through the filler and smoothing the remaining undulations out with plastic padding. I had some CJ250 yellow, and although it wasn't a perfect match it had to do. The front fork stanchions gave up the struggle after one winter's worth of salt spray and were replaced under warranty. The rectifier wilted under the load of a 60w halogen headlamp and the rear shocks began to leak. My financial position as a mechanical engineering student was not good, so the Honda was kept going by ingenuity rather than large sums of money. The faulty rectifier was replaced with a Lucas car one at a third of  the price. Servicing was eased with a DIY stoboscope for the ignition and a set of home- made manometers for tuning the four carbs.

One area I did not skimp on was tyres. The 400/4 ran on Dunlop TT100's after the Japanese tyres wore out. The steering felt much quicker with Dunlops, but their lifespan at 7500 miles for a rear, was no better. Oil and filter changes were adhered to religiously in the hope that it would forestall mechanical disaster.

Once the warranty had run out in 1978, I got excited and turned my hand to painting. I was unsatisfied at my efforts to repair the canary yellow tank so went mad and changed the scheme to BL 'tara green' and silver. My protective 'elephant ears' handlebar fairing came in for the same treatment for that integrated look.

After university, reliability settled down and the bike was pressed into local commuting duties. The long-suffering Honda still lived outside all year round, with a polythene sheet as its only comfort.

The brown frame was created during a pre-holiday spruce-up in 1981. The colour  was intended to be a racy Ducati red but it was too late to change when the horrid reality dawned. We were off to tour France  within days.  After completing a 3000 mile trip around France without mishap, the tired old girl was pensioned off  with 34,000 miles on the clock and a Moto Guzzi V50 took over.

THE PLAN
Now, back in 1994, twelve years of debris had to be removed from the Honda but it is now back out into the daylight again. After brushing the dust off, I emptied the tank and  carbs of their vintage two-star and poured in some fresh 1990's unleaded. The engine oil was clean and there seemed to be a bit of compression. Why not? I whipped out the jump leads and connected her up to the family Maestro. Well, it was rather reluctant, and petrol was peeing out of the carbs, but the engine finally got the message and we had  her running and sounding surprisingly sweet after 12 years of slumber. The old magic had returned. The wheels would hardly turn, but that lovely little engine was alive again! Next month the stripdown and inspection begins.

Graham Curtis 25th May 1998

Thanks to the following suppliers who helped with the project

Tippetts Motors (Surbiton) Ltd
312-320 Ewel Road,
Tolworth,
Surbiton
Surrey KT8 7AW

Mick Bull Motorcycles
Unit 2,
36 Canal Street
Derby DE1 2RJ
Tel 01332 367470

David Silver Spares
Unit 14,
Masterlord Ind Estate
Station Road
Leiston
Suffolk
IP16 4JD
Tel 01728 833020

Derby Plating Services Ltd
148 Abbey Street
Derby
DE22 3SS
Tel 01332 382408