CB500/4 purchase

[Hamish]

Hi, I've had many years of riding a 1954 BSA single and much as I love it, every journey has the unknown factor, will it get there and even more important, will it get back?  So I thought I'd get something that still looks like a british classic, has a starter motor, has more than one or two cylinders for smoothness and is reliable.

The 70's CB500/4 seems to fit the bill.

The question is what needs to be looked out for on these bikes and are there any special weaknesses, any show-stoppers?

I went to look at one and the bike itself was very well maintained but it seemed to be down on power. I was expecting it to blow my socks off compared to my current 23 hp but this was not the case. There was no smoke out of the exhaust after a long down hill run so thing rings and valve seals were presumably OK. Maybe British hp are just bigger?

Also at idle, which may have been a bit low, there was a knocking noise as if speed irregularity was making the timing gear rattle and knock. Do these rattle if the idle is too low?

Another thing, it appeared to have some neutrals in between the other gears. can this be fixed?

Having rebuilt various engines I'd be quite happy to rebuild the Honda engine but can you get parts? Main bearings, big end bearings?


Basically I'd be happy get any advice on what to look out for when buying such a classic.

Thanks in advance..

Richard

[L.A.B.]

Personally, I don't really remember there being any serious problems or weaknesses with the CB500 Four or CB550 (I had a CB550F).
Biggest problem was usually the four into four exhaust system rotting, many were replaced with a four into one type, some of which were better than others as far as power output was concerned.

The CB500F was very popular in its day and it had a reasonable enough performance, but there's no way of saying if the one you rode was up to scratch or not?

Those Honda clutches can knock sometimes if the carbs are out of balance, but it isn't really possible to say for sure here.

Can't say about the false neutrals either but it doesn't sound right, probably some wear in the selector mechanism somewhere? Most engine parts should be availble.