78 cb550 f

[jroc]

hey
new to here and ive got a 78 550f
a small oil leak has developed from the front head, nothin major.
is this normal?
also i wanna do a full carb rebuild and attach k&N style air filters, whats the best way to do this?
finally im aware of "false" neutral, but recently on a run i had a scare where the bike tried to jump down fron 4th to 3rd without warning?
any ideas?

[Bumblebee]

Yes, a small amount of oil seepage between the head and barrels is quite common.  Is it normal? Although it shouldn't be quite a few of them did it, along with the 500 four and 750 four.

To replace the air filters, just remove the air box and add the K&N pod filters.  Keep the old parts though; just in case someone want to restore the bike later.  There is also a drop in K&N filter that works with the stock airbox.

As for the downshift, it takes almost no pressure on the gear change to cause this.  Where was your foot?  If it was resting on or under the gearchange lever that might explain it.

[jroc]

cheers BB
pods im guessing will need rejetting, any ideas on sizes?
oil leak from head is minimal, doesnt even hit the ground so thats ok-ish right?
as for the down shift, speedos knackered but i reckon 30-40, nowhere near shift lever or clutch, just gnarled and made me engine brake without me wanting to :S...
caused a wobble and a scare and id like to know what would cause this generally on a bike?