Another one...

Soften it with some boiling water before trying to winkle it out.

 

That's not necessarily good news. Are you sure it's the right size? The
standard bolt is a tiny 8mm thing. If someone's jammed a larger diameter
bolt in, the thread's probably fucked. If it's just an 8mm bolt but
longer than stock, then you're probably OK.

That is very good news indeed. Suggests someone knew what they were
doing. If the 12mm heads on the stock filter bolts get nadgered, as they
do, welding a socket head onto them is often the only way to get the
bastard things out.

 

Heh. Told you ;-)

Dave Silver does new ones for £35 plus VAT plus P&P. If you want me to
halt the auction before it starts, I'll let you have a good used one for
£25 inc. P&P. Even got the fuses still in it!

http://www.neil_murray.fastmail.fm/400Ffusepanel.jpg

 

Haven't actually measured it but it looks exactly the same as the one on
the other bike here.

/Crosses fingers.

 

Send it me with that painted tank and panel set for £170 and I'll
promise to think the best of you?

 

Ah, so both bikes have been bodged then

 

/Thinks

Maybe I should buy a third (1) for comparison purposes?

1. Technically a 5th if you count the registered frames I now have lying
about................

 

That sounds do-able. I assume you're going to collect or UR the
tank/panel set? I hate posting fuel tanks because they need an arseload
of packing. Whereabouts are you, anyway?

If you are sure you want the tank and panels and the fusebox, I can kill
he impending auctions, no problem.

 

North Wales
I think possibly the UR might be best.
Don't post it, it is; as you say.

Yes please.

 

Well, Steve H is close-ish to you and comes to the Smoke quite
frequently. And there are others. Put a UR call on ukrm.

OK. Chuck £170 at my PayPal (address is the one in the sig, not this
posting address) and I'll do that. Remember I won't be back in the
country until 7 August, so I can't do anything until then. Anyway, gives
you plenty of time to sort out the UR.

Should the worst happen to your loom, I also have a really good nick
wiring loom.

The only broken connector is on the white wire to the headlight.

http://www.neil_murray.fastmail.fm/400Floom.jpg

 

Had another little shed 'escape' earlier.
The bolt is the right size albeit longer.
Unfortunately the thread in the alloy is fecked.
I know everyone says you shouldn't but I reckon it wouldn't be so
difficult to cut some sort of new thread in there.
It's only alloy.
Hand drill it out carefully so I don't catch the tension rod.
Tap it using a tap with a cunning extension piece attached so the tap
vice clears the frame.
Do all this with the hole full of grease so I can catch any swarf.
Finish off the hole with a bolt of the right thread all sharpened up at
the end....

Comments?

 

Thought so.

Yes, this is necessary because (as you've seen) the bolt is very close
to the front of the engine and the frame. There's not much room to do
anything.

This would work. However, you have the additional possibility that
whoever butchered the thread in the first place may also have driven the
replacement bolt in hard enough to bend and jam the tensioner rod.

Before you do anything, do the old 'screwdriver down the tensioner rod
tunnel' trick to see if the camchain quietens when you push down on the
screwdriver.

You may need to give the end of the driver a light tap with a hammer -
those rods do seize. Well, actuallym the 'horseshoe' under the crank
does, too.

If this works - if you can hear the engine quieten when you press down
on the screwdriver - then go ahead.

If it doesn't, then you've got a big problem which it may take a
complete engine strip to sort.

 

Hadn't considered that. Quite possible...

Had considered this; because of this:

The engine is lacking cam chain noise.
I suppose I should consider the possibility that it's nice and tight
because the rod is nicley stuck due to being bent.....

Is it wrong to think that this might be an interesting thing to do?

 

It would definitely not be the first time it's happened.

If you equate 'interesting' with 'expensive', then no

Seriously, engine work on a 400 Four is expensive. Once you've got the
thing apart, you'll need to replace all seals and gaskets as a matter of
course, and certainly the camchain and tensioner blades.

Pistons and rings, probably not, as they're surprisingly durable. But
even a fairly basic strip and rebuild will easily set you back £250.

Like I said, do the screwdriver blade test (obviously, you need the
locking bolt removed for this). If it's noisy and then quietens when you
press, fine, it's not seized. Do the thread repair.

Sometimes, like I said, the 'horseshoe' sticks. It was stuck on mine
when I first got it. You can actually get at it through the sump. You'll
need a broad bladed screwdriver and a hook fashioned from a bent
coat-hanger.

Remove the locking bolt, as ever. Remove the sump. It's easiest if you
lay the bike now on its side, but with a torch and little
mirror-onna-stick you don't have to.

On the bottom of the pivoting horseshoe you'll see a sort of lug.

Here:

http://www.cmsnl.com/honda-cb400f2-england_model14647/partslist/E01.html

Part number 50

Push up on that lug with the end of the screwdriver. Pull down with the
hook. Repeat until it frees up.

 

two fucking shit four cylinder Hondas is my guess.

 

FFS

 

Not keen on them then?

 

You actually checked they *were* shit 4 cylinder hondas?
Then got annoyed because you were right?

 

I guess it is expensive if you actually consider what the thing is worth
as a bike you might use to ride about.
I quite like the bloody things for different/nostalgic reasons and
fiddling about with them is quite pleasant for some weird reason.
I guess I should decide whether the above (1) is worth the time and
money it takes before going mad with spanners and hylomar.

Thanks for the financial heads up.<Snip useful stuff about seized tensioner>

Cheers for that.

1.different/nostalgic reasons and fiddling about

 

Inadequately cylindered for my liking.