Cleaning and Refurbishing the 1971 Honda CB350

The 1971 Honda CB350 café racer build moves into the cleaning and refurbishment stage. In this episode I start tackling the engine, exhaust, frame and wheels, testing different cleaning and rust-removal products and beginning to strip away years of dirt and corrosion.

With the bike already partly built when I bought it, there are plenty of jobs to work through before I can start putting everything back together. I begin by deciding what needs tackling first, then work through the engine and frame while looking at the condition of the rear wheel, drum brake and sprocket.

There's also some preparation and repair work along the way, including fixing the gear shift, fitting fuel lines, removing the exhaust and preparing the frame and triple tree for paint.

In This Episode

• Deciding what to tackle first on the CB350

• Cleaning the Honda CB350 engine

• Testing different engine cleaning products

• Removing the exhaust system

• Fixing the gear shift

• Painting the triple tree/yoke and frame

• Fitting fuel lines

• Testing a rust-removal product

• Masking the engine before painting the frame

• Removing the rear wheel

• Using a paddock stand

• Inspecting the rear drum brake shoes

• Checking the rear sprocket

This is where the Honda CB350 starts to get properly stripped back and cleaned up. Before the new parts and custom details can go on, I need to understand exactly what I've got and get the original components into good enough condition to build on.

Follow the 1971 Honda CB350 Scrambler café racer build as the refurbishment continues and this unfinished project gradually starts to take shape.