Installing the Rear Wheel and Chain on the Honda CB350

The 1971 Honda CB350 café racer build takes another big step forward as I install the rear wheel and fit a new drive chain. With the rear end refurbished and the new components ready to go, the bike is getting much closer to being back on its wheels and ready for the next stage of the build.

In this episode I fit the rear wheel assembly, reconnect the rear brake and work through the wheel alignment before installing and adjusting the new motorcycle chain. Getting the wheel and chain properly aligned is essential, so I take time to check the adjustment and make sure everything is running correctly.

In This Episode

• Installing the Honda CB350 rear wheel

• Reconnecting the rear brake rod

• Checking rear wheel alignment

• Installing a new motorcycle drive chain

• Adjusting chain tension

• Aligning the rear wheel and chain

• Checking the chain and drivetrain

• Working around the side stand during assembly

• Preparing the motorcycle for the next stage of the build

Installing the rear wheel and chain is one of those jobs that makes a motorcycle project suddenly feel much closer to completion. After all the cleaning, refurbishment and modifications, seeing the rear end come back together starts to make this partly built Honda CB350 look like a complete motorcycle again.

Correct wheel alignment and chain adjustment are particularly important on a custom motorcycle, so this stage is about getting the basic mechanical setup right before moving on to the remaining fabrication, electrical and finishing work.

If you're working on a Honda CB350, installing a motorcycle chain or rebuilding the rear end of a vintage bike, this episode shows another practical part of the café racer build process. Follow the 1971 Honda CB350 Scrambler café racer build as the refurbished components continue going back onto the motorcycle and the finished bike begins to take shape.