1973 Honda CL350 K5 Project

[Qingdao]

Great looking bike....

Makes me want to actually crack down and really restore my CB550, but I like ridding it too much :P

[Jim]

Well, my parents snuck my the Honda off to a local bike shop one weekend and had them look at it as a gift. The shop says it's running good now, I'll have to try it out one day. They said they put points and a condenser on it, cleaned and tuned the carbs and checked the electrical system.

[Weldangrind]

That's a very thoughtful gift! I'd love to go riding with you one of these days, so let me know if it runs properly.

[FastDoc]

Great gift and great parents. :P

[Jim]

I went around the block, seems to work good, though, I have no intention of riding it again until it get's warm (summer). :P

[FastDoc]

I love these Honda Twins. Are you on this forum? I say you ride it every day it's dry, light, and above freezing. You're young. If my old bones can take it so can yours! :P

http://www.hondatwins.net/forum/index.php

[Jim]

Yes I am on there, though I don't go there often, you guys are more helpful over here :P

They spray a lot of stuff on our roads to keep the ice off and it's pretty corrosive, I don't like washing stuff enough to deal with that doc :P

[FastDoc]

Originally Posted by Jim

Yes I am on there, though I don't go there often, you guys are more helpful over here :P

They spray a lot of stuff on our roads to keep the ice off and it's pretty corrosive, I don't like washing stuff enough to deal with that doc :P

Good points, Jim. Both of them!

[Jim]

Honda update time.

So the bike seems to be running good, with these notable exceptions.

-When idling the low beam headlight will go out unless revved up.
-With the headlight off, the tail light will become brighter with engine rpms, until burning out.
-After about 15 minutes of riding the signal light will stop working.
-Even while revving up, regardless of light selections, the voltage to the battery will only go up to about 11.85

The bike has a new battery, condenser, points, and rectifier. My dad insisted on taking it back to the shop, though I think they're going to charge for expensive parts regardless if we need it or not. They have had it for over a week and haven't done anything with it, except to finally say they think it needs a new battery. I'm hoping we can get it back before spending too much money on it there.

I think it needs a voltage regulator.

I've found a few more useful pieces of information.

A good interactive wiring diagram.
http://oldmanhonda.com/MC/wiring350K4.html

And this site, which has some good information.
http://www.oregonmotorcycleparts.com

Charging system diagnostics for older Honda singles and twins (Pre-1978)

First off, read the above articles. These things all need to be dealt with when you have a charging system problem.

There are 3 wires from the stator and depending on the year of your bike they will be different colors. From 1969 on the
colors were pink, yellow and white. The pink wire connects to a full charging coil, the yellow to a 2/3rds coil and the white
wire to a 1/3rd coil. The yellow and white wires connect in the headlight switch when the lights are turned on. What this
means to you is that the resistance from pink to white will be a little less than pink to yellow. You should get around 3/4 to
1 ohm from yellow to pink and somewhat less from pink to white. None of these 3 wires should have continuity to ground.
Check the stator with an ohm meter and if it passes these test then move on to checking the connections.

The white and yellow wires from the split coils are connected together (in the headlight switch) when the headlight is turned
on directing more power into the charging system. If the switch fails the charging system will not give full output. To
make this more confusing, most pre-1969 Hondas use the same system but with different wire colors from year to year and
sometimes model to model. On these bikes the brown wire usually represents the full charging coil and yellow and pink
wires are from the split charging coil. The best way to be sure is to check the wiring diagram in a repair manual for your
bike. The best fix is a new switch but they are usually no longer available. Some people bypass this and connect the white
and yellow wires together at the rectifier giving full charging all the time. This is only a good idea if you ride with the
headlight on all the time.

Proceed to the next article if you are still having problems.

My bike is a 73, so I am not sure about this, but I remember I had a brown wire behind the headlight that I could not find anything to connect to. I thought it may have been an extra... Maybe it is the source of my problems?

[FastDoc]

Have you posted this on the Honda Twins forum?

What I don't get is that it is undersupplying the headlight and oversupplying the tailight.

I can't think of a single point failure that would cause both of those symptoms. :?:

[Jim]

No I haven't. Haven't visited there in a long while. I'll do that now (just need to remember if I want .net or .com)

With the headlight on, it doesn't oversupply the taillight.

[FastDoc]

There is a guru there. Sprint66 or something like that.

He's kinda like their Spud.

Send him a PM. He also lets people call him on the phone with questions.

[Jim]

Right on, yes I remember sprint66, he's helped me out with info in the past. And .net, I forget because both sites are different.

[FastDoc]

He knows Honda Twins like Spud knows Zongs. He is especially good at electrical issues. I think his phone number is right in his signature line.

[SpudRider]

Good luck, Jim! I'm glad Sprint66 is such a helpful resource for Honda Twin owners.

Spud