May 1st - I started with cleaning the carbs - and now have them shiny inside & outside - and as I received the spare carbs today, I plan on interchanging a few parts ....

 May 7th - I took off the right cylinder head - and don't think the rockers or lifters or piston heads look too bad with a little elbow grease cleaning !!! .... (did notice the ends of one of the lifter arms loose & the others tight on their shafts ? - also the exhaust valves are burnt, but not too bad ?  ) ... but no wonder the valves were sticking as the brown sticky gunk was baked on everything - and the carbon build up was rather extensive - and know I've not cleaned the valves (till now) - so could well be original !!! ... (pics below) ...

May 8th - I took off the left cylinder head - and it looks basically the same as the right - so I cleaned them both, along with the piston heads with "Seafoam" - (great stuff !!!) - and after I remove the valves - I'll soak everything (again in "Seafoam") and take some before n' after pics .....

May 9th - I phoned the local Honda dealer for a "valve compression clamp" - and found out they are $115. plus tax ...... so after I said "No Way" - I went into my toolbox and found a 6" clamp and dug through a couple plumbing boxes and found a 3/4" pipe fitting - and drilled a 3/8" hole through the fitting - and now have a "valve compression clamp" - (cost 15 minutes) - so then I took out one valve which is now soaking in "Seafoam" - and have 7 more to go ...... Otherwise, I received 7 parcels in the mail today - 2 sets of new carb screws, regulator, shaft boot, upper & lower valve lifters and rockers, and the CDI .... yet was hit with $17. customs duty on the CDI, it looks like brand new - so well worth every cent .....

May 13th - Received the new engine gaskets today - which I forgot included  8 new valve stem oil seals - (and they also included a sexy calender, so I now have that hanging in my kitchen next to the woodstove) <smiles>  so now I have almost everything I need to rebuild the motor (maybe still need a new cam-chain?) ..... otherwise, I finished my "home-made valve spring compressor clamp" - and albeit not fancy, it works good - as I've removed the valves and now cleaning the heads ..... next will be getting some "valve lapping compound" - then put them back together .....  (here's a pic of my little invention)

May 15th - I took the motor off the frame today - and took off the back cover - to discover what I had suspected, the cam chain tensioner had broke, and also see the cam chain is extremely loose - so it also must have jumped the teeth on the sprocket and thrown off the ignition timing (hence: major reason it wouldn't start) ..... along with quite a bit of cruddy oil in the bottom of the cover ...... so, now I also suspect some oil pump problems - but one step at a time - as my kitchen is filling up with boxes and containers for the various parts ..... and my finances are starting to run low - so this may become a non-riding spring for me !!!!  But, will continue to work on this project - as there still is summer, fall and winter ahead  <grin> ......

May 16th - I phoned the local Honda dealer this morning and ordered a NEW cam chain ($91.24) and a new cam tensioner guide ($42.64) both of which should be here by the end of next week - so now I'm on the lookout for a new sprocket ..... as the local dealer hasn't any listed ...... this afternoon I walked up to get some Friday night liquid refreshments - and stopped in at Canadian Tire where I found a digital 0 - 6" micro caliper on sale - so now I can check all the valves, springs, shaft diameters, lengths and tolerances etc. ..... yet in coming home I noticed that Buster was sheepish - and now I know why - as he had chewed off the plastic back brake switch .... to where I'll have to get another !!!

This is the part I need with a little longer black & green/yellow wires ..... and some threads <grin> ....

May 17th - I bought a NEW cam sprocket off e-bay ($44.75) including shipping ....
May 18th - I bought a NEW rear brake switch off e-bay ($20.33) including shipping .... so Buster's off the hook (for now) !

May 19th - My goal for today was to loosen the alternator rotor bolt - and spent an hour wrenching on it with vice grips on the final shaft, along with one of my belts around the rotor, and even tried with my extended axle wrench - and heating with the torch - with no budging the bolt - so I got the cold chizel out and pounded on it for over another hour ..... then with the hex head almost stripped I took out my drill and drilled the centre so to give me a better angle at the cold chizel - so finally it came out - hence: a minor victory, as I'll have to get another bolt - but at least now I can continue on the cam chain - leastwise till I hit another stubborn bolt ..... as now I know that I didn't take the rotor off when I replaced the stator 3 years ago - so could very well be original ..... and definately was torqued more than 70 ft. lbs ....

May 20th - I phoned the local Honda dealer - and the alternator bolt I need is "No Longer Available" - so, I'm scouring around trying to find one - or may have to have one made (argh!) ..... otherwise, I figured that I might as well clean the back cover - and it turned out a good thing - as I found a rather larger piece (about an inch long) of the broken cam tensioner under the stator - and a bunch of small fragments throughout the cover .....

So I spent a lot of today searching for this bolt - on ebay, internet stores, the local custom bike shop, and CX forum - and just received a e-mail that I can buy a complete used alternator rotor, flywheel, and pulsar assembly including the two required bolts for only $30. including shipping ! - so, I bought it - and can relax now - (whew!) -  and continue working on my project -   and now also figured that I might as well paint the engine covers again - while I'm waiting for the parts to arrive !!!

May 21st - I lapped the valves this morning - and found the stick a little awkward to use - especially at first - and found this was easier to get it started -  I turned the valve stem with my left hand and push and turned on the valve head with my thumb & index finger using considerable pressure - then lifted and turned and repeated till it felt much smoother - then found the lapping stick a lot easier to use till both surfaces were smooth ...... finally before putting them together I cleaned everything with "Seafoam"  anyway - it worked for me !!!

May 23rd - NEW PLAN - Forget the initial deadline -  Otherwise, while trying to take the flywheel off yesterday - I smashed my thumb with the hammer - so ouch !!!

May 28th - I went and got my new cam chain and tensioner this afternoon ($151. Cdn) - so when I got home - I was determined to get the flywheel assembly off - and see what other possible damage there was underneath the plate - so I lubed it good, and went out to the shed for my 20 lb. long handled Sledge Hammer - and still using the oil filter bolt and a 2 ft long plumber's monkey wrench - well I wacked, n' wacked n' it still didn't turn even while pressing on the engine with my foot - so decided I'd give it 4 more hard (full swing wacks) and still had to balance myself on the engine while I jumped on the wrench twice - anyway it finally came loose -  So as usual - one step ahead and now another step back - as I Now also need a " New cam chain (timing) guide" - as the old one I have - (shown below on the left side of the chain) has a hairline fracture near the top - but surely unfixable  -  and typical from the sloppy cam chain, I noticed some of the aluminum casing around the bolts shaved at a few places, as well as the midpoint of the tensioner was deeply pitted ?  (pics below)  ..... which now tells me that there's possibly some aluminum shavings in the oil passages - so they will require a thorough flushing - after most likely a complete disassembly !!!

May 29th - Received the alternator rotor, flywheel & pulsar assembly and new sprocket in the mail today .... and took off the fan, front cover, camshaft, n' oil pump - of which all looks good other than some more grundy oil in the pump filter - so, I've flushed and again cleaning everything with "Seafoam" - and just phoned the Honda dealer for a New cam chain guide, <$40.> -  (which will be in by next Tuesday !) .... so, I figure it's gonna be a busy weekend with painting and getting ready for the re-assembly next week ....

June 3rd - I started to put the front cover on the motor today - and couldn't quite get the oil pump chain tight enough for my liking - so, figured while it's still on the bench, I might as well order a new chain <$32.>  - hence: slowly but surely it's coming together -

June 19th - Finally received all the new engine parts - so spent the afternoon putting on the new oil pump chain, camshaft, front cover and fan ..... then proceeded with the new cam chain and guides -  whereas, I took a wee break and made sure everything is the way it should be before continuing ..... but so far what a difference, even just hand turning the engine .... so this evening I put on the flywheel, alternator rotor, pulsar, sprocket, water pump and back cover - and took another break - then decided I might as well hang the engine on the frame - hence: overall probably spent about 5 or 6 hours on the bike today - but accomplished quite a bit .....
 
 

My Kitchen !!!!	A little Too much slack on the chain !

Left side chain - grinding <argh!>	Simple motor lock at top for cam removal.
Inside of Front Cover ... where I noticed the lower set of gears aren't meshing properly with the gear behind the clutch  - ?????	Front cover - after cleaning - in "Seafoam" -  albeit oil pump & oil filter pipe parts are still not assembled ..... but will only take a few minutes ....

The saga continues .................

Cheers, & Happy Trails Ahead !!!

Bryan & his faithful helper mechanic "Buster" ....

Cylinder Head & Valve Springs	valve stems & springs removed  and numbered for return to same location
Intake & Exhaust Valve Heads
Piston Head & Lower Valve Lifters