Amazon: New (to me) 1963 Volvo 122

[Othen]

Originally Posted by john.wigley

I did likewise, Derek. Found several bungalows in the K£150-200 range the like of which would be at least K£100 dearer in our village. Some were leasehold, which may not appeal to everyone, but it caused me to wonder why property is so comparitively cheap in Skeggy.

Whatever the reason, I am sure that Alan will be very happy there and look forward to reading about the projects, with the property and with the new 'toys' that he will no doubt acquire to play with there!

Alan, I salute you! How about a boat now that you live at the seaside? Perhaps one fitted with a Penta engine to provide Volvo content? Seriously, good luck in your new abode.

Regards, John.

You know me all too well John! I’m a sucker for projects that other folk have given up on. This morning I journeyed to Surrey to collect a 1977 Honda CB200:



The PO has spent a fortune (£2,500) on reconditioning - and cosmetically it looks lovely. He was no mechanic though, and I think gave up on some mechanical and electrical issues. The motor starts and runs - but rather badly. The top end sounds like a bag of nails: if I’m fortunate it might just be the tappets or cam chain needing some adjustment, otherwise it might need a new cam chain and tensioner - no matter, it is a project. It starts easily from cold without the choke, and is obviously running rich, but it won’t tick over properly. It won’t run at all with the choke. The carburettors have been professionally cleaned, but need a bit of fettling.



The silencers don’t really silence anything and don’t fit well. They will have to go - reproduction originals cost £300/pair, I’ll order some tomorrow.



I think this is an ideal bike for me - I’ll have the mechanical and electrical issues sorted soon and it will be a lovely little motorcycle. It was only £1,500 so I don’t mind spending a bit to make it nice. Once sorted I'm seeing this motorcycle (and the Goldwing) living at Skeggy, with my Triumph and Royal Enfield staying here in Corby del Sol.

[john.wigley]

Way to go, Alan! J.

[Laird Scooby]

You'll soon have that CB200 licked into shape Alan, a thought crossed my mind that you could use the Goldwing to commute between Skeg sur mer and Corby del sol but then how would you transport Bob? Sidecar perhaps, a la Wallace & Grommit?

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

You'll soon have that CB200 licked into shape Alan, a thought crossed my mind that you could use the Goldwing to commute between Skeg sur mer and Corby del sol but then how would you transport Bob? Sidecar perhaps, a la Wallace & Grommit?

I'd considered that also Dave, the Goldwing would be ideal for the commute except for Bob of course. That is why I'd concluded it would be best to have motorcycles at both ends: the Hondas at Skeggy and other two in Corby del Sol.

Once I get a second garage built at Skeggy sur la Mer I'll look at getting another older motor car to fill the space there

[Othen]

An update on this tangent to GAM's thread.

The CB200's motor was noisy and running poorly, so I've stripped it down to find it had been bored out to 240cc by a PO (maybe decades ago), probably with Honda CB750 pistons (see the photo - the standard bore was 55.5mm). The reason for the rough running was poor sealing between the pistons and bore, so these barrels would have needed a re-bore anyway, which was impractical. I've managed to find a second hand standard block that has already been bored to +0.75mm and a matching set of pistons (cheaply as well). The barrels and pistons should be here today (Tuesday)

Also the camshaft sprocket carrier had failed (see the photo, the sprocket carrier had broken); I've sourced a good second hand replacement (from eBay) which was expensive but seems to be in perfect condition.

I have a theory that the motor has been apart fairly recently (not by the PO, perhaps the penultimate one) and the cam chain tensioner not set up properly. I think this because there are striations on the rubber bumper that sits on the end of the plunger rod.

I think this is an ideal bike for me - I’ll have the mechanical and electrical issues sorted soon and it will be a lovely little motorcycle. It was only £1,500 so I don’t mind spending a bit to make it nice.

[Laird Scooby]

No wonder it ran like a bag of spanners!

Sure you'll soon have it up and running as Mr Honda intended!

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

No wonder it ran like a bag of spanners!

Sure you'll soon have it up and running as Mr Honda intended!

The replacement barrels and pistons arrived in the mail and look perfect. I already have the camshaft so I’ll start getting it all back together tomorrow.

Alan

[Othen]

The CB200 is back together and running after reassembling with new (re-bored) barrels and pistons. It needs a bit of tuning to get it running properly after I've got rid of those horrible megaphones and fitted some proper silencers.

More to follow when I get a mo.

Alan

Addendum: GAM is running very nicely

[Othen]

The CB200 runs and rides:

https://youtu.be/H9HyWL5weSM?si=l8-yZsceqP_OTfXF

So, it is back together with re-bored barrels, new pistons and rings, plus a myriad of other things put right or noted for future work. Something is a bit noisy at tickover in the motor - perhaps the cam chain, maybe just a tappet? That needs a bit more investigation. I‘m pleased the motorcycle is running, it starts easily, ticks over at just under 2,000 RPM, the clutch and gears work, as do the brakes. All the lights work apart from the brake light from the front lever (there is a new switch on its way) and the horn needs some investigation.

The new silencers are an huge improvement and even the tachometer works properly!

That is enough time spent on this project for the time being. I have a few other things to take care of (like completing on the purchase of another house that will require a little attention on Wednesday), so the CB200 can wait a little while until I get time to do a bit more fettling. I‘m quite pleased that it is (at the very least) a good basis for improvement.



PS. GAM continues to run and ride just fine

[142 Guy]

Just under 2000 RPM? That does not exactly sound like tick over (idle). All of the Hondas that I owned were of the 4 cyl in-line variety. Even the smallest had idle speeds more around 1000 RPM and I expect the two cylinder CB 200 should be around 1000 - 1200 RPM. Sounds like you might have a cold idle up adjustment problem or you really do need to do that carb cleaning and adjustment done if it will not idle below 2000 RPM.