1972 Honda CL350

1972 Honda CL350

Last year, before getting any kind of 

motorcycle licence or even riding a motorcycle, I decided to go motorcycle shopping.  I had an idea of the style of motorcycle I wanted, but that was about it.  For some reason, I had the fixer-upper bug and wanted something that I could not only ride, but also wrench as well.  

Then I got my license, did the M1 exit course at RTI and started to grow impatient with not being able to improve my new motorcycling skills.  Parts were easy to find, afterall this is the best selling bike ever in the United States; there are plenty of them around.  But those parts would take quite a while to receive in the mail.  While I think I'm pretty mechanically inclined, this was all new and there would be a learning curve to consider on top of this.  I was sure to be frustrated.

I ended up buying a 2011 CBR250r to learn on and the CL350 sat in the garage.  The plan was to work on the CL350 as a winter project, but it's February now and I haven't touched it.  

Chalk this one up to something I should have had a little more patience and understanding with before pulling the trigger.  The bike will go on sale soon, it's too small for me and I really don't have the time to fix it.  It's a shame because it's really a nice looking bike!

Wire wheels, drum brakes, exhaust wrap, it's a cafe racer coming together.  The scrambler exhaust was removed in favour of the CB350 type exhaust by the previous owner.

The red parts were all repainted.  The engine is very clean as well.  The bike is well taken care of.

Along with the bike, there are parts that I purchased plus many more that came with the bike.  You could almost build a complete second engine with the spare parts.  

I wish I had more time for this stuff.  But for now, I think the time I do have is better spent on the road with the bike that I can actually ride.  Maybe a project like this would be something I could do in a few years or after retirement.

If you're interested in more information about the CB350/CL350's.  There's a wealth of information on HondaTwins.Net and Ben Miranda's site

Update May, 2013:  I put the bike up for sale on a Saturday and received a great response.  There were a few interested parties and I let it go to a bike shop owner not too far from home.  He wants to display it on his shop floor.  It only took two days to sell.  I was expecting it to take much longer.   

KC