The International CBX Owners Association

I'm sort of a new member - I used to be on the forum years ago but haven't been doing much with my '79 CBX for a few years. I'm a collector/restorer with a large motorcycle collection in Coos Bay, Oregon. Anyway, here's my issue - my bike's starter clutch is failing rapidly. At the OVM show in Corvallis last weekend I almost could not get it started. Every time, instead of cranking, it just makes the dreaded "ka-whiiiiiinnnnng" noise and kicks out. But now I find that every single part except the little spring caps has been discontinued. Is anyone reproducing any of these parts? It's a beautiful bike (it won another award at the show) but if I can't start it any more, it's essentially just very pretty scrap. So, what, if anything, are people doing when this occurs? Lordy, I've had this bike for a quarter-century and I'd really hate to have to part it out because of this.

Pm sent

Welcome back, cyclemikey! If you don't want to rebuild the starter, you can always go this route:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Honda-CBX-1979- ... cf&vxp=mtr

I think he is referring to the starter clutch. I might be wrong though.

Yes, I am indeed talking about the starter clutch. The starter motor cranks fine once it gets hooked up by the clutch. Thanks for the PM, Tevan. I may go that route, but first I'm going to try changing to dino (non-synth) oil and see if that has any effect. if not, I may be moving on. I guess I had forgotten, if I ever knew, that changing out the starter drive is pretty much a total teardown of the motor. And then starts the "as long as I'm here..." syndrome, until you have a completely rebuilt engine. Ten or twenty years ago, that wouldn't have bothered me. Now, there are too many projects and too little time left.

What oil and weight are you using now?

Mobil 1 Motorcycle 4T, 10W-40. I'll probably put in some Rotella or Valvoline dino oil and see what happens. Couldn't hurt. Surprisingly, when I went to pull it out if the trailer today, it started up fine, stone cold. The innate perversity of inanimate objects, I suppose.

I had the same starter trouble using Mobil 1 20W-50: it's simply too thick at lower temperatures. I've been using Rotella T6 5W-40 synthetic, and the starter seems happy with that. It was also happy with 4T 10W-40, but that was a few kilometres ago.

I think your starter clutch will straighten up with regular oil. Worth a try. Not much wears in the starter clutch - the center hub can get worn, but a good cleaning and reassembly, along with regular oil, would be all you would likely need, if just the oil change didn't work (but I think it will)

Dave

Dave, what would you think of a quart of kerosene in a load of oil, and some gentle running. Think that might rinse that synth off a little quicker?

Yes, nothing wrong with doing that for a bit. I've had 2 or 3 with synthetic oil do the same thing, and a simple change to regular oil was all it took, but that would rinse everything more quickly. The bike in question sitting for many years didn't help either. But I think it will be OK.

Dave