Looking for a Mechanic in North Carolina -- Asheville area

[skytja]

Hi,
I recently bought an '81 CBX, and little wrenching experience on bikes. Most of my mechanical experience is on old Dodges and Toyotas. Mostly body, electrical, and interior work, at that . . . 20 years ago, now.

In October, I will be relocating to the Asheville area, and would like to know if anyone knows of a good mechanic in the region.

I have the Honda Service Manual, and bought the lot of CBX manuals from Mike at The Motorcycle Project [http://www.motorcycleproject.com/motorc ... knook.html] to prepare for a rebuild. I will probably ship-off the carbs to him later in the year, to be restored. Between the hours I work at my job, and my rusty skills, I don't have a lot of confidence in my odds for success.

I searched the site, and this forum in particular, for Carolina or NC mechanics, but no joy.

I know Randakk's [http://www.randakks.com] is over in East NC; It seems that he is into restorations, but I can't tell if he does 'regular' mechanic work as well. Most of the 4-wheeled restorers I've known tend to steer clear of the basic mechanics if it is not in conjunction with a full-on project, due to the time investment vs the financial return and the impact on higher-end projects.

Thanks guys.
[Edited -- updated title; added the 5th paragraph.]

[Houtman]

Hi,Please give me a call on 828 650 9477,I own two early CBX's.I live just south of Asheville inArden.I am not a mechanic but might be able to help you with certain things.
Greetings John Houtman

[steve murdoch icoa #5322]

New to the site and offering help. Well done, John.

[NobleHops]

Sky, welcome. If I'm not mistaken Preston Marks (aka Preston here on the forum) lives in central Florida, and he's about as experienced and well-regarded as anyone. I know that's not exactly in your back yard, but if it's major work I'd be in touch with him.

N.

[skytja]

Thanks guys. My schedule for the move was pushed-up, so I've been scrambling lately; I'll be moving-up on 01 October instead of mid-late October like I was originally planning.

Thanks John, I'll give you a call when I settle-in a bit. Hopefully my work hours will ease-up a bit, so I can actually enjoy my hobbies again. As it is, I work a large portion of EDT business hours, and also JST business hours.

Thanks,
Heath
(Skytja means 'Archer' in Icelandic / Old Norse. . . Old nickname.)

[Cammer]

Just read this as I'm lax (read lazy) about your needing a CBX Mechanic. Well.....................I just happen to know the best I've seen in recent years and he is my buddy who lives about 45 miles from me in Seven Devils. You can email me off line if you still need one. Charlie # 1804. email is cbxman@nc.net

[skytja]

Hi Charlie,

Thanks. Not a problem; "better late than never", and all that. I just found-out that I'll be phased-out, at work, in 1 to 4 months.

I just removed the bodywork, tank, front airbox, and the carbs. The wiring looks bad, as does almost every bit of the engine that I've seen so far. I'm planning on sending the carbs off to Mike Nixon in a few weeks or so, if all goes smoothly. While they're away, I want to try to get a better idea of the internals. Oil is leaking from several gaskets, it seems, and the spark plugs are mostly black and dry-ish, one or two looked black and oily, but that could have been from pooled oil/goop around the plugs themselves. Unfortunately, I couldn't tell. The oil smells like 2-stroke mix, almost, the gas smell is that strong.

I'm not out of my comfort-zone yet, but I can see it coming. By the time I get the carbs back, I should know for certain if this is beyond me, and I'll shoot you an email for your buddie's info.

Thanks again,
Heath