Re-baking my ST1300 (Almost-full-redoing)

[Al st1100]

information from Timken. This outer ring has heavy corrosion on the race.This type of corrosion may only be a surface stain without pitting. If the staining can be cleaned with an emery cloth or crocus cloth, the bearing maybe reused. If there are pits that cannot be cleaned with light polishing, the bearing should either be discarded or, if practical, refurbished.

 

[leondante]

information from Timken. This outer ring has heavy corrosion on the race.This type of corrosion may only be a surface stain without pitting. If the staining can be cleaned with an emery cloth or crocus cloth, the bearing maybe reused. If there are pits that cannot be cleaned with light polishing, the bearing should either be discarded or, if practical, refurbished.

Fully agree with this. Mine weren't as bad as this picture, just a more shiny on those spots. I cleaned it, put new grease and rolled them by hand pushing in strongly, to find any deformation on the races or the rolls. It was not even a bit of a strange feeling, so nice to go for me. Also after installing and torquing it properly, without the shock absorber, it moved smoothly, not a single crick when moving it by hand up and down.

 

[St-Gerard]

Your bike is going to be better than new.

 

[leondante]

Your bike is going to be better than new.

YES, that's my purpose. And I'm achieving it!! Putting better generic parts, new devices and better stuff than the original ones. I'm sad I cannot take 90K kilometers of use off the engine and gearbox. I only hope to find a good used engine if I need one. Even thought about buying and storing one just in case.

 

[diferg]

90K kilometers is about 56k miles, (computed for my mind to comprehend), Your ST is barely broken in! Ride far, Ride SAFE and enjoy the fruits of your labor!

 

[leondante]

90K kilometers is about 56k miles, (computed for my mind to comprehend), Your ST is barely broken in! Ride far, Ride SAFE and enjoy the fruits of your labor!

Yes, it's not too much, but it was of city riding and that's why it reached cooking an alternator an all the wires surrounding the engine. But I was impressed about the good health I noticed anyways in the gearbox in the test drive a couple days ago.

 

[eyrepb]

Your wheels look amazing!!

 

[Sadlsor]

That's a LOT of work, but the results are amazing. That word may be overused, but it's accurate here and I'm too lazy to look in the thesaurus for another one.
I'll be bookmarking this thread, and I truly appreciate you taking the time to post pictures and details on your restoration.
It's scary to think how much a Honda shop would charge for all this, and not bother with the detailing and cleaning of all the pieces like you've done.
This is why I procrastinate sometimes with maintenance, because I know it will take me four times the hours it should, because I feel the need to clean it all while I'm in there.
True confessions.
I can't even spell OCD.

 

[ST1100Y]

That's a LOT of work...

Referring to the work on the bike (which is great BTW) or the efforts to post the pics?
The latter might quickly turn into wasted efforts once someone throws a fit again, fat-fingering the keys and that...

 

[leondante]

That's a LOT of work, but the results are amazing. That word may be overused, but it's accurate here and I'm too lazy to look in the thesaurus for another one.
I'll be bookmarking this thread, and I truly appreciate you taking the time to post pictures and details on your restoration.
It's scary to think how much a Honda shop would charge for all this, and not bother with the detailing and cleaning of all the pieces like you've done.
This is why I procrastinate sometimes with maintenance, because I know it will take me four times the hours it should, because I feel the need to clean it all while I'm in there.
True confessions.
I can't even spell OCD.

Yes, it's not a fixing, but a restoration. And better said, "resto-mod". Because I like to improve everything I can in the process. I really appreciate your feedback, in my daily "real" life I have nothing but indiference as no one understand what and how I'm doing it. I am a really very lonely rider on this issue. Knowing some people values it and can be helpful makes me desire to show you more and do a better job for you, so you can too find your way out of your issues with your bike, if I can really be helpful.

A good example of the feedback/reward of these efforts I've lived it on my previous daily bike, a ST1100 from '92. I bought it with 85K and sold it (painfully) at 151K. I didn't spend even a tenth of the time I've spent already on the ST1300, I fixed it thinking on not doing more than 30K on it. It was enormously rewarding, not only because the satisfaction of a sucessful job, but because it was profitable as a personal transport, saving me after everything around 3000€ per year on transport, and 1/3 the time of each commuting.

Here you have a video of my restoration of the carburetors of my previous ST1100 (NOT THE ST1300). In spanish:

M3R - 001 - Limpieza de carburadores de Honda Pan-European ST1100

Limpieza paso a paso de los carburadores de mi querido pepino. Quedaron excelentes. Se siguen los pasos genéricos y se dan recomendaciones útiles para no hacer mal una limpieza de carburadores, pero c...

odysee.com

This time is different as I'm planning not to sell the ST1300 and, if anything, buying another one, as I like this model a lot and I'm planning having it as long as I can.

The thing about the previous example is that only with two months of good work on that bike, and respectful use, I took seven years and 71K kilometers off it, all of them of fierceful and loyal service, only giving bad issues a couple times with the battery because it had dashcam, GPS tracker, alarm, heated grips, blablalbah. All fidelity with the same 5,5 liters per 100 kms from start to end and an amazing and powerful brakes. Nothing to say about stability and driveability. SO, if I can have that from that bike for that effort, I'm planning going in my coffin with this bike the day I die. More or less.

Thank you again for your feedback. I really appreciate it.

 

[leondante]

Referring to the work on the bike (which is great BTW) or the efforts to post the pics?
The latter might quickly turn into wasted efforts once someone throws a fit again, fat-fingering the keys and that...

Hello, I want to say that it's really an effort to show how the thing is done, as taking pictures and working the process is really "worky". I took a week of my free time to make that 30 minutes video for the carburetors I just posted. That's why I'm not detailing properly everything, it takes DOUBLE the time, because you must add explanations, stop the task, etc. I'm kinda that McQueen dude when working, I work fast, fighting for not losing time, getting damn angry when I don't find some tool I need among the 8 projects I have in process all the time.

SO, TELL ME IF YOU WANT SOMETHING DETAILED. I'm really willing to show you anything you want, but I want to balance it with not losing time. (I will show you what I think is important anyways as I hope it can be helpful in the future for newcomers).

That said, what do you mean with "throws a fit", and "fat-fingering the keys"? I don't know those expressions properly.

 

[Andrew Shadow]

That said, what do you mean with "throws a fit", and "fat-fingering the keys"? I don't know those expressions properly.

He is referring to a website back-up a little while back that did not go as planned and that caused the unfortunate permanent loss of a large amount of the information that existed on this site.

 

[MidLife]

Yes, it's not a fixing, but a restoration. And better said, "resto-mod". Because I like to improve everything I can in the process. I really appreciate your feedback, in my daily "real" life

You are an artist! Unbelievable work and ingenuity.

I washed the bugs off my windshield this weekend. That was already a lot of work for me!

 

[leondante]

He is referring to a website back-up a little while back that did not go as planned and that caused the unfortunate permanent loss of a large amount of the information that existed on this site.

I understand. That was really sad, as I did explain better everything I have been doing then. It's my contribution to the site to post it back again the best I can, short-cutting what wasn't really important or boring, I know sometimes I got too long detailing unnecessary stuff.

 

[leondante]

You are an artist! Unbelievable work and ingenuity.

I washed the bugs off my windshield this weekend. That was already a lot of work for me!

You'll hate me for showing this information, maybe love me, your choice.

Saliva has enzimes that dissolve some proteins, fat, sugar and so on, so bugs go out better with a bit chewed (clean) rag or a paper towel with some drops of saliva. It works out bugs that soap or gasoline or alcohol cannot soften.

Do. Not. Ask. How. I know this.

Do NOT try acetone to clean bugs. Most of the time it takes out paint or the plastic itself.

 

[eyrepb]

Worth trying. As for the tasks you use gasoline for, you might try kerosene. It has worked well for me, a little less fumes, aggressiveness and evaporation. I use it to clean, put it in a container and let the dirt settle, then decant it off the top for reuse, and dispose of the sludge.

 

[leondante]

Worth trying. As for the tasks you use gasoline for, you might try kerosene. It has worked well for me, a little less fumes, aggressiveness and evaporation. I use it to clean, put it in a container and let the dirt settle, then decant it off the top for reuse, and dispose of the sludge.

I have not where to find it. I recall it from decades ago and remember to be a bit oily, could be good for some stuff, but by now I really cannot think for some use I could give it. It's like using diesel? What would be the difference with it?

 

[eyrepb]

It is similar to diesel. I searched and found this:
"AI Overview"


Kerosene is not the same as diesel, although they are closely related petroleum distillates. Kerosene (#1 fuel oil) is lighter, thinner, and cleaner-burning with a lower flashpoint than standard #2 diesel. While sometimes used in engines in extreme cold, kerosene lacks the lubrication needed for most modern diesel engines.

Key Differences:

• Lubrication: Diesel contains additives for lubricating fuel pumps and injectors, whereas kerosene does not, which can cause damage to modern engines.
• Viscosity & Cold Weather:Kerosene is less viscous and does not gel as easily in cold temperatures, making it a useful additive to prevent diesel gelling
  .
• • Usage: Diesel is used for road vehicles and heavy machinery. Kerosene is used for heating, lamps, and, in some cases,Jet fuel.
  • Refining: Kerosene is more highly refined than diesel.

 

[leondante]

It is similar to diesel. I searched and found this:
"AI Overview"


Kerosene is not the same as diesel, although they are closely related petroleum distillates. Kerosene (#1 fuel oil) is lighter, thinner, and cleaner-burning with a lower flashpoint than standard #2 diesel. While sometimes used in engines in extreme cold, kerosene lacks the lubrication needed for most modern diesel engines.

Key Differences:

• Lubrication: Diesel contains additives for lubricating fuel pumps and injectors, whereas kerosene does not, which can cause damage to modern engines.
• Viscosity & Cold Weather:Kerosene is less viscous and does not gel as easily in cold temperatures, making it a useful additive to prevent diesel gelling
  .
• • Usage: Diesel is used for road vehicles and heavy machinery. Kerosene is used for heating, lamps, and, in some cases,Jet fuel.
  • Refining: Kerosene is more highly refined than diesel.

Interesting. I don't like diesel for cleaning or lubricating. And I have no easy access to other things like kerosene, so I just have to found what I could use to achieve what I needed to do with what I could reach.

 

[leondante]

About the engine, in Spain we are forced by the MAFIA to obey some warmology and mobility laws, so we cannot take out or put anything extra to our bikes as a general forced rule. We cannot take the catalytic converters or put extra lights, and we have those inspections to enforce it. Cars are illegal to drive because small stuff like a third brake light, a common generic cheap but useful one, or because one seatbelt fails to click in place on a backseat of the car. Absolutely stupid stuff that is not dangerous for real for anyone can put you on the street without a vehicle.

So I was forced to fix anything emissions related. I opened those valves on the pictures and found out close to what I was expecting.






Sadly I didn't know they were teflon coated or whatever, so I cleaned them with wire brush. I had to buy new one of them because it was destroyed. Anyways I'm opening them again in a couple years to check them out and that's it. You can see the results of a life of driving inside Madrid ONLY on those pictures. A lot of black, carboned and greasy horrors.

The holes that go to the exhaust ports of the cylinders are straight down, so I used a 6 mm wood drill (aprox., I'm not sure of the exact size now) and like 20 cm long. I've been extremely careful not to eat the aluminium, and the drill bit fitted perfectly. I watched angryly the carbon coming out to check if there was aluminium bits. There were none, and could feel properly that the drill fitted to the mm. It took like 20 to 30 minutes of hand twisting that drill bit each hole from down, and that nasty greasy carboned thing won't stop coming out. They were for real fully closed of big pile of... that. A spit of gasoline throughout them finished the cleaning. The clean valves and the new one were the cherry on the top of the engine. I put new screws, they come hammered. I also hammered the new ones.

I feel on the tube that goes to the air filter box how the thing sucks air like a dyson. The system is working great now. It stops sucking when accelerating if I don't recall wrongly, it is what it should do I think.

I checked that then, now I'm talking from barely memories I still have. Could not be exactly like that.