1992 through 1996 Honda CR 250s Done. The last 5 years of the Honda 250 steel frames.

Great question. I bought a Clarke for that Yamaha WR I restored. The off white of the Clarke did not match the brighter white replacement plastics. Forced to restore the original Yamaha tank.

I just looked at that thread and saw I did not cover that aspect. 

White is not easy to restore. I found red more forgiving.

I will try and restore the better condition tanks of the 5-6 I have. Maybe. The best way I found to get rid of yellowing was to drag the long edge of a razor blade across the yellowed areas. This helps keep from cutting into the plastic. So basically your scraping it off but dragging and not pushing up. 

I sent a tank off to that outfit here in the US that restores tanks. I ended up using a Clarke blem on my first CR I restored. The restored tank ended up on that 92 I restored and posted. I now see some of the stained color coming back. I rode that bike very briefly. Maybe 30 mins total. Drained the gas immediately after use. Left cap loose to help air out.

His service is worth it on a badly stained tank. Especially a tank where they had the tank sticker on it with the holes and such when peeling up the sticker your tank has measles.

That is a super tough tank to restore due to the depth of that staining. He is cheaper then Clarke by a $100 or so or at least he used to be. But it may be a month or more gone.

I would go that route on a display bike where keeping it all original was critical. Honda did put a wing insignia on the top of the tank.

Outside this my effort would be first to get the tank onto my flapper cotton wheel. Carefully buffing to see just how much of the old I can remove and restore. From this would hopefully isolate the areas that had to be sanded. I would start with 800 or more just to see if this will be enough. You start getting lower numbers in paper and those scratches show horribly on white. 

The key is minimizing the sanding to areas that need it. The bleaching method never worked for me despite multiple efforts. The cotton flapper wheel will be where your shine will come from. But its super easy to melt the plastic. Practice on an old piece of plastic helps.

Actually been working on these bikes. 
 

I hope to document some of the changes between these years 92-96. Interesting what Honda was doing in an effort to explore improvements.

One notable change is the head stay of the frame. Considerably longer in 94 and they also increased the bearing size. McGrath preferred the 93 frame is what has been told. He preferred the geometry of that frame which would allow him to easily change direction. I will do a side by side comparison with the frames to note any other obvious differences outside the head. 
I found it interesting that in my limited search I did not come across what changed specifically in 94 that made the 93 still better for him.

Just some musings above. Resolving an effort with fork conversions created a need to take a hard look at that area. The bearing differences was just not something I thought about. Doing the different years at the same time makes these differences more notable.

Between radiators, airboxes, brake lines, handle bars, discs, seats, and triples I have had my hands full. None of those are completed. I find that I have to take a break from them. So I get them to a stage of progression. Stop. Pick up where I left off with something else and work that for awhile. I did start and finish electrical. Well almost. I have the main components restored and just finishing up the kill switches.
 

Cleaning up 5 sets to this level is absolutely like cleaning one over and over again. Exact same process has to be done. Takes the exact same amount of time to do. It’s mind numbing removing so much evidence of use in an effort to make it appear new. 

Here is what I used to clean up these components.

Haha… Yes we discovered this.

Thank you Bonseff for the compliments my friend. I’m just trying to make my own mark with the work that I do. I can appreciate anyone who embraces these bikes and wants to burn the Steel Frame torch. 
I can marvel readily at guys who restore the swingarms with nothing but hand work. Just as the guys who can tig weld and run a mill or lathe.

Keep in mind I defined for me the difference between restoration/rebuilding to this type of work. You can easily fall between both at times. My direction makes sense to me since I have no real plans to ride these. If I was restoring these to ride I would most definitely be a rebuilder. Stupid amount of time spent which one ride could undo a chunk of the work.

Ultimately what I can sell these for will be the validation of my time spent. I honestly doubt I will be buying anymore for me to do and keep as displays. Hopefully I can find work in this area with enough examples.

Thanks Chance. Great to read from you brother.

Madness of brake lines… I’m working on these. I checked out replacement cost. Just to see if my time is worth more than the cost. Definitely my time is. But… they simply do not add the same level of support at the $60 price level. So gonna restore, yes actually restore the stockers.

So yeah, I’m gonna clean them up. Replace the sealing ends of the clear tubing so I can try and clean out the debris coating the inside of that clear vinyl. Cerakote the ends black to protect against rust. The usual.

Radiators? These were the worse two. I actually bought the junker left side one off eBay. It was cheap.

Heres the bad boy….

Here’s the other side..

This is where I’m at with those two before Cerakote. Boom…. And yeah, that took some time straightening those fins.

And why not strengthen one side that had 2 short cracks for the shroud mount. The other side had the tab completely broken off. 
So like I mentioned no mill experience much less access. Next best thing. Drill press and a Dremel.

The aluminum I used was cut off scrap from door bottom plate. This material is not soft. 
 

Once sprayed it will blend well. Can’t see this stuff anyways with the shrouds/grills on.

Thanks for the words my friend.

I have done a few of these. Prior radiator fins were done with two small screwdrivers. Basically using both to flatten the bent aluminum.

I agree the HVAC or car fin combs are more trouble than they are worth. You still only can straighten one at a time. It’s not like you can drag the comb through.

I am using one of those small screwdrivers that come in the plastic case of like 5-6. The one with the rotating/spinning part at the handle end. I cut that off and fitted it into a file holder. This gives me a comfortable grip and greater leverage. I selected a tip where the shaft it’s attached to can fit in-between or is the width of 2 fins. This way I move the damaged area out or straight the same distance as the other undamaged ones.

I did grind down a set of needle nose. I flattened them and polished up the sides to slide easier into those areas. But I basically do not use this tool much. You really do not need it.

Those radiators above cerakoted and heat treated. Damn the paint locking in heat. 
 

The radiators are actually very pliable. Do not use heat at all.

This radiator was the worse one out of the 10 I dealt with.

The key is to try and isolate movement. I found anchoring one side to a piece of wood while I worked the other side helped make it easier.

I used a piece of thin steel about 3/8” thick maybe 1” wide by 12” or so worked well for me. I would start with a wood block but narrow. The steel helped me make movement in isolated areas. Anchor on one side to start and move the opposing side the direction you need to. Grasping the radiator in a vice was impractical for me due to the limits where you could grab the radiator.

Using a short 2” x 6” gave me something I could place in the vice if needed to hold the radiator firm.

Once you start moving an area you will be surprised how easy it is to tweak these.

Just use as much support as you can. I used wood screws with big washers to anchor at least 2 of the mounting holes.

If it wasn’t leaking before it should not leak after. I do not pressure test. You would have to severely tweak it to create a crack. Aluminum is pretty forgiving to a point. As long as you do not fold metal you will be fine.

I do check them for flow. In a sink I run water through them at a fairly high pressure and see if it freely flows through.

What's the secret to a nicely finished airbox? Easy, buy a new one. But for these bikes the airboxes are coveted. So much so that I now see aftermarket offerings to basically build one from I assume 3D printed parts or carbon fiber.

If you have followed much of or any of my work you know I'm not afraid of labor. These airboxes were no exception to a exercise in patience. Its almost funny how much time I put into them.

These shots below are after sealing off the entry passage into the carb from within and super pressure washing the insides. I thought I was really doing a super spectacular job prepping these back then. You will have to trust me these boxes were much worse.

Mental note. Pull out those thin plastic skirts in the airboxes prior to pressure wash. Those hid a ton of debris.

So I took them all apart. I already had the metal portions re-zinc and such I only needed to clean these pieces up. I purposely delayed doing them since I knew they would take some time. 

Next up was placing them in a big container and spraying liberally with Simple Green. Various handtools were used to include Scotch Brite pads. This did a fair job. But I still needed to do a further clean with lacquer thinner soaked rag and a small screwdriver.

The rubber boots are done about 90%. Similar steps. Lacquer thinner is the key. Acetone should work also, 

Gratuitous self promotion. I just came across the image. All I have left for displays from my old helmet painting days. Thank fully I kept some. Troy Lee no doubt was an inspiration for most of us back then. So was Serrano for me. Simplicity in his design layouts but looked bright and catchy. 

These above are right before lacquer thinner final clean up.

Done for prep.

Taking the easy way out with all of these. Plastic prep and cerakote. Tried H series but zero shine/gloss. Had to order some Cerakote air dry series and their clear coat specifically for this process.

I of course will encourage a new owner to consider using clear vinyl over the sides of these airboxes. Use a heat gun on low temp to get it to conform. It will greatly extend the fruits of my hard efforts. But why someone would want to ride any of these is beyond me........ No worries if one does. They are being built to be the next best thing to factory new. Or at least my interpretation of what that means. I even resealed the rubber boots to the airboxes with rubber cement. So these are being built to run. They should run pretty damn great.

Since I was shooting white I repainted the handle bars. This was my third attempt at doing so. Did not like the other 2 efforts. But those both were complete runs with heated drying only to strip it off and redo.

Thanks for the props on the boxes.

I have been busy make no doubt… I just have update this thread. And to do that properly means editing images and creating that post.

Four carbs rebuilt, Ten rims relaced, ten calipers, five rear master cylinders, and so far four front master cylinders rebuilt. Working completing the brake lines. And started a tank which is my least favorite item to restore.

Im after it and hope to do my thread justice with a proper update.

Good to hear from you bonseff and I always enjoy seeing sandman.

So basically I was able to get all these individual items done. All except the motors really.

I bit the bullet and bought new tanks. I started one and realized that I would not get get out everything. I personally look at restores and closely check out the tanks. It’s such a prominent aspect of the motorcycle that it just makes sense to me to not scrimp. White tanks are no joke and would restore if there wasn’t alternatives. So I went with VMX.

https://www.vmxracing.com

I had to give him a shout out since he did indeed cut me some slack on ordering five of those.

Since I pussed out on the tanks this really freed me up.

Its impractical for me to try and rebuild four motors at the same time. It would quickly become tedious doing each one at a high level that I would cut corners on restorations efforts. Motors are too important and need to be done one at a time.

So I grabbed one of the 95 motors which will become a 96 complete when finished.

Since I had three more to do I did not shoot any images of this complete motor before. I got time to show at least one as before.

Fortunately this motor internally was in great shape. The top end did not look bad as it actually had pretty good compression. It was clear to me that the piston had been replaced not too long ago as it wasn’t original. Cylinder walls were intact with no issue. I knew I could get away with just a new piston/rings.

I went after the casting lines on the cylinder. Needless to leave those since I will be cerokoating the entire motor anyways.

I used the air grinder with scotch brite pads and quickly took those lines down. I followed up with the Dremel and a abrasive wheel to get the areas I couldn’t hit with the DA.

Since I had the Dremel out I went and cleaned up the exhaust port. Probably does nothing for performance but realistically I’m hopeful that it makes clean up a little easier down the road.

I used the same wheel to put a finish on the reliefs for the power valves.

The power valves had a fair amount of buildup and probably were not cleaned as well as I did when this top end was done. I sprayed out the cavity with carb cleaner and readily removed carbon. But the valves would require considerable more work. Abrasive wheels will aid in cleaning those up. 

‘And yes I did run them over a polishing wheel after using a fine abrasive wheel. Again my reasoning is much more helping the next owner have an easier time cleaning these areas vs performance enhancement. Which probably is none.

With these areas done I would need to pay attention to the cases. 
I use a leftover fine abrasive wheel on a Dremel to super clean up any gasket contact area. I spend my time getting those areas completely cleaned up. Those surfaces are like brand new with no sign of old gasket material. I want to insure there will be no leaks from a motor I restored.

After clean up of those surfaces I will tape off bearings in preparation for bead blasting.

I use that same abrasive wheel to hit the studs on both the cases and cylinder. I will further hit these areas with bead blasting to remove any rust or other contamination. When I spray these pieces I make sure to coat the studs and the depressions around the studs to minimize rust.

I tape off as much as I can to limit media from getting inside bearings or other hidden areas. But it’s critical to be very thorough in clean up. I will spend an hour or more just cleaning up these parts using hot water and air. You have to pay careful attention to blind holes also. It’s easy to pack media into those areas and not have it rinse out. Bead blasting cases should only be done if you are super comfortable in your clean up regiment. Practically speaking it’s the most effective method to prep for paint.

I put the cases together and shot them with the clutch cover on. H series Cerakote with a several hour bake. Followed by a 5 day air out to fully insure curing.

I went ahead and used some H series clear on the clutch side cover/case and sprayed the mag cover also. I wanted to darken slightly those parts as the original color is darker from Honda. I plan to darken those parts slightly more with the other motors.

While waited for these parts to air cure after the heat I cleaned up the magneto and backing plate.

Boom… I’m currently at with this 96 being mostly built. So motor in, rads on, swingarm/shock and forks on. Next post will cover some minor motor building aspects and go on to getting that motor in.

My approach with the motor is go slow. It is so easy to shift parts and have them become jumbled. I had a gear and 2 washers come off the counter shaft. I was convinced they came off gear and two washers. But after seating the tranny and just checking gear movement I couldn’t get neutral. I left the other case half off. 
Checking the service manual on washer placement quickly showed me one of the washers needed to be in front of the gear.

Having a factory service manual pays and pays. I cannot overstate this simple value. I used a Clymer on that 88 500. I couldn’t find a reasonably priced service manual for it. I would only go that route in a similar fashion. Otherwise stick with the factory one. Big difference.

I make sure parts are reasonably clean and always use Maxima assembly lube on bearings. Crank bearings only get 2 stroke oil.

A Q-top dipped in that same lube helped prep the clutch actuating arm bearing. There’s two needle bearings in there.

Super hard pull of the crank into the right side case. I have a motion pro puller which makes this so much easier. I had to get creative in order the set the puller against the outside edge of the crank vs resting on the seal.

I bead blasted the metal plates for the clutch. Sure this will help with initial friction but will polish smoother with use. I did it since I could.

Ran the clutch push rod on the buffer and also polished where it engages on the actuating arm. Just more of the same. Trying to do little things to make a difference.

Bought a new aluminum washer for the drain bolt. I got crazy with the yellow zinc. It doesn’t show but I know it’s there…haha.

Frame it’s going into. 
Frame has a reproduction of the original 1995 sticker. Despite this will appear as a 1996 I will make no shenanigans and try to hide it’s actually a 95. 

 

Ran a tap through the threaded portions of the frame. I had already cleaned up any of the areas on the frame where retaining bolts need to fit. Especially the one mount for the U portion of the linkage to the frame.
I put the lower/bottom portion of the motor end in the frame. I left off the mag also. Too easy to chip/ding the frame trying to weasel in a complete motor.

It’s pretty straight forward throwing the jug on. I like to coat the walls and piston with 2 stroke oil.