1964 Honda CA95 "Benly"
PHASE 1 - A LEARNING EXPERIENCE [circa 2005]
Bike had been sitting in a crawlspace for 20 years when I got it, and was in pretty rough shape.
I did not know much about motorcycles, engine rebuilding, wiring or metalwork at this point (nearly 20 years ago) but muddled my way through with the basic hand tools and novice-level mechanical ability I had at the time.
I dismantled the motorcycle and engine completely and gave everything a thorough cleaning before reassembly, breaking many things in the process but learning quite a bit about how these two wheeled machines work. I finally got it all together, and, after more than a few hiccups, running, and was able to put around a bit, which was enough to convince me that I really enjoyed this whole motorcycle thing and wanted something new that I could actually ride. I promised myself that I would give this cool little bike a proper refurb when I had the time and skills…
PHASE 2 - TOTAL REFURBISHING
Some time in 2019, I decided that it was time to tear this machine down again and completely refurbish or replace every component. The work has been progressing, very slowly at times, but I am trying to do everything to the absolute best of my ability with no rush to get it done. I suppose the nearly 20 years since I first brought this machine to my workshop have imparted some small bits wisdom and patience, and hopefully some much improved mechanical skill!
Here’s where I started…bike was in pretty sad shape again after sitting idle for several years,
ENGINE REBUILD [completed 2024]
I knew this time around that I should do a better job prepping and finishing the engine cases, cylinder head and covers, so I blasted with walnut shell media and then painted with ceramic engine enamel, after which I heat cured them in an old oven. I also brought the cylinder head to a machine shop to have the valve seats re-cut and valves resurfaced. The machinist also cleaned up the sealing surface of the head. I honed the cylinders, repaired a broken cylinder cooling fin, and replaced the pistons and rings with NOS Honda items purchased from eBay, along with aftermarket engine gaskets and oil seals (I didn’t want to use NOS items as I feared they may not seal properly due to age).
