Got my CL350

It does sound like the cam timing is retarded slightly since the piston is reaching TDC before the cam reaches the intended orientation. The angle at the crank is twice that at the cam and it looks like it's off by about the same angle as between LT and LF, which I think is 5° at the crank.

Thinking about the cam sprocket, I believe there are 33 teeth, so one tooth is equivalent to about 10.9° at the cam, 21.8° at the crank. Thinking in these terms it's off by about a ¼-tooth on the cam sprocket. Doesn't seem like a huge amount in those terms.

Here is a thread about cam profiles that might be helpful. I'm curious what others have to say about this.
 
tmross said:
ya 174/180 with Lisle gauge. not that far over the 170 spec.
Click to expand...
At least that kind of confirms the idea that decking the head may have caused a change to the compression chamber volume and contributed to the slight cam timing discrepancy.

It really bugs me that the motor is not performing when fully warm.

What about trying colder plugs, i.e., BR9ES?
 
One more potentially cockamamie theory.
  • Your cam timing investigation shows that the crank reaches TDC before the cam reaches its designated position. Valve action is delayed.
  • If the ignition timing is based on the crank, then the exhaust valve opens later on the power stroke relative to the spark and more heat is retained in the combustion chamber.
I'm not sure if retarding the timing slightly would help, but maybe the colder plugs would help compensate a little if this is what's going on.

I'd be tempted to retard the timing a degree or so and try colder plugs.
 
@stl360+450 I did indeed try retarding ignition timing a few deg and also put a colder plug in the left cylinder, didn't help anything unfortunately.

Unrelated issue, starter clutch is making a noise right after cold startup (see below). I took the rotor off and looked at the rollers and other components. The rollers had some ever so slight wear marks, would that be enough to cause them to get hung up/ not disengage properly? Just want to know precisely what could cause that noise before I throw money at this, considering these rollers really don't look that bad.
 
Sounds like the typical light chatter of the rollers on the drive sprocket surface, notice it only happens when the engine is running faster than the starter and the starter is slowing down. If bikes sit for a period of time and most of the oil in the area drains away, the rollers can chatter a little like that until a longer ride wets them down fully later. Generally is not a sign of the clutch starting to need replacement parts, but I'd keep an ear on it anyway.
 
I agree that sounds pretty normal.
However even though the rollers can look ok the springs have likely compressed over the years.
Here's a photo of the springs out of my CL350 compared to a new spring.

71_CL350_155.jpg
The starter clutch parts are still available from Honda and aren't that expensive if you decide to change them out.
 
I'm pretty sure Cometic has the gasket template for the 350's. They do offer custom thicknesses that you can get for the head gasket to offset the decking. I hate the parts cannon approach but that may be an option as well.

If you do go that route, you have to go through a Cometic dealer after getting the proper SKU from Cometic directly and then placing a special order - I used Summit Racing for it.
 
yesterday i tried an experiment with 20w50 oil, to see if the extra viscosity helped with the low oil pressure at full temp idle issue. It didn't, but I did blow the pushrod seal out this morning on a ride. I lost half the oil by the time I got home and saw it leaking. So no more 20w50 for me.
 
tmross said:
yesterday i tried an experiment with 20w50 oil, to see if the extra viscosity helped with the low oil pressure at full temp idle issue. It didn't, but I did blow the pushrod seal out this morning on a ride. I lost half the oil by the time I got home and saw it leaking. Fun stuff.
Click to expand...
Time to fab up a clutch rod seal retainer from a piece of flat metal. Here's one @Boomer343 made for his.

CB350 Clutch rod seal keeper

Working on a keeper without sacrificing the neutral switch. Tried drilling into the side, tapping M6 then putting in a post locked in with a nut. Thin material and in a crowded location plus this will need to be done in frame so that limits depth of taps and potential scarf in the case. Drilled...
www.vintagehondatwins.com www.vintagehondatwins.com

and another made by @Emlupi

CL350 Vintage racer project

Seal retainer looks good. (y)
www.vintagehondatwins.com www.vintagehondatwins.com
 
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