I remember when these first rolled out. A lot of people laughed at them (myself included) because they were so different and clunky looking compared to the sleek inline 4 designs we were used to. I remember thinking that Honda had managed to build a bike uglier than a Motoguzzi. They never sold all that well, but they proved themselves from a performance and longevity standpoint. These engines are pretty much bullet proof. There are so many of these bikes out there still waiting to be saved, and the customizing people are doing to them is amazing. Very cool. Having watched these engines over the years, and especially now seeing a new engine outside of the bike, it's definitely a piece of industrial art.
@@ekspatriat Back in the day in the US they didn't. But seeing what everyone is doing to them, I want one. I have a 1984 VT500 which I love (it's my second one, I had a 1983 which I sold thirty years go and regretted it) and would love to have either the 500 or 650 version of the CX/GL.
My 1981 Silver Wing used that engine. It remains one of my favorite bikes when viewed through the long lens of history. Smooth, quiet, frugal, and capable describe operation thereof. My bike never required repairs other than regular maintenance. The relative light weight compared to other touring bikes made for easy handling. I bought it for $1100 and wish I had kept it much longer.
Looks amazing new 'out of the box'!!! that definitely deserves to be on display! I've spent an unreasonable amount of time staring at my rebuilt one on my engine test stand, or staring at it while spinning it around on the lazy susan. These engines are works of art.
As a lover of all things CX I was emotional seeing this engine coming out of its cocoon. It looks beautiful and I think the Display mount is a good idea. A homage to the CX. Thanks for the video BJ.
The original Honda CX500 was one of the favourite motorcycles for despatch riding in London in the 1980's. There were literally gazillions of them, and one rider at our despatch firm kept his looking brand new, despite it being ridden in all weather conditions. Every Saturday he spent about five hours meticulously cleaning and waxing his. Every Monday morning we'd all look on, utterly amazed at his brand new looking bike. Their burbling sound was totally unique, no other bike sounded like or looked like the CX500, especially with those ComStar wheels. A new engine from way back is a truly fantastic find, thank you for sharing, subscribed.
Was it only me that had continual stator failures on CX500's? (to be fair mine was the Turbo model, and I put over 100,000 km's on it) but it went through stators like clockwork, every 25k. After the 4th one, I just ran out of courage and money to keep riding it. Knowing the countdown stator death clock was ticking, it kept me from taking it when and where I wanted to tour across N.A. That, sadly, took it's toll on my enjoyment. It was my favourite bike ever and I would still be riding it, if I had solved the stator issue, sigh.
Sounds like a special circumstance with added heat and current draw on the turbo model combined with that many miles. Stator failures aren't uncommon but probably less common than your failure rate
I actually watched the whole video before commenting. I'm glad you opened it, it's claustrophobic in a crate and I can't wait for the final project, MUCH better than just leaving it in a crate.
Well, I've PDI'ed more new motorcycles than I can ever remember in my years working in Yamaha and Suzuki dealerships but never unboxed a whole brand new engine. Kind of odd considering I've never known a warranty engine replacement as the companies are so stingy on claims. Shame it's only a DR's special but very interesting. Thanks for sharing.
Yep..I PDI'd several hundred New Hondas in the '60s.....always a good feeling to fire the Engine up and ride the bike around the Block.... Stale Fuel and transit damage.....but that was rare..
Better to have as a display than being broken in pieces or in a junkyard. You’re doing the right thing by preserving it, a nice piece of Honda history for others to admire and enjoy it and a good conversation piece for sure. Can’t wait to see what the end result.
Cool to see what an NOS engine looks like right out of the crate. I was going to suggest taking the piece of the crate that says "made in Japan" and using that in the display, but it sounds like you're already thinking about doing that.
I remember these were one of the first bikes that did NOT have a kick start... Most of the small battery's back then were always bad and we NEVER used the electric start....... I thought these were going to be a problem but the future proved me wrong.....
Hi BJ Cool project mate. It was nice peeking inside the crate to see a brand new GL500 motor. I'm glad you opened the crate to see the brand new motor in the flesh. You nearly gave me a heart attack when you said you were going to make a display engine and you showed us a cut down Ducati ! Thankfully your making a cool display of a running engine. Looking forward to the next video
Thanks Steve! The Ducati engine was a warranty engine from a dealer so not sure what was wrong with it. I didn't cut it up at all but simply blocked off some ports and fabricated a bunch of stuff. You know as well as anyone how self contained these are so they couldn't be more perfect to make run in a small space
@@BrickHouseBuilds Actually I like the idea of a cut down CX500 display engine I have plenty of old case and parts. So that could be a future project. I'm sure the Mrs will love it proudly displayed in the lounge
I just found your channel. Was watching you inbox the crate motor. That little light bulb you found. Looks like an old electric TV tube the old old TV and RADIO’s used to have in them. That’s odd that you would find that in there.
Be nice to put that in a bike and put it to good use. Remember helping several people who bought new in the crate Honda CBX engines in the mid-late 80's, Honda was just about giving them away at that time. Wish I'd used some foresight myself there for my own CBX! Thanks for a cool "unveiling" video, sad it has to be a display model though. Each to their own!
Great engine had a cx for 10 yrs no probs at all except for the mechanical seal,could do valve clearance in 20 mins so easy,just noticed you have a manual cam chain adustment
The CX500 engine originally had a mass of warranty claims related to the cam chain tensioner, so there may have been some engines held in stock. Once that issue was resolved they were great.
The information tag is probably from the check off at the end of the assembly line or after the engine had been turned over by an electric motor as part of it's initial run in. Since this engine never made it into a frame, it has never been fired up. That would have happened at the end of the assembly line where the bike is started and run on a chassis dyno to make sure it drives in all gears. Making it a runner should be pretty easy, just wire up the ignition system, and starter circuits. There are several different running engines mounted in engine stands used in the American Honda training centers. Students tear them down and reassemble them, after which they need to run and shift through all the gears.
Yea inspecting the bores showed zero carbon on the pistons from even a moment of being ran. As you say they would have spun them up to test and prime. These are very easy to wire up
Neat idea! Betting it will look fantastic when finished. Wonder if anyone has ever turned the motor from its transverse position and installed a chain drive…could be fun!🤣 🤔 Carbs in the breeze with some sort of scoop sucking in forced air.🤷🏻♂️
Well it's got a new owner so it's his decision what happens to it. I was thinking at the start though to keep the crate timber. It's the only time you'll get a crate from all those years ago. Put a heavy glass top over it and it's a coffee table!
It's not like the engine could be appreciated still in the box (I mean it's interesting and all) , it will still be a brand new old stock engine on a mobile stand and if some of the crate wood is incorporated into the stand then all the better. I don't think it will be "ruined"
Is this the same engine that is on a 1981 (ish) silverwing 500cc ? They were sell them cheap in 1982. I bought a 1981 KZ550 4 cylinder for $1500 in 1982. There was a huge surplus of Japanese bikes. Also bought a 1981 Kaw 305 in 1982 for around $1500 also.
The Japanese Chinese characters on the slip show that the title means "Completed Inspection Results", and the items inspected are (as far as I can identify): whether the clutch works, whether the neutral switch is normal, whether each gear switch is smooth, whether the engine runs with abnormal vibration, whether the ignition is normal, whether the engine is damaged or cracked, whether there is an oil leak... etc. Is there any oil in the engine that has been stored for so long? If there is, perhaps the internal rubber seals of the engine may have been damaged by the acidified oil.
As mentioned it has had oil in it the entire time. The output shaft seal does not appear to be leaking at all but beyond that you would have the oil pump orings to think about. I have brought many bikes back to life after 30 years with no negative effects.
Sorry, I think it’s a mistake turning this into a “Museum” piece… . Sure, it will remain young forever, and I get that, but I would have liked to see it go into a bike. Well, to the Victors go the spoils… . It’s not wrong, but it would have been neat to see how a brand new 500 would have run. 😔
It would run the same as most any CX that has had any basic maintenance done. I feel if it was put into a regular old bike there would be nothing special about it. I'll do this justice I promise.
There are endless CX and GL500s that everyone just called manuer pumps and maggots. They are all the same. This is unique and a real art piece which means its also subjective. I offered it for sale for a while and no purists wanted to buy it to put into a bike. The person that did buy it wanted something cool and commissioned this project which I very much enjoyed!
I could just buy a cheap CX for a couple hundred bucks to ride. This will have a cool story. Once in a regular bike it is 100% like any other cx/gl engine out there
@@spldrong No rust, I showed that in the video. The engine is very very clea. If it were a rare engine I'd feel differently but since its out of the crate it has lost that "never been opened" appeal so why not have some fun with it.
@@BrickHouseBuilds most the ones around me here in mid Texas are either converted café racers or left outside to long some how got mine for 1000 was a garage kept bike with 3176 miles on it ...... now it has like 75k on it
Hahaha this one held up for 40 years so thats a pretty good crate if you ask me. Also Asia doesn't have the same wood we do so the quality takes a hit from that naturally
