RE: Brake lines, the CB400F

["John Dancoe" <jdan@xxxxxxxx>]

Bob Minor wrote:

>Galfer has lines for our bikes [snip] Very tidy.  I installed these lines on
my RS
>when I pulled my ABS (no flames please), the improvement in brake
>responsiveness and feel was significant.

My experience with Galfer braided lines would be described the same way.

Re: Honda CB400F

Just gotta reminisce a little...

I'd never heard of BMW 'til one day in 1977 my dad came home and told me I
could have his Yamaha TX750. I went out in the driveway and saw why: a
pristine '75 smoke/silver R90S was Dad's new ride.

When we moved from Michigan to Arizona in 1978 we brought the R90S but not the
Yamaha. During Christmas break that year I took the R90S on my first long
distance solo road trip, from Phoenix to Orange, California, where my best
friend (also from Michigan) had recently moved. It was a fantastic ride, and
what a great bike.

When I got back to Phoenix, Dad announced he was planning to sell the R90S. I
advised him not to. "I can buy us each a bike with what I can get for the
BMW", he said. "Don't do it!" I pleaded. "I'd rather borrow that bike than
have anything else of my own; you'll regret it."

But sell it (and regret it) he did. For my high school graduation, though, he
made good on his plan, and presented me with a fire engine red CB400F. A sharp
little bike, very peppy, and perfectly suitable for buzzing around town.

I have to admit I was fine with that for a few months. But whenever something
went wrong with it I found that it was clearly made for Japanese fingers to
work on; my fat European fingers weren't very good at getting into all those
nooks and crannies. And on any trip longer than an hour and a half, it would
become way uncomfortable. I kept thinking how easy it was to sit on that BMW
for hours at a time, and how easy it would be to work on great big engine
parts that hung right out where you could get at 'em.

I told Dad he should keep an eye out for a BMW. In November of '79 he was in a
Yamaha shop trying to buy a driveshaft boot for the 360 Yamaha that he'd
bought for himself after selling the R90S. A '74 R60/6 was sitting out front.
After special ordering the boot, he came back 3 weeks later and there was that
R60/6 again. He inquired if it was for sale. Indeed it was, on consignment.
Dad called me and I came up, and was unimpressed. It was very dirty and
although the bike was black it had a white Wixom fairing. Ugly as hell
compared to my Honda.

But I took it for a test ride and realized instantly why the Yamaha dealer was
riding it around rather than trying to sell it. Took it home, removed the
white fairing, cleaned it up and it would have passed for new. So the Honda
went bye-bye. I was a bit sad to see the CB400F go, but I've never regretted
buying the R60/6, which in many ways determined the course of my life and
career.

John D

p.s. What became of the Honda? I sold it to the mother of one of my high
school buddies. Yeah, Mrs. Lukes was a hot mamma all right. Then his little
brother totalled it. A shame, but not an uncommon fate for a UJM.

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End of oilheads-digest V2 #48
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