I have finally dismantled my 550 four honda motor, and the lesson has given me a new insight in the benefits of blue printing. Honda have always made a quality product (lets forget about the cb400N hawk for a second) with great metallurgy and blindingly simple designs that put them far ahead of their english counterparts in terms of reliability.
The curious thing about Honda's older machines was that they were steadily detuned over the course of their production. The venerable 750 four started out rated at 67hp, with a wicked throttle response, a fast advance unit and a painful set of four individual carbs with four individual throttle cables. Hop on the early K series machines and they're a blast, if not immensely top heavy. After trying a friends late model 750, it felt like it was missing half the power. Stock air box, stock pipes, stock jetting and the ignition was in check and everything.
Allegedly this was all in the name of increasing user friendliness and fuel economy. There's a guy in Colorado who goes by the name Honda Man who has built over 100 750/4's. He reckons by the fifth year of production the big honda was down to 38 horsepower. Even the 'Black Bomber' cb450 twin has more punch on paper than the later version, the cb500 twin.
All of this Honda tomfoolery is obvious in my 500/4. It was designed to be easy to maintain, easy to produce and not be overly loud. The inlet tubes that the carbs hang onto are mismatched to the inlet bores, interrupting flow. There's casting marks inside and down to the inlet valve as well as out exhaust tract, doing the same, which will require a soft dremel and a polish. The standard exhaust is restrictive and the standard cam (besides being worn to an inch of its life) is made to be user friendly and smooth as possible.
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