The International CBX Owners Association

hey that's what my new pistons looked like....7 months ago
I'm skeptical how much of a difference ceramic coating will make. I'm not an expert on it but I assume good fuel, carburetor balance and maintenance is important here.
I just scrubbed clean a set of pistons out of a 1984 GS1150 and it wasn't too bad and now that I've cleaned them they're probably good for another 20yrs or until the next ring job or overbore.


I couldn't rationalize the extra cost for myself but you seem to go the extra mile for perfection which is what you're comfortable with, the next person that owns your bike is going to love it.

wyly wrote: I'm skeptical how much of a difference ceramic coating will make. I'm not an expert on it but I assume good fuel, carburetor balance and maintenance is important here.

I don't think it will make a big difference - certainly not anything I could notice from the cockpit. And I agree that normal maintenance items and being in a good tune, along with doing the rebuild & break-in right will be much larger factors. Furthermore, the upsized oil cooler and thermostat should have a much bigger effect on heat mgmt and good running than the coatings.

However, I do think that the coatings will make the safety margin and longevity a bit better - and both things are important to me.

I don't think that I am saying anything new here, but just in case. Here are two very important things to keep your pipes from turning blue.
1) Jetting. A lean mixture will blue your pipes in a hurry. Better a little to fat than a little too lean.
2) The choke (enrichener) on a CBX will blue your pipes (even double walled stock ones) faster than anything else I know of. If you
want to keep your pipes pretty, use that little choke lever for as short a time as possible or not at all. Do not rev it up with the choke on.
DAMHIK
Best,
Phil

I'm picking up the head assembly from the post office tonight, and the coated pistons are supposed to be ready in the next few days. With some luck, I'll be riding again in June sometime.

FalldownPhil wrote:I don't think that I am saying anything new here, but just in case. Here are two very important things to keep your pipes from turning blue.
1) Jetting. A lean mixture will blue your pipes in a hurry. Better a little to fat than a little too lean.
2) The choke (enrichener) on a CBX will blue your pipes (even double walled stock ones) faster than anything else I know of. If you
want to keep your pipes pretty, use that little choke lever for as short a time as possible or not at all. Do not rev it up with the choke on.
DAMHIK
Best,
Phil

my Pipemasters turned yellow/gold...I expected they would.
I did think about ceramic coating the inside of the pipes in an effort to keep them bright.
But the Z is my daily driver and I don't mind if it looks the part and develops a patina and a bit grungy.

Alright, there have been multiple holdups (coater runs his business part-time as a side gig, but appears to have done very nice work). Tomorrow I'll have all of the parts for the bike in the same room for the first time since last Dec. Then it's a question of when the mechanics can get to work on it - I told them that there's no time pressure, but I'll tell you all that I'm really hoping to be riding it by Canada Day.

Yesterday I applied the anti-reflective coating to the gauge glass for my 3 custom gauges - I'm letting that sit/cure until tomorrow and will update then with pics of the gauges and the coated pistons & head assembly.

Here we go - a little photo update. I ran all of these parts out to the shop today, hoping to have the bike back in a month.


Thermal Barrier Coating on the combustion chambers and valves.


Combustion chamber detail.


Pistons - Thermal Barrier Coating on crown, Dry Film Lubricant on skirt.


Tach with AR coating


Speedo with AR coating


Flash on, no reflection. I didn't get a "before" shot of this, but I am confident that the gauge faces would have been white hot in this shot with the flash.

Hey Phil, what are your expectations for the coatings, are you going to take any pictures as the motor comes together?

Gauges look great as well!

jb

Jeff Bennetts wrote:Hey Phil, what are your expectations for the coatings, are you going to take any pictures as the motor comes together?

Gauges look great as well!

jb

Thanks. I'm optimistic about the improvements to the gauges.

My expectations for the coatings is that they give me a small improvement in heat management and engine longevity to give this engine the best possible chance at lasting as long as it should. I don't expect that there will be any change I can feel or measure directly.

Phil;
If you don't mind and just for future reference. What was the approx cost of the ceramic coating?

Mouse wrote:Phil;
If you don't mind and just for future reference. What was the approx cost of the ceramic coating?

It varies a lot from coater to coater. I went with a guy who was close to my home and who came recommended by someone I trust, and it was about $500 CDN for all 6 pistons, and $200 for the combustion chambers and valves. There's a guy in Windsor who does it much cheaper, but then there'd be the hassle and expense of shipping 2 ways added in, too.

For pistons, JE sells them with the TBC on the crown and DFL on the skirts. If I were doing it again, I'd order them with the CC and TS coatings. This should be possible through TIMS, as the pistons he sells are JE, but neither he nor his engine builder Roger seem to really know about this stuff:

http://www.jepistons.com/TechCorner/PistonCoatings.aspx

Can anyone tell me how I can be certain that the cams I have are the '79 spec? Is there a telltale mark or number on them, or do they have to be measured?

Just measure them. I've posted the specs here two or three times.

Dave

In the home stretch on the engine rebuild, Phil?
Cam specs. viewtopic.php?t=1218

That thread does not give the actual lobe specs. Another search might turn them up. I can't get to my books right now,

Dave