Jun's Garage
The bike, the bench,
the journey.
This is my corner of the world, one motorcycle, a wall of tools, and everything they've taught me. No reviews, no rankings. Just my hands, my mistakes, and the machine I keep coming back to.
“Kintsugi”
1978 Honda CB550
The Current Build
1978 Honda CB550
1978, cafe-raced, by hand, over four winters
I bought her as a box of parts and a rolling frame. Everything you see, I touched. She's not the fastest thing in the lane, and that was never the point, she's the bike that taught me how to listen.
The numbers
- Engine
- 544cc air-cooled inline-four, SOHC
- Power
- ~45 hp at the crank (on a good day)
- Dry weight
- 189 kg, lighter since the diet
- Year
- 1978, older than me
- Fuel
- 4× Keihin 22mm, freshly synced
- Wheels
- 18" rear, single front disc, rebuilt
Mods done, by these two hands
- Hand-stitched brown leather cafe seat
- Clip-on bars + rearset controls
- Pod filters & re-jetted carbs
- Powder-coated frame in matte graphite
- 4-into-1 stainless exhaust
- LED headlight, mini bar-end mirrors
Maintenance Log
Everything she's been through
A real logbook, kept by hand. Every date, every reading, every lesson. The machine remembers what the rider forgets.
- ServiceMay 12, 202638,420 km
Valve clearance check & carb sync
Spring shakedown before the riding season. Intakes were a hair tight. Synced all four carbs by ear and gauge, idle finally settled into that even, breathing hum. Nothing beats it.
- ServiceMar 28, 202638,010 km
New chain & sprockets
Old chain had a tight spot I kept ignoring. Swapped the lot, dropped a tooth on the front for a lazier highway gait. Measure twice, torque once.
- RepairFeb 9, 202637,650 km
Rear shock rebuild
Found a weep on the left shock during a wash. Pulled both, rebuilt with fresh seals and 10wt oil. The road stopped shouting and started talking again.
- ModNov 22, 202536,900 km
4-into-1 stainless exhaust
Saved up all summer for this one. Tucked the header tight, re-jetted to match. She breathes deeper now, but the real win is the silence between the throttle blips.
- RepairSep 4, 202535,480 km
Fork seals & fresh oil
A wet patch on the slider told the whole story. New seals, new oil, careful with the dust caps. Front end feels honest under braking now.
- ModJun 15, 202534,100 km
Pod filters & re-jet
Pulled the airbox, fitted pods, went up two sizes on the mains. Took three test rides to dial in. Patience is its own kind of tuning.
- ModApr 2, 202533,200 km
Hand-stitched cafe seat
Spent two weekends on the pan and foam, one evening on the leather. My stitches are crooked in the corners. I will never replace it.
- ServiceJan 18, 202532,640 km
Full fluid & filter service
Mid-winter ritual in a cold garage with a space heater and a thermos. Oil, filter, plugs, points cleaned. The bike sleeps better for it. So do I.
The Journey
Memories worth the mileage
The moments that stuck. Some triumphant, some humbling. All of them logged somewhere a wrench can't reach.
The first cough of life
Four winters of work, and then one cold morning she fired on the third kick. I sat on the garage floor and just listened to her idle. Didn't ride that day. Didn't need to.
First real ride
Twenty kilometres of empty back road at dawn. Everything I had bolted on was suddenly underneath me, holding me up. I have never trusted anything more.
The breakdown that taught me
Stranded with a fouled plug, two hours from home, no signal. I cleaned it with a pocketknife and a prayer. She started. The mountain taught me to carry tools and humility.
First long tour
Eight hundred kilometres of coast over four days. Just me, the bike, and a tank bag. The journey stopped being about arriving somewhere a long time before the end.
A quiet night in the garage
No project, no fix. Just a rag, some chrome polish, and the radio low. Some maintenance is for the machine. Some of it is for the rider.
Build Films
Hours in the garage, cut down to minutes
I film some of the work, partly to remember, partly because someone, somewhere, is staring at the same stubborn bolt I once was.