Wow, Like a lot of us older guys I was just getting back into bikes after taking many years away from the sport to raise my children. I bought my Vstrom in '07 and then decided to get myself a project.
I bought this 1980 Hondamatic CM400A for my GF and the idea was that we would restore it together. She had no idea how much work was involved so this quickly became a ME project instead of a WE project.
It only had 1024 original miles but as you can see, it was in horrible shape on the outside after having lived under a tarp outside for the better part of twenty years. We got it home and the carbs came off for rebuilding. Then it was stripped down to the frame and piece by piece, it was reassembled after each piece was cleaned/replaced as needed. It still needs a rebuild kit for the front brake and a oil cooler gasket but otherwise runs strong and smooth. I give Honda credit, while this isn’t by any means a powerful engine, the semi-automatic(two speeds) transmission is as smooth as silk and bulletproof.
Overall, I’m happy with how the bike turned out as it was my first restoration in many, many years.