1970 400 Cross Hybrid back in the stable

Yes, and I remember the lever on the brake plate would gather up grass and branches when it faced forward, but not so on the left side. That and the cable routing were the reasons for the "flip".

I like this.....look forward to your progress.
Additionally I can attest to the quality products from Vintage Husky.. John did mechanicals/paint on my 400 cross as well as my 450 WR, & provided parts.

Looks good. I'm also in process of getting my 360 going. Found out today the motor is back together, sent it out for simple fact like you said before life gets in the way. Glad to hear someone else saving one.

i'm looking forward to seeing more of this! i recently sold my TE450 to fund my business and i've just today bought a '71 400 Cross.

Can't wait to get it and decide what to do with it......

Ride it, or you going to sell it without riding it like the superduke... LOL
Guy from the "other" Forum! look forward to catch up with you!

Awesome story. Keep us posted on your plans and work being done.

I'm back...it's been a while. The project is nearing completion and I have taken lots of photos, but I haven't posted for a long time.

After the media blasting, I painted the brake parts with Plastikote 215 low gloss black engine enamel.
I chose this paint for the color and sheen as well as the fact that is is gasoline and solvent resistant. I will also use it on the engine and exhaust as it is a fairly high temperature paint, as well.

When I had the zinc plating done with the barrel method, I couldn't include the large parts so I sent them off to another plater that uses a plating line (dip method). I was very fortunate that the original seat base was rust free, although the seat base of the Enduro bike was badly rusted. I was also fortunate that the rear sprocket was in fairly good shape, other than rust and scratches. The rear brake rod was the final piece to be plated at that time.

Probably the worst job of the entire restoration was trying to restore the original wheel rims. I spent hours and hours on the rims. I had some cracks and holes that had to be welded up, then grinding, sanding, more sanding, (until my fingers were bleeding) followed by polishing and more polishing. Fooey!
The end result was worth it, however. I guess I could have spent megabucks on new rims, but they wouldn't be yellow label Akronts.

Then I had to re-spoke the rims and mount the tires.

did you zinc plate a half used sprocket?

You bet. I would have bought a NOS sprocket if I could have found one, but I searched for a long time. This one is actually quite good, just not "Concours".

I set the wheels into the frame in order to center and true the rims. Then I mounted the tires. The front tube is an original Trelleborg, brass valve stem and all. The front tire is a vintage Metzeler Six Days with virtually no wear on it. Jim must have put it on the bike just before he parked it for 40 years. There was a worn out vintage 6 Days Metzeler on the rear, so I figured the best option was to buy a new Metzeler 6 Days and mount it on the rear rim. Unfortunately, It doesn't have that vintage "look".

looking good mate!

I pretty much have a rolling chassis now, so it's time to get started on the motor. I made a motor stand with a piece of plywood and some threaded ready-rod and nuts. A good restoration demands that the engine parts be painted before final assembly so that the exposed gaskets are not painted over. After disassembling the engine and gearbox, I checked everything for wear, gouges, stripped bolt heads, etc.

Collected all the necessary items, cleaned, scraped, painted as required. New ball bearings and seals of course. I had 3 complete engines, so I picked the best parts to build this restoration. Of course I only had one 8 speed gearbox. I recall way back in the '70's, I found that the gap from 1st gear to 2nd gear was too wide on the sportsman gearbox. I ordered a mainshaft, 1st idler gear and kickstart gear for a 400 Cross from Al (the dealer I bought it from) and installed them. That was over 40 years ago so this was the second time that I had split this engine and had the gearbox apart!

The 8 speed with the 400 gearbox was a big improvement. One of the items Jim gave me when I bought the bike back from him, was a brand new, very unique and hard to find 8 speed selector which resides inside the left crankshaft. They get abused and if not in good condition, the selector will keep jumping into a false neutral between the drive gears.

As I built up the engine, I chose to use the original slot head bolts that hold the case halves together, but for the outer covers, I used allen head bolts just because, in my opinion, Husky should have done that. It is much easier to carry an allen wrench than it is to carry a hammer type impact just in case the drive chain comes off miles out on a ride. Like the air cleaner.... why would I use paper when dual density foam makes more sense? As much as possible, I used original parts on this build. Most of the bolts and nuts are original, but replated. Some parts are reproductions, like the chain guard, handlebars and front fender. When I rebuilt the front fork, I sent the inner tubes to a hydraulic cylinder repair shop and had them ground and re-chromed. I actually sent 4 tubes, just because I had 4. Anybody interested in a pair? Fork seals are identical to the original seals.

Nice restoration. I've done two full restorations and the amount of time put into a complete restoration is huge. Not only will your Husky look nice but the 400 and 8 spd combo is going to be really bitchin.

I notice that the clutch springs have nylon lock nuts instead of plain nuts with OEM lock plates. I'm curious about your thoughts on this. Sure hate to see the nuts back off and saw a hole in the side case.

What are your intentions. Are you going to ride it much?

Looking forward to seeing it completed.

< "I notice that the clutch springs have nylon lock nuts instead of plain nuts with OEM lock plates." >

Good eyes... The original plates are kind of a pain in the a.. if you need to make adjustments. (I have the originals, and they have been bent lots of times). I think the lock nuts will be fine in any case. The springs put a lot of pressure on the nuts, making it hard for them to back off. The bike will not get ridden much, more for show. Too much blood, sweat, and tears have gone into this build, to have it get scratched, nicked, or dented.