60's Honda CL 160 Rebuild as Racer

[killfile]

Congrats, David!
Well worth the wait I'm sure!

What's going on with your forks topping out? Did you put in heavier springs? I'm having a similar issue on my Titan, and was going to run through heavier oils to see if I could contain the issue with more dampening.... makes bumps midcorner VERY disconcerting...

Looks like I've polished off almost everything in our garage and should be starting our 160 in the middle of June.

 

[morad]

Putting that degree to good use huh?

 

[twitchmonitor]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmGzzbNhtug

Here it is, aggravating the neighbors. One lady came out right afterword and said "do you REALLY have to run that thing up and down the street?" I don't know if the video really captures the total racket the bike makes. It's a great sound, just ragged and really loud.

This morning it wasn't running, of course. It turns out the the knock pin the keeps the timing advancer locked to the cam shaft came out. I just replaced the whole think with a pertronix magnet and sensor, now it runs just fine.

Still have some things to sort out, but I should be fine to make it to Bonneveille in time. :teeth

 

[McGrude]

:thumbup :thumbup

That's friggin' loud! Well done though.

Where's your gear, squid. :wtf

:rofl :teeth

 

[twitchmonitor]

:thumbup :thumbup



Where's your gear, squid. :wtf

:rofl :teeth

Oh, you mean my earplugs? You can't see them in this grainy video, but trust me, I'm wearing them!

 

[morad]

This might be the best thing I've ever seen in my life. Awesome!

 

[twitchmonitor]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DH6y1E5qCdk

Here's another, at a standstill.

 

[Phaedrus]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmGzzbNhtug

Here it is, aggravating the neighbors. One lady came out right afterword and said "do you REALLY have to run that thing up and down the street?" I don't know if the video really captures the total racket the bike makes. It's a great sound, just ragged and really loud.

This morning it wasn't running, of course. It turns out the the knock pin the keeps the timing advancer locked to the cam shaft came out. I just replaced the whole think with a pertronix magnet and sensor, now it runs just fine.

Still have some things to sort out, but I should be fine to make it to Bonneveille in time. :teeth

SQUID! That thing sounds/looks freaking AWESOME!!!

 

[morad]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DH6y1E5qCdk

Here's another, at a standstill.

That smile on your face... Priceless.:laughing

 

[twitchmonitor]

That smile on your face... Priceless.:laughing

It was well earned.

Oh, and I could give you a price for it :|

 

[Cereal KLR]

The Bonneville smile will be larger and stuck forever.

 

[firstbuell]

and tangy, too,

with a flavor only available near the borderline
between the Sin State & that Oh-So-Squeaky-Clean enclave

 

[Mud_Man]

I just read the whole thread. Awesome! I'm deployed right now and can't wait to get back and start on my cafe racer project. I am glad to see it can be done on such a low budget. Props!

 

[tedtwong]

Fantastic sound, great job! Congratulations Dave!

 

[HappyHighwayman]

How many HP do you think it puts out?

 

[Carlo]

Nice job! How soon can you get on the track with it?

I was at a vintage race in Portland a couple of weeks ago, and there were a good 40 or 50 of those things there, including the guys from Seattle who started the whole CB 160 thing 10 years ago.
Here's a shot of two race leaders on the front straight at 95 mph. Unbelievable.

That day, I decided the CB160 in the back of my garage is going to be racerized, not restored, like I originally planned. At 6'3", I'll look pretty goofy on it, and at 220lbs, I won't be winning any races, no matter how much I try, but it'll still be worth it.

 

[firstbuell]

95 mph?

I really don't think so......

 

[Carlo]

95 mph?

I really don't think so......

That's the speed that the track workers I spoke with told me. They have radar guns.
The track is two miles, and I timed them lapping it in the neighborhood of 1:36. That's an average speed of over 75 mph. I think 95 mph on the front straight at PIR is pretty consistent with those lap times.

Don't forget (maybe you never knew?) that in the 60's they ran 50cc bikes at the Isle of Man, and elsewhere that were hitting over 100.

 

[KazMan]

That day, I decided the CB160 in the back of my garage is going to be racerized, not restored, like I originally planned. At 6'3", I'll look pretty goofy on it, and at 220lbs, I won't be winning any races, no matter how much I try, but it'll still be worth it.

Hopefully I will be there with you next year Carlo, but don't count out the big guys as witnessed in this video...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJz6B6k1-GE

 

[Sidewalk]

That day, I decided the CB160 in the back of my garage is going to be racerized, not restored, like I originally planned. At 6'3", I'll look pretty goofy on it, and at 220lbs, I won't be winning any races, no matter how much I try, but it'll still be worth it.

One of the fastest riders in M1GP is also one of the largest and does it on a stock NSR50.