'Barn find' or backyard find

[Fire-medic]

I stopped at my friend's shop to check on things, and he gave me a Cheshire cat smile. "I've got something you're going to like," he said. We walked out to the front yard, and we removed a bike cover, and there it was, a Canadian tag on it, last registration was 1987.



It was found in a Ft. Lauderdale backyard, where it sat for the last 35 years. I's estimate it's $4K as it sits. The early model twin-shock models are worth more than the Pro-Link single shock ones w/their fairing and Honda Line saddlebags. It's probably worth more parted out than operational/restored.

Just after he showed it to me, our friend, one of the machinists who does work for the shop, called, he'd heard about the bike, and wondered if the shop was going to acquire it. "Yes we did, acquire it," the shop owner told him, "and I've shown it to someone already, you know, one of the 'regular customers' for this type of thing."

I wonder who that could be?

Later I texted the machinist, and told him I had some pics. He immediately asked for them. I sent him this one, and he said, "that's an easy one." Well, yeah, he's a machinist!

I have so-many things on my plate, I doubt I'll be the ultimate recipient. Sure is tempting though. I once rode one across Tamiami Trail to Naples FL and back, and the sound of one of those at 7,000 rpm cruising, sounds more like a high-performance air-cooled Porsche Carrera than a Honda.

 

[DirtieGirtie]

Do it! Do it! Do it!
I know how it goes with a full plate. But will you get another chance for a CBX in this lifetime?!?

 

[Fire-medic]

Do it! Do it! Do it!
I know how it goes with a full plate. But will you get another chance for a CBX in this lifetime?!?

Yeah, it would be one to enjoy, but I have so-many projects, I need to concentrate on getting things done. Acquiring 'projects,' but not doing anything w/them, is not a good route to take.

 

[Fire-medic]

A Canton OH CBX owner redlines his CBX 6/1. At 2:22, yowp-yowp! His expressway riding & high rev's is in the front of the video, the last 2/3 is urban streets, so you don't get the aural rewards of the expressway time.

https://timeless2wheels.com/40395/honda-cbx-1000/
More from youtube:


The soundtrack sounds like Gary Glitter and The History of Rock & Roll, Part II starting at 2:37. The narrative says the CBX is a 'direct descendent' of the Grand Prix Honda bikes like the 250cc RC166 which Mike Hailwood said of, "they don't pay me enough to ride this bloody thing!" That's quite a stretch, but OK, they both have 6 cylinders. The RC166 had a redline twice that of the CBX! And, it was 1/4 the displacement. Nobby Phillips, who was a team Honda GP mechanic for Mike Hailwood, had plenty of stories about the finicky nature of the Grand Prix bikes. He had to walk a fine line between keeping Hailwood's engines running, tuning the suspension, and trouble-shooting things when the engineers' plans didn't produce the power and characteristics designed into them.

https://www.cyclenews.com/2016/09/article/the-first-alien/


Redline is 18,000 RPM!



Hailwood privately commissioned a frame from England by Reynolds Frame Makers, in 1968 for the 350cc RC181 Grand Prix bike because he was too worn-out from fighting the Honda's factory frame geometry. It would raise blisters on his hands during a GP, and take a toll on his ability to go fast, easily. The English frame was an improvement, demonstrated in less rider fatigue and faster practice lap times, but when Mr. Honda got wind of it, he forbade its use, after Hailwood won the Italian Grand Prix on it! He 'punished' Hailwood by minimizing mention of Hailwood in the factory museum.

Nobby Clark once was tasked with determining the loss of RPM's on a Grand Prix RC166, which had been unable to meet performance spec's. The RC166 was a fragile thing, individual components were sized according to their bearing loads, like FEA today. Parts specs were different across the crankshaft bottom end, reciprocating parts, and top-end. For instance the big end had different specs, you couldn't put a #1 connecting rod in-place of the #3 conn rod, different bearing sizes.

Nobby tore-down the engine because it wouldn't produce the power/RPM it was projected to, and he discovered the cause: someone in the production of it had 'reversed' an oil seal, which had directional 'vanes' cast into the molded rubber, which was designed to route the oilflow for best-effect lubrication and scavenging, By being inserted backwards, oil was directed away! Installed correctly, the engine regained design performance and the RPM's returned, and power output.

I had the good fortune to meet Nobby Clark at Daytona Bike Week one year, and I told him I'd seen Richie Ginther and Ronnie Bucknum racing Honda's 1st and 2nd G.P. cars at the F1 USGP at Watkins Glen in the mid-1960's. Nobby said, "oh, I worked on those, too!"

https://www.nytimes.com/1964/10/21/...um-busy-making-changes-in-honda-cars-for.html

copyrighted
Ginther and Bucknum (in car) at the 1965 Mexican Grand Prix. This was Honda's first F1 Grand Prix win! Three weeks before, I had seen Ginther and Bucknum at the F1 USGP, the race won by Graham Hill driving a BRM, with Dan Gurney 2nd in a Brabham-Climax.

https://vault.si.com/vault/1964/08/17/japan-zeroes-in-on-world-racing

 

[Timbox]

My Tuesday night bike riding boys and I were talking about this bike. It sure does have that look, but I have to say I don't want all of them 6 cylinders under me. I love fast and even muscle bikes, but I never had the pull for this bike.

The fact that it is a engineering marvel and when they first came out they could not almost give them away. Now days as stated above, big money and collectors are looking all over the place for them.

Either way you go, good luck and I hope it brings you much happiness.

 

[Fire-medic]

For years after their 4 year production run ('78-'82), CBX's new in the crates were available. A shop owner I know, bought one NIB, and that's how he picked it up. Still in the box. That was mid 1980's. He still has it.

Ever hear about the vocational arts CBX's? Honda donated many to nationwide industrial arts programs for motorcycle mechanics training.

https://www.motorcycleclassics.com/classic-japanese-motorcycles/honda-cbx-zmmz09ndzraw/


Never started!



From the article:
Hard to believe, but in 1981 Honda distributed hundreds of its advanced CBX and V-twin CX Turbo six-cylinder motorcycles to vocational and technical schools across the U.S. The machines were donated on the assumption they would be used to teach students the ins and outs of motorcycle mechanics. But working on such a technically advanced motorcycle was surely beyond the scope of the average student.

 

[TN_Max]

They were awesome sounding bikes no doubt! Check this NOS one out...I know me, I wouldn't be able to resist putting miles on it!

1982 Honda CBX NOS

 

[Fire-medic]

I went by the shop again today, removed the bike cover, and took another look.

 

[likembikem]

One of the bikes I should never have sold. Mine was brand new, had been in a warehouse fire in N.Y. Only thing wrong was the pearl white paint blistered and the gauges messed up. Replaced them and had it painted. Paid $1500 for it. Started right up and ran great.

 

[Fire-medic]

Reggie Jackson is the most-famous NYC warehouse for bike collection fire victim I know of. A Yamaha OWO1 homologation special roadracer was a loss there. He lost his muscle car collection too. Shoulda had a sprinklered warehouse, for the $$$$$ he had there.

NYC sprinklered buildings were among the first to have such life-safety systems.

 

[likembikem]

I got mine from a local Kawasaki dealer that said it came from a Honda warehouse fire. My friend got a Honda V45. What cool looking instrument package with that volt meter in the middle. And the red back light. Too bad it only registered 85 mph! It got scary a few times in a curve, I felt like the frame/ forks could have been stiffer. But then I was early 20's and didn't have much sense back then.

 

[Fire-medic]

Spondon in the UK built a few CBX frames, the British had the geometry thing down, since the Norton 'Featherbed' frame and their 'Roadholder' forks. Then there were Girling shocks. Today, the British Midlands is home to F1 companies developing today's chassis, and tomorrow's.