1973 Honda CR250 Bike Test
At one time or another, you’ve sat around with your friends and jabbered about the mythical “composite” motorcycle. You know the one -it’ got the peak horsepower of a breathed·on Pursang, combined with the low-end grunt of a Stiletto. It`s got the plush forks of a Maico, turns like a CZ and tracks like a cut-frame Husky. It weighs less than a good 250 and has the punch of a 400. And the best part-you don’t have to do anything to the bike. just ride it like it was a 350 Honda pseudo-scrambler.
We’ve all dreamed about that kind of a machine, but up until now, it never existed.
A quick look around at the competition mounts of the Staff of DIRT BIKE shows what has to be done to make a motorcycle “right” for competition. No one but a fool rides a Maico in stock trim. Different filters, rims and assorted bozos are a must for the serious rider. Continue reading
1973 Honda CR125 Bike Test
Wow be unto the 125 class buyer. It is now officially Decision Time. We’ll take it for granted that you want to win, and you want to spend as little as you have in order to wn (or do reasonably well) in that class.
Up until now, you’ve been faced with several alternatives, let’s examine a few of them in retrospect Continue reading
1974 125 Motocross Shootout
THERE’S NO doubt about it. The Japanese have been the most instrumental power in bringing the world of small-bore off-road racing to its present level in the United States. Even way back when Yamaha Trailmaster 80s and Honda S90s were bouncing their semi-modified selves around the boonies, things were beginning to take shape. The adage that there is strength in numbers held true once again when, due to the enormous number of these trail bikes showing up at a given race, it wasn’t rare to see both an 80cc class and one for the 90s.
Then along came the Hodakas. First a four-speed 90 and then a five-speed 100. It wasn’t long before the bigger Japanese manufacturers bored their bikes out to 100 and added another gear in the transmission. As these little screamers buzzed their over-stressed guts out week-end after weekend, the European distributors took notice of the tremendous market that was being created. The European machinery was better. It was not much more reliable than the Oriental stuff, but was faster and handled better. Continue reading
1975 MX 125cc Shootout
See how the 1975 Honda CR125 compares to the other 1975 models in a test shootout, the Honda is pretty much the same as the 1974 bike with a bit of red colour added, the 1975 Kawasaki KX125 looks like the 1974 model, both these bikes still have the 4 inch rear suspension travel BUT the the radical new Suzuki RM125 comes along in 75 with long travel suspension!!! The Yamaha YZ125C introduced mono-shock suspension and a lot of horsepower into the 125 class.
This is a test that really highlights the pre 75 class with the new breed of mx bikes and a new era then follows. I rode my first real mx season on a 1975 RM125S and it was coool – big sand woops no longer held any fear, full throttle and just hit em hard!!! The RM125 tested here is the US version RM125M, the faster RM125S came to Australia.
SHOOTOUT……… As if you didn’t already know, motocross is one of the fastest growing sports in the country. It’s not hard to see why. Few sports combine action, color, speed, and finesse the way motocross does. And few sports equal motocross in ability to captivate young people, both as spectators and participants. Motocross is real for them. They don’t have to be content to just watch, they can actually do it themselves.
The favorite bikes of teenage riders are the 125s. In fact, most 125 motocross races are dominated by high school and junior high school students. And if any “seasoned veteran” of motorcycling still thinks 125s are nothing more than noisy toys and their riders dumb little kids, he should truck his 250 or 360 down to the local motocross practice track and get his doors blown off by 13-year-old Stevie Squid on his 125 Homazukasaki. As a further humiliation, he may very well learn that Stevie isn’t even one of the 125 hotshoes -he usually finishes somewhere in the middle of the pack. Continue reading
Honda Open Class Models
See the development of the Honda Open Class from 1974 over the years. Continue reading
1975 Honda CR125
1975 Honda CR125
I just love these little high revving go fast machines and came across a 1975 Honda CR125 for sale, it was much closer to home than the 74 CR125 I had just bought 2,000 miles away as it was only a little more than 1,000 miles away. I was sill learning my lessons on that bike.
It was described as a first class show bike and it looked great, the close up pics showed a fantastic restoration and the price was more than fair – I bought it, had to.
This beauty got delivered and it was good to look at.
I gave it a check, put fuel in and it fired 1st kick, u ripper, the sound was a great two stroke crackle, the engine was perfect.
Only issue quickly realised was the rear shocks were completely dead, they look beautiful but did not work and the fuel petcock leaked badly.
Well it was a show bike not a racer so not surprised about these in hindsight. Luckily I found on eBay a set of reconditioned shocks for this model and a new NOS petcock. As soon as I got them delivered this bike was 100% complete, it can show and race.
Its so good I am reluctant to race it too hard as I don’t want to scratch it.
LESSON# : there is a difference between a show bike and a race bike, make sure you ask if it can hit the track or not!
1974 Honda CR125
1974 Honda CR125
This was my first purchase of a vmx bike, I watched these CR125′s race as a kid and didnt have any money to buy one in 74 and then I saw this one on eBay. Trouble was it was 2,000 miles away on the other side of Australia and there were no bikes for sale in my area at all!
It was listed as being previously restored and in great condition but in my enthusiasm I took that as being correct and did not ask for close up photos of the bike or ask for a list of defects, it did look good in the long shots though.
I paid top money and had it freighted over…
- Fork seals were both blown
- Frame looked weary
- Leaked engine oil
- Original air filter cage was missing, small filter was bolted directly on the carb
- Side panels were both cracked
- Sprocket cover was missing part, common from chain throws.
- Chain guide was missing
- Rear wheel has several big flat spots
- Brakes very weak
- Lever perches were mismatched, missing rubbers.
- Compression was weak
- First text ride, engine bogged down in corners when leaned over.
- Bummer!
LESSON 1 : If buying a bike unseen, ask for detailed pics and for a list of issues/defects. Not everyone will disclose the defects in their ads and you need to ask.
The Way It Was
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