Honda 'Cafe Racers' Big and small
When I was ten years old, a neighborhood teen had just purchased his first new Honda
550F motorcycle, all screaming Orange metallic and chrome. It wasn't long before the original four into four pipes were jettisoned in favor of a RC Collins four-into-one system that let everyone know of his arrival long before he was visible. Amazing how tolerant the neighbors were. A few years after that I'd test their limits of patience in my 1963 Ford Fairlane while learing the finer points of smoking the rear tires and soon after the clutch too. I've been enamored by cars since I can remember, but it's the sound of high revving Japanese motorcycles that reverberate in my head when I think back to those innocent times. While another older neighbor had a Harley Panhead and my father a BMW R69, it was the 'all action' noise of those fast boys on Japanese bikes that made me want to ride.
It would be no surprise that when I finally started riding bikes I would find myself drawn to those Honda's that first made my ears perk up as a child. My younger brother had started riding years before me and sparked my interest in riding as an adult. After choosing a Honda V45 Magna as my first bike, I decided that the 'cruiser style' was not for me. The bike was plenty fast, in fact it scared me on numerous occasions, but I'd chalk that up more to my limited skills than the bikes performance. The next bike was a Moto Guzzi T5 which brought me to my local Honda dealer, Keystone Honda of West Chester, PA where I saw a bike that left me standing speechless in the showroom. It was a 1975 Rickman Honda 750 that featured a suede seat and the the legend " Hot Damn Honda' on the sidecovers.
After little more than two years on two wheels, I was not prepared for what the level of performance this bike offered. Despite the long reach to the narrow clip-on bars over the two foot and half foot long fuel tank, I was obsessed with it immediately and struck a deal. Goodbye practical Guzzi, hello Rickman Honda.
The Kerker four-into-one pipe that exited very low on the right side was nearly my undoing on more than one occasion and even caused my far more experienced brother to nearly come off when he was surprised to find the limit to the cornering clearance in the middle of a blind right hand turn at speed. The engine was punched out to 860cc and in truth it was more style than speed as I learned when a buddy flat out left me behind on his Honda 550 as soon as the roads turned twisty.
Despite the brutal ergonomics, I actually commuted on this bike for some time until I took up racing and decided to cut it loose for a handsome profit. A few years later I would return to Honda Fours again, first in 350cc form, then 400 and 550's too.
Each one has their own unique feel and offered a clean canvas to customize.
This tasty little Honda 350F came about as a result of a someone offering me an old fairing that inspired me to make a very slow motorcycle at least look faster. I cringe to think that I actually drilled holes in the exhaust baffles to 'improve' the sound. Bzzzzzzz, brraaappp, baaahhhh, up thru the gears she'd rev, like a swarm of angry hornets chasing you down the road. Today, as I get older, and wiser, I preach the gospel of quieter pipes to all who'll listen. Anyone who can still hear, that is.
The compact design of the stock 350F was more to my liking than the longer & heavier Rickman CR750. The performance wasn't as inspiring, but quick enough if you kept it wound on. Cafe Racers are as much about flash as flight.
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