A really cool barn find.

[The Grey Ghost]

Just saw Honda is bringing back some of the oldies.

The red one in the pic at the beginning of the article is identical to the one I had.

https://finance.yahoo.com/m/0d595a27-b08a-3481-96ad-08e22360b415/ss_honda-monkey-and-super-cub.html

 

[Special K]

Hey ,, I can relate to that !! :biggrin

Good one!


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[ChipBeck]

Parts arriving.

Gentlemen,

The first of a boatload of new parts have arrived for this project. When finished I will have invested many multiples of this bikes monetary value! Just like most of my other projects.

Chip

 

[Special K]

Don’t throw any usable parts away. Many people are still hunting used parts on eBay.


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[Triheart7]

Cool story Chip.

 

[shesgotlegs]

Great story Chip. Brings back memories.

Some of my own were when I was 12 with my late 1960’s mini trail. Like Captain America’s classic - the rear suspension was the seat. I used to drive it endlessly and for years. Sometimes the simplest of things are the most fun :thumbsup I’ve often thought of buying another one except with proper rear suspension.

Good luck with the project brother.

 

[ChipBeck]

Parts arriving from all over.

Gentlemen,

This project would be a lot harder without the internet. The majority of what I need is still available from Honda but a lot of key components are not. I found what appears to be the only new seat on the planet but the graphics aren’t quite right as it’s a 1999 seat and the bike is a 1996. NOS new Honda fork down tubes were a great find as well as a few other items. The engine and transmission need some attention before I start on cosmetic stuff. This is like building a model airplane when I was a kid.

Chip

 

[Nafod]

My good friend had the z50, while I had a CT 70.

This project looks like a great ride for a future grandson or gal.:thumbsup

 

[ChipBeck]

Back in time.

Gentlemen,

I’m almost finished with Charley’s 23 year old Z50 and getting quite an education in the process. If this bike was 40 to 50 years old it would be a lot easier as massive numbers were sold back then and almost everything is being reproduced. But production and sales of the Z50 from 1991 to 1999 (the last year) were very small and key components are unavailable at ANY price. 90% of what I needed was a mouse click and two days away. Other items sent me on a worldwide treasure hunt and involved a lot of time on the phone. Some serious collectors are paying crazy money for rare NOS parts and so did I. I also bought another Z50 to strip it of some needed items. I’m about 95% finished and the little guy is running good and looks happy and healthy again.

Every time I see it it makes me smile and brings back memorys of how excited my 3 year old boy was on Christmas morning 1995.

Chip

 

[Brombear]

Cool. But you didn‘t expect it to be easy, did you ? Makes most projects more than throwing together a bunch of parts and calling it a day.

Enjoy it.

 

[GKW05GT]

Very cool and and am awesome coming home present.

 

[AJB]

Chip - you fit nicely on the bike.!!

I am in the process of bringing back a 1973 Honda CB750 Four.
It still has the four exhaust pipes and I even found the four black baffles that are installed in the ends.
It will not be a 'restoration /' but a "survivor mode". It has 55,000 miles and I purchased it new in 1973.
It has been a 'hand me down' thru my brothers and the family and Dad rode it until he was 91 years old.!

So My question: "best place to find parts ?" I also have found that seats cost more than I paid for the bike new.
...any advice is appreciated.
andy (ajb)

 

[Special K]

Chip - you fit nicely on the bike.!!

I am in the process of bringing back a 1973 Honda CB750 Four.
It still has the four exhaust pipes and I even found the four black baffles that are installed in the ends.
It will not be a 'restoration /' but a "survivor mode". It has 55,000 miles and I purchased it new in 1973.
It has been a 'hand me down' thru my brothers and the family and Dad rode it until he was 91 years old.!

So My question: "best place to find parts ?" I also have found that seats cost more than I paid for the bike new.
...any advice is appreciated.
andy (ajb)

I’m glad to see other forum friends on the “Honda gold rush!” As you are finding out, there is an extremely high demand for 1970-1990s Honda bikes. The smaller they are, the more they are sought after. I believe this is primarily because they were the bikes we had as kids and also they don’t take up too much storage space.
Andy to your point, I find it cheaper to buy a good seat pan on eBay and have it recovered. There are people specializing in recovering seats, engine rebuilding and fuel tank repair offering there services on eBay as well.
Please, please, please, do not rebuild these bikes with cheap Chinese parts. It’s cheap and easy to do, but what makes these bikes so special is lost. I prefer to keep them the way I find them and let my friends and family have the same enjoyment I did as a kid.
My $.02

Some of my bikes, a few of which I’ve had since I was 10!

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[ChipBeck]

Chip - you fit nicely on the bike.!!

I am in the process of bringing back a 1973 Honda CB750 Four.
It still has the four exhaust pipes and I even found the four black baffles that are installed in the ends.
It will not be a 'restoration /' but a "survivor mode". It has 55,000 miles and I purchased it new in 1973.
It has been a 'hand me down' thru my brothers and the family and Dad rode it until he was 91 years old.!

So My question: "best place to find parts ?" I also have found that seats cost more than I paid for the bike new.
...any advice is appreciated.
Andy (ajb)

Andy,

The Achelles Heel of older motorcycle restoration is finding a perfect NOS seat. They don’t exist. Unlike metal and glass components, almost 100% of seats are destroyed by the passage of time and most are built with molded-stamped-graphics features that can’t be duplicated precisely today. And without a perfect seat there isn’t a perfect restoration. It’s not uncommon for NOS seats for old motorcycles to sell for more than the bike cost new. The next two tough items are gas tanks and exhaust systems which never seem to be available.

But to answer your question, the best source of rare hard to find parts is to GOOGLE them. There is no best store or web site. There may only be one example of what you’re looking for in a far corner of the world so google what your looking for several ways, by model year, make, model, and use several different descriptions of the item. If you’ve got a part # try that too. When you get a hit don’t hesitate because you’re not the only one searching. When knotheads like me are restoring a car or bike that’s meaningful to them they will pay irrational money for needed parts. So, unless you have a good reason to do it, it’s always cheaper to buy the best existing example of a car or bike you want rather than taking on a restoration. Cheers.

Chip

 

[Special K]

Here’s a perfect seat example:

This is a super rare find, and the seller knows it!

Pound for pound, this makes a Ford GT seat seem like a bargain!!


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[AJB]

Thanks for the advice Kevin and Chip. That is also what I found.
I paid $1750.00 for the brand new CB 750 Honda Four in 1973 (complete motorcycle)

So, since I am restoring the bike as a 'survivor', I am keeping the original seat. No tears or cuts but the perimeter chrome trim is scuffed.

I bought the 'stock' that Honda had on aluminum brake levers , clutch levers , engine covers. tail light lens, foot pegs etc still in the Honda plastic bags.
Most all else is original but not perfect due to 55,000 miles on the ODO.
Thanks again for your advice.
andy (ajb)

 

[ChipBeck]

Therapy

Gentlemen,

Working on an old motorcycle is a form of meditation for me. When so much of what’s going on today doesn’t make sense, here is something that I can wrap my head around. Unlike modern cars, the old motorcycles I have are simple enough for a non-tech like me to understand. Watching the news is upsetting, wrenching on or detailing this thing has the opposite effect. I think my next project after this will be to find a great Labrador puppy and train a new bird dog. My last Lab “Jet” has been dead for almost 3 years now so after Le Mans I’ll start that search.

Chip

 

[BAT]

Chip,

What year is that?

 

[ChipBeck]

Chip,

What year is that?

It's a 1996. I gave it to Charley on Christmas Day, 1995. Somewhere I have pictures of 3 year old C4 sitting on it with the training wheels in my living room. I need to dig those up. The last Z50 was made in 1999.

Chip

 

[BAT]

It's a 1996. I gave it to Charley on Christmas Day, 1995. Somewhere I have pictures of 3 year old C4 sitting on it with the training wheels in my living room. I need to dig those up. The last Z50 was made in 1999.

Chip

Very cool. I had a Honda “fat cat” in the late 80’s.