AMCA member Marty Smith starts his, much-modified, 1946 Triumph T100 at the BUB Speed Trials, Bonneville, 2007.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
The Spanish Trail
By Paul D'Orleans the Vintagent
The Southsiders M.C. and friends (myself and Yves) converged on Biarritz for a ride into Basque countryside on their immaculate Nortons and Triumphs. I had thought to ride along the coast on Yves' '34 Velocette MAC, but as the other riders had 'big guns' (ie, hot Commandos and new Bonnevilles), it seemed prudent to accept Vincent Prat's offer of his everyday-ride '72 750 Roadster,
Follow this links for the full trip : Link 1, Link 2
The Southsiders M.C. and friends (myself and Yves) converged on Biarritz for a ride into Basque countryside on their immaculate Nortons and Triumphs. I had thought to ride along the coast on Yves' '34 Velocette MAC, but as the other riders had 'big guns' (ie, hot Commandos and new Bonnevilles), it seemed prudent to accept Vincent Prat's offer of his everyday-ride '72 750 Roadster,
Follow this links for the full trip : Link 1, Link 2
Friday, May 29, 2009
Confessions of a Hot-Rod Jockey
By Earl Bruce - Amateur Champion
Courtesy of modernmechanix
If you’re smart, careful and a mighty good mechanic you too can “soup-up” an automobile and become a “screaming” hot-rodder DRIVING a “hot rod” or “souped-up” car is a sport—cleanly competitive, law-abiding, and as reasonably safe as airplane, bike, or midget auto racing, boxing, football, or any other spine-tingling spectacle that thrills Americans in the country’s arenas today.
That’s my story and I’ll stick to it.
I’ve been a hot-rod jockey for six years—started when I was 17—and in that time I’ve owned and raced 15 of them. My real work is acting and singing (in fact, I have to write this between rehearsals in New York for a tour in the USO Camp Shows’ presentation of “Girl Crazy,” to get it off my chest before I leave for the Pacific) ; but whatever spare time I’ve had I’ve spent building and driving the soup-ups, and so far I’ve had no serious accident.
But don’t get me wrong. I’m not putting a halo over the heads of the whacked-up public enemies who careen hell-for-leather along the California highways, gleefully nudging passenger autos into ditches, busting all speed laws with mad abandon and thumbing their noses at the harassed cops they leave behind in clouds of high octane exhaust.
Those aren’t my kind of guys. They’re the outer fringe, disowned by the regulars; they have rightfully stirred the ire of the police and civic fathers.
All of us “legits” belong to one of more than 30 Roadster Clubs throughout California and, without exception, each organization clamps clown hard on all members who hold races on public highways or drive recklessly. Automatic expulsion is the penalty for all offenders.
The clubs have banded together and formed the Southern California Timing Association which sponsors speed tests over special courses and awards trophies and plaques to the fastest entries. The clubs observe all police regulations and race only in well-supervised meets.
There’s a world of difference between the intricately-constructed, dependable racers and the phony hot rods which zoom along the roads with little more than a prayer to insure the safety of the fellow behind the wheel. Right now we’re going all-out to put pressure on owners and builders of these cars to install hydraulic brakes, good shock absorbers and all safely devices to comply with police regulations and incidentally keep the drivers’ personal necks-intact.
Take a long look at some of the better hot rods and you will find that they meet the most rigid specifications for automotive safety. And most of the jockeys are earnest young guys, some years out of school, who are constantly experimenting in instructive engineering research. They are not speed-crazy jerks; they are smart mechanics to whom some of the improvements now in effect on commercial passenger cars can be directly traced.
And now let me take you to a typical hot rod speed test.
This one will take place at El Mirage, a dry lake in the Mojave Desert 98 miles from Hollywood. Actual timing starts at daybreak on Sunday, but by Friday hundreds of hot rodders are already on hand, whizzing along the five-mile lake bed in tests for engine bugs. On Saturday S. C. T. A. officials inspect the course and select the longest stretch with the fewest rough spots as the scene of the big show. They post red flags at intervals along the best one-mile stretch and the stage is set.
Comes dawn and more than 300 cars are in line. Thousands of spectators, rooters for the participants, rim the lake bed and stir with excitement as the first speedster rushes toward the straightaway. Timing begins when his front tires intercept the beam of an electric eye, and concludes when another eye a quarter-mile away automatically stops the timing apparatus. From the elapsed time over the measured distance the officials arrive at the speed in mph.
At the end of his run the driver makes a wide half-circle and comes back to the timing stand, where the judges hang a card with his time on the left door of his car. Back he goes, then, to the end of the line.
The first run is merely a test; on the second he must clock 115 mph to be eligible for a third. On the third he must hit 120, to remain, and so on, until the winners are determined in the various classes of cars competing.
Randy Shinn of the Pasadena “Road Runners” recently smashed the roadster class speed record with a beautiful 128.9 mph with his ‘32 V-8 Ford bearing a Mercury engine. That’s mighty rapid going.
In the Modified car class, a record of 133.03, also set by a Mercury V-8, still stands. To quality as a Modified, a racer must have at least 400 square inches as a vertical plane in the back. A 1926 Chevrolet four-cylinder engine, mounting twin carburetors, holds the record in the Streamliner class with a blistering 140.00. And in the Unlimited class, in which any type of engine is permitted, the mark is held by a Mercury V-8 which hit 144.08.
Take it from me, it’s not easy to build a car which can achieve these tremendous speeds. It takes many years of study, long hours of labor and lots of experimenting with fuels, gears, pistons, frames and what-not, not to mention heavy, repeated digging into one’s personal bank account. You see, no one makes any money out of hot-rodding. It’s strictly amateur, done for the fun of it, and the tab comes high.
A good fast hop-up costs roughly $1,500 to build, and some run as high as $3,000. The engine alone, according to the type and amount of equipment used, sets the driver back $850. The rest is used up in changes in stock frames, hydraulic brakes, painting, chroming and the like.
The souper-upper’s job is broken down into three big categories: changes in his engine, changes in his frame, and selection of proper fuels.
On the engine, he’s got to rebore his cylinders for additional piston displacement, port his block for greater fuel intake efficiency, regrind his cam shaft to alter valve timing and increase intake and exhaust duration, rebuild his ignition to insure the better spark needed with higher rpm and increased compression, replace his conventional fuel pump with one providing forced feed to the Carburetion system—and do lots more minor puttering.
Frame changes depend largely on the ingenuity of the builder and the equipment he can obtain, keeping in mind the lowering of the center of gravity as much as feasible. Higher steps, built into the front and rear of the frame by cutting and welding, can provide a drop of several inches. Channeling the body can provide probably all the drop needed, but this involves much fitting.
On fuels, most drivers prefer 100-octane gasoline for speed tests. Some use a mixture of 100-octane with white gasoline; others use a mixture of benzol, white gas and methanol alcohol, or straight alky alone. Alcohol, neat, has increased speed by five per cent.
At normal speeds, the hot rods are amazingly good on fuel economy. A fast roadster averages anywhere from 20 to 30 miles on a gallon of 82-octane gasoline while breezing along at about 50 mph. The answer lies in high compression, high gearing and accurate timing, combined with the low weight of a car stripped for speed.
It’s a great sport, if you’re smart, careful and a darn good automobile mechanic. A real hot rodder is all three.
Courtesy of modernmechanix
If you’re smart, careful and a mighty good mechanic you too can “soup-up” an automobile and become a “screaming” hot-rodder DRIVING a “hot rod” or “souped-up” car is a sport—cleanly competitive, law-abiding, and as reasonably safe as airplane, bike, or midget auto racing, boxing, football, or any other spine-tingling spectacle that thrills Americans in the country’s arenas today.
That’s my story and I’ll stick to it.
I’ve been a hot-rod jockey for six years—started when I was 17—and in that time I’ve owned and raced 15 of them. My real work is acting and singing (in fact, I have to write this between rehearsals in New York for a tour in the USO Camp Shows’ presentation of “Girl Crazy,” to get it off my chest before I leave for the Pacific) ; but whatever spare time I’ve had I’ve spent building and driving the soup-ups, and so far I’ve had no serious accident.
But don’t get me wrong. I’m not putting a halo over the heads of the whacked-up public enemies who careen hell-for-leather along the California highways, gleefully nudging passenger autos into ditches, busting all speed laws with mad abandon and thumbing their noses at the harassed cops they leave behind in clouds of high octane exhaust.
Those aren’t my kind of guys. They’re the outer fringe, disowned by the regulars; they have rightfully stirred the ire of the police and civic fathers.
All of us “legits” belong to one of more than 30 Roadster Clubs throughout California and, without exception, each organization clamps clown hard on all members who hold races on public highways or drive recklessly. Automatic expulsion is the penalty for all offenders.
The clubs have banded together and formed the Southern California Timing Association which sponsors speed tests over special courses and awards trophies and plaques to the fastest entries. The clubs observe all police regulations and race only in well-supervised meets.
There’s a world of difference between the intricately-constructed, dependable racers and the phony hot rods which zoom along the roads with little more than a prayer to insure the safety of the fellow behind the wheel. Right now we’re going all-out to put pressure on owners and builders of these cars to install hydraulic brakes, good shock absorbers and all safely devices to comply with police regulations and incidentally keep the drivers’ personal necks-intact.
Take a long look at some of the better hot rods and you will find that they meet the most rigid specifications for automotive safety. And most of the jockeys are earnest young guys, some years out of school, who are constantly experimenting in instructive engineering research. They are not speed-crazy jerks; they are smart mechanics to whom some of the improvements now in effect on commercial passenger cars can be directly traced.
And now let me take you to a typical hot rod speed test.
This one will take place at El Mirage, a dry lake in the Mojave Desert 98 miles from Hollywood. Actual timing starts at daybreak on Sunday, but by Friday hundreds of hot rodders are already on hand, whizzing along the five-mile lake bed in tests for engine bugs. On Saturday S. C. T. A. officials inspect the course and select the longest stretch with the fewest rough spots as the scene of the big show. They post red flags at intervals along the best one-mile stretch and the stage is set.
Comes dawn and more than 300 cars are in line. Thousands of spectators, rooters for the participants, rim the lake bed and stir with excitement as the first speedster rushes toward the straightaway. Timing begins when his front tires intercept the beam of an electric eye, and concludes when another eye a quarter-mile away automatically stops the timing apparatus. From the elapsed time over the measured distance the officials arrive at the speed in mph.
At the end of his run the driver makes a wide half-circle and comes back to the timing stand, where the judges hang a card with his time on the left door of his car. Back he goes, then, to the end of the line.
The first run is merely a test; on the second he must clock 115 mph to be eligible for a third. On the third he must hit 120, to remain, and so on, until the winners are determined in the various classes of cars competing.
Randy Shinn of the Pasadena “Road Runners” recently smashed the roadster class speed record with a beautiful 128.9 mph with his ‘32 V-8 Ford bearing a Mercury engine. That’s mighty rapid going.
In the Modified car class, a record of 133.03, also set by a Mercury V-8, still stands. To quality as a Modified, a racer must have at least 400 square inches as a vertical plane in the back. A 1926 Chevrolet four-cylinder engine, mounting twin carburetors, holds the record in the Streamliner class with a blistering 140.00. And in the Unlimited class, in which any type of engine is permitted, the mark is held by a Mercury V-8 which hit 144.08.
Take it from me, it’s not easy to build a car which can achieve these tremendous speeds. It takes many years of study, long hours of labor and lots of experimenting with fuels, gears, pistons, frames and what-not, not to mention heavy, repeated digging into one’s personal bank account. You see, no one makes any money out of hot-rodding. It’s strictly amateur, done for the fun of it, and the tab comes high.
A good fast hop-up costs roughly $1,500 to build, and some run as high as $3,000. The engine alone, according to the type and amount of equipment used, sets the driver back $850. The rest is used up in changes in stock frames, hydraulic brakes, painting, chroming and the like.
The souper-upper’s job is broken down into three big categories: changes in his engine, changes in his frame, and selection of proper fuels.
On the engine, he’s got to rebore his cylinders for additional piston displacement, port his block for greater fuel intake efficiency, regrind his cam shaft to alter valve timing and increase intake and exhaust duration, rebuild his ignition to insure the better spark needed with higher rpm and increased compression, replace his conventional fuel pump with one providing forced feed to the Carburetion system—and do lots more minor puttering.
Frame changes depend largely on the ingenuity of the builder and the equipment he can obtain, keeping in mind the lowering of the center of gravity as much as feasible. Higher steps, built into the front and rear of the frame by cutting and welding, can provide a drop of several inches. Channeling the body can provide probably all the drop needed, but this involves much fitting.
On fuels, most drivers prefer 100-octane gasoline for speed tests. Some use a mixture of 100-octane with white gasoline; others use a mixture of benzol, white gas and methanol alcohol, or straight alky alone. Alcohol, neat, has increased speed by five per cent.
At normal speeds, the hot rods are amazingly good on fuel economy. A fast roadster averages anywhere from 20 to 30 miles on a gallon of 82-octane gasoline while breezing along at about 50 mph. The answer lies in high compression, high gearing and accurate timing, combined with the low weight of a car stripped for speed.
It’s a great sport, if you’re smart, careful and a darn good automobile mechanic. A real hot rodder is all three.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Motorcycle Racing Legend : Ed Kretz Jr
By S. Clayton Moore
Photo By Clayton Moore
You wouldn't know it to look at him, but Ed Kretz Jr. is one of the world's greatest motorcyclists. The few faint scars from his racing days don't reveal the story of his remarkable days as a motorcycle racer.
Photo Courtesy Ed Kretz Jr
During the pinnacle of his career in the late 1950s and early 1960s, he raced alongside some of the world's most famous racers, pushing Indians and Triumphs to the very edge of their capabilities. His racing buddies included screen legends like Steve McQueen and Lee Marvin, television stars like Jay Leno, and world-famous racers like the "Indian Wrecking Crew" of Bobby Hill and Bill Tuman.
Photo Courtesy Ed Kretz Jr
Perhaps no one in Kretz' orbit was more famous than his father, Ed Kretz Sr., who won the very first Daytona road race in 1937. Known as the "Iron Man" for his amazing endurance on a bike, the elder Kretz was the greatest motorcycle racer of his time and one of the sport's first major stars.
At 73, Kretz still has a fire in his eyes when he talks about just how much fun it was to race.
Follow this Link for the full story : HERE
Photo By Clayton Moore
You wouldn't know it to look at him, but Ed Kretz Jr. is one of the world's greatest motorcyclists. The few faint scars from his racing days don't reveal the story of his remarkable days as a motorcycle racer.
Photo Courtesy Ed Kretz Jr
During the pinnacle of his career in the late 1950s and early 1960s, he raced alongside some of the world's most famous racers, pushing Indians and Triumphs to the very edge of their capabilities. His racing buddies included screen legends like Steve McQueen and Lee Marvin, television stars like Jay Leno, and world-famous racers like the "Indian Wrecking Crew" of Bobby Hill and Bill Tuman.
Photo Courtesy Ed Kretz Jr
Perhaps no one in Kretz' orbit was more famous than his father, Ed Kretz Sr., who won the very first Daytona road race in 1937. Known as the "Iron Man" for his amazing endurance on a bike, the elder Kretz was the greatest motorcycle racer of his time and one of the sport's first major stars.
At 73, Kretz still has a fire in his eyes when he talks about just how much fun it was to race.
Follow this Link for the full story : HERE
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
'Wipeout' and 'Jesse James Is a Dead Man'
ABC's 'Wipeout' and Spike's 'Jesse James Is a Dead Man' test the limits of human -- and viewer -- endurance.
By ROBERT LLOYD, Television Critic
May 27, 2009
Summer is a time for the Things You Should Not Try at Home and most of us would not try anywhere else. That is what we have television for.
In “Wipeout,” which bowed last summer on ABC and returns there tonight, ordinary -- though extraordinarily enthusiastic -- citizens tackle a giant mechanical obstacle course in pursuit of $50,000. It is in its very essence a summer show, full of running around all day and into the night, of getting wet, muddy and foamy. (The final challenge takes place by flaming torchlight.) Contestants are also punched, flipped, spilled, thrown and catapulted -- in such challenges as A Bridge Too Far, the Sucker Punch, the Big Balls, the Gears of Doom, the Hurtles and the Scary-Go-Round -- which is somewhat less evocative of the summertime.
The Link
By ROBERT LLOYD, Television Critic
May 27, 2009
Summer is a time for the Things You Should Not Try at Home and most of us would not try anywhere else. That is what we have television for.
In “Wipeout,” which bowed last summer on ABC and returns there tonight, ordinary -- though extraordinarily enthusiastic -- citizens tackle a giant mechanical obstacle course in pursuit of $50,000. It is in its very essence a summer show, full of running around all day and into the night, of getting wet, muddy and foamy. (The final challenge takes place by flaming torchlight.) Contestants are also punched, flipped, spilled, thrown and catapulted -- in such challenges as A Bridge Too Far, the Sucker Punch, the Big Balls, the Gears of Doom, the Hurtles and the Scary-Go-Round -- which is somewhat less evocative of the summertime.
The Link
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Lee Sutton's vintage motocross pictures
In the early '70s Lee Sutton raced Amateur in district 36 and CMC. He took a lot of photos and then and forgot about them until he recently retired and moved across country. These are what survived water damage, mold and loss over the years.
This guy is cool follow his pictures here : Gallery
Monday, May 25, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
1970 Husqvarna 400
Few motorcycles have started more off-road dreams than this one.
Ridden across a deserted beach and into posterity by Malcolm Smith, this 1970 Husqvarna 400 Cross starred in what many consider the defining scene from the greatest motorcycle movie ever made, “On Any Sunday.”
While the 1971 film is renowned for increasing the recognition of motorcycle racing in general, the scene at the end of the film, where Smith, dirt-tracker Mert Lawwill and actor Steve McQueen go play-riding by the sea, convinced countless Americans just how much fun the sport could be.
For that scene, Smith, an off-road racer and desert aficionado, was aboard one of the best off-road bikes of the day—a Husqvarna 400 Cross. Though relatively unknown outside racing circles then, Husqvarna was a force in international motocross, ultimately winning 14 World MX and 24 World Enduro titles through the 1960s and ’70s. There was more to this bike than movie-star looks.
Imported by U.S. motocross pioneer Edison Dye, the man who promoted many of the races that started the sport on American soil, Huskies had built an early reputation for 250cc and 125cc success. But in 1969, the company branched out with an open-class machine.
A bigger version of the popular, world championship-winning 250 Cross, the 395cc two-stroke single was a light, sharp-handling performer, known for excellent power and decent factory suspension.
Those capabilities, along with world-class talent at the controls, spurred the Husqvarna 400 Cross to competition success in the 1971 Baja 1000, where it was ridden to victory by Smith and Gunnar Nilsson.
In many ways, though, racing success couldn’t be as influential as the free-riding footage that capped a documentary about motorcycle racing. That scene in particular is credited with a reported sales spike for Husqvarna after “On Any Sunday” hit theaters.
courtesy of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum.
Ridden across a deserted beach and into posterity by Malcolm Smith, this 1970 Husqvarna 400 Cross starred in what many consider the defining scene from the greatest motorcycle movie ever made, “On Any Sunday.”
While the 1971 film is renowned for increasing the recognition of motorcycle racing in general, the scene at the end of the film, where Smith, dirt-tracker Mert Lawwill and actor Steve McQueen go play-riding by the sea, convinced countless Americans just how much fun the sport could be.
For that scene, Smith, an off-road racer and desert aficionado, was aboard one of the best off-road bikes of the day—a Husqvarna 400 Cross. Though relatively unknown outside racing circles then, Husqvarna was a force in international motocross, ultimately winning 14 World MX and 24 World Enduro titles through the 1960s and ’70s. There was more to this bike than movie-star looks.
Imported by U.S. motocross pioneer Edison Dye, the man who promoted many of the races that started the sport on American soil, Huskies had built an early reputation for 250cc and 125cc success. But in 1969, the company branched out with an open-class machine.A bigger version of the popular, world championship-winning 250 Cross, the 395cc two-stroke single was a light, sharp-handling performer, known for excellent power and decent factory suspension.
Those capabilities, along with world-class talent at the controls, spurred the Husqvarna 400 Cross to competition success in the 1971 Baja 1000, where it was ridden to victory by Smith and Gunnar Nilsson.
In many ways, though, racing success couldn’t be as influential as the free-riding footage that capped a documentary about motorcycle racing. That scene in particular is credited with a reported sales spike for Husqvarna after “On Any Sunday” hit theaters.
courtesy of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Sunday, May 17, 2009
On Any Sunday
On Any Sunday is a 1971 American documentary feature about motorcycle sport, directed by Bruce Brown. It was nominated for a 1972 Academy Award for Documentary Feature.
This documentary follows the lives of motorcycle racers and racing enthusiasts.
Steve McQueen is featured in the film, along with Mert Lawwill, Malcolm Smith and many other motorcycle racers from the late 1960s and early 1970s.
On Any Sunday is often credited as the best and/or most important motorcycle documentary ever made. Roger Ebert says it "does for motorcycle racing what The Endless Summer did for surfing". Ebert praises the film's high level of artistry in accomplishing the impressive footage of motorcycle races (which he says are difficult to film), and he also credits the film for not bothering viewers with the technical details of how the filming was done.
Malcolm Smith at speed on a Husqvarna.
Photo Courtesy Malcolm Smith Motorsports
During the opening sequence, children are seen riding their bicycles on a dirt track, in imitation of motorcyclists. Thanks to this scene, On Any Sunday is thought to have popularized BMX biking across America; previously it had only been observed in Southern California.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Honda CR250R Race Test
Sometimes a bike takes on a magical, Alice in Wonderland aura before it even appears on the marketplace. First, it is rumored to be almost ready for release.
Secondly, the word spreads that it is an exact replica of the works bike. Then everyone is saying that it htas 40 horsepower. And finally, when one shows up in the hands of some super-psyched local expert, with the eyes of every eager potential consumer on him, he goes out and wins. He reports that it is the greatest thing for motocross since Deep Heat rub, and the pits go ga-ga.
Sometimes a magazine helps this sort of craziness along by getting a pre-production prototype and taking of somewhere secretly and testing it. Editors and test riders are not immune to star worship and motorcycle deification. There used to be an automobile ad that said, « Ask the man who owns one. » Nobody who just plunked down 1500 oysters is going to tell you his new bike is a squid.
The Honda CR250R is not the lightest 250 motocrosser on the market. It doesnt come close to touching the lightweight Kawasaki KX250A4. The Honda isnt the fastest 250 on the track. The Can-Am 250 MX4 will pull it out in the tully weeds on any straight. The Honda isnt the best-made 250 on the showroom floor. The European brands still win out in the use of quality materials. It isnt the cheapest 250 on the market. Its damn close, though.
So if you take the dreamland ramblings away from the starting gate peanut gallery, what are you left with ? The Honda CR250R is the best 250 buy on the course today.
Winning the categories of speed, light weight, material, price and suspension doesnt mean much unless you can win every one of them with the same bike.
The Honda CR250R may not win every category, but it comes in close to the top of each one, an dis never way out of the running in any individual honor, like most of its competition.
THE MACHINERY
The Honda CR250R is totally red with the exception of the seat, pipe, bars, carbs and fork boots. The frame is japanese chrome moly an dis a sturdy and rigid piece of metal sculpture. The swingarm is long, and rides on roller bearings. The distance from the swingarm pivot to the countershaft sprocket is short enough that Honda elected only to go with chain guides and rollers instead of the industry standard chain tensioner. The chain itself is a good 520 D.I.D, and in contradiction, by japanese terms, is run off the right side of the engine.
The front suspension has 11,5 inches of travel, and has innovative cartridge-type damper inside te sliders. The tubes are strong, well-made and have enough tube/slider overlap to maintain the minimum level of flex-free travel. The eara suspension is made by Showa. The 17 ½ -inch shocks are gas-charged, but lack any fancy reservoirs or fins. Travel at the rear was 11 inches on our machine.
The shocks have accessory springs available for them in both heavier and lighter rates.
The engine is red. Behind the red facade is a carefully designed set of gears, levers and bearings wrapped in a set of aluminium cases that lokks like i twas vacuum-formed to the internals.
The cylinder and head are interesting for several reasons. The head is a true radial. The total finning is generated from the area of the combustion dome. There are no useless fins mounted outboard on the head. The aluminium alloy cylinder has a hard chrome liner, instead of the conventional steel sleeve, which is light and dissipates heat better. The intersting part of the porting is that behind the six-petal reed there are two auxiliary ports that feed the transfer ports directly.
This allows Honda to use a larger, more full-skirted piston without losing precious charge time to the bottom end. The caburetor is a 36 mm Keihin that feeds the 70 mm bore and 64 mm stroke engine. The piston has two rings. The larger bore than stroke tells you a lot about the characteristics of the power.
The engine weighs 56 pounds when sitting on the work bench, but the bike will hit the track with gas in it right at 230 pounds.
TO THE LINE
The seat height is 37 inches, and the bike looks and feels tall. When it is brand spanking new there is not much sag ineiither end and yor feet dangle above the ground. Later on the suspenders take some horrendous sags an dit is just like sitting on your old short-legged scoot. The bars are too wide, but they are sano chrome moly.
The throttle is quick and slick. The levers arent so great. The warm setup is to have power-bends, but they do have dust covers. Down by your feet things arent so groovy. The brake pedal isnt adjustable for height. Tall riders with gunboats for boots hated the brake pedal.
Smaller tootsies were satisfied. The pedal is forged aluminium, which is high-society, but should be made amendable to the obvious differences in both feet and boots that abound in America.
The shift lever sticks out on its lightweight hollow shift shaft and required some careful placement to get good shifts. The shift lever is prone to damage in its current location, especially with its stiff aluminium forged frame.
Bringing the engine to life means findingg the kickstarter. It is on the wrong side, based on previous Oriental machines, but Husky owners will ove it.
It works better than the Swedish left-side kickstarter, too. Choke the Keihin and kick the devil over. It fires with a cold-hearted murmur and then begins stroking nicely.
It shifts like an old Honda CR250. The lever throw is not too far, but the movement is indecisive. The tranny doesnt give off any clues as to wether you got the gear or not This would be great if you got every one, but the Honda does miss an occasional gear.
The shifting is mysterious, but 95 % effective. We’d rate it with a Yamaha gearbox.
The ratios are right-on, though.
The engine is snappy and runs on the high side of the rpm band, due in part to the over-square bore and stroke. The power is so good. If you interviewed a hundred Honda CR250R owners, the key word about the band would be that it is crisp. If you arent cooking down the track the ponies just lie there, and you know who’s at fault. The bike demands to be ridden power-on ; it makes lovely cracking snaps and dirt flies off the rear whell like a machine gun. A Suzuki or Yamaha will pull it out of a lazy, slow corner and a Can-Am will rat-a-tat-tat it down the straight, but nothing will stay with it from the middle on up. The bike isnt pipey in the dynamometer sense of the word, but in practical application, when you are doing it right, really right, the margin for error is slim.
The suspension will forgive you most of your transgressions beyond common sense. The forks are first-rate. The travel is long and supple.
After you have had the bike for two weeks or so the forks will go soft on yo. The sag can get a smuch as two inches. Honda has heavier fork springs available. Buy them and use them. The forks sont use air and we think that Honda should offer at least six different spring rates to ts customers to ensure the proper rate for every rider and application. Everybody said the rear shocks were junk, and every Honda at the track was running Fox Airshox. The Fox shocks sell for 290$ and are the ultimate setup. Even the Honda team uses them. We dont think that you need them, unless you cant bear the weight in your wallet, or are apprching the quasar speeds of Marty Smith and company. Everybody also told us that the stock springs were way too stiff, and that the Honda accessory soft springs were the only ones that worked.
Pure crap. The soft springs are so soft taht a good, fast rider clanks metal over every jump. The stock shocks are not the perfect suspenders . They work on a par with the stock shocks found on a Suzuki, and better than the stuff on a Kawasaki.
You’ll change them and feel a lot of improvement, but be prudent. Try riding the shocks until they go south. Play with a couple of springs. Use the preload adjustment. At 1495$, the Honda CR250R IS A GREAT BIKE FOR THE PRICE.
Secondly, the word spreads that it is an exact replica of the works bike. Then everyone is saying that it htas 40 horsepower. And finally, when one shows up in the hands of some super-psyched local expert, with the eyes of every eager potential consumer on him, he goes out and wins. He reports that it is the greatest thing for motocross since Deep Heat rub, and the pits go ga-ga.
Sometimes a magazine helps this sort of craziness along by getting a pre-production prototype and taking of somewhere secretly and testing it. Editors and test riders are not immune to star worship and motorcycle deification. There used to be an automobile ad that said, « Ask the man who owns one. » Nobody who just plunked down 1500 oysters is going to tell you his new bike is a squid.
The Honda CR250R is not the lightest 250 motocrosser on the market. It doesnt come close to touching the lightweight Kawasaki KX250A4. The Honda isnt the fastest 250 on the track. The Can-Am 250 MX4 will pull it out in the tully weeds on any straight. The Honda isnt the best-made 250 on the showroom floor. The European brands still win out in the use of quality materials. It isnt the cheapest 250 on the market. Its damn close, though.
So if you take the dreamland ramblings away from the starting gate peanut gallery, what are you left with ? The Honda CR250R is the best 250 buy on the course today.
Winning the categories of speed, light weight, material, price and suspension doesnt mean much unless you can win every one of them with the same bike.
The Honda CR250R may not win every category, but it comes in close to the top of each one, an dis never way out of the running in any individual honor, like most of its competition.
THE MACHINERYThe Honda CR250R is totally red with the exception of the seat, pipe, bars, carbs and fork boots. The frame is japanese chrome moly an dis a sturdy and rigid piece of metal sculpture. The swingarm is long, and rides on roller bearings. The distance from the swingarm pivot to the countershaft sprocket is short enough that Honda elected only to go with chain guides and rollers instead of the industry standard chain tensioner. The chain itself is a good 520 D.I.D, and in contradiction, by japanese terms, is run off the right side of the engine.
The front suspension has 11,5 inches of travel, and has innovative cartridge-type damper inside te sliders. The tubes are strong, well-made and have enough tube/slider overlap to maintain the minimum level of flex-free travel. The eara suspension is made by Showa. The 17 ½ -inch shocks are gas-charged, but lack any fancy reservoirs or fins. Travel at the rear was 11 inches on our machine.
The shocks have accessory springs available for them in both heavier and lighter rates.
The engine is red. Behind the red facade is a carefully designed set of gears, levers and bearings wrapped in a set of aluminium cases that lokks like i twas vacuum-formed to the internals.
The cylinder and head are interesting for several reasons. The head is a true radial. The total finning is generated from the area of the combustion dome. There are no useless fins mounted outboard on the head. The aluminium alloy cylinder has a hard chrome liner, instead of the conventional steel sleeve, which is light and dissipates heat better. The intersting part of the porting is that behind the six-petal reed there are two auxiliary ports that feed the transfer ports directly.
This allows Honda to use a larger, more full-skirted piston without losing precious charge time to the bottom end. The caburetor is a 36 mm Keihin that feeds the 70 mm bore and 64 mm stroke engine. The piston has two rings. The larger bore than stroke tells you a lot about the characteristics of the power.
The engine weighs 56 pounds when sitting on the work bench, but the bike will hit the track with gas in it right at 230 pounds.
TO THE LINE
The seat height is 37 inches, and the bike looks and feels tall. When it is brand spanking new there is not much sag ineiither end and yor feet dangle above the ground. Later on the suspenders take some horrendous sags an dit is just like sitting on your old short-legged scoot. The bars are too wide, but they are sano chrome moly.
The throttle is quick and slick. The levers arent so great. The warm setup is to have power-bends, but they do have dust covers. Down by your feet things arent so groovy. The brake pedal isnt adjustable for height. Tall riders with gunboats for boots hated the brake pedal.
Smaller tootsies were satisfied. The pedal is forged aluminium, which is high-society, but should be made amendable to the obvious differences in both feet and boots that abound in America.
The shift lever sticks out on its lightweight hollow shift shaft and required some careful placement to get good shifts. The shift lever is prone to damage in its current location, especially with its stiff aluminium forged frame.
Bringing the engine to life means findingg the kickstarter. It is on the wrong side, based on previous Oriental machines, but Husky owners will ove it.
It works better than the Swedish left-side kickstarter, too. Choke the Keihin and kick the devil over. It fires with a cold-hearted murmur and then begins stroking nicely.
It shifts like an old Honda CR250. The lever throw is not too far, but the movement is indecisive. The tranny doesnt give off any clues as to wether you got the gear or not This would be great if you got every one, but the Honda does miss an occasional gear.
The shifting is mysterious, but 95 % effective. We’d rate it with a Yamaha gearbox.
The ratios are right-on, though.
The engine is snappy and runs on the high side of the rpm band, due in part to the over-square bore and stroke. The power is so good. If you interviewed a hundred Honda CR250R owners, the key word about the band would be that it is crisp. If you arent cooking down the track the ponies just lie there, and you know who’s at fault. The bike demands to be ridden power-on ; it makes lovely cracking snaps and dirt flies off the rear whell like a machine gun. A Suzuki or Yamaha will pull it out of a lazy, slow corner and a Can-Am will rat-a-tat-tat it down the straight, but nothing will stay with it from the middle on up. The bike isnt pipey in the dynamometer sense of the word, but in practical application, when you are doing it right, really right, the margin for error is slim.
The suspension will forgive you most of your transgressions beyond common sense. The forks are first-rate. The travel is long and supple.
After you have had the bike for two weeks or so the forks will go soft on yo. The sag can get a smuch as two inches. Honda has heavier fork springs available. Buy them and use them. The forks sont use air and we think that Honda should offer at least six different spring rates to ts customers to ensure the proper rate for every rider and application. Everybody said the rear shocks were junk, and every Honda at the track was running Fox Airshox. The Fox shocks sell for 290$ and are the ultimate setup. Even the Honda team uses them. We dont think that you need them, unless you cant bear the weight in your wallet, or are apprching the quasar speeds of Marty Smith and company. Everybody also told us that the stock springs were way too stiff, and that the Honda accessory soft springs were the only ones that worked.
Pure crap. The soft springs are so soft taht a good, fast rider clanks metal over every jump. The stock shocks are not the perfect suspenders . They work on a par with the stock shocks found on a Suzuki, and better than the stuff on a Kawasaki.
You’ll change them and feel a lot of improvement, but be prudent. Try riding the shocks until they go south. Play with a couple of springs. Use the preload adjustment. At 1495$, the Honda CR250R IS A GREAT BIKE FOR THE PRICE.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Derringer Cycles
This revolutionary moto-hybrid was conceived as an exciting new option in highly-efficient transportation. Derringers can be human propelled, propelled via engine power, or human propelled with the assistance of engine power. While under power, the pedals can also remain stationary, allowing you to operate in the style of a traditional motorcycle. Capable of fuel economy ratings that can exceed 150 mpg, Derringers are the first product to take the compromise out of environmentalism, clearly evidenced by the number of customers who purchase a Derringer along with an in-home display stand.
Derringers were specially designed to conform with the legal classification of a motorized scooter, and in their standard configuration, often do not require the motorcycle license endorsement that is necessary to operate traditional scooters and motorcycles in many states. In some states and countries, as long as the rider is over 16 years of age, no drivers license is required.
Derringers were specially designed to conform with the legal classification of a motorized scooter, and in their standard configuration, often do not require the motorcycle license endorsement that is necessary to operate traditional scooters and motorcycles in many states. In some states and countries, as long as the rider is over 16 years of age, no drivers license is required.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
1962 Norton Manx 500
Courtesy of the AMA's motorcycle hall of fame Museum
These days, four-stroke motocross machines are phasing out two-strokes, which have dominated the sport since the 1960s.
But there was a time, long ago, when two-strokes did the same to four-strokes. And the last of the old guard they replaced were thumpers like this one.
Back in the early '60s, off-road bikes didn't get much more exclusive than this hand-built Manx Norton 500cc off-roader, powered by a road-racing engine. The odd combination was the brainchild of British racer Les Archer, framebuilder Ron Hankins and engine tuner Ray Petty.
The collaboration had already proven successful, with Archer using a Hankins-built Norton to win the 1956 European Motocross Championship, which became the World Motocross Championship a year later. But by 1962, Archer was ready to experiment with something new.
Instead of the tried-and-true long-stroke Norton engine he had used for years, Archer bolted a more-powerful double-overhead-cam, short-stroke road-racing engine, prepared by Petty, into Hankins' custom frame.Despite its road-racing origins, the bike made tractable power, says current owner Fred Mork. Plus, it was a screamer.
"During that time, there was probably nothing that made more power than that bike," Mork says. "But it was built at the very end of a golden era, when CZ, Greeves and Husqvarna were about to take over."
And take over they did. By the second half of the '60s, even exotic four-strokes like this one, with its aluminum tank and titanium axles, couldn't compete with the explosive power of lighter two-stroke bikes.
Instead, the four-strokes were sidelined—and butchered. When Mork bought this bike, many parts had been replaced, and the beautiful aluminum tank had been painted red, which made for a challenging restoration job.
"It probably had a couple of pounds of Bondo on it—and I mean literally a couple of pounds," Mork says.
These days, four-stroke motocross machines are phasing out two-strokes, which have dominated the sport since the 1960s.
But there was a time, long ago, when two-strokes did the same to four-strokes. And the last of the old guard they replaced were thumpers like this one.
Back in the early '60s, off-road bikes didn't get much more exclusive than this hand-built Manx Norton 500cc off-roader, powered by a road-racing engine. The odd combination was the brainchild of British racer Les Archer, framebuilder Ron Hankins and engine tuner Ray Petty.
The collaboration had already proven successful, with Archer using a Hankins-built Norton to win the 1956 European Motocross Championship, which became the World Motocross Championship a year later. But by 1962, Archer was ready to experiment with something new.
Instead of the tried-and-true long-stroke Norton engine he had used for years, Archer bolted a more-powerful double-overhead-cam, short-stroke road-racing engine, prepared by Petty, into Hankins' custom frame.Despite its road-racing origins, the bike made tractable power, says current owner Fred Mork. Plus, it was a screamer.
"During that time, there was probably nothing that made more power than that bike," Mork says. "But it was built at the very end of a golden era, when CZ, Greeves and Husqvarna were about to take over."
And take over they did. By the second half of the '60s, even exotic four-strokes like this one, with its aluminum tank and titanium axles, couldn't compete with the explosive power of lighter two-stroke bikes.
Instead, the four-strokes were sidelined—and butchered. When Mork bought this bike, many parts had been replaced, and the beautiful aluminum tank had been painted red, which made for a challenging restoration job.
"It probably had a couple of pounds of Bondo on it—and I mean literally a couple of pounds," Mork says.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Bultaco Motorcycles
Thanks to Laurent for his amazing pictures
Bultaco were a Spanish manufacturer of two-stroke motorcycles from 1958 to 1983.
The origin of the Bultaco motorcycle company dates back to May 1958. Francisco "Paco" Bultó was a director of the Montesa motorcycle company founded in 1944.After several years of steady growth and road racing success, in 1957 Montesa moved to larger facilities. The move was protracted, disrupting production and was followed by a downturn in the Spanish economy.This slump bought to a head disagreements between Bultó and the other senior director Pere Permanyer. As an economy measure, Permanyer felt that the company should withdraw from racing. Bultó, the driving force behind the racing program and responsible for much of the companies technical expertise was violently opposed. Failing to reach a compromise, Bultó decided to leave Montesa to concentrate on his other business interests. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the majority of Montesa's racing department left shortly afterwards as well.
Bultaco is formed
The suggestion to form a new company is said to have come a few days later when Sr. Bultó was invited to a meeting by several of the former staff of Montesa's racing department. Keen to return to racing, they persuaded him that their greatest hope lay in forming a new company. Setting up shop in very primitive conditions at an old farm owned by Bultó, things developed quickly and in February 1959 Bultaco held a press day, launching their first bike, the road-going 125cc Bultaco Trala 101. Just two months later Bultaco entered its first Spanish Grand Prix taking seven of the first ten places.
The company name and logo
BULTACO comes from combining the first four letters of Sr. Bultó's surname with the last three of "Paco", his nickname (BULT)+(ACO). CEMOTO is an acronym for "Compañía Española de Motores". The other part of company logo, the "Thumbs up" symbol, came after Sr. Bultó witnessed British motorcycle racer David Whitworth giving the signal to his pit crew to signify that all was well.
Notable products
Although they made road and road racing motorcycles, the company's area of dominance was off-road, in motocross, enduros, and observed trials competition.
Perhaps the most famous Bultaco model is the Sherpa T, a trials bike, which revolutionised the sport in the 1960s. At that time trials was almost exclusively a British sport using big heavy four-stroke machines. Irish trials ace Sammy Miller worked with señor Bultó to produce a lightweight two-stroke machine which, overnight, rendered the heavy four-strokes obsolete. This coincided with and, perhaps, stimulated the growth in the popularity of trials in Europe and later the USA, which provided a lucrative market for Bultaco in the years to come.
Bultaco's premier model in the USA, the Pursang, was an excellent handling and powerful 250 cc competition model that could readily compete in virtually any type of speed-based off-road competition. In later models this was expanded to 125cc, 360cc and 370cc Other models, such as the Sherpa T (trials), the Astro (flat tracker) and the Matador (trail bike), provided more targeted approaches to specific types of races.
Bultaco motorcycles were mainly powered by single-cylinder, air cooled, two stroke engines, but they also made water cooled versions. The rider was required to mix the oil and gasoline manually. Built in Barcelona, Spain, Bultaco motorcycles were exported throughout the world, but their largest market ultimately became the USA, allowing aspiring racers to purchase legitimately competitive motorcycles right out of the box.
Due to industrial unrest and market pressures, Bultaco production closed in 1979. The factory reopened in 1980, but closed again in 1983.
MotoGP star, Sete Gibernau is the grandson of the founder of Bultaco, Paco Bultó. Legend has it that Mr. Bultó asked to be buried "with his Bultaco t-shirt and his moustache properly waxed".
In 1998, rights to the Bultaco name were purchased by Marc Tessier who used it to help launch a range of purpose-built trials motorcycles from his company Sherco Moto S.A.R.L. The bikes were initially named Bultaco Sherco's, then in 2000 the bikes became 'Sherco by Bultaco' and in 2001 the Bultaco name was dropped altogether.
Bultaco were a Spanish manufacturer of two-stroke motorcycles from 1958 to 1983.
The origin of the Bultaco motorcycle company dates back to May 1958. Francisco "Paco" Bultó was a director of the Montesa motorcycle company founded in 1944.After several years of steady growth and road racing success, in 1957 Montesa moved to larger facilities. The move was protracted, disrupting production and was followed by a downturn in the Spanish economy.This slump bought to a head disagreements between Bultó and the other senior director Pere Permanyer. As an economy measure, Permanyer felt that the company should withdraw from racing. Bultó, the driving force behind the racing program and responsible for much of the companies technical expertise was violently opposed. Failing to reach a compromise, Bultó decided to leave Montesa to concentrate on his other business interests. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the majority of Montesa's racing department left shortly afterwards as well.
Bultaco is formed
The suggestion to form a new company is said to have come a few days later when Sr. Bultó was invited to a meeting by several of the former staff of Montesa's racing department. Keen to return to racing, they persuaded him that their greatest hope lay in forming a new company. Setting up shop in very primitive conditions at an old farm owned by Bultó, things developed quickly and in February 1959 Bultaco held a press day, launching their first bike, the road-going 125cc Bultaco Trala 101. Just two months later Bultaco entered its first Spanish Grand Prix taking seven of the first ten places.
The company name and logo
BULTACO comes from combining the first four letters of Sr. Bultó's surname with the last three of "Paco", his nickname (BULT)+(ACO). CEMOTO is an acronym for "Compañía Española de Motores". The other part of company logo, the "Thumbs up" symbol, came after Sr. Bultó witnessed British motorcycle racer David Whitworth giving the signal to his pit crew to signify that all was well.
Notable products
Although they made road and road racing motorcycles, the company's area of dominance was off-road, in motocross, enduros, and observed trials competition.
Perhaps the most famous Bultaco model is the Sherpa T, a trials bike, which revolutionised the sport in the 1960s. At that time trials was almost exclusively a British sport using big heavy four-stroke machines. Irish trials ace Sammy Miller worked with señor Bultó to produce a lightweight two-stroke machine which, overnight, rendered the heavy four-strokes obsolete. This coincided with and, perhaps, stimulated the growth in the popularity of trials in Europe and later the USA, which provided a lucrative market for Bultaco in the years to come.
Bultaco's premier model in the USA, the Pursang, was an excellent handling and powerful 250 cc competition model that could readily compete in virtually any type of speed-based off-road competition. In later models this was expanded to 125cc, 360cc and 370cc Other models, such as the Sherpa T (trials), the Astro (flat tracker) and the Matador (trail bike), provided more targeted approaches to specific types of races.
Bultaco motorcycles were mainly powered by single-cylinder, air cooled, two stroke engines, but they also made water cooled versions. The rider was required to mix the oil and gasoline manually. Built in Barcelona, Spain, Bultaco motorcycles were exported throughout the world, but their largest market ultimately became the USA, allowing aspiring racers to purchase legitimately competitive motorcycles right out of the box.
Due to industrial unrest and market pressures, Bultaco production closed in 1979. The factory reopened in 1980, but closed again in 1983.
MotoGP star, Sete Gibernau is the grandson of the founder of Bultaco, Paco Bultó. Legend has it that Mr. Bultó asked to be buried "with his Bultaco t-shirt and his moustache properly waxed".
In 1998, rights to the Bultaco name were purchased by Marc Tessier who used it to help launch a range of purpose-built trials motorcycles from his company Sherco Moto S.A.R.L. The bikes were initially named Bultaco Sherco's, then in 2000 the bikes became 'Sherco by Bultaco' and in 2001 the Bultaco name was dropped altogether.
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