First bike

[CROSSBOLT]

Visited again Lake Hill Motor and Marine in Corinth, MS and again checked out their museum of over 200 antique motorcycles and scooters. I looked for an example of my first bike and found a well restored Honda Hawk 250. It struck me as being really small from what I remembered. I put over 20000 miles on that bike and I should know! It was short in height and short wheelbase. I am the same size vertically as I was in 1960 so it could not be that kind of a change in perspective. It seemed dinky in comparison to my Yager and definitely the Down Town. The hype in 1960 was RACING and they had pictures of this machine heeled over showing fins on the sump and the rider's knee on the pavement. I imitated turns like that until I wised up. The bike seemed so small that a passenger would be unlikely. However, there was that honey in La Jolla that wanted to go to the beach with me......I never knew a passenger could be so, ah, pleasant. I never knew how sensitive my back was for pressure points. It is a wonder we ever got to the beach. The rest of that is another story......

I loved to wail that bike up California 78 or 79 to Julian for a piece of apple pie and coffee! I loved that bike since it set me free from waiting for busses. My first trip on the Hawk was to Mount Palomar to see the telescope. Nearly drowned and froze to death once we hit cloud base on the way up. I did see the huge telescope but I was so cold I could not stop shivering......That bike COULDN'T have been that small but guess it was. It was a lot bigger in my memory.......and could not hold a candle to either the Yager or the DT 300i.

Karl

[klaviator]

Lake Hills Motors has a cool collection of old bikes and scooters.  I posted a bunch of pics of the place here: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=647784&page=13   Scroll down to post #192

I also have great memories of riding up Hwy 79 to Julian for apple pie.  Small World.

[wakeupmaggie]

My first bike was a 1973 Honda CB350 in red.  I bought it brand new.

For my birthday last year, my husband found the exact same Honda and in red too and gave it to me for my birthday.   

He bought it from the same guy who bought my original Honda, which he no longer had.  But along the way he bought another just like mine and I ended up with it. 

[vespa50sp]

68 Honda CL 350 Scrambler. Blue and white. Pretty bike but it always ate plugs.

[Wil B.]

Leftover 1981 Honda Nighthawk 450 purchased new in 1983.  $1,295.00 price....about $1,550.00 OTD with backrest/rack and windshield.  Utterly relible for 8 years including week long vacation trips loaded with soft luggage.  Sold because I thought I should get a larger bike (mistake.) What a lovely 1st bike experience!

Wil B.
Broadview, IL

'71 Guzzi Ambassador
'91 Honda Nighthawk
'04 Kymco Super 9
'10 Kymco Yager 200 gt

[Vivo]

My first bike was not really mine... It was sort of a payment to my father and nobody wanted it...

a 1965 Honda C77 Super Hawk 305cc....

[CROSSBOLT]

Vivo brings up an old question I asked in the 60s: Why did they bother with a 305? Both Honda and Yamaha did it. I get 250, 350, 500 and so on but 305?

You guys really march down memory lane and I thank you!

Karl

[08087]

First bike was an 84' Honda Spree, 50cc model that topped out at about 30 MPH. Used it for food runs for the guys at work and to move men from one part of the business to another. Riding 2 up on a spree was fun for the short ride it was.

[Vivo]

Vivo brings up an old question I asked in the 60s: Why did they bother with a 305? Both Honda and Yamaha did it. I get 250, 350, 500 and so on but 305?

You guys really march down memory lane and I thank you!

Karl

There was a 250cc variant and a 305.  They made a 305 so that they can just rebore the existing 250cc block and not make a totally new big 350cc. Besides, the 305 was the biggest Honda in the early 60's... apart from the tank badge, they are externally identical, and internally differ by a mere 55cc. What is the point of building two machines so much alike that they vary only in cylinder bore dimen­sion and, slightly, in the ratios provided by the four-speed gearbox? Where does the extra 55 cc count on the CB77? The 250 produces 24 bhp at 9,000 rpm, whereas with its extra 55 cc, the CB77 pokes out another 4 bhp, which in terms of per­formance means some 5 mph additional top speed. It is also interesting to note that the power band is wider on the 305, with maximum torque of 18 ft/lb at 7,000 rpm, compared with 15 ft/lb at 7,500 rpm from the 250. This means that the CB77 is more flexible than its 250 cc counterpart and, with more urge lower down, acceleration is also slightly better than with the CB72 250cc.

Yamaha came out with a 305 in 1965, after Honda in 1961... It was their first big bore also...



With my two brothers on the Honda C77...

[Hairy Bob]

That was a damn good answer Vivo !!  And that's a top photo mate. 
My first bike ... a '76 Honda XL 175.
Best regards gang.
Hairy Bob.

[maxhush]

I'll have to check that out one of these days, Corinth, MS is only about 70 miles from me.

[Vivo]

This is Casa Corazon in the Philippines... it's a resort with lots of vintage bikes on display...


One of a kind. More than 20 years in the making, more than one hundred sixty units of vintage and classic motorcycles, cars, and bikes. More than 200 rare and exotic birds. Farms and Picnic Grove.

enjoy....!!!


more here.....   http://casacorazon.ph/gallery/museum.html