Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1960's

rain and there's none of that mechanical clatter that otten accompanies converted H-D for '70 cont'd THE MONSTER BIKES (from page 4) road bikes being ridden where they dlebars, controls and grips, real racing PIPe, deep breathing ports, desert soft saddle••Jn short, everything he wants and nothing he doesn't need. Designated the Baja 100, the new trailbike fits neatly Into the popular lOOCc racing class. Secretive stlence on the part of H- D engineers to our questions of whether the 125 Rapido barrel and piston are Interchangeable with the 100 leads us to believe that a 125 Baja model may be lurking In the wings. Ten laps around the Saddleback TT course on the two BajaS (with and without numberplate) convinced your tester to place his order early, for demand should soon outstrip suPPlY on this hot little number. Although some low-rev power had to be sacrificed to the performance gods, and our pre-production test bikes only carried the 4-speed gearset, power. once under way, was outstanding. Digging out from the uPhill starting Une on Saddleback's motocross course found the front end pawing the air like a stalllon as the rear tire found traction, or else the englne,bogged down and had to be coaxed gentlY back uP on t.lle pipe. All It needs is another cog, which it will have. Jumps and wheelies are a breeze for the Baja rider. You can pull It 'way back past the point where you'd bail off other bikes and It just stays uP there until you make it come down. Handlebar and peg location were perfect for us, and we're pretty hard to please. Sliding corners is ridiculouslY easy with the Baja. Its wheelbase Is long enough to keep it from swapping ends suddenlY, and it is sufficiently rigid that no danger of highsidlng or sliding out seems to exist. Starting the highlY tuned engine Is never a problem either, thanks to a carb (Dellorto MB-:l4A) that lets you clear a flooded crankcase by merely opening the throttle 1/8 turn and spinning the kick lever a COuPle of times. After this drill, close the throttle and the engine fires on the next kick. For all its lightness and skinny appearance (weight approximately 160 100.) the Baja has a remarkablY solid feel. The bars don't try to twitch out of your hands riding cross-grain on rough ter- doD't belong. We think that the woods riders and mUd-runners In the northwest, midwest and Atlant1c states will want to make some minor changes on their BajaS. For one thing, the front fender will have to be raised to keep mud builduP from stopping the wheel. Also a chaingua:d, unfashionable in the dry desert, is necessary where there's mud. AsidE' from that, H-D's new Baja 100 is that rarest of motorcycles: a real, pure-bred, perfect trail/racing machine for under $700. Try and ~at that, Japan! GARY NIXON DOING WELL That figure limping around the corridors of Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital some night SOOll might very well be National Number One, Gary Nixon. Gary broke his right leg In two places in a crash during the Santa Rosa Mile National JulY 27th. Gary missed a shift and had the front wheel wash out In the middle of a turn. He crashed Into a fence post and suffered a compound fracture. Gary is very grateful to Dr. R. Becktol, bone spec1al1st, for patching UP the badly broken limb. Super racer Gary has been taken out of traction and hOPeS to be put In a wheelchair soon. He also mentioned he might try walking around a bit when the hospital settles down for the night. He has high hopes for a quick and uncomplicated recovery. "I might be able to race near the end of the season; probablY not in any Nationals, but maybe in a half-mile here or there," the cheerful patient told us. PROSPECTORS WIN RAGLAND MEMORIAL The Wayne Ragland memorial trophy will' be presented to the Prospectors Motorcycle Club by the AntelOPe Ramblers at the Ramblers' trophy party August 15. This perpetual trophy is awarded to the club earning the highest number of points In the 100Cc class at the annual A.R.M.C. desert event. The party will be at the Kn1ghts of Columbus Hall at 14450 Valerio St. in Van Nuys, Call1ornia. cooler, for Instance) look like afterthoughts. We'll elaborate on our standards of aesthetic criticism In thA Tri_ dent report. HONDA FOUR Weight... 480 Ibs. P.O.E. Price: $1,450. Indicated Top Speed: 115 mph Trident 3 cylinder - 4 cycle - 7S0cc Available At Wa" Ax '.e'.'s Suzuki °SALES °SERVICE MOTORS °PARTS The Complete Triumph Line at 1049 West 5th Pomona, Calif. Accessories for Trail and Street (714) 629-8642 Moving over to the Honda 4, we' encounter motorcycle design and engineerIng at its very best. After great discussion and pondering, we conclude that the 4 probably won't find its -market among the current owners of big roadbikes, who appear to be less impressed with engineering than with that indefinable satisfaction that comes with the mastery of brute energy. Ther'll be no "triumph of man over machine" for the Honda 4 onwer. The machine In this case has it all over the man. It will do almost anything you want it to, nimblY, willlngly, but it knows its limitations and stays within them. It is like a trustworthy appliance, so smooth and comfortable you hardly know it's there. It is unquestionably worth hundreds of dollars more than it sells for. It's a bargain. Of all the things we liked about the Honda 4, probably the disc front brake rates the highest praise. It far surpasses any unit on the stock or accessory market today. You can feel every degree of its action through the fingertips, like an articulated prosthetic hand hauling the bike to a stoP. Its 5-sp£ed gearset makes the most of the engine's power curve, yet it can be trickled along as slow as 20 mph In 5th gear without lugging, but It accelerates smartlY from 3000 rpm In any gear. The tach is 500 rpm fast throughout the range. Our onlY criticism of the Honda's handling springs from low speed maneuverab1l1ty. Although road-holding . ; sacrificed somewhat for the sake of a comfortable ride, the Honda is perfectlY under control at its highest top speed (120 mph Indicated). Safety ranks excellent because of the excellent lights, including turn indicators, impressive Instrumentation, the brakes and the handling - cornerlngpower combination. Generally the Honda would have scored great, but for two things: 1) the apparentditficulty in fitting saddlebags, without which its long-distance capability could not be fully QXploited. No doubt some enterprising accessory maker will solve this problem. And..2) it's excessive oiling of the rear tire, which caused us one scary skid during a left-hand turn. It fails the "white shirt test". The Four has to be rated Great In the vibration department. What other bike with SOlid-mounted handlebars can carry an outrigger mirror that doesn't shake at all? KAWASAKI THREE Weight.. 382 Ibs. P.O.E. Price... Indicated Top Speed: 118 mph $995Kawasaki's Mach III deserves to be Included among the monster bikes bY virtue of Its performance alone. It Is almost In a class by itself, having the smallest displacement of the monsters, being a two-stroke and priced at less than a thousand dollars. It is a bargain with heart. Performance is right uP there with the best of them, although it loses points for very low speed torque. Lacka self-starter, the engine needs to be bugged starting out, to the annoyance of some neighbors. Our Mach III was an earlY one, and we have now owned it for five months. It has given very good service during that time except for blowing the center head gasket (a minor problem that has been corrected on later models) and once it stubbornly refused to start after we'd washed it (waterproofing will also receive more factory attention, we are Informed). The lusty two-stroke accelerates with the others, thankstoitsfavorablepowerto-weight ratio. We think it handles just fine, despite its short wheelbase tendency to lift the front tire. On the road it feels like a heavyweight, yet it can be flung around through traffic like a scrambler. It is pro!xl.blY the most sporting machine of the lot, and it drinks gas like a racer. Ve couldn't get quite 100 mUes to the 4-gallon tankful. 011 consumption Is approximately one quart per 100 mUes, so one might say that what you save on original purchase price, you'll spend at the gas station over the years. This machine ranks lowest in safety mainly because it is priced in the reach of inexperienced buyers. High performance motorcycles should be approached graduallY, In our opinion, and to start out with a Mach III would be biting off a big chunk to chew. However, the assistant tester who now owns the Macb II! is a new rider, and is surviving the course, so perhaps our fears are unfounded. (Continued on page 18)

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