Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

i III ~ W Z W ..J U > U ;:ound Hotcha! A little jump and a latta power to the and you~ too, can make spectacular jumps that look good in pictures and are pointless in serious racing. CHROMOLY CZ FRAME: 121bs LIGHTER 5TRONGER ••.$350 4 MORE HP. FOR YOUR 250, write: NOW MOTOCROSS RACES GRAND PRIX CYCLES CZ EVERY SATURDAY AT SADDLEBACK PARK 2450 EI Camino Real MAICO santa Clara, Ca. 95051 .. Most Powerful- . = . .. MAleC '" ... .. COOPER MOTORS . CD :z: West 01 Mississippi :::0 !!: 110 E. Santa Anita Aye. Burbank, Ca. 91502 :::0 lI'Q Cool yOIr HOT BOX .it~ HRL Cllt(~ (TRANS.) lilt., by John Huetter Nobody around -the CN premises really thinks that they need a 400 motoerosser. Hardly anybody would claim to be abIe to use one to its full potential, but we're not letting little details like that stop us. It seems that everybody on th.e staff has recently acquired or rebuilt a big dirt racer and let's be honest, they are plenty fun to· ride. The same factor that makes them easier to ride, a broad powerband with lots of it, makes them easier to maintain and no more expensive, or less expensive, to operate over a racing season so long as you avoid crashing too badly. A 400cc or so motocrosser can be a ways out of tune and most riders will never know they aren't getting that last 10% of horsepower. One of the standards of the class is the CZ 400, rather optimistically termed since a displacement of a little' over 380cc is stamped on the steering head. The machine has a reputation for plen ty of power and people generally do well on them in competition but visually, the machine is little different from any of the other displacemen ts in the CZ line-up. It even comes with the same carburetor and pipe as the 250 motocrosser. It features that particular combination of taxi cab yellow and Pep Boys racer-look that, I guess, Eastern Europeans think Westerners like. Visually the old red tank machines looked more '''works'' and one-off than the yellow ones. But the difference is more subtle and more important than paint and stick-ons. The CZ frame and running gear, espcially the forks and brakes, make all that power of the 380 plus CC's almost easy to use. Handling is really superb, coupled with more horses than most riders are ready for. The CZ is dyno tested and dirt tested at the factory and our test machine had 42.68 HP stamped on the certification plate. Past . expe.rience with the stamped on CZ horsepower claims indicated that they are usually no more than a horsepower, or half, off from the claimed value, either way. It takes a few short outings to get used to it all, and all the wheelspin. Some of the 400s come with a 4.00 X 18 rear Barum, some have been shipped with a 4.5 O. The 4.5 0 is definitely preferable rubber for the big CZ for most riding applications. It was also felt that the 2.75 Baron up front presented too narrow a profile for the power of the machine and riding' any but deep mud courses. It does have a tendency to knife in that a 3.00 should take care of. The 2.75 doesn't offer as much latitude in terrain or type of riding. While on the subject of things that go round, the rims are heavy steel and are adequate but not really that super. They will pick up dings after some rock bouncing. There has also been a tendency for the sprocket-side spokes in the rear wheel to pull out under the tremendous torque exerted by the forty or more horses. John DeSoto will be an unhappy witness to that. However, if you keep your spokes tigh t... Yes, really use the little spoke tigh tner that comes Photos by Larr.y Groves in your mystify.ing tool ltit._this tendency is reduced to almost zero. But if they come loose and you can't stop to cinch 'em down, you might shed a few. Our test bike never lost one during some pretty rugged pounding, but we kept the spokes very taut throughout. We got started on weak points, so we might as well finish it. The 32mm J ikov that comes stock on both the 250 and 400 CZ does not seem to be the perfect match for the 400. If it is jetted rich enough to run right at the top end, it 'has a tendency to load up and stutter or hesitate when you roll on the throttle at the lower end. Jet it to run crisply down low and there is a .risk of running too lean when you're really wound out. The carb and engine do provide overwhelming mid-range, but it's sometimes hard for a Novice to keep his 400 Che Zed singing like Friedrichs, Halm and the rest of the factory crew under all conditions, like tight off-<:arnber one eighties and the like. Still no rear brake return spring. Use an inner tubt!: The other items that have been perennial targets for mo'sickle reviewers over the years h ave largely been corrected. The fork seals weeped sligh tly during the first ride and then haven't since. The rigid footpegs now fold and passed the slimy mud test without any problem. Also passed the sliPpery sand and greasy boot test. The rear shockS are still not all they might be (They might be Konis or Curnutts or something like that.) but they are much improved from what we remember from a year or two back. The economy minded rider, and that includes everybody who just forked out the dough for a new 400 motocrosser, might well leave the stock shocks in place until they're sacked or ,he has more money. Most people don't like the grips. Maybe you do. Now back to the power. It's really there. Turn the too-hard throttle (Told you I didn't like the grips.) and you start to go very fast very quickly, which means you accelerate. The bike doesn't weigh that much, about 245 stock and wet, and as a result it doesn't take long for all the power to - ge t th at mass accelerated. There's a formula in physics about that. It's smooth though and not at all peaky which makes it controllable once a rider explores how much "go" he really has on tap. The handling is, by almost anybody'. prejudices, superb. You can do all the stuff you saw the Europeans do when the current models were strictly works bikes. It was a very forgiving machine before, it is even more so now. Whenever you get in trouble, a little corrective throttle and the CZ seems to get back into shape almost by itself if you don't get in the way. The forks are way under-rated among other makes and, once they've been stopped from weeping, give no problems and really feel firm and controllable tracking through a ru tty corner or over ripples . The rear end of a CZ hops around when you're really going really fast. It doesn't ~ Take immediate delivery this week and Win this weekend! MONARK 125 MX· 125 Enduro PENTON MAICO 125 MX 400 Radial MX 250 MX 125 Enduro 175 Jackpi_ -Team rider Gaylon Mosler takes three first place wins at EI Toro Motocross on his firlt Monark ride. This was the same bike tested by eN At American Motocross each bike is set up as if it were for our own racers. There are three hours of detail work on each machine.. You put two tanks of fuel through it, bring it in, and we go through the bike again. AU at no chuge. We feel if anything's going to happen, itll happen in the nrst four hours of operation. We do it right the rust time around! COMPLETE PARTS DEPARTMENT Largest in Orange County Mail Orders Accepted • • •• ~ New Address: 7241 Orangethorpe Buena Park, CA 90621 Telephone: (714) 521·2420 ,r • C ountershaft sprocket is exposed so you can change to one of the two other gearing options. Inspection plate pops off with three screws to check points and timing. The tank is a poor compromise or imitation of what Czechs imagine Western tastes to be. The old ones were more racey and held a little more petroil.

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