possible "new" bike

[D-Mac]

Thoughts on this bike?

1970 Honda CL350 Scrambler Nice Condition

Ok, so it's not an FZ6, but what do you think? My plan would be to ride it as a second fun 'around town' bike and work on it as needed (after all, the FZ6 is so low maintenance I rarely have to do anything to it!) I'm going to look at it tomorrow.

A CL350 has been on my list of 'bikes I like' for a few months. I don't know why.

The FZ6 will still be my main bike for anything that takes me more than 30 miles from home or that requires storage space or speeds over 50mph.

 

[buccs40oz]

my brother has a 69 (?) CB350 he just got plated . should be a fun little ride

 

[n.e.mich]

I bought the exact bike when I was 13 yrs old. Dad took me to a police auction in Flint MI. and I paid exactly $1.00 for it!
Rode it for 3-4 years until I destroyed it in the woods.

 

[Nick J]

Looks clean. They were good in their day. Little too old for me, but that's me.

 

[oldfast007]

Go for it! that would be a blast:thumbup:

 

[#27]

do it!
:thumbup:

 

[Binks33]

get it that bike is a classic, i to want to get a older bike like that for fun well.... i like anything with to wheels:thumbup:

 

[DaveOTZ]

I Effin love that BIKE!!!

 

[champion221elite]

Reminds me of my old 1974 Honda CL200... boy do I miss that motorcycle! Looks like a fun ride:thumbup:

 

[mstewar1]

My dad had one of those when I was a kid. I'd totally rock that bad boy. Do it!

I was surfin' for Mini Trails the other night. I think one of those would be killer for rippin' around berkeley.

 

[Motogiro]

Love those bikes. I think the first was the 305 Scrambler. The 305 was the first bike I ever really wanted. I loved the sound of them. The only word I suspect in the listing is the word "Seems" to run good "Seems" to shift good. Buy it make it like new. That's just a fun bike!

Cliff

 

[D-Mac]

Love those bikes. I think the first was the 305 Scrambler. The 305 was the first bike I ever really wanted. I loved the sound of them. The only word I suspect in the listing is the word "Seems" to run good "Seems" to shift good. Buy it make it like new. That's just a fun bike!

Cliff

I picked up on the 'seems' language in the ad as well. I talked with the guy for a while by phone and it 'seems' like he knows what he's talking about, although it doesn't sound like he's ridden this bike (or any other) much. Could be a red flag, but I'll probably do a lot of work on it in any case and I'll see how much I can talk him down. I'm jumping on it pretty quick, so I suspect he knows I'm very interested (I've never been any good at faking half-hearted interest in anything - if it's in good shape I'll be drooling).

I spent the evening reading on the Honda Twin forums and reading over the service manual. I think I might pick up a compression gauge tomorrow just to be safe. Also, getting the timing right on these bikes seems to be a bit of a trick, but I've always wanted to figure out how that stuff works.

Thanks for the support everyone!

 

[fast blue one]

not as complicated to work on as newer bikes so should be good for some fun at home, and at that age could well become a valuable classic.

i say "go for it"

Then again it's not my money.

 

[D-Mac]

How many Honda's in this picture?

If you said 2 (Odyssey and and Accord), you'd be WRONG!

I bought the CL350. It's pretty cool that an old Honda JUST fits inside a Honda Odyssey. It's like it was designed for it.

Another look from the back....notice my FZ6 sitting in the garage looking nervous. She need not worry, the Honda's not for touring and far from ready in any case.

Now to clean out the garage and buy a ramp, so I can get this bike on the ground!

BTW - the bike runs pretty badly and I discovered lots of minor issues when I went to look at it (most significant seems to be a bent fork cover from a past drop that has the headlight bent a bit to one side - suspension works fine though). I tested the compression and it was good. Exhaust is in great shape (rare for one of these bikes). Carbs/petcoc* were supposedly rebuilt last winter, but I'll probably have to tear into them again and check the points too. I got the guy down a lot on the price too (he has 8 bikes in his garage).

 

[mattstrat]

Cool bike, looks like fun. The handlebars have an interesting bend to them too. How did the tank look inside (rust etc)? My last bike, I remember being told to check the tank (that was a Kawi & i guess they are bad for that though)...

 

[D-Mac]

Cool bike, looks like fun. The handlebars have an interesting bend to them too. How did the tank look inside (rust etc)? My last bike, I remember being told to check the tank (that was a Kawi & i guess they are bad for that though)...

I loosened the handlebars and folded them down so I could fit the bike into the van (there's a 4" drop in the ceiling that the bike barely cleared). It does look kinda cool that way though.

The tank was rusty inside, but the PO did an acid wash and Kreem treatment. I looked inside and it looks great now. He also added a fuel filter.

My first though is that it's AMAZING how much bikes have changed in 40 years, yet stayed the same. This thing is cool, but it in no way resembles the quality of a modern bike (at least in terms of reliability, handling, suspension, charging system, or brakes), although the design of most parts hasn't changed all that much (CDI and fuel injection being the biggest changes I think). It's a lot simpler to fix an old twin though....although I'll be fixing it a LOT!

I've complained because I can't run the dualheadlight mod/heated grips/misc gadgets AND a heated vest on my FZ6 without draining the battery. The 1970 Honda CL350 can't even power the headlight on low beam (and it looks like it has all the brilliance of a kids nightlight when it's on). Since it wasn't mandatory to run a headlight in the early 70s, Honda didn't build a charging system capable of doing it.

I have a whole new level of respect for guys who did cross-country trips on these type of bikes.