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May 30, 2009 20:19:33 GMT
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Passed my "big bike" test last August and after much head scratching about what budget bike to get, I settled on a Honda CX500.  I love these things! Ugly and a bit odd, plus I'm an eight stone weakling so it was tricky to convince the heavy old beast to go 'round corners.... Loved riding it but soon after I got it home and started looking at it properly, I realised that it was in fact pretty knackered. Spent plenty of time in the shed - and money at Wemoto and David Silvers - but once I got some confidence and started riding harder it became obvious the bloody thing was guzzling oil via the right hand cylinder. That coupled with an MoT failure on head bearings and the chrome being worn right through on the forks saw it hitting Ebay. Was weighing up my choices when a wise man imparted his advice:- And here we are now! ;D  For those not in the know, it's a 1990 Honda Bros - a Japanese import, 400cc v-twin - a sleeved-down version of the Africa Twin motor. Pretty lightweight at 180kg kerb weight, around 35bhp so not especially powerful but it has a nice useable spread of torque which makes it great for towns and twisty roads! Handling is excellent (speaking from my limited experience), it has the Elf racing team designed "Pro Arm" single sided swingarm which looks weird but obviously does the trick!  Only 28,000km on the clock and it looks to have been pretty well cared for, only niggles are it needs a proper clean and there's a metallic buzz around 4,000rpm - sounds like it could be cam chain but not sure. Could just be a loose cable tie, I do tend to worry more than is necessary!  It had been owned by a chap with arthritis in his hands so when my mate Wayne got it, it had a huge old school fairing and fully adjustable handlebars. Wayne's more of a streetfighter guy hence the Renthals and Jonny 5 headlights.... Although I do have the original headlight and clip-ons to return it to stock if I feel like it later. I'm still getting the hang of biking in general let alone the bike itself... But man is it fun! ;D |
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My fleet:
Suzuki GSX-R600Y SRAD with bald, melted tyres
A borrowed Mondeo
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May 30, 2009 22:48:15 GMT
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Always liked the Bros, good buy JS looks a nice one  |
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"Was today really necessary?"
87 VW GTi ( MOT PASSED 26/04/10)
2003 Honda cb250y Nighthawk
05 Micra Urbis
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May 30, 2009 23:55:59 GMT
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very good little bikes these ones. one thing though, the reason they fitted single sided arms was for wheel changes at speed on endurance racing etc. they actually have less stiffness than a normal swingarm, so not as goos for handling  thing is, i have a single sider on my triumph, and it still makes me sex wee....they just look the shizzle. |
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May 30, 2009 23:56:39 GMT
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and, it maybe worth changing the camchain tensioner. cheap and easy, and they do go to pot.
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I had one of these things hated it, got passed by all my mates who still had 125's out of corners and into corners. rear end has unbelievable chatter, it weighs a ton, and the swingarm pivot point is wrong so if you set the chain tension(which seizes) normally then sit two people on it tightens way up and kills the gearbox. yours look nice and tidy though find the later 18" rear and 17" front wheels in gold there are way sexy.  |
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May 31, 2009 14:55:20 GMT
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i had one of those ..top bike, i cut the back end of mine and fitted a 2002 r1 seat unit had it allsprayed bmw m3 dakar yellow and fitted an aftermarket exhaust ....95 mph allday long superb little bike |
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May 31, 2009 19:47:00 GMT
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Thanks for all the comments!  TerraRoot - you've summed up all the negatives! ;D A couple of American Hawk 650 owners had advised me on adjusting the chain tension based on rider weight rather than just agreeing with the factory measuring tool. Luckily the chain tensioner is like new, I've heard horror stories about spending hours freeing them off or having to cut them up! "They" also keep telling me to fit CBR600 forks and get a custom rear shock, but that's a bit more than I want to spend.... JayKay - Good call on the cam chain tensioner, I'm pretty certain that's what the noise is now and curiously a new tensioner and chain came with the bike "just in case you need it at some point". I now know what that means! Been out for a nice ride 'round some Essex countryside with BodieandDoyle today, and sure his GPX750R would eat the lil Bros for breakfast - but I had a great time, and that's what it's all about! ;D |
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My fleet:
Suzuki GSX-R600Y SRAD with bald, melted tyres
A borrowed Mondeo
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awoo
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,506
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May 31, 2009 20:42:50 GMT
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yours looks nice and clean, bros is a great bike, my first proper bike was a product one, only issue it had was the budget suspension although it still wasnt bad.
great handling bike, the guy that bought mine bought it for the fact it would out handle much bigger bikes through corners.
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May 31, 2009 21:58:38 GMT
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2001 HONDA CT110 (NOT RCV)
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mate has tl 1000 r and wanted a bike to do a tour on
he was mentioning fjr 1300
we told him noooooo
buy a deauville - found a 99 for 1500 and nice nick
we told him it would be cheaper
fjr 5k
dohville 1500 ;D
motor fits in yours too ;D
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2001 HONDA CT110 (NOT RCV)
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Passed my "big bike" test last August and after much head scratching about what budget bike to get, I settled on a Honda CX500. I love these things! Ugly and a bit odd, plus I'm an eight stone weakling so it was tricky to convince the heavy old beast to go 'round corners.... Loved riding it but soon after I got it home and started looking at it properly, I realised that it was in fact pretty knackered. Spent plenty of time in the shed - and money at Wemoto and David Silvers - but once I got some confidence and started riding harder it became obvious the bloody thing was guzzling oil via the right hand cylinder. That coupled with an MoT failure on head bearings and the chrome being worn right through on the forks saw it hitting Ebay. Was weighing up my choices when a wise man imparted his advice:- And here we are now! ;D For those not in the know, it's a 1990 Honda Bros - a Japanese import, 400cc v-twin - a sleeved-down version of the Africa Twin motor. Pretty lightweight at 180kg kerb weight, around 35bhp so not especially powerful but it has a nice useable spread of torque which makes it great for towns and twisty roads! Handling is excellent (speaking from my limited experience), it has the Elf racing team designed "Pro Arm" single sided swingarm which looks weird but obviously does the trick! Only 28,000km on the clock and it looks to have been pretty well cared for, only niggles are it needs a proper clean and there's a metallic buzz around 4,000rpm - sounds like it could be cam chain but not sure. Could just be a loose cable tie, I do tend to worry more than is necessary! It had been owned by a chap with arthritis in his hands so when my mate Wayne got it, it had a huge old school fairing and fully adjustable handlebars. Wayne's more of a streetfighter guy hence the Renthals and Jonny 5 headlights.... Although I do have the original headlight and clip-ons to return it to stock if I feel like it later. I'm still getting the hang of biking in general let alone the bike itself... But man is it fun! ;D Just purchased a bros 400 and would like to change the handlebars to renthals to increase the comfort level in the ride, just as your mate did. Would you be able to advise on this, I'm really a noob but am prepared to get my hands dirty and would really be appreciative! Many thanks, DM. |
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Jan 18, 2011 22:46:38 GMT
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This bike was sold in the USA but they used the name "Honda Hawk GT". Get yourself over to www.hawkgtforum.comas it will have all the answers to all your questions Here is my 1988 Honda Hawk GT  And this is probably my Favorite Bros  |
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Last Edit: Jan 30, 2011 11:13:25 GMT by jrwestham
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Jan 18, 2011 23:06:42 GMT
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I will but i was hoping JohnnySierra would shed some light on this.
Ill go check out the site though, many thanks!
DM.
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Best advice from Hairnet.
Thise are lovely, and you can ride it for years.
Loads of bits on them polish up well if you do get bored.
Safe riding.
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will
Posted a lot
Posts: 4,023
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Jan 19, 2011 14:39:38 GMT
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Great bikes these. Must be a fair bit nimbler than the maggot too ;D
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Jan 23, 2011 21:14:01 GMT
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I have a buyer for JohnnySierra's Bros, does anyone know why he isnt answering his PM's!!!!
WE WANT TO BUY YOUR BIKE, PLEASE PM ME!
DM
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Jan 24, 2011 10:57:22 GMT
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Sorry DM!  This is only the third time I've logged in in about nine months! Handlebar-wise, it's a straightforward kind of job - a set of these or similar bolted through the top yoke. You should be able to get some a fair bit cheaper by hunting around, I would have thought. And the hole-drilling needs to be spot on just to make sure the bars are straight, obviously! My Bros has been sold unfortunately... And I miss it like mad! Although I desperately need the money to pay bills, feed kids etc I'm very tempted to get another Bros as a project. I ended up swapping my 3-door Sierra for a 600 Bandit S which is obviously a lot livelier, and I find it much more comfortable for longer journeys... But I do miss the sweet v-twin and general charm of the Honda.  |
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My fleet:
Suzuki GSX-R600Y SRAD with bald, melted tyres
A borrowed Mondeo
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buy the bros
This is only the third time I've logged in in about nine months!