On Jan 12, 2006, at 11:57 AM, Malcolm Smith wrote:
... As for Honda motorcycles, did you ever come across the CB400N
Auto, which my
local independent motorcycle sales manager ran? ..
I think that was the CB400A in the USA. They didn't sell very well
here, but we had a few of them go through the shop.
One of my buddies owned a small independent shop. We built specials
and race motors there. On a lark in about 1977 or so, we picked up a
Honda CB750A automatic engine unit, fitted an 812cc kit onto it with
a good worked head, and installed that in a Rickman chassis. Had to
tune it a little differently from a 5 speed machine to maximize
powerband, but it was a kick to run around Bridgehampton and Pocono
tracks. Went well as long as it held together ... Unfortunately, the
torque converter cooked the oil, despite synthetics and four huge oil
coolers, and the shared gearbox/engine oil combination cooked the
pistons fast, so it never lasted a complete race.
Godfrey
