look what I got from work today...

[Koshin]

First off, Ill say that I am in the middle of building some gnarley old school cafe' racer street bike right now...itll be a long term type thing that Im doing on the side...Im utilizing a '72 Honda CB550 frame for the build...different rake, different swing arm blah blah blah...but the heart was originally gonna be a 998cc V-Twin sourced from a late-model Honda RC-51...it would be hard to make work but the logic behind it is that I have never seen one done...it would be unique for sure

...but today at work I was fortunate enough to run across something that I have never seen...it will now be the new heart of the cafe' build...take a looksie, this is the motor internally, obviously not an exact image of the one I have but it will suffice until I tear the one I have down..



It is an oval-piston 500cc 4-stroke V-Four Honda GP motor out of a '79 Honda NR500 GP bike...when Honda got back into MotoGP back in the late 70's, this was their initial offering...back then all the bike were 500cc 2-stroke powerplants so you could imagine that they got beat on pretty badly, which they did...The Honda NR500 was the pre-cursor to the GP Champ Honda NSR500 which stayed basically the same enginewise until the two-stroke were eliminated from competition in 2003 I believe...

..anyways, this is a jewel and I will post more pics when I clean it up and disassemble the motor...Im hoping its gonna work out becasue no one will have one of these things...assuming nothing is burnt up internally, It should be fine...

Im a dork about motors..especially rare and exotic stuff like this...I bet running four straight pipes out of the head will sound like the end of the world...

Im hyped

y0

[Koshin]

after just doing a little more research, I found out that this motor I have is actually the first ever Honda V-Four engine ever to be produced...not that I though it could happen, but it just got even more hyped

At the Honda/HRC museum where the above picture was taken...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIqyoapnyNk

[mRodiek]

32 valve V4 I dont know alot about bike motors but damn that looks sweet.

[Koshin]

looks sweet 32 valve V4 I dont know alot about bike motors but damn that l

32 valve V4 I dont know alot about bike motors but damn that looks sweet.

I know what kind of power it makes (about 130-ish whp), it should be fun in an uber light cafe bike setting...I have never ridden a bike powered by this plant, and I dont expect it to be anything like the Suzuki Gamma from the mid-80's (500cc 2-stroke)...I have ridden a lot of races bikes and s*** and I think this will be a very potent on the street...

the best thing about this thing is gonna be the way its gonna sound...Im gonna fab up some flared Polini-esque pipes right off the head like an old GP bike...

It should be baller, assuming the motor is good internally...which Im hoping very much that it is...I cant wait to get it done and everyone asking me what motor it is lol...

"Oh, its a '79 Honda V-4 GP motor"

"Man, why does that bike sound like that?"

"Hey buddy, whats wrong with that bike?"
Modified by Koshin at 8:54 PM 10/27/2009

[ScrapMetal]

That thing is gonna sound killer Rich!

I read an article about the Honda Museam in Motegi in this month's Motorcyclist. It talked a lot about the history of the NR, NS, and NSR500 bikes.

I love the NS500 two stroke

[Koshin]

NR500 < NS500 < NSR500

...but Ill take it

you know, I think I talked to you about putting in a big 2-stroker in this frame I ve got right Pedro?

dont know...but what I do know, is that there is a severe shortage of 500cc 2-stroke GP powerplants laying around...I just got s***ty lucky today, I guess I dont haz all bad luck....I just hope its solid on the inside

[Razi]

Cool looking engine.I hope it's good internally.

Good luck y0.

[ScrapMetal]

you know, I think I talked to you about putting in a big 2-stroker in this frame I ve got right Pedro?

Nah, you told me about sticking the big ol' V-Twin off the RC in the little CB, but not a two stroker. Either way, that thing's gonna be a little rocket.

Hopefully that NR engine's in good condition.

[Pento240sx]

If I where you I would take it to a place so they could make a blue print of this engine. If anything happens you could remake one or even make more of this and sell them. Just my 2 cents YO!!!

[Koshin]

Itll prolly be like nothing Ive ever ridden...Im gonna have to make a bunch of s*** for it...I want the rearset super high and Im gonna have to make a shift rod for it...Im not sure if they are GP-shift (1 up, 5 down instead if vise versa like streetbikes) trannys or not...I cant find that info

It will be a head turner for sure...just the noise alone will be worth the wait and time its gonna take me to shoehorn this thing into this frame...

maybe something like this...I like the lines of this but it needs a little longer tail section and a more agressive stance (i.e. lower clip-ons and higher rearsets)



...except with a GP V-4 motor, not that dinky thing there

[mRodiek]

Pics of your bike?

[Mr1der]

that's effin sweet dude.

I wanna hear it run!

[Koshin]

Pics of your bike?

no pics till shes done...its all about the hype

last time I did this, I fell into seclusion in a garage for about 3 months and built the nastiest supersport youve ever seen...Its was like an AMA Superbike with headlights..it was rad, just not everyone elses style...which is fine...

EDITED: Ill snap some pics of the CB frame and the GP motor tomorrow at some point...I need to clean the motor first though, it looks like hammered hell...Im glad I was estute enough to realize what it was...


Modified by Koshin at 9:42 PM 10/27/2009

[Koshin]

that's effin sweet dude.

I wanna hear it run!

thanks J...no one wants to hear it run more than I do brotha..itll be 4-5-months before I fire her up...but next spring, itll be a beautiful thing

heres the last steed I built...this is me on my Honda 1000rr at Putnam Park..all carbon bodywork, HRC clutch and springs, RACETECH 1g front springs and valve kit, HRC headgasket, HRC rear brake mod, HRC pads, stainless lines, port head, HRC cams, ti-valves and retainers, vortex sprockets 6-up in the rear, RK 520 Gold Chain....180 hp, race tuned street bike...awsomeness

I have more pics of it out on the street but it was kind of a track slut...actually they are on my desktop computer...its pretty sicko...it has repsol wheels on it on the street, but in this pic it was race wheels

[r34 gtr]

That is freaking sweet. Congrats, I have seen that engine before, and it is nothing less than boner inspiring.

[Koshin]

thanks buddy..I have been reading a lot of stuff about these motors and I think that it is probably worth a s*** ton monies..I cannot even find where a complete motorset has even been sold..just obscure parts here and there..I almost feel kinda like I should let Mr. Honda have it back so or some s***...

and the best part is, I didnt pay s*** for it...score

if its junk on the inside, which hopefully it is not, Ill sell it back to Honda

[rc1honda]

Wow a oval piston V-4! Where did you find a complete motorset? It's a Honda Legend. I would imagine is going to be hard to find any kind of internal parts for that bike. But i bet Honda will soruce you some parts but i bet it going to be real pricey.

Your bike is going to sound unreal. I bet once your done you could get 20,000 for the bike. Also i would think you could more then 130hp out of that motor. I think it wouldn't be hard to tune it 150hp. And it should be completley streetable. It should make nice low end power and have good street manners, but then scream to life when you twist the throttle.

Epic Find

[Mr1der]

this thread makes me wanna drop my income return on building a cafe style bike.

[Koshin]

OK, so they just sold a '72 Norton Commando at the Cristies Auction in Monterrey for $8,000 bucks....like 4,000 original miles!!!

this bike but all black...worth way more than that, thats what happens when you get a bunch of snooty old men that dont ride bikes...the guy that won it was baffled that know one outbid him...he was ecstatic...as would I be if I were him

Wow a oval piston V-4! Where did you find a complete motorset? It's a Honda Legend. I would imagine is going to be hard to find any kind of internal parts for that bike. But i bet Honda will soruce you some parts but i bet it going to be real pricey.

Your bike is going to sound unreal. I bet once your done you could get 20,000 for the bike. Also i would think you could more then 130hp out of that motor. I think it wouldn't be hard to tune it 150hp. And it should be completley streetable. It should make nice low end power and have good street manners, but then scream to life when you twist the throttle.

Epic Find

I knew what it was kinda when I sae it...I got it from a guy locally that owns a cycle salvage place....periodically he does get something worthwhile that we'll put to use for something...so he comes by my store on tuesday morning, and says hey I got something you might want...I went out to his truck and he showed me...its nasty and has been sitting for god knows how long but it was prepped to sit it looks...all the ports and everything were taped closed...I didnt freak out or anything becasue I didnt want him to know what he had..So I told him Id see what I could do with it and I told him id hook him up on some parts at some point in the future if he wants...I knew what the cases were and s*** but then I was doing research and found that it was in fact in the first run of Honda V-4s...then I really freaked!!

I think that 150 horses would def be pushing it...Im not going to modify it beyond maybe a different jet kit when I make the exhausts for it and a dyno tune...it will make between 130-135 wheel...and that should be plenty considering the application...itll sound like it makes 1000 whp lol...

low end torque should be available anytime...it being a V-4 (technically a V-8 actually), it shows many of the characteristics that V-Twins do...inmagine flared straight pipes off the heads at 20,000 rpm...armageddon on two wheels

...assuming that internally the motor is fine, no price could be put on this motor...I emailed my HRC hookup in Japan that got me all of my hard parts for my 1000RR, and told him and he claims that there werent even that many ever produced...like less than 3 dozen ever...they didnt run that motor becasue of the two-strokes back then..he said that parts for it would be at a premium and doesnt even know if HRC has them in the archives...he also told me that if the motor is junk for some reason that his boss would want to buy it back from me and use it at their place...and maybe rebuild it...its so funny becasue I called that s*** yesterday when making the thread...Honda wants it back!!! bwaaahahahahahahahahaha

it is indeed an epic find...I dont ever even start threads, but I figured there are a few bike guys on NICO that would appreciate it...

this thread makes me wanna drop my income return on building a cafe style bike.

do it...

[Koshin]

btw, my new inspiration...same frame as mine, but with a custom tank and tail section...the rest is all Honda

[Mr1der]

gotta love the old twins..

I'd like to get a 16 valve GS or a KZ for a base to work with.

or find an RD350

[Koshin]

I have the '71 chassis finished....I will post pics of Friday when I bring it back from the shop where I was doing the build...It doesnt have the powerplant in it yet becasue I had to do a lot of frame mods and stuff to strengthen it for the added 150 horsepower that it will be gaining...

...It is very trick though, looks like an old MV or Guzzi race machine...I likes

hype y0

[hannibal]

Very cool. I had no idea that an oval piston motor even existed.

Do you frequent any bike forums? Just curious which ones...

[Ajax]

Neat stuff! I've never been a huge fan of bikes, but if I were to get one, I would definitely want something like this. Sweet!

[Koshin]

Very cool. I had no idea that an oval piston motor even existed.

Do you frequent any bike forums? Just curious which ones...

I dont belong to any other forum of any kind....Most forums are whack, NICO has been kind enough to let me do my thing and run wild as need be. Do like

Bikes are my life unfortunately. I have grown to hate them over the years, but Im actually pumped about this build. Im gonna race it as is a few times in a vintage series just to check it out and see what the old bag is like on track. Then the monster goes in. I dont think it will be to user friendly once the swap is done, luckily Im the most practical person when it comes to this type of s***. Ill have pics of the chassis at this point on Friday or Saturday. I havent gotten it from the shop I got it together as of yet due to this Indiana weather.

Im just hyping everyone up. Everyone will prolly think it whack but I dont so f*** it

I think I have on pic from the day I picked it up...Ill look real quick like

[Koshin]

crappy cell pic...dont laugh, give me 2-3 months...the bodywork is one off. Im modding the tank slightly.

frame, swingarm, valve cover, body side panels Honda Red, and the tank and tail section are gonna be gloss black. wheels, spokes, bars, levers, rearsets, guages, shocks, forks (w/red boots) the Kerker 4-1 header, spokets, engine case covers, and headlight are gonna be flat black. with white #117 on the tank and side panels

and not to mention the V-4...

dopeness will occur in the very near future, stay tuned foos

[krimsonviper]

I have no idea what I'm looking at, but congrats!

[Crunkrich]

I love that old stuff, my second bike was an '81 CB400 and it was awesome, I ended up having to sell it for financial reasons... but yeah, I'll be following this build

[AZhitman]

Rich, I loooooove this thread.

I no longer ride, but owned a succession of pretty cool bikes back in the day. Your project reminds me of my '81 GS550-L that I tore down to the bare minimums. Roomie worked for a Suzuki dealer and was a student at MMA, so he not only got me lots of cool old crap (longer /modded swingarm, drag bars cut down, dropped mirrors, solid seat), but he wrenched on it too.

Started off looking like:



Ended up looking like:



...except uglier. Much uglier. No rear fender, satin navy paint with red pinstriping, and lots of flat black on the parts that were too scuffed to bother with.

IIRC, it was under 400 lbs.

You got yourself a winner.

[crakin]

crazy lookin'. never seen an oval piston