Good day collecting Honda'S

[crabman]

I set about collecting all the aircooled Honda's of significance. So far I have gathered a decent collection of these Honda's( this aint easy or cheap living in Africa)  and the collection took a quantum step forward when I secured the only known surviving Bill Bell Honda in South Africa for a good price. The bike is in amazing condition and runs well. Only needs a Simons front  fork service and fork seals. The bike is complete even the headlight and tailight work.
Thereafter my day got better when I bought a original NOS seat for my 1978 Honda cr 250. The seat cover and foam were the only non standard features on an otherwise perfect bike. Wow I was lucky today. By the way I had no idea at the start of my day what would come my way. Patience is a virtue well rewarded. I tried to buy the Bill Bell Honda some two years ago.

[paulr]

Hey well done Crabman
Likewise, I've been hounding Buddy for a while but as all agreed, best it remains in SA where it has historical value.  Not quite the Bill Bell but I brought across AJ's '72 Motosport and am having a ball here in the west.
Keep up the collection and any plans of you guys doing a trip to Oz in the near future?
Regards
 

[090]

Any chance of a photo? As i don't know who Bill Bell is or the bike you are referring to. A history lesson would be good!

[firko]

 Brad....Bill Bell was a California 4 stroke Honda guru back in the 70s and 80s. He built some pretty trick XLs out of his Long Beach Honda shop including the C&J XL Gunnar Lindstrom and Al Baker won Baja on. His son Mike "Too Tall" Bell was pretty handy on a bike as well.http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/hofbiopage.asp?id=127

I copied the following from the Motorcycle.com forum

In 1975 a Honda XL350, upgraded by Bill Bell and Long Beach Honda, won the Baja 500 open class in the capable hands of Al Baker and Gunnar Lindstrom (also know as the token Swedish magazine editor for Dirt Bike Magazine). Long Beach Honda had been at the center of Baja motorcycling from the beginning; the first motorcycle to reach La Paz was a Long Beach Honda CL250 CA72 under riders Dave Ekins & Bill Robertson, in 1962.

The Bill Bell 1975 XL350 had some major engine modifications done to it, mostly the camshaft, where heat and horsepower dictated a needle-roller bearing setup on the cam's exhaust side. Even now the motor is impressive. With four valves said to be the same size of those from a CB750 (a two valve motor) the motor was punched out to 409cc, a higher lift and longer duration cam, along with a higher compression & 36 mm Mikuni carb, made the bike put out around 49 horsepower at 9000 rpm.


Bill Bell and his baby

This Honda Baja racer turned out to have the most modifications of any previous Bell/Long Beach Honda Baja project. The CJ Engineering Frame, Curnutt shocks, CR250 forks, wheels and radical motor went against the previous formula by Bell, of leaving the motor and frame pretty much stock, except for the use of heavy duty engine components (like the hardened camshaft bearings in the 1968 & 69 Baja winning CL350 Twin). Of course good suspension components were used, along with the latest suspension technology.

Between 1974-1978 Long Beach Honda sold quite a few of these modified XL’s and you could order one as big as 500cc. Bell built bikes to order, and they went anywhere from $1,800 to $3,600 1975 Dollars. Guys who thought they were fast came up against one of these Long Beach modified bikes, and promptly got blown into the weeds. Impressive they were.

The legacy of Honda winning top spots in the Baja 1000 & 500 every year goes back to the beginning, with guys like Larry Bergquist and Gary Preston on Long Beach Hondas. From the golden era of off-road Baja racing and motorcycles, to bikes with riders like Johnny Campbell & the Honda factory team, the event is a spectacle of bygone days. Where glory and tragedy wait at the next cliff, or checkpoint. And Honda is still the bike to beat.




 

[090]

Cool. Thanks for taking the time Mark.

[caps 999]

and rember its always a good day for collecting hondas

[STW996]

Yep, great story Mark

Many thanks

[crabman]

Hi Gents
My Bill Bel Honda arrived yesterday. I cannot believe how lucky i am to have got it. Apparently I had some competition out of Australia. Basically all I need to do is re do the Simons forks, seals and respray and maybe service the rear Works Performance shocks.

Can anybody confirm if the bill Bell Honda's ever ran Fox airshocks? I have a pair and I think that a set of reconditioned Simons and Fox on the rear would be the business ?

tHANKS
CrABAMN