Category: Honda C70 Supercub

I went home at lunch to work a bit on my C70, and guess what? It finally started up! When it came to life, my heart skipped a beat, it kind of scared me. Hehe. But it would only run for about 10 seconds or so before dieing. And there was a funny hissing sound coming from the exhaust, sort of like a pressure cooker. I suspected that the old muffler was clogged, so I straightened out a wire hanger and used it to clear the junk that was stuck in there. I think some wasps had made a nest in there… Anyways, after that, it started up so easily, and idled nicely. There’s a small screw on the side of the carb you use to adjust the idle, and I got it dialed in pretty good. Since I inflated the tires the day before, I decided to give it a go down the street. It shifted great into first and second, but I didn’t put it into third gear yet. I’ll wait until I get new tires and a helmet. But I am stoked that it’s running!!!!

My dad and I worked a bit on the supercub. We replaced the points, condenser, and did continuity checks on most of the electrical system. And finally, we got a spark going. Next we put in some fuel and tried to start it up, but unfortunately we had a fuel leak, and the gasket I replaced wasn’t enough… The gasket actually worked fine, but there is another leak somewhere. It is going to require taking the carb apart and cleaning it again. The cool thing, though, is that when I kick the kick-start pedal, it sounds like it is trying to start up now. It won’t be too much longer until it is running.

It’s great weather to work on the Supercub a little bit. So, while the baby is sleeping, I cut off the broken turn signal stalks (pic is before), replaced the turn signal relay (they now blink), and am ready to replace the condenser and points.

Here’s a great photo by Mark Skorj. He takes fantastic photos,
and I check his site for cool pics of scooters and supercubs.

I first stumbled across Mark Skorji’s photos while searching for supercub pictures. I followed a link from his website to the photos he has on TrekEarth and was blown away. I like to look at them every now and again. They are really inspiring!

I think I have decided on a color for my supercub… grayish green. I don’t know how to describe it. Heh, I don’t have to describe it! Here’s a picture so you can see for yourself:

Anyways, I have the supercub fever again. Tonight I am going to clear out space in the garage that is right now occupied by the Ikea boxes and set up my supercub restoration space. Here’s a link to my old supercub page. I guess I should update this too! And forgive the duplicate post there… thanks!

While looking through a scooter messageboard, I found a link to these pictures of scooters and motorbikes around Tokyo. When I got down to the bottom of the page, I found a great picture of a supercub all set up for ramen delivery!

I had explained this vehicle to several people, but now I have a picture of the real deal. There is also a picture of a supercub that looks to have been modified to accomodate a surfboard.

Today I got an email from a lady here in Austin saying that she had a 1980 Honda C70 for sale. I went over there to take a look, and it wasn’t in very good shape, but the price was right for a fixer-upper. The frame looked good, and it has most of the parts. Plus, her husband delivered it to my house in his truck. I am a little apprehensive about fixing it up, but it should be fun. There are lots of parts available for this model, and since I have no timeline other than a couple years, I can afford to wait to find good deals on parts. I will have plenty to do to fix her up cosmetically (sanding, painting). I was about ready to buy a 1962 Honda C50, but at the last minute I am cancelling that (I feel kind of bad because the person who I was buying it from is really nice and was going to help with the shipping).

I have started a page to track my Supercub project here.

I think I am getting a 1962 Honda C100 (Supercub)! The condition is not so great, and will need a little fixing up, but that is exactly what I wanted. The picture above is a 1961 C100. The one I am trying to get is black, but I want to paint it blue with light blue fairing and fender like in my earlier post. It also has a two-person seat, but I want to replace it with a single seat, then get a little rack over the back fender. I will post pics as soon as I get them…

In my search for a Honda Passport/Supercub, I ran across this group of moped enthusiasts: The Moped Army. It looks like a totally fun group. You should check out their photos. You don’t see too many mopeds around anymore… it’s a shame because they are pretty fun. Gotta love Moped Army’s slogan/dvd title: “Swarm & Destroy”.