Topic: What's your favorite CB750 model? And why?

[Eggman]

I'm trying to figure out which CB750 to buy, but I don't know all the differences between the models.
What's your favorite one and why?

K, cause of the rear drum? Or more reliable valve guides?
F, cause of the dual front disc?
75-76 (F0-F1) Super Sport - cause they have the wire spoke wheels? Rear disc?
77-78 (F2-F3) Super Sport - cause they have the black engines? Dual front disc?

Help me buy the right CB750. Thanks,
E

[slikwilli420]

This is extremely subjective based on a few factors, some of which you mentioned. I think the early F models with wire wheels are at the top of the heap. I like the styling even better than early K models, and they don't have any of the engine issues the later F bikes can have related to valve train. Early F bikes have the most refined engine of the breed and have a very superbike style to them, which I really like. Next would be early K models with duck tail seats, which are the classic style everyone knows. Later K bikes (77-78) are ok but most don't care for the tank, myself included. Best bang for the buck is a later K (maybe K5-K8) as they are less collectable and fairly plentiful. F bikes are harder to find in any condition since they made less relative to K models, but are undervalued by many with an opinion, again myself included. A wire wheel F with some superbike bars a proper exhaust and sticky tires is really a great ride and will serve you well for thousands of miles.

[MikeSimon]

Yes, it actually depends on why you want to buy one. If you can answer this definitely, you may have the solution to the puzzle.

[ofreen]

Kinda hard to beat the orange ‘75 750F’s. The reason? They were all assembled by Soichiro himself, which explains the low production numbers and high quality. 

[Don R]

75/76 F, would be my choice, 75 if you can find one because they switched to making 76's in early 75  so they are the same but more rare. I had one with triple discs and only sold it to help fund a Sandcast purchase. The two had similar miles and condition. The Sandcast was a no brainer, beautiful, it runs great and I love riding it but I feel like the miles should stay under 10K. The F however, I didn't mind racking up a few miles and it was an awesome road bike as well as in town.  With the dual front discs I punished the front tire practicing emergency stops. 

[ekpent]

 Mine would be the 1971 or K1 750. I like the colors that year as well as the design of the tank stripe. I also like the fact that it has the matching painted headlight shell and fork ears and the design of the rear signal mounts. Like the speedo and tach gauges with lights in them to clean up the 'dash'. The engine I believe is a little stronger and free'r revving then the later models and sound great if your lucky to still have the HM300's. Your chances are good at finding one since that was the highest production year of the 750. Also who doesn't love the red side cover emblems !! 
  First choice for a lot of us is the 1970 but the price is the only downfall unless you get lucky.1971's run for cheaper prices and have a few wrinkles worked out.

[Stev-o]

I'm trying to figure out which CB750 to buy

They are all excellent bikes.  Narrow your selection down to 3 bikes and show to us, then we can advise which bike to buy.


Your in L.A. right?  Look at this bike the Golddude might be selling...


http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php/topic,170439.0.html

[Keith]

From my personal experience: 75 cb550: sunrise orange. Loved that bike....76 cb750 K, red, as they all were. Wore the footpegs down to nothing; I felt like a king on that bike. 76 750 F1, yellow with a blue pinstripe. Faster, but didn't get too attached to it. Hated the gray side covers. Now I wish I had it back.  Current bike: cb750 K2. Sunrise orange..I would prefer a 70 or 71'  but would still keep this one! Hard to beat the sound of a 4-piper hoing through the gears.

[DV Red Herring]

1975 F model. Followed by an early K model before all the perdormance neutering.

[gschuld]

I’m a big fan of diecast 69-70 KO and 70-71 K1 models.  They were of the early “performance years”, but not as coveted(read as crazy expensive)as the sandcast bikes.  I really dig the early painted stripe candy blue green, ruby red, and gold colors with the matching color ears and bucket.  The other 71 colors were cool too.  They are rare enough to be interesting, but not too rare where you feel super guilty modifying them some(or a lot  )

George

[setdog]

The best one is the one(s) you own.

There is no "right" cb750, they are all great.  that being
said I prefer the 73-76 K3-K6.  Which seem the have largest
parts availability and most interchangeable parts
however I would like to own a very early K0 model.
also note that production went on, Honda was enabled
to modify and make improvements, so in fact
every successive year the bike only got better, but the (vintage) SOHC series
pretty much ended at 1978s.  Then came the DOHC.

If you are a first time buyer, I would suggest you find a whole
bike, preferably running.  The less you have to do
for your first experience, the better your first experience
will be.  Doesnt have to look great, but mechanically sound
with little if any engine or electrical repairs.

My first was a 76, all it needed was a good carb cleaning.

It wasnt until later I started getting into rebuilding an engine.
For which I bought a piece of crap engine out of a junkyard to
practice on.  It had a giant hole by the sprocket and blew a rod
so I had no issue throwing it on a stand to learn how it all put together.

The practice engine is a great investment if you want to
go deeper into these motorcycles.

[carnivorous chicken]

The best one is the one(s) you own.

This -- and strike when the iron's hot. See one that pique's your interest, in good shape and for a reasonable price? Pick it up before someone else does.

[Eggman]

Thanks for the replies guys! I know it's a subjective question but this is exactly the info I was looking for; little things like the painted headlight buckets, gauges, or just different colorways. I didn't know all that stuff. And I didn't want to buy one model only to want another model 6 months later. LOL.
 

[PeWe]

CB750 K0-K6 because thay are the the classic Honda CB750 that killed the English bike industry and most beautiful and attractive for buyers.
Want a cheap bike to make a fun project with, F bikes cost less than half than the K bikes here. Maybe same in other countries too?
K0 cost a lot more than K1-K6

[Stev-o]

And I didn't want to buy one model only to want another model 6 months later.
 

Oh....that will happen, trust me.  One is never enough!

[gschuld]

also note that production went on, Honda was enabled
to modify and make improvements, so in fact
every successive year the bike only got better, but the (vintage) SOHC series
pretty much ended at 1978s.  Then came the DOHC.

Well that can be considered in different ways.  As time went on from the 69 Sandcast bikes through the mid 70s, Honda seemed to be MOST interested in making changes that would appeal to the most buyers.  Performance wise, k models got slower and slower as it became apparent that having a more civilized and quiet and reliable touring type bike took priority over outright performance.  Note: if you are new to these bikes I strongly recommend picking up the book Mark Paris(Hondaman) put together.  Well worth it.  Things changed when the f models came out with a renewed interest in performance again.

All the cb750s are good bikes.  Sandcast 69s are VERY desirable and costly to own and restore(mint restored sandcasts are in the 35-60k range😳.  Late 69-70 diecast K0s seem to be getting more desirable and valuable all the time.  70-71 k1s are starting to be a bit more reasonable cost wise, k2-5s are the most common(high production years) easiest to get parts/parts bikes etc as a reasonable cost(read: great bang for the buck)

The later Ks don’t seem to get as much respect in general as the mid 70s bikes.  The F bikes are more desirable than the ks in those years.

Regarding the K models, it’s probably safe to say that the value is highest with the first sandcast model(69) and decreases yearly to the end of production.  The fastest drop in value is from 69-71.  F models are generally more desirable and valuable comparable to the earlier Ks, but nothing like the original sandcast model.

George

[700504]

77-78f; just so darn kooky, still most of the same old technology from 10 years prior, with a few 'futuristic updates'. Just a total spaceship, if ya catch my drift.

[spotty]

any one thats running and not jumping out of gear will do it for me

[PeWe]

More and more parts are produced again for the K0-K6 bikes. Yamiya and others have new fresh tanks with side covers, new 4-4 exhaust. Plenty of small parts,  aftermarket parts look as the Honda original.
I'll order a new centerstand from davidsilver, new brake caliper, mc, chain guard etc for a fraction of the Honda parts if found.

Z1parts have new handle bar switches and meters looking really good for around 350-400USD together.  New seats etc... K bikes rules when coming to parts and new parts. Greedy eBay sellers can have their old dirty Honda parts, I prefer new with same look for less.

[HondaMan]

The easiest ones to rebuild, due to the parts available, are the K0-K6.
The hardest to rebuild are the sandcast, followed closely by the F2/3 bikes.
The zenith of the design (this ought to start an oil thread...) is the K2.

[PeWe]

One thing that is strange is that Honda made the CB750 weaker while the Kawasaki Z1-900 entered the market and became the CB750 killer. Honda should have tweaked the engine and given the Z1-900 a match.  Correct the CB750 like the owner had to do, +80 rwhp with 836 higher CR, ported head and cam.

Honda DOHC 900 the bad decisions continues.
I remember how disappointed the Honda owners were about the slow engine when Suzuki GS1000 and Kawasaki 1000 were much more popular.

[brewsky]

K8 of course!.....better seat, bigger tank, bigger tires, bigger chain, pumper carbs....and cheaper!

[jcarthel]

👍 “ 750 K0-K6 because thay are the the classic Honda CB750 that killed the English bike industry and most beautiful and attractive for buyers.”

[HondaMan]

One thing that is strange is that Honda made the CB750 weaker while the Kawasaki Z1-900 entered the market and became the CB750 killer. Honda should have tweaked the engine and given the Z1-900 a match.  Correct the CB750 like the owner had to do, +80 rwhp with 836 higher CR, ported head an cam.

Honda DOHC 900 the bad decisions continues.
I remember how disappointed the Honda owners were about the slow engine when Suzuki GS1000 and Kawasaki 1000 were much more popular.

This had more to do with Honda's reaction to the USA DOT under control of the political liberals here at the time. The DOT forced Honda (and ONLY Honda) to meet car-type emissions rules, hoping to make an "example" of them before someone filed a lawsuit against the DOT (finally in 1977) to stop this abuse of power. Someone in the [president] Carter administration was responsible for this, and he resigned in early 1980 when Reagan started cleaning house. But for Honda, they just backed away from trying to be the fastest, biggest, most pronounced bikes because they were also trying to sprout their new car company at the time, and wanted the US market for it: instead they went toward promoting the Gold Wing as a premier touring ride for bikes, not performance accents. So, the other bikes got faster and bigger, and Honda even backed out of racing about then, to try to look like "the nice guy" in the bike industry.

'Twas all because of lousy US politics, IMHO...made me very sad at the time. Could you imagine what the CBX Six would have been like, had this effect not intervened?

[PeWe]

That did not stop RC, Action Fours, MTC. APE ..... to help the CB750 owners to take the battle
We had a "law", agreement between bike importers and government to maximize the hp to max 100 hp.

CBX 1979 came with 105 hp. 120-140 hp feels more what it could have done. That bike is still a beauty!