Topic: Honda SOHC Race Bike Gallery

[NitroHunter]

Dragbike USA XH/SS Record holder. 

[MRieck]

XX/M Record Holder

I'm looking at those stickers on the swingarm. Falicon, SuperBike Mike, MTC and Ape. SuperBike Mike....something else

[bwaller]

Holy crap Mike, remind me to never second quess your eyesight. 

[BLUE71TURBO]

You wouldn't say that if you saw Professor Mike's glasses !!     

                                     
                                         

[Industrial Rat400f Killer]

Found this on photobucket.It appears the frame could be adapted to most any engine.

Anybody know of a frame builder that could make one of those frames for a 400f?

[malcolmgb]

Looks like a Dresda, Dave Degans.

[kos]

Here's a nice photo of the V8 engine.


Here is the bare frame as built by top fuel & Funny car builder Don Long for the twin 750 SOHC based drag bike for Russ Collins.

KOS

[kos]

If memory serves me, Russ Collins 3 motor machine Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (AT&SF) was actually an (A/Fuel) injected nitro run without any blower.
The Scorcerer (pictured reply #100) had 2 SOHC engines tied together in a V shape with a single modified GM blower feeding both, but they used individual crankcases.
The single crankcase/crank for 2 blocks was designed for Kawasaki KZ stuff by a fellow in the midwest. Russ never had an SOHC setup for one, but I don't remember if this was the basis for 'Battlestar', the rear engined bike. That was to use Goldwing type heads.
Russ didn't run in the 6's with either of those bikes, and 7.30 second/199.55 mph (I looked it up) was Scorcerer's best mph. Terry & Byron ran the first 200 at OCIR.
Russ did have some success with Bill Miller's (BME) Top Fuel car, qualifying at quite a few races. The Pomona blow over put an end to that.

The complete 12 cylinder A T & SF bike that Russ crashed on in Akron, Ohio at 170 MPH in 1976... sits in his office and is a 2 foot by 2 foot square coffee table. Almost killed him! the  engine that Russ was going to use for his next project was called SESCO and was built for Sprint Midget racers back in midwest.  Trouble is National Motorcycle Racing Assoc (NMRA) outlawed the use of "V8's in 1981. He then went for what was called the GoldWing engine. See more in a post further down.

KOS

[kos]

If memory serves me, Russ Collins 3 motor machine Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (AT&SF) was actually an (A/Fuel) injected nitro run without any blower.
The Scorcerer (pictured reply #100) had 2 SOHC engines tied together in a V shape with a single modified GM blower feeding both, but they used individual crankcases.
The single crankcase/crank for 2 blocks was designed for Kawasaki KZ stuff by a fellow in the midwest. Russ never had an SOHC setup for one, but I don't remember if this was the basis for 'Battlestar', the rear engined bike. That was to use Goldwing type heads.
Russ didn't run in the 6's with either of those bikes, and 7.30 second/199.55 mph (I looked it up) was Scorcerer's best mph. Terry & Byron ran the first 200 at OCIR.
Russ did have some success with Bill Miller's (BME) Top Fuel car, qualifying at quite a few races. The Pomona blow over put an end to that.

You're 100% right about the AT&SF having no blower.
I always understood that the V8 was a single unit crankcase, but I'll be corrected if that isn't right.


No, not a V8. See photo. Also: V'8's were outlawed in 1981.

KOS

[kos]

RC Engineering "Battlestar Exotica" Gold Wing drag bike.

First pic is the American Honda Press release Photo, Russ was sponsored by AHM (American Honda Motor Co) and his store was located directly across the street from Honda when in Gardena, Ca. Every time I was back fr meetings at Honda HQ I went over to see what was going on at the time. Byron Hines and Terry Vance were still there and a lot was going on back then...seemed like they never rested.

KOS

[kos]

Engine photos of GoldWing inline 2000cc Battlestar Exotica, the RC Engineering bike.  Case were sourced from Pro Stock specialty engine builder John Dixon in North Carolina. Billet crank and cams were made within RC Enginering as were cylinders. Only think Honda was $$$ and stock GL heads.

Note : I could hada "V8" can on top of engines for photo. Russ was rather ticked off at the racing organizations that outlawed his V8 concept.

The second to last picture shows the riding position on this, the first rear engine drag bike.

Last pic shows the "old man" Russ himself, inside the engine area of frame.

KOS

[kos]

Here are details on Sesco V8.


Ron Hottles from Milwaukee built cranks and blocks for Suzuki and Kaw cylinders and heads. NO HONDA CB750 engines were ever built. These were to be used in sprint cars raced in midwest. Company was named SESCO and supplied.. cases, cranks, oil pans, mag drive, fuel pump, oil pump plus all the pulleys, belts to drive these ancillary drives. Russ collins of RC Engineering planed on using the soon to be released Honda CB1100F DOHC engine to source parts for this "V8" project until his idea was banned.

NOTE: I have located the remains of all the left over parts for these rare and interesting engines back here in Minnesota, but the man who has them is very hard to deal with. Anyone out there have 20-30K they could lend me to break this stuff lose for some neat hot rod street bike projects?

KOS

[Yoshi823]

Found this on photobucket.It appears the frame could be adapted to most any engine.

Anybody know of a frame builder that could make one of those frames for a 400f?

I have an old UK 'Bike' mag somewhere of a road test of someone who'd built just such a frame for the 400F engine...i'll see if I can find it.
In the meantime I found this page...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dclarson/sets/72157606259292074/

[Industrial Rat400f Killer]

Thanks Yoshi823!

[bwaller]

Hey Rat, check out Rick Denoons site http://www.denoonsp.com.

Click download for some stuff on his frame build. He has lots of 400F pics, some of ttr400's

[nashvilletn]

R.C. pic's

[Sam Green Racing]

Found this on photobucket.It appears the frame could be adapted to most any engine.

This is a 500 owned by Mike Gilbert. Used mainly in sprints, runs mid 13s around 95mph.

Sam.

Dresda Motors are still in business it seems, check out the website.

http://www.dresda.co.uk/ljk.asp

Sam.

[Yoshi823]

http://www.ozebook.com/cr750scr.htm
http://www.m3racing.com/
http://www.worldmotorcycles.com/Pages/sears.html
http://www.daytona70.com/English/index_english.htm
http://www.ttr400.com/catalog_3.html

[Industrial Rat400f Killer]

Hey Rat, check out Rick Denoons site http://www.denoonsp.com.

Click download for some stuff on his frame build. He has lots of 400F pics, some of ttr400's

Thanks, I'd seen his site but I never noticed the download info before.

[nashvilletn]

more R.C. pics

[nashvilletn]

early R.C.

[von_Wanderlust]

ya'll don't want to here the story...

You're right, we probably don't want to hear it. Probably best to start a new thread 'cause this thread is for race bikes, not the motorcycle social club shown in your "69" (what that mean?) pic.

[azuredesign]

Here's some nice photos from the Japauto french site:
http://pagesperso-orange.fr/1000vx-club/cadres_speciaux.html

[von_Wanderlust]

I'm surprised nobody has added this yet, the lovely 500 that TG showed us a while back here: http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=37074.msg382765#msg382765

LOVE that bike. Really love it.

(TG, do you know where that bike is now, did the magazine say? Is it still in Italia, or back in Japan?)

[Yoshi823]

Here's some nice photos from the french site:
http://pagesperso-orange.fr/1000vx-club/cadres_speciaux.html

Those pictures are definitely getting the creative juices running again.
Is it just me or has the engine in the yellow Egli picture been tilted up so's the barrel is more vertical? I suppose that it wouldn't hurt if the engine was kept as a dry sump with a baffle in the sump plate ala 750A.