[StarfoxXIII]

any thoughts

[Jim]

Wow that is an oldie. How many miles on it and can you still get parts for it?

[Matt]

Where are you going to get spare parts?
There are some universal parts that will still fit, but if you need anything more specific than an oil filter or a tire, you’ll be hunting the local scrap yard and owner swap meet.

Who is going to work on the bike? Most kids working the dealership shop are younger than that bike, and it has a lot of “standards” that are no longer standard.

Great bike, but at this point it is 26 years old – would you buy a 26 year old car as your first car?

I bought a ’84 interceptor as my first bike. I learned a very expensive lesson. I recommend you don’t learn it the hard way yourself.

—
“The two seconds between ‘Oh S**!’ and the crash isn’t a lot of practice time.”

[WeaponZero]

Matt: The CB750 is one of the most produced bikes ever made. It was essentially made from 1969 to 2002 (the Nighthawk 750 still used the old tried and true 750 engine from the CB series). I anticipate that finding parts shouldn’t be a problem for him. HOWEVER….

Buying a 26 year old bike/car/mechanical device of any kind is always a bad idea if you plan on using it for anything more than a once-or-twice-a-month cruise. The problem is metal fatigue. Frame components become tired over time and those can’t really be replaced without essentially rebuilding the bike from the ground up.

[Chromium Ghost]

I just bought an 82 CB650 Nighthawk. It’s basically the same engine as the regular CB650/750 but in a much prettier package IMHO. It is one of the only bikes I know of that came stock with a 4 into 4 exhaust. Also, the handlebars are individually adjustable, i.e. you can move the right handlebar closer to you, left one farther away, whatever. It’s also really comofrtable, and being a Honda, basically bulletproof.

One thing you should know is that 1982 was the last year for Honda’s chain drive SOHC inline 4s. All of the 83s are shaft drive, need much less maintenance, and got glowing reviews from the press of the day. I am pretty sure the 90s 750 Nighthawks are basically unchanged from the 83. The newer 250s on the other hand I think are a purposeful insult by Honda. Drum brakes???????? in 2008????

Also, these bikes are heavy beasts. My CB650 weighs in at 432 dry and a whopping 467 full of fluids. I would assume that the CB750 probably tops 500 lbs, an intimidating prospect for a newbie rider. I’ve only dropped the bike once so far, at a dead stop I somehow shifted my weight wrong walking the bike in a U turn and did a frightening slow motion dance to the ground. Needless to say, trying to pick up a 467 lb bike in the middle of the street in Spanish Harlem was not one of my prouder moments.

Also, the charging system on CB650s is a bit wonky. It only recharges above 1700 RPM. The bike actually DISCHARGES at idle. Driving it super slow and making lots of stops will almost definitely kill your battery. So uh, not the best bike to practice your slo motion maneuvering unless you follow that up with an equal dose of high rev driving. Again, a lesson I learned the hard way. Luckily I was only 4 blocks from my friends house when my battery died. There was some discussion in the Nighthawk Lovers google group of a faulty wiring job in the stator by Honda. In regular riding though, you will rarely drop below 2k rpm for extended periods of time so your battery should charge fine. This kind of worked to my advantage though, after killing my battery practicing slowly for a few hours last week, I basically had no choice but to jump into the fire and ride the bastard home in Manhattan traffic. Sure it was a bit frightening at first, but I’ll tell you what, stalling in the middle of Broadway will make you learn to feather the clutch and get going pretty fast. Pretty contrary to the advice on here, but after an hour or so of riding in Manhattan traffic I think I learned more than I did in 4 hours of slow speed practice.

Another little nitpick about the CB650s/750s that year is the seat. While it is quite lovely what with the ribbed retro looking leather stitching, there is no quick release. To take the seat off…and you will have to take the seat off to access the battery and your tool kit…you need to undo two bolts. Kind of a pain in the ass considering the charging issue.

That being said, I really, really, love my 650 Nighthawk. The power delivery is instant, the handling is great, shifting is easy, and the inline 4 is butter smooth. Plus I have had about 10 people comment on how lovely she is in my two days of tooling around NYC.

[Casey]

This is a great starter bike but there are better ones in the same Honda line. The CB 750 had one of the highest volume sales in history. You can find them in just about every country in the world. Hell, there are fake ones in Iran for hell’s sake. Because they were extremely reliable a lot of them, older than an ’82 I might add, are still cruising around. If you can’t find a part you are doing something wrong. In the U.S. if there isn’t one in the neighbor’s driveway just walk a few houses and there’s a good chance you’ll find one or someone that knows where one is. They are cheap, reliable, and smooth. The only way you could do a little better would be to go for a little bit newer Nighthawk (1984-1986 were 700s and shaft drive) all Nighthawks had hydraulic lifters so no valve adjustments. The ’82 might be but I don’t remember. The second gen Nighthawk ran from about 1991-2002 and are 750s. I believe some had chains and some shafts. They will probably run you about twice as much initially but they get up to 58 mph or so. Parts are everywhere. New, used, mods. Whatever you want. The aftermarket is seething with brand new parts of every kind. Anyway, you can’t do a heck of a lot better than that CB 750 for a starter bike. Try Bikebandit.com for OEM stuff. Or bikerbandit.com it might be. You’ll figure it out. BTW the motors will make 200k and laugh about it all day long. If you want to see one sick looking 750 Nighthawk check out The bike Daryl started riding in like season 4 or 5 (his second bike) on AMC’s The Walking Dead. That is based on a 90s Honda CB 750 four Nighthawk. Anyway, I doubt you will be disappointed with it.

[P.B.]

Here is some information about the Nighthawks..The 1982 650 nighthawk is the last year of the single over head cam engine and is also chain drive..It weights about 490 lbs with a full tank..It is a ok first bike..The 450 nighthawk from 1982 to 1985 is a better first bike..Unless you are a small person the 250 is to little and won’t hold your interest past the first riding year..The 1983 to 1985 Nighthawk is a completely different bike..It had a low maintenance hydraulic double over head can 4 valve engine and shaft drive chassis..It weights about 475 lbs. with a full tank..It is very quick for a first bike…The 450 is a great first bike.!!

[P.B.]

That 1982 &1983 750 is too heavy at 575lbs and too fast at 12.5 @ 106mph quarter mile time and about 130mph top speed for a first bike. The 1990’s 750 nighthawks are as fast but weigh about 500lbs. Start out on a bike around 500cc and 450lbs.Speed and size will come later on with more experience and time..Just learn the basic stuff and have fun on your first bike.

[Patricia Myers]

Am looking for a seat for a 1982 cb 750 c Honda can anyone help with this?

[Author]

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