CB450DX
Veteran Member
When I was wondering about buying my bike (way back when) I came across @ancientdad either on reddit or HT talking about how these bikes are actually reliable and people over here at this forum have done thousands and thousands on miles on them across the states with no issue.
Of course, if I recall correctly he was talking about the 450 DOHC, which has absolutely nothing to do with the 450 SOHC I was prospecting and now own, but back then I didn't know. And still, he wasn't wrong. This is proof.
Don't know if I ever talked about this on my bike log, but thought it'd be fun to share this, of course, a year late, but still, I'd like to share the adventure these guys had on their VHT's.
Some mad lads got together with a dude in a van, 5 CB450's, 1 CB400 II and they decided to ride 6k kilometers (~3730 freedom miles) towards the Atacama Desert and back, through the South of Brazil, then a tidbit of Paraguai, then Argentina and then Chile.
They documented basically everything on the instagram @atacama_expedicaocb, of course, in Portuguese, but I'll more or less summarize for you all:
When it comes to the bikes, there was an issue with a front sprocket/chain at the start of the journey that was promptly fixed, and then one of the bikes had an (external) ignition coil go and afterwards some other electrical shenanigans that were solved on the spot.
Then there was some food poisoning (as there always is with hotel/random food) but they pulled through it. Other than that, same as always: some terrible dirt roads that went over for 100's of kms, rain and insects. And then dust, of course.
When they arrived at the "Hand of the Desert" (Mano del Desierto) they even made fun of some BMW GS's that were loaded on a pickup truck: ("They said the CB's wouldn't be able to get here, but look at these GS's eeeh, let me tell ya" - direct translation lol)
They lined up for a picutre (I guess) but somehow we only got video of the bikes at the Hand:
I apologize for the terrible picture quality. Instagram's already terrible on its own, and these dudes were on Android which makes it even worse. The fact that they mostly uploaded videos (of pictures) did not help either.
A few shots of the bikes lined-up:
The CB 400 II is the yellow/cream over there. It is also the only one with a round headlight.
Here's two of the "CB450 Custom" (the more freedom-themed [aka more chrome] model) - these were early models, with most of everything still being produced in Japan. You can also see the drum brakes on the rear on the first one which makes it an 83 to 84 model. 1985 onwards had disk brakes, although not ventilated ones like the ones he has (both on rear and front).
The CB400 II - Still comstar wheels, only one disk brake on the front. Round headlight and dash. Different/simpler tail section and brake lights as well. Different/solid rearset/footpeg bracket as well.
Of course, I also had to get at least one picture of a bike looking dirty, or else it doesn't count as an adventure, right?
Hope y'all liked it.
Of course, if I recall correctly he was talking about the 450 DOHC, which has absolutely nothing to do with the 450 SOHC I was prospecting and now own, but back then I didn't know. And still, he wasn't wrong. This is proof.
Don't know if I ever talked about this on my bike log, but thought it'd be fun to share this, of course, a year late, but still, I'd like to share the adventure these guys had on their VHT's.
Some mad lads got together with a dude in a van, 5 CB450's, 1 CB400 II and they decided to ride 6k kilometers (~3730 freedom miles) towards the Atacama Desert and back, through the South of Brazil, then a tidbit of Paraguai, then Argentina and then Chile.
They documented basically everything on the instagram @atacama_expedicaocb, of course, in Portuguese, but I'll more or less summarize for you all:
When it comes to the bikes, there was an issue with a front sprocket/chain at the start of the journey that was promptly fixed, and then one of the bikes had an (external) ignition coil go and afterwards some other electrical shenanigans that were solved on the spot.
Then there was some food poisoning (as there always is with hotel/random food) but they pulled through it. Other than that, same as always: some terrible dirt roads that went over for 100's of kms, rain and insects. And then dust, of course.
When they arrived at the "Hand of the Desert" (Mano del Desierto) they even made fun of some BMW GS's that were loaded on a pickup truck: ("They said the CB's wouldn't be able to get here, but look at these GS's eeeh, let me tell ya" - direct translation lol)
They lined up for a picutre (I guess) but somehow we only got video of the bikes at the Hand:
I apologize for the terrible picture quality. Instagram's already terrible on its own, and these dudes were on Android which makes it even worse. The fact that they mostly uploaded videos (of pictures) did not help either.
A few shots of the bikes lined-up:
The CB 400 II is the yellow/cream over there. It is also the only one with a round headlight.
Here's two of the "CB450 Custom" (the more freedom-themed [aka more chrome] model) - these were early models, with most of everything still being produced in Japan. You can also see the drum brakes on the rear on the first one which makes it an 83 to 84 model. 1985 onwards had disk brakes, although not ventilated ones like the ones he has (both on rear and front).
The CB400 II - Still comstar wheels, only one disk brake on the front. Round headlight and dash. Different/simpler tail section and brake lights as well. Different/solid rearset/footpeg bracket as well.
Of course, I also had to get at least one picture of a bike looking dirty, or else it doesn't count as an adventure, right?
Hope y'all liked it.
Last edited:
