CB 160

Emlupi

Emlupi

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Here’s a few photos of #521, Kevin Nixon’s CB160 race bike. The more you look at the photos the more little custom and trick bits you see.
Take a look at the extended sump, oil cooler, and swingarm bracing just for starters. Very interesting and well executed bike.
Also, Kevin is a really good guy. When another rider had an issue with his bike, Kevin lent him his machine so the guy could participate in his race. That’s class.

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As you can probably see from the picture, he’s a fairly tall guy. I know he told me that he put the riser blocks under the seat to get more legroom. As far as the segmented foam pads, not really sure what the reason is for that. Might be to prevent sliding forward.
 
Are you sure it's a 160? The hot ticket for 200GP is the one year only CB175 or CL175...in addition to greater displacement it has a five speed gearbox which is a great advantage in a sprint race

Also...the weight bias for these Hondas favors the rear which is not ideal for cornering, we are motivated to crawl as far forward over the the tank as possible. Rearsets that place the grips a couple inches further forward help that as well. The longer GP-style tanks definitely look cool but negatively affect the weight bias

Extended swingarms also help with cornering, I don't have that on my bike but most of my peers do. I've never heard of swingarm bracing like on Kevin's bike, but I'm curious. His rear brake cable routing is really something...I don't know the "why" but there must be a story

Having said all this, a well-tuned 160 with the four speed can still be a VERY competitive bike in the class
 
I may be mistaken but I believe these are CB160’s.
USCRA cutoff production date for 200GP is 1967. The CB175 wasn’t produced until 1969 so it would not qualify.
In the picture below, the 175 has a more upright cylinder angle than the 160. Also the 175 has a front frame down tube as opposed to the 160 frame using the engine as a stressed member. The bikes in these pictures certainly appear to be CB 160’s. Unless these are 175 slopers, I’m not sure. I won’t claim to be an expert.

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160
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As for my use of the longer race tank I didn’t choose it for looking cool. The tank allows me to use my lower body and legs for support and keep my arms and hands loose to control the bike. I have a CB750 front end with the fork tubes raised in the triple clamps to steepen the steering head angle and put more weight on the front. So far the bike is steering and handling pretty well.
 
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It’s not unusual for the race bikes to be punched out to near 200, running 175 heads in a 160 frame.
 
Funny story of the small world of vintage Hondas - Apparently Kevin Nixon cracked his tank during that race weekend and was posting in the 160 FB group. I happen to have a spare 160 tank that I'm going to send him if it cleans up - I'll suggest he register here as well, I'd like to get more info on what he's done on that bike.
 
EzPete said:
Funny story of the small world of vintage Hondas - Apparently Kevin Nixon cracked his tank during that race weekend and was posting in the 160 FB group. I happen to have a spare 160 tank that I'm going to send him if it cleans up - I'll suggest he register here as well, I'd like to get more info on what he's done on that bike.
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Excellent idea.
 
Emlupi said:
In the picture below, the 175 has a more upright cylinder angle than the 160.

As for my use of the longer race tank I didn’t choose it for looking cool.
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That red CB175K6 is EXACTLY my "daily driver", color and everything. I enjoy that bike quite a lot, riding position is great, seat is comfortable, and it's been pretty reliable

For stock bikes, it's easy to tell the one year only CL175K0 because it has a fuel tank shape similar to the vertical framed bikes that came after, but the CB175K0 still has the older style tank that is on the previous sloper bikes

It sounds like you're on top of the weight distribution topic, I only mentioned the long tanks because some guys show up at the track with real long tank bikes not knowing any better and end up wondering why they keep getting passed in the corners
EzPete said:
It’s not unusual for the race bikes to be punched out to near 200, running 175 heads in a 160 frame.
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Oh yeah, some guys go full boat and install "3 over" pistons, that is to say, not "3 over oversize" which is 0,75mm but instead a full 3mm diameter overbore. This is a little sketchy because of the resulting thinness of the cylinder sleeves

There is really no limit to the availability of mods for the race bikes, it's just a matter of if one's goal is to make a robust bike good for the long haul or a more radical build (and faster bike!) in which one won't be conflicted or surprised if it blows up before a full race season occurs
 
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