CB450

The Honda CB450 was a Honda standard motorcycle with a 444 cc 180° straight-twin, DOHC engine. Producing 45 hp, it was considered Honda's first "big" motorcycle. But before you work on your CB450, double check to see if you have a Honda CB450 service manual.

The CB450 had a distinguished chrome-sided fuel tank. Early models were known as the 'Dragon' or 'Black Bomber', but in Canada the K1 model was marketed as the 'Hellcat'. The Mk.I 'Black Bomber' was first unveiled in September 1965, in the UK during the Diamond Jubilee Brighton Speed Trials. The bike was newly imported, and its engine was not run-in, yet in a semi-competition demonstration sprint, the CB450, ridden by Allan Robinson, MBE, achieved a standing-start kilometer time of 30.1 seconds and a terminal speed of 100 mph (160 km/h). Afterward, the CB450 was exhibited at a motorcycle show at the Brighton Metropole Hotel exhibition center.

Although the CB450's sales never matched Honda's expectations, the bike had excellent engineering for the time, including reliable electrical components, an electric starter, and a horizontally split crankcase, all features distinct from current British twins. A radical feature was the valve springing: instead of the conventional coil springs, it used 'torsion bars' - rods of steel that twisted to provide the spring effect.

The 4-speed K0 model was reworked in the K1 model manufactured from 1968 with an improved fuel tank, rubber-gaitered front forks instead of sliding metal shrouds, a 5-speed gearbox and twin rev-counter instruments and speedometer mounted above the headlamp.

Later developments and upgrades were made throughout the series of 'K' models with various styling changes and improvements including a single front disc brake. However if your CB450 is in need of TLC, grab yourself a Honda CB450 repair manual and get to work.