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Honda ATC 70 Rebuild


Max2

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The finished product. Im so proud of this little thing I want to bring it in my house.

 

Before

 

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After

 

 

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Then you should.  I knew a guy who kept a Harley in one of the living rooms in his mom's house.

 

I got a buddy that keeps my KTM 550 MXC in his living room for me.  Plenty of future dirt bike riders have sat on it and dreamed of riding.

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Thanks for the kind words guys. Since he is just 10 months old now, it will be a while before he actually takes to it. Im gonna be 50 when he is 5, so I guess I have been giddy about getting him old enough to get dirty trail riding, casting a rod, etc. :)  

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Im gonna be 50 when he is 5, so I guess I have been giddy about getting him old enough to get dirty trail riding, casting a rod, etc.
 I say go for it and spoil 'em. Gotta love that feeling!  :lol:

 

My folks didn't buy me my first ride. Rather, my Dad's best friend simply showed up to the house one day with a small dirt bike ('74 GT80) on his trailer and said, "Here's a set of wheels for your boy, you owe me $100."  :ph34r: He was tired of watching me have to beg my cousins to ride their stuff because I didn't have anything of my own at the time.

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  • 9 months later...

 

Im gonna be 50 when he is 5, so I guess I have been giddy about getting him old enough to get dirty trail riding, casting a rod, etc.
 I say go for it and spoil 'em. Gotta love that feeling!  :lol:

 

My folks didn't buy me my first ride. Rather, my Dad's best friend simply showed up to the house one day with a small dirt bike ('74 GT80) on his trailer and said, "Here's a set of wheels for your boy, you owe me $100."  :ph34r: He was tired of watching me have to beg my cousins to ride their stuff because I didn't have anything of my own at the time.

 

 

 

 

That is a cool story.  

 

 

He seemed to take to the 70 pretty well, although he is very partial to the lawn mower. 18 months and he is still a little jerky with the throttle, with me somehow fitting on back of course. Brakes are still a mystery to him, but we're working on that. 

 

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Just when I thought I was done another one showed up.

 

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Its looking like this now. '78 model and "Mom" picked the colors this round. 

 

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You did a great job it looks amazing., I think the wheels made it.

 

Lucky little boy, you need to frame that pic, it's perfect.

 

Another one, well at least you now know what parts will be needed and what has to be done, you have to keep mom happy.

 

Little Max will be ripping up the yard in no time, I just love that pic. :emotion-21:  

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Cool thread, thanks for sharing.  I have been looking for good deals on quads for down at the lake, but everything for a good price goes within the hour.  There have been many ATC's on cl for reasonable prices however if parts are pricey, it may be worth just staying up on Cl for a quad.  Very coo rebuild, again thanks for sharing.

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It looks better than new, what a fantastic job.

As far as Little Max riding one, I would keep him as far away from that as possible. He is much better off on the mower.

On of the first things I worked on after graduating from law school were cases defending Honda for 3 wheeler accidents. With no active suspension or rear differential, they can be deceptively difficult to ride, and they are not forgiving.

There is a reason they are no longer made.

https://youtu.be/H1I5DweHlnQ

Travis

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The problem with three wheelers is that idiots were riding them.  I rode the wheels off of one and never felt like it was unstable.  The only time I ever had a huge problem with stability is when I tied an Alaskan Malmute to the handlebars then drove sideways across a hill.  The dog saw some deer and took off, flipping me down the hill with the 3-wheeler on top.  I don't believe that was due to an inherent stability issue, it's because I was an idiot.  Riding responsibly on halfway tame terrain should be no issue whatsoever.  Idiots still kill themselves on UTV's with full roll cages.  You can't fix "stupid".  

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It looks better than new, what a fantastic job.

As far as Little Max riding one, I would keep him as far away from that as possible. He is much better off on the mower.

On of the first things I worked on after graduating from law school were cases defending Honda for 3 wheeler accidents. With no active suspension or rear differential, they can be deceptively difficult to ride, and they are not forgiving.

There is a reason they are no longer made.

https://youtu.be/H1I5DweHlnQ

Travis

  • A buddy sent me this sometime back, and not to thread crap on a great restoration job, i will just concure.
  • Mike Vaughan writer of this.

Posted August 06, 2014 - 05:01 PM

I think it was the 60 minutes report that really got the ball moving.  My father worked as the director of communications at Kawasaki at the time and I remember he brought home the segment on VHS that pretty much laid waste to 3 wheelers.  They aren't unsafe unless you think you are driving a car, which I think probably too many people did.  This was before helmets were all the rage (at least compared to today) and kids were riding trikes way too big for them.

Edited by Mike Vaughan, August 06, 2014 - 05:01 PM.

Edited by minermark
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Like I said before, they should have been banned because of the fixed rear axle. Try and start from a dead stop on a steep hill and you are on your back in a millisecond. The 70 will flip over backward so quick you will not know what happened. Try going over very large rocks where one rear tire locks itself into the steep vertical rock and you will be on your back and your head will be smashed on whatever you just ran over.  They are ok on a flat surface. Make sure you wear a Helmut 2 feet thick and a back support. Better yet if I hated someone I would give them one without instructions for Christmas.

JJK

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Like I said before, they should have been banned because of the fixed rear axle. Try and start from a dead stop on a steep hill and you are on your back in a millisecond.

I don't see how this aspect is any different than any other four wheeler or dirt bike that has suspension and is of a similar size. We have a little Honda 50 and I don't see how it wouldn't do the exact same thing that you say. The 3-wheeler may be taller which could contribute but I don't see how the suspension would fix this issue.

Edited by MetropolisLakeOutfitters
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