Newbie needs the skinny on CL300 Vs CL77

[MCMarty]

015 by 1941mopar, on Flickr


013 by 1941mopar, on Flickr


012 by 1941mopar, on Flickr

Okay Honda junkies I need your help! We just picked up this Scrambler this afternoon (along with a '67 Triumph T100) and I'm trying to track down some basic info. It's titled as 1968. The VIN on the engine is CL300-1001265 and the frame is CL300-1001154. It has factory signals. I found a post from 2006 on this subject, but it seemed to end without a solid/final answer. What is the difference between a CL300 and the CL77? What's up with the turn signals?

Marty
1957 Allstate
1957 Simplex
1967 Triumph T-100R
1968 Honda CL300
1969 CD175 (Australian Sloper)
1969 SL90
1971 CT70

[sixtiescycle]

It's a domestic model. Does it still have the kph speedo? Most here have been changed. I have a friend that also has one, it's been awhile since I've seen it. Seems to me it has a heel/toe shifter and because of the turn signals I seem to remember a small adjusting screw at the bottom of the headlight ring. Not sure if the rider foot pegs are non-folding like my early domestic CL72. Unlike the early domestic models CL300's are 180 degree crankshafts.

Dick

[Ford Guy]

I do not know the to answer to your question but I have to say that is one great looking Scrambler. It looks unmolested. Great find and best of luck with it.

Jon

[conbs]

Marty, THAT is a VERY cool bike. Do you know if it is original? Bill Silver's Buyer's Guide says:

"CL300 (1968)
You probably already figured it out, but the CL300 is a CL77 with turn signals, solid pegs, late model forks, chrome fenders, and the late oval-shaped taillight. This little quirk in the model series seems to be a result of leftover Scramblers at the end of the 1967 production, sold in 1968 along with the new CB/CL250/350s. The few that have surfaced here have been equipped similarly and seem to be domestic bikes. They look just like the last of the CL77s, but with the aforementioned differences in equipment and the CL300 frame and engine number sequences. So if you happen across one, it real! Perhaps Honda decided to make all of its model designators the same in 1968."

No "chrome fenders" on yours, but everything else looks as described. I hope you will do some digging on the history. Does the rear fender have a modification to mount the winkers?

You have a great piece of Honda history there.

[conbs]

I did a little research on federal requirements for VIN numbers. They apparently grew out of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards that became law in 1967 (49 USC 301). More standards were added in 1968 and I think that may be where VIN number standardization began. Prior to that (and maybe even after in some regards) it was left up to the auto industry with each manufacturer creating their own "standard". The US government didn't complete its standardization of VIN numbers until 1981 with the current 17-digit VIN number.

Being imported, Honda bikes in the 60's would have had to comply with US federal law. Because it was so large, the market in the US essentially drove what foreign manufacturers did. The changes in federal law from 1967 to 1968 may have been responsible for the creation of the CL300 as a bike distinct from the CL77. It may be that those changes also required the addition of winkers, though I didn't track that down so it is just a guess.

There is a way to go back and track down the text of federal statute and Code of Federal Regulations in 1967 and the following years to confirm all of this. Someone else can take on that time-consuming task. I offer this information as a possible explanation for Honda's 1-year production of the CL300. Anyone else have info that confirms or contradicts this? If so, I hope you will take the time to straighten this out.

[sixtiescycle]

The one my friend has was purchased from the original owner, a serviceman stationed in Japan who shipped it home to the US. The Kph speedo was replaced with a MPH speedo after arriving home. It's titled as a 1967.

Dick

[MCMarty]

Thanks guys!! I figured as soon as I found this site that I would be in good company.

to answer a few of the questions:

Except for some wire loom plastic covering the cables/wires, it looks pretty much untouched/molested.


004 by 1941mopar, on Flickr
The rear fender is "dimpled" out to mount the rear turn signals. Definitely factory.



005 by 1941mopar, on Flickr
It does have the heel/toe shifter. The foot rests fold.

The speedo is MPH.

Can anybody share Bill Silver's email address, or pass mine along to him?

Thanks Again,
Marty