Honda's First Sport Bike - Honda 305 Superhawk Road Test Review 

They were very smooth running, could hit 10,000 rpm , very reliable . This one is running perfect

You’re hittin’ me in the heart with this test. My first bike as soon as I hit my 16th birthday, a blue 1962 Super Hawk. Of course I had a few hooligan moments on it…thankful to have survived those moments of indiscretion(racing a Yamaha YDS2 on a bypass at close to 100mph with no helmet, googles or glasses on at night..he never did get by me…at the time that was all that mattered). Anyway, this was a great review giving credit to the owner of this gem and Honda Motor Corp. Thank you.

A red Honda Superhawk was my second bike. I got it in 1970. Ran smooth, ran well. It was a mid range bike at that time. It had,plenty of power for the highways. It was quite an upgrade from my first motorcycle, a Harley-Davidson Rapido (a single cylinder 125cc two stroke made by Aermacchi in Italy. Look that one up in the Harley Encyclopedia. It ran on a magneto, no battery, no turn signals, my left arm indicated turns, the brightness of the headlight and the sound of the horn depended on how high the engine was revving at that time. Total weight, about 173 pounds per the Harley Encyclopedia. Actually rode the Rapido on the highway, it got wheezy at about 60-65mph. Those were the days!

Beautiful bike. Thanks for taking us along. Kudos to the owner for owning it and keeping it up all of those year.

Hello, thanks for the upload. I was with my older brother when he purchased his 1965 CB - 77 Super Hawk. He paid $ 727.00. A vast sum of money. " Hey! "

Robert Pirsig wrote a book in 1974 called "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance". It was about this bike (and a lot else).

I currently have a good running original paint '68 305 Superhawk and a '64 red 305 Dream undergoing a full restoration. My first bike was a '67 305 Scrambler. Im a big fan!

Seen a lot of those around as a kid in the 70s and even a few running around in the 80s amazing machines

You 'Drive; a car and 'ride' a bike ...-Check out the 'Read Titan ' race version built in the UK in 1965. Bored out to 350 , proddie racer , successful in local racing and hill climbs . ...(NB Laverda used the style of the'Titan' and build for their SFC 750 in 1972.-) The 'Superhawk C 77 305 was a genuine 100 mph motorcycle , one bike journo at the time maintained he got the bike to do 105 mph . Max power reached at 10.000 rpm . Innovative and the start of Honda's dominance of all things motorcycle . Some maintain it the CB 750 of 1969 that was the real game changer , not so , it was this incredible little machine which was in real terms faster than most English 750's of the time - A classic motorcycle on every way , well built with an oil tight engine , reliable electrics and good brakes ...Icon of a bike .

I have one in my shed: it hasn't been out of the shed for years.

My first was a 67 Yamaha 180 ,then my favorite was a 1963 Honda 305 superhawk it was capable of 80mph all day.

Very accurate and well done presentationand review Mr . Honda was a genious . The story and legacy of Honda will never happen again on this planet. What a great great motorcyle . Honda Bikes are the best .wonderfully done video!

The next step up for Honda was not the CB450. It was the 1969 CB350, which introduced the engineering and styling changes that sold over 300,000, more than any other Honda model except the Cub. I owned a 1969 K0 and it was simply superb. Wish I had it still.

When I was a Suzuki shop apprentice in the late 70's, my boss bought a nice CB72 like this bikes condition. The old guy who previously owned the shop did some jobs for himself around the shop, such as porting. He got the CB72 and started removing the finish and when I suggested that it might not be a good idea, he ignored me, as he was thinking of the money that he could charge the shop for his labour. He draw filed EVERY finish off including all the chrome and paint. Yep, fork tubes, rims ,everything. Then reassembled it. When the boss saw it he asked me why didn't I stop him. All I said was " I tried but he didn't listen." I guess when you treat younger staff members poorly then that's what happens. You should have seen it. For the rest of my years there it sat covered in oil, looking very sad. It was a monument to greed and power.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Such great memories. In the late 60s there was a shop that rented these bikes out by the hour. I rode a couple of these 305 Super Hawks and just beat on them and they were a hoot to ride and bullet proof. I ended up buying a '68 Triumph. Those were some good days in my life. I was 20 in '68.

I remember the 305 from my first tour of duty in the Philippines. A coworker had one that he "chopped" (very common thing to do over there. Metal work was relatively inexpensive in the early 70s). He found out that a bobbed rear fender meant a brown "racing stripe" down his back when riding in the rain.

If I'm not mistaken, this motor is what Laverda looked to for their inspiration for their 750. Enjoyed the video Jon and RIDE SAFE OUT THERE!

I bought a 1961 CB77 for $250.00 in October’63 when I got out of the USN. the only problem I ever had was a broken shift drum. It cost less than $50.00 to fix it.

This same bike was my first motorcycle I bought it new in 1966. I think the cost was about six hundred dollars. That was a lot back then. I sold it in 1967 when I left for basic training in the Army.

I learned to ride on a 305 Superhawk in 1966. A high school friend had one (RIP Don) and he taught me how to ride. My dad bought a used 1966 Superhawk around 1971. I still have it and it still runs good.

The 305 supermarket was marketed in South Africa as the 305 super sports. It was my first bike which was just perfect ,I miss it even today after more than 50 years. I still have one of its ignition keys as a keepsake. It was a blue 1965 model. what a great bike

The coolest guy in my 9th grade class owned this bike. He was the "Steve McQueen" of our school. The other kids with bikes rode 50cc and 60cc 2 strokes. Note that at that time in Florida, 60cc was the biggest a 14-15 year old was legally allowed to ride. He was just turned 16. We all so envied it. As an aspiring biker, the Honda 305 was a serious bike. Even now, over 5 decades later, I would love to tool around town on this bike for a day.

I grew up in the sixties and seventies. Very Beautiful and special Bike's they were. They started all the fun OF motorcycling . THAT We Enjoy Today. Thanks again for the Ride AND Great INFO take care and have fun with them . 🍵🍩

I had one and loved it. I would like to have another one.

Thanks so much for the video that brought back so many memories.The CB-77 was my second motorcycle, having graduated up from a Honda S-90 in 1966.

Ĺovely old bike . I owned one of its related models in 1972 at age 19, a 1967 305 CL77 with the upswept exhaust pipes on the right side . It would do 105mph and rode and handled well at 55-65 mph , highway speeds of that time. It was a well-built fun to ride , reliable old bike in its time.

I have a 64 305 Superhawk in my shop waiting on a restore. One piston is stuck, but it'll come free with ATF/Acetone soaking.

I had the exact bike. The after market exhausts are better looking than the originals.

I understand exactly where Japanese bikes came from. This is where I started my motorcycling life. 14 years old and my older brothers shared this motorcycle. So I got in on the action at their expense. I wasn’t allowed to operate on the street, but that was ok, cause was behind the house was miles and mile of fast fire road at my disposal. It was on those road I got let the Superhawk stretch out it’s legs. She’d do a true 100 mph. And it sounded so amazing winding it out at 9000+ rpm. I would love to own one. But it ok, I own instead as a vintage bike the venerable Z1b. So instead of doing 100 mph I can go 140 mph and sound even better. 😎

Hi Jon,scott from ny here. Cool bike for sure & very nice ride out on the bike with as usual your great commentary feedback on it. My father had a black 66 305 dream & many moons ago as a teen i had a 66 or was it 67 305 scrambler with the high pipes on one side. I rode it on the trails,it was a pretty heavy beast in tight trails riding esp with me being 130lbs wet at the time. All my friends with their little ring ding 2stroke 100,125,175 bikes would eat my dust when I’d pass them all to get away from ingesting their clouds of thick blue smoke 2strokes produced back then with lower oil tech. Ttyl.,,,Scott

I restored a 67 super hawk in the late 70’s. A fun bike to ride around town but very small compared to my 79 cb 750

Bought a new 1963 305 Superhawk from dealer in Virginia Beach while stationed in Norfolk. Rode through NC and Va mountains and was surprised how well the machine took the curves and inclines. A couple of trips into DC was enough to keep me in the hills...

My first Honda was a ‘68 CB350 scrambler, and I was impressed with the 305 and 450s. My first bike was a 250 Ducati Monza and turned me off from Ducati to this day. It was a nightmare. It had electrical problems and and always needed something fixed. I never had a Honda fail until a few years ago my vintage 94 Magna’s voltage regulator died. Still have it. I. Ow do cross country rides on my CTX1300 and love it. I’ve owned many Hondas over the years and would not consider another brand.

The best my uncle worked on bikes when I was growing up so I got to ride all late 60. All the 70s and 80s motorcycle s yes

Nice review Jon 👍

Set up properly that front brake will lift the back wheel as high off the ground as you are willing to go . Yes, I worked on race bikes in the late 60s and early 70s .

Looks and runs good! 👍

OMG, what memories. We were all riding Harley "Hogs" in those days. A bunch of us saw one of these in the new Honda shop window and laughed ourselves sick at how silly they looked. It wasn't til I got a 350 years later that I realized how old and outdated the whole Harley design was.

Still have the Super Hawk that I bought new-in-the-crate in August 1967 (worked in a Honda shop in Oil City, Pa after graduation from high school). It doesn't look much like it did that first year. Have over 35k miles on it ( many speedometers/ lots of vibration). Also have a 1965 Super Hawk Cafe Racer with big bore 358cc kit and Honda 450 carburators on aluminum manifolds I cast in Penn State's foundry in the fall of 1969, and a Honda CYB road racing saddle that originally fit Honda's 1961 250 Hawk that I bought new in the spring of 1967 ( I got a basket case 1964 Super Hawk late that winter).

I lusted after this bike in jr high. Also lusted after norton commando and small ducati that schoolmates had.

I had a C72 in 1970 would love to have it now.

I had a 1967 model with an upswept front lip on the seat. It was an import from Laos. Does anyone know why the difference with other models with the flat seat? Was it the region of origin or the model year? Just curious.

The gearing ratio spread was designed tall to make best use of the rpm's range up to 9000 rpm that their motors could easily do both being smaller and using a 180 degree crank in them while the larger British twins still using a 360 degree crank couldn't match the same theirs being around 5500 rpm to factory suggested red line.

This is the bike I learnt to ride on

I had one of here machines CB72 version I paid £249 with 3000 miles on the clock I covered another 28000 miles on it great bike all I have now is a. Original 10mm spanner and a plastic model , sadly!

In 1966 I had a Honda 150 Dream !

could never been the original battery. It cost $695.00 in 62 when I bought mine, turned it into a road racer of the times, top speed 120mph. X the rrans and it made it close ratio. It would out run a Triumph 500 twin.

Had one but it was the C.B. 72 in Europe and it was a 250 One of the best bikes I have ever owned Sadly due to being young and short of money I sold it How I wish I had not !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just bought last year a CBF 250 I think it’s quite similar - 30 yrs ago I had bigger bikes but for cruising in neighboring Alsace I don’t need to speed up and I like to have a light bike - the best that I had was Yamaha SRX handles like a 250 with the power of a 600

Would love to own one

I remember my new 1966 CB77 305 Superhawk speedometer sweeping counter clockwise. It was my second bike coming from a 1965 CA110 Honda 50 Super Sport. I would love to have a totally refurbished one with the new upgraded ignition but what about the spokes. I remember one breaking back in the day and I never reached 20k miles on the bike. My Dad bought it new for me in 1966 for under $700. I did use to miss gears on it frequently and often that would float the valves but it never broke that I remember except the clutch finally started slipping. At 16 yo. I was constantly speed shifting it “ not letting up on a full throttle. That was abuse

I had a blue one.. beast lol

That beautiful ride and the song 🎶 that bike was singing, was nearly ruined by some dude chatting like a monkey 🙊

My neighbor had one . I got it running for him. , ran good afterwards . I rode it hard to clean the shit out of it. He just putted around. . I was 225 lbs he was about 155

I don't think Hawk/Superhawk as a name was ever used in GB. This is a stunning example of what I consider as a classic bike. 3:08 That profile is perfection. Some dash on it! Goes well. My CD175 was a four-speed, as well.

How I miss my red one ❤️

actually, the hawk first, 250 cc. same bike, little less juice. great bikes for the money.

I had 2…..sweet bikes….

Laverda basically copied this engine design alltogether when they developed their 750 twin. The LAverda 750 engine even looks like the Super Hawk engine. My dads first big motorcycle after an NSU Max in the 50s was a 1973 Laverda 750 SF1 in red. He rode it for a couple of years and then got a BMW R90S in 1975.

I rode one for years. Mine was red and had flat bars.

the 250cc cb72 came out before the 305cc cb77

CB77, "E" is just signifying the engine number, not the bike model.

Very cool video Jon and thanks for sharing. Great roads to ride there as well. I like how the motor was used as a stressed member of the frame in the superhawk design. Rev it up to 9K rpm and the motor still holds together after all these years. Happy New Year! Here's my CL77 which I ride and was my first bike ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-87lRxhnil0c.html

Fork brace

Honda's first "sport bike" was the Benly, with due respect.

the battery would never make it and condensers would also fail along with points, I was a Honda parts manager for over 10 years. start ing in 1962.

Fairly ignorant commentary. These bikes kept up with the Triumph 650s. He is constantly short shifting which is ok, but the thing was meant to be revved at least to the torque peak. The S 90 would do 55 all day, and he finds it surprsing that the 305 with 4 or 5 times the Hp will? Like I said, Ignorant. Besides being unaware of the super hawks capabilities, he seems never to have heard of the 450 Twin ! Some "reviewers "would be well advised to show but not "tell".

About 25 yrs ago I bought 2 junk bikes, one being a chopped 350 Honda, and a 305 (scrambler)? The 350 engine was seized, so I inserted the 305cc engine onto that unique Honda scrambler chopper and restored it into something I've never seen the likes of since. Another bike I foolishly sold for peanuts during the pre internet era.

maybe but I don't remember the term sport bike back in the day? We called them jap street bikes. I wanted a jap scrambler or enduro until I got one LOL

Zen and the a......

With a "red line" near 11,000 these motors were meant to scream. Great review.