Total Number of CBXes Made

[80 cbx dude #6216]

Mike, My 1980 CBX was made 2/80, Vin # SC03-201398, SCO3E-2001976-Mike

[EMS]

Thanks, Mike, but something is not quite right there. According to the VIN and engine number, yours is a Japan made bike. In September of 1979, production started in the U.S. This cannot be 2/80..

...or was this a test

[daves79x]

Mike: There has to be a '0' missing. The number looks like it should be 2010398 and the engine number of 2001976. That would be about the right spread of engine and frame numbers on Marysville bikes and would line up with the manufacture date.

Dave

[80 cbx dude #6216]

Mike and Dave, Ok, just went back out to the garage, 2/80, Vin #SC03-2010398, SCO3E-2001976-Mike

[EMS]

Awesome. That actually closes quite a hole in my records! Upon checking, I already had the correct numbers from an earlier post, but I did not have the build date!

[Mello]

Found the "missing" neck plate - indeed 1/79

20150210_180745.jpg

[EMS]

Great! Good Info, thanks Mike!

[Mello]

For info, I have the frame only for 79 model 2014887 made 10/78.

[EMS]

For info, I have the frame only for 79 model 2014887 made 10/78.

Mike: Could you check this again? The data clashes with several of my records with have frames with lower serial numbers made in October 78. Including one of mine, that is 2014562 in 11/78
I would really like to have more October 78 built records, but this one seems odd!

[Mello]

Sorry, last digit is 2.

image.jpg

[Mello]

Does seem to be out of sequence.

[EMS]

Mike:
Thanks a lot for posting this. It made me check the number on the frame I have and 14562 indeed has a built date of 10/78 also.
I had another odd frame number that did not fall into the bracket of a bike that Michael's Motorcycles had for sale a while ago. If I change these over, I get a different distribution between 10 and 11/78.
It seems like somewhere before I had a mistake. Thanks to you, it has been corrected!

[jnnngs]

Hi,

Just to add to your October '78 records.

My bike is:
Chassis - 13940
Engine - 14095
Colour - Silver

Engine build date is 4th October 1978 (66th engine built on that day!)

The bike wasn't actually registered in the UK until March 1980, so presumably sat in a Honda dealer for a while...

Paul.

[cbxmel]

Hi Paul,

Found your post interesting as my silver 1978 1000Z was also sold in Hampshire. Ryes Motorcycles, West Quay Road,Southampton.
CB1-2013529 CB1E-2013674 so fairly near to yours numberwise. Like yours was not sold until much later 9th November 1981. So languished in dealers showroom for around three years. i know it was sold with a £1000.00 discount as considered NOS!

all the best Mel #1876

[EMS]

I know that many of you don't really care about all this, but a few, me included, try diligently to shine a little more light into the darkness of the early CBX history.
I have found that a lot of information is being distorted, originally by Honda and their employees maybe out of desire for personal fame.
The motorcycle market in the second half of the 70s was extremely competitive and the manufacturers constantly tried to top each other by coming up with "new", "never before" and "first".
Other information is being quoted, misunderstood, repeated and misquoted.

Unfortunately, Ian Fosters' excellent effort in putting two books together may contribute to this:
Holding the latest CBXPress in my hands and reading Vince Ciotti's enthusiastic review, I can't prevent myself from getting a tad frustrated.
There are a couple of facts that are well known and documented:

The first CBX that was sold to the public had VIN-number CB1-20 00042. It is not known what the engine serial number in that bike was!
The lowest serial number of an engine that was installed in a bike sold to the public was CB1E-20 00060. It is not known, in which chassis that engine was mounted.

From that, there is absolutely no evidence, no-where, that there were 41 "sandcast" engines.
Yes, there were sandcast engines. We all have seen pictures of these. Some even still own parts or maybe complete engines.
But why were there 41 sandcast engines? There were 41 frames built that were not sold to the public and there were 59 engines made that were not sold to the public.
For all we know, there could have been 59 sandcast engines. Or 28. Or 37.
We do not know, how many bikes ran off the production line and were used by Honda as shakedown mules or longer term quality test units before No 42 was designated for export to the U.S. to be sold.