Total Number of CBXes Made

[GregW]

So did the red 80's have the flat black side covers & the black 80's have gloss black sidecovers? Was this another difference between the Japanese vs Marysville 80's?

Just curious............


Greg

[daves79x]

I suppose you can look at it that way, but however, it is still a pretty low number. Maybe EMS will chime in with the info he has on the lowest numbers he knows of.

Dave

[daves79x]

Greg:
That is the million dollar question. No one seems to know for sure, but speculation goes like this: Some red '80s came with satin covers and some came with gloss. Possibly the Japan '80s were satin and the Marysville ones were gloss. It's hard to get proof of that since so few originals exist, and even they could have been swapped. Any original owners of red '80s out there care to chime in?

Dave

[EMS]

Greg:
That is the million dollar question. No one seems to know for sure, but speculation goes like this: Some red '80s came with satin covers and some came with gloss. Possibly the Japan '80s were satin and the Marysville ones were gloss. It's hard to get proof of that since so few originals exist, and even they could have been swapped. Any original owners of red '80s out there care to chime in?

Dave

Dave is absolutely right. One of the biggest mysteries, together with the 80 Marysville colors. And even the original owners' accounts are not conclusive. Only one thing is sure: Glossy sidecovers are only 1980.

Here is my PERSONAL OPINION, which is based on conversations with a guy who worked in the QC department of the new Honda motorcycle plant in Marysville in 1979:

All CBXes assembled in Marysville were originally black and had glossy sidecovers. - He has no recollection of a Candy Glory Red CBX ever leaving the plant and all the contemporary pictures I have seen - although there are not many - show black CBXes in Marysville.
However, as CGR was an official color option in 1980 and many people did not like black, dealers changed bodywork either upon request of the customer or to increase the sales potential.
Sometimes they changed the sidecovers and sometimes they didn't.

I am pretty much alone with this opinion and it is being disputed by several original owners, some of them say they helped uncrate their bike at the dealership

[EMS]

Don't know where that came from, but the real story is that the first 42 or so frame numbers were pre-production prototypes, but still had the first 42 frame numbers. Actual ones you could buy started in the fourties. But you still have a low number that is to be coveted.

Dave

so mine is like the 190th?

oh its got 4k orig miles had orig tires and still has the yellow dot of paint on the factory chain

Mark: I have evidence of several CBXes actually still in existence today with lower VIN-numbers than yours:
CB1- 20 00045
CB1-20 00062
CB1-20 00085
CB1- 20 00094
CB1-20 00118
CB1-20 00157
CB1- 20 00178
CB1-20 00201
CB1-20 00221
CB1-20 00225

Yours, is somewhat of a mystery in my records. I have it listed with two different engine numbers: One is CB1E- 20 00420 and the other is CB1E- 20 00321. Either one of them could be correct the lower one more likely to be the original.
Was the engine ever changed?

[markdam]

just confirmed my engine number as CB1E- 2000420 i dont know if the engine was changed ( I hope not) no way my serial and engine could be the original pair? 2000233 is 187 numbers away from 420 ??? and if it was changed what are the odds of going from #321 to #420?????

please give me your theory as to why .. thanks a ton in advance

[EMS]

Thanks for confirming the correct engine number, Mark. I really don't know why I have chassis ...233 listed with two different engine numbers. It may be a typing error. You may want to contact the previous owner of your bike if you still can, and check if he/she knows anything.

[markdam]

i did and you now have the 100% original correct numbers must have been a typo?? to my knowledge the eingine is 100% original 3500 miles :) either way im stoked to have such a rare low number bike as this one.....

[Cammer]

Years ago Pete Ruff did a study on this and it was printed in one of the CBXPRESS issues. He had a breakdown of year to year, Unfortunately I sold all 80 issues I had. I do know that I once had and sold one that had a frame number of 76 with an equaly low engine number. It was in the 70s, either 72 or 74 and had a metric speedo so I think it came from Canada. James Elliot once had a so-called sandcast proto-type CBX he'd picked up someplace years ago. No idea if he still has it. Charlie.#1804

[tombatt]

I’m new to this forum, but been collecting numbers since getting the bug from Pete Ruff 20 years ago. I notice you guys mostly record just the Vin and engine number. Here in Australia, I have recorded the Vin date and the carb number, as the last 2 letters seem to be an indicator of date. Only recently did I come to realise the significance of the date stamp on the back of the engine. You can see it just above the swing-arm. I believe this date holds the key to the number of each model built. Ok, engines are not complete bikes, but this will offer a good guide. By finding the date of the highest 79 engine and the lowest 80 engine, it should be possible to zero in on the LAST 79. Same goes for the other models. I’ve also made up a calendar for the period, to work out the number of production days between the few dates I have recorded so far. This is giving a more accurate indicator of daily production, which in turn will lead to the magic number we’re all looking for. I’ve even started to enter the Japanese public holidays to refine the search further. Am I in the right forum or do I need to see a psychoanalyst?

[Don]

You're in the right forum

Many of us probably need to see a psychoanlyst . . . . fortunately, CBX's are cheaper

Don

[markdam]

I’m new to this forum, but been collecting numbers since getting the bug from Pete Ruff 20 years ago. I notice you guys mostly record just the Vin and engine number. Here in Australia, I have recorded the Vin date and the carb number, as the last 2 letters seem to be an indicator of date. Only recently did I come to realise the significance of the date stamp on the back of the engine. You can see it just above the swing-arm. I believe this date holds the key to the number of each model built. Ok, engines are not complete bikes, but this will offer a good guide. By finding the date of the highest 79 engine and the lowest 80 engine, it should be possible to zero in on the LAST 79. Same goes for the other models. I’ve also made up a calendar for the period, to work out the number of production days between the few dates I have recorded so far. This is giving a more accurate indicator of daily production, which in turn will lead to the magic number we’re all looking for. I’ve even started to enter the Japanese public holidays to refine the search further. Am I in the right forum or do I need to see a psychoanalyst?

my god youre doing what i only had hoped could happen it would be an aussie!!!!! man you guys are tough!!!!!!! but .........therapy/psychoanalisis never hurt none CBX or not

[EMS]

. Only recently did I come to realise the significance of the date stamp on the back of the engine. You can see it just above the swing-arm. I believe this date holds the key to the number of each model built. Ok, engines are not complete bikes, but this will offer a good guide.

Tom: The problem using engines as a guide is, that there were definitely more engines made with serial numbers than bikes. There were a good number of engines built for warranty claims and regular replacement.
From my time back in Germany I remember,that although Honda never offered a 1980 SC03 (CBX-A) model there, from about mid-1979, you would get a SC03E unit if you needed a replacement for your CB1E motor.
Nevertheless, the engine date stamp is a great additional piece of information and definitely helps authenticate a particular engine/frame combination.

[Kool_Biker]

Only recently did I come to realise the significance of the date stamp on the back of the engine. You can see it just above the swing-arm. I believe this date holds the key to the number of each model built.

In preparation for an appointment with my psychoanalyst later on today, PLEASE tell me what these 'numbers mean'??

DSC02067.jpg

Aris

[tombatt]

In preparation for an appointment with my psychoanalyst later on today, PLEASE tell me what these 'numbers mean'??

Hi Kool biker,
Hirohito came to the throne in 1926 and was named the Showa Emperor. That year became known in Japan as Showa1. Fast-forward and 53 becomes 1978. Therefore, that date is 12th September 1978. The number 41 below indicates that yours is one of no fewer than 40 other engines produced that day, although average daily production was well over 100 at that time. If the other crankcase half has the same numbers, it indicates that it is the original combination that left the factory. Cheers…Tom
PS Cancel that appointment and save the money. There is no cure.