Modern Vespa

A pretty compelling read.

https://www.webbikeworld.com/honda-super-cub-history/?utm_source=Motorcycle+Newsletter&utm_campaign=12cb6783f5-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2022_03_11_07_46_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b175d17323-12cb6783f5-365972089&mc_cid=12cb6783f5&mc_eid=e6007f7002

Great read. Definitely visionaries who got it right.

This was the first motorcycle I rode. Sometime in 1963 or 64, my buddies and I would rent Honda 50s for $1.00 per hour and just ride the heck out of them. We weren't supposed to take them on dirt fire roads, but we did.

This enabled me to get a job in the fall of 1964 delivering stationary supplies on a Fuji Rabbit 90.

It wasn't until much later that I realized how unusual this was for a kid growing up in Beverly Hills.

My first scooter was a '63 Honda 50 which I bought with the savings from my newspaper route near Portland, OR. I took that bike everywhere and did everything with it. It was all I had, and I really didn't know any better about what I should or shouldn't do with it. I took it on week long rides, camping and fishing as I went. I rode it over the summit of the Cascade Range a couple times. I gave it every kind of workout you could imagine, and it just kept on ticking. It was a heck of a scooter!

Great story and also an appealing scooter to me.

I have both ends of the continuum - 1965 CA102 and a 2019 C125. The real story is that not only have these bikes remained true to their purpose (cheap, reliable, simple, transportation), they truly have improved with each iteration.

Chris from CLE

I know... old post.... But, a great article and timely as a Super Cub is set to arrive on my doorstep sometime this week

Once you get the heel-toe shifting down, it's a blast to ride around town.

Any tips and tricks on the feathering?

I am good with a normal moto foot clutch… but never done the honda semi-automatic set up.

Close throttle when executing gear changes. The clutch is normally engaged centrifugally by roller weights, so closing throttle relieves the clutch engagement when committing a shift. Roll it back open once the gearchange is complete. No-lift shifts are hard on the clutch and gearbox.

Actuating the shift pedal not only changes gears, but pushes the clutch in. Easing the pedal in and out on upshifts/downshifts will net a much smoother gearchange.

Thx Sean. Nice and concise… (and close to what I was assuming.)

My Old Knocker.

I couldn't get on with the heel toe gear lever so I swapped it for a regular bike shifter.

Remember that when you are pushing down on the lever you are going up the gearbox and the other way around.

Rear suspension is really soft.

There must be some visdom with this gear pattern - I toyed around with a Monkey quite some time ago and sometimes I still today surprise myself with pressing down when trying to shift up with a normal motorcycle. Can't understand how it sticks in my muscle memory so well.

Used to have a wave110i, which has the same engine just 15cc less… upshifts are easy, just close throttle and shift. Downshifts require you to blip the throttle and to slowly release the shift lever. Rpm matching is the key to smooth down shifts.

My first bike was a 1972 C50, 3 speed with the same style of clutch/gearbox. I had that bike around 1988… memories…

Sean covered it well. It isn't just rolling off the throttle, click into gear, release quickly (like on a normal motorcycle) and re-engaging the throttle. As you are clicking it into gear - up or down - you release the foot pedal tension like you would a clutch lever with hand. You'll get it when you think as the shift lever as both a shifter and clutch lever. Also remember to wait until you are almost stopped, the revs are down and the centrifugal clutch has released to down shift to first. Then you can stay in first until you are ready to move forward again.

For me, the heel shifter was not that hard to get used to with wearing a shoe with a low heel. Also the shift pattern was different over here. Neutral was at the bottom and lifting the toe end of the shifter brought it up thru the gears.

I'll happily admit that it was a bit of a challenge to try and shift in the opposite direction as I had been for 40 years and I only really mastered it in the final month of owning it.

It probably had the best build quality of any "bike" I've ever owned.

The school exit was typically
Stand next to scoot
Lean it over
Press shifter down at back
Rev the hell out of it
Release shifter, do about 2 donuts before jumping on and launching down the road, hoping Mrs Ward hadn't seen me.

Those of you who have had Monkey Bikes, how long did it take for you to get bored of it ?

I'll guess the thing that most are attracted to is the 'image' of them riding these tiny bikes. They are kind of fun to toy around for short distances and slow speeds, but very limited at that.

We had some added fun by tuning Monkeys (the original ones, not the new 125cc incarnation) and goofing around with them at a mock-up mud track...but there the fun factor came more from the group than the Monkeys. Well, a bit of both.

The only thing I regret selling mine was that I sold it with a too low price....

A good question. In May 2019 I bought a new Monkey, and in a few months put on about 1800 miles. Then in November 2019 I stumbled upon a 2012 GTS Super with 412 miles and super cheap. (Last Vespa I owned was an ET4 and it was dangerously slow). The Monkey is not that slow.

I grabbed the GTS 99.9 of the time I went out. As a result i put 22k miles on the Vespa and in 23 bought a new SuperSport that now has 17k miles.
In all that time, i only put 450 to 500 miles on the Monkey. It's not that I'm bored with it, it's just not as much fun to me. I think about selling the Monkey all the time, just changed the oil, but figure it's paid for, so why bother.

There are a lot of Vespas showing up for sale. Maybe sell the Monkey and use the extra cash towards a low mileage GTS?
Then I would be more likely to use both Vespas and split the mileage between them.
I rack up a lot of miles, but they are Italian miles.

I also toy with the idea of a Super Cub, wondering if that would seem like a bike I would use more than the Monkey if it was in the garage. They pop up on CL too.
I did test ride a Liberty a few weeks ago, seemed a little slow to me, and the fit seemed odd to me, but to be fair, I just rode it around the block.

Can't comment on the monkey business. Have never ridden one, and honestly don't see the appeal other than they seem like a good platform for jackassery with your homies.

My super cub landed this morning and after recharging the battery I got to take it out for a few miles. Supah Cub was Supah fun. Decent torque for a 125 and handled really well. Love the big tires for navigating the giant Houston potholes. Rung it out in the low 60's. Should be a solid city bike. Upshifts seem super easy... down shifts are... ahem.. still a work in progress. On the dead battery... Dealer had zip tied the key fob to the mirror so the locator pulled juice the entire time while it was in transit. *rolls eyes*

Kids around here buy Monkeys and Groms to do wheelies on and spend tremendous amounts of money on speed mods. Then spend more making it look different than their other buddy's scoots.

Been to SuperSunday twice because of the scoots. Went to Ride Around the Block on SD once, decided I didn't want to get arrested in Coronado with those asshats.

They are a fun ride, but yeah, the downshifts take time to master. Sort of getting the 2T Vespas left hand twist shifting and clutch action right. I would not have sold the Cub I had if it not had for the year long recovery I was looking at. I just can't stand to see something not being used and collect dust.

I was chatting to the spotty youfs at the bike show about their hotted up Japanese 50s. Still spending only a fraction of the costs the ordinary car guys spend.

oh yeah, no doubt

If you are rolling to a stop and the downchanges frustrate you just let go of the throttle and sort out the gears when you stop moving.

If the Trial 125 vwersion were boumped to near 250 cc, I would be all over it.

The 125, just won't keep up with expectations on our hill country/ mountain roads.

I hear there may a "big engine" in the works, but perhaps losing the step through frame.

It's hard to say why, but there's some magic with the original 50 and tuning - mayby something like with angry, buzzing RC cars, except one can actually ride the tiny Monkey.

Loads of bolt-on tuning parts...a bigger carb with some silly 'racing' air filter makes hilarious sound and easy boost due to the tiny original carb, this with a new cam slided in (really easy too), any exhaust mods + mayby fiddle with the sprockets and you've spent pocket money and get a....well, something very silly, non-practical and yet oddly attractive.

70cc - 90cc cylinder kits readily available too, but for toying around...not much added value, just makes crazy a bit crazier. Those are 8" tyres after all.

This all combined with the fact that one can literally lift up the original 50cc, everything is easily accesssible, bolts and nuts etc. all standard stuff. No need for lifts or specialty tools, one could probably maintain it with a spanner and a multi-bit screwdriver.

The new Monkey...I don't know what I'd do with that. It looks a bit like the original, but is a totally different type of bike.

I own these 2.

Bought the Monkey in 2019 brand new and it currently has 14500 miles on it.

The Cub came in June 2024 with 143 miles on it and a 1 year old. Currently it has 3077 miles on it.

I love riding both of them and don't experience any trouble adjusting my mind to changing gear on whichever one I'm on.

For those outside the UK, the L Plates dictate that I am only allowed to ride bikes with a maximum of 125cc. I have however been riding motorcycles on and off since 1970 when I had a Lambretta 125.

somerset

Good looking pair of bikes!

Of the Honda 125 models, the Trail 125 is kind of a dual sport, the Super Cub is the city bike, the Grom - the sporty ride and the Monkey, sort of an all arounder. Of all of them, the Monkey was the most fun for me to ride and the Cub was the most practical. If I did some trail riding, then a Trail 125 would be in my garage.

You have the bases covered - a city scoot and a fun scoot.

I guess there is also the Dax 125, but I have yet to see one in person.

I've just been comprehensively beaten in traffic by a guy on a Honda Monkey Bike.

That puts a different light on things.

Ha!
Monkey see monkey do.

Spent a good bit nipping around on the cub today. Shifts are much, much better. Not yet second nature, but almost there. What a fun platform. Very pleased.

Will maybe start a separate thread at some point if needed, as I took this one down a side street… But thanks to the OP for the point of reference.

Does it belong here or in NSM?

Belongs on Modern Cub.

It'd be NSM if it was a 3-speed with 6V electricals and points ignition.

I think both of my C50s were.