1974 Honda Chaly
Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 4:50 pm
These little four stroke mini bikes are popular in Japan and command their own clubs and events. There is also a strong following in Europe for this family of bikes, which include the Honda Monkey Z50, Honda Dax, Honda Cub and this interesting model, the Chaly. 'Chaly' is a Romanization of the Japanese slang word for 'bicycle' (chari, with a hard 'ch', this model name is pronounced 'sha-ree'). The legend goes that it was the sister model to the Dax and Monkey but featured a semi-stepthrough pressed frame to suit the rice paddy wives of the 70's who were a little shorter of leg than the average Japanese biped. The upshot: the bike is tiny.
In New Zealand these Chalys were almost all sold to golfers as the it was one of the few small bikes with tyres wide enough to be allowed on our courses without damaging them. True to form, this particular one came with a big round pad (Patented-Anti-Divot) welded to the side stand and a towbar for the club carrier.
So we started with an original Honda Chaly that had never been on the road, still had its factory tyres on it, and was asking for a bit more bling and power. We should oblige...
We stripped it of all moving parts, and sent the frame, swing arm and suspension parts it to have the golf ball dings touched up before painting it all in a custom colour.
This colour was made from Range Rover gold and Porsche silver. Golfing heritage, luxury car colours - the future looks bright.
Every part on the bike is reconditioned or replaced. Layers of Chamberlain and Otahuhu links humus heritage are removed, and the chain and various bolts are replaced.
The tyres shown below are the original, factory fitted Inoue Rubber Company (later to become IRC) tyres, incredibly old and still usable. They make condoms now. Just kidding.
To accentuate the bike's small stature and relatively big wheels, we work on fitting wide rims to it. The factory alloy rims are bolted to aluminium four-point hubs. The replacement wheel rims are made by Japan's G-Craft, beautiful creations in A5052 alloy for extreme strength and corrosion resistance.
These are about 40% wider than standard and take a 110 wide tyre. We have chosen the Ceat Rio tyre, a Pirelli brand with a nice street tread with a strong construction and good tarmac grip.
In New Zealand these Chalys were almost all sold to golfers as the it was one of the few small bikes with tyres wide enough to be allowed on our courses without damaging them. True to form, this particular one came with a big round pad (Patented-Anti-Divot) welded to the side stand and a towbar for the club carrier.
So we started with an original Honda Chaly that had never been on the road, still had its factory tyres on it, and was asking for a bit more bling and power. We should oblige...
We stripped it of all moving parts, and sent the frame, swing arm and suspension parts it to have the golf ball dings touched up before painting it all in a custom colour.
This colour was made from Range Rover gold and Porsche silver. Golfing heritage, luxury car colours - the future looks bright.
Every part on the bike is reconditioned or replaced. Layers of Chamberlain and Otahuhu links humus heritage are removed, and the chain and various bolts are replaced.
The tyres shown below are the original, factory fitted Inoue Rubber Company (later to become IRC) tyres, incredibly old and still usable. They make condoms now. Just kidding.
To accentuate the bike's small stature and relatively big wheels, we work on fitting wide rims to it. The factory alloy rims are bolted to aluminium four-point hubs. The replacement wheel rims are made by Japan's G-Craft, beautiful creations in A5052 alloy for extreme strength and corrosion resistance.
These are about 40% wider than standard and take a 110 wide tyre. We have chosen the Ceat Rio tyre, a Pirelli brand with a nice street tread with a strong construction and good tarmac grip.
