Do you have a fantastic idea for an invention? That’s great news! Everyone has a special idea or invention that the world needs to see. Sharing your idea can make a big difference and help things move forward in a big way. It’s your sacred responsibility to share your ideas. If you do it right, you can also make a lot of money from it.
1. Document Your Idea
Start by writing down every detail about your invention, including how it works, its purpose, and how it’s different from existing products. Keep a dated inventor’s journal and have it signed by a witness. This documentation will be crucial when you seek help and protection for your idea.
2. Research and Protect Your Idea
Conduct a patent search to ensure your idea is unique. You can use resources like the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) website for this. Consider filing a provisional patent application to secure a filing date while you further develop your idea. This gives you a year to refine your invention and file a non-provisional patent application.
3. Create a Prototype
Develop a working prototype of your invention. This will help you test its functionality and make any necessary improvements.
4. Seek Professional Help
Consult with a patent attorney or a professional invention development company to guide you through the patent process and help you refine your idea. They can assist with preparing your patent application, including the written description, the claims, and the drawings.
5. Market Your Invention
Once your idea is protected, start marketing it. You can approach companies that buy invention ideas, such as Idea Buyer, Sharper Image, and Dewalt. You can also consider licensing your idea to a company or do-it-yourself manufacturing and marketing your product using crowdfunding resources.
6. Government Resources
Explore government grants and resources for innovation and entrepreneurship4. Local Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) can provide guidance and support.
7. Online Platforms
Use online platforms and forums to connect with other inventors, get feedback, and find potential collaborators.
Getting help with your invention idea involves documenting your idea, conducting research, protecting it through patents, seeking professional help, and marketing your invention. By following these steps, you can turn your idea into a reality and make a significant impact.
You can always get a copy of my book, How to Make a Patent for an Idea, to help you even more with your invention idea. And if you’ve read my book and think you could use some subjective feedback on your invention idea, contact me.
In How to Make a Patent for an Idea: Survive the Invention Process, Help Humanity, and Make a Ton of Money, Herb Uhl, a practical inventor renowned for creating the first two-wheeled ATV, delivers an indispensable guide for aspiring inventors. At 95 years old, Uhl’s wealth of experience and passion for innovation shine through every page, making this #1 New Release book stand out in patenting and product development literature.
A Comprehensive Guide with a Unique Perspective
Its comprehensive and realistic approach sets Uhl’s book apart from others on the same topic. Uhl thoroughly explores various strategies for developing product ideas and engaging in advanced thinking processes. He helps readers determine whether the patent process suits their invention, offering the valuable insight that patenting isn’t always the best route. Instead, he introduces the option of bypassing the patent route to go straight to manufacturing and marketing. This approach emphasizes working smarter, not harder, to achieve financial success.
Encouraging Innovation and Overcoming Fear
One of the most inspiring aspects of Uhl’s book is his unwavering belief that everyone has a million-dollar idea capable of benefiting society. He urges readers not to let fear or self-doubt prevent them from sharing their ideas. Instead, he encourages proactive participation in the evolutionary process of innovation, emphasizing the importance of every idea as a link to future progress. Uhl’s motivational tone is infectious, instilling confidence and possibility in his readers.
Overcoming Subconscious Hurdles
Uhl’s straightforward writing style makes complex concepts accessible, ensuring readers can follow along without feeling overwhelmed. He addresses the subconscious hurdles that often prevent people from pursuing their inventive ideas, offering practical advice on building confidence and taking decisive action.
The Risks and Rewards of Patenting
While Uhl advocates protecting intellectual property, he also cautions inventors about potential pitfalls. He discusses how the patent process can sometimes backfire, leading to complications that may deter or financially burden inventors. Furthermore, he warns against the risks associated with bank financing and partnerships with organizations like the Small Business Administration (SBA), which may not always have the inventor’s best interests at heart.
The Revised Poor Man’s Patent
For those operating on a tight budget, Uhl introduces a revised version of the “poor man’s patent.” This method provides a cost-effective way for inventors to safeguard their ideas while they test the market.
Practical Advice for Market Success
Drawing from his extensive experience, Uhl shares valuable insights into successfully bringing a product to market. He emphasizes the importance of product sizing for optimal shelf display and efficient shipping and highlights the benefits of utilizing free packaging materials, reducing costs, and enhancing profitability.
Cautionary Tales and Actionable Advice
Uhl’s extensive experience is evident as he shares cautionary tales that cover all aspects of idea promotion, patenting, manufacturing, funding, and partnering. These stories serve as warnings and lessons, guiding readers through potential pitfalls with actionable advice. Uhl’s guidance is practical and grounded, making complex processes understandable and manageable for readers at any stage of their invention journey.
Experience the Fulfillment of Innovation
How to Make a Patent for an Idea is more than just a guide to the patenting process; it’s an invitation to experience the exhilaration and fulfillment of bringing an idea to market. Uhl’s wisdom, accumulated over a lifetime of inventing and repurposing, allows readers to significantly impact the world while achieving personal satisfaction and financial rewards. His concise, no-nonsense delivery ensures that readers can quickly grasp and apply the concepts, making this book a practical manual for anyone looking to successfully navigate the world of invention.
A Brief, No-Filler Approach
Uhl’s delivery is brief and to the point, stripping away unnecessary filler to focus on essential information. This approach ensures that readers can quickly grasp and apply the concepts, making the book a practical manual for inventors at any stage of their journey.
Conclusion
Herb Uhl’s How to Make a Patent for an Idea is a must-read for aspiring inventors. It combines practical advice with motivational guidance, making it an invaluable resource for those looking to turn their ideas into reality. Uhl’s passion for innovation and belief in every idea’s potential make this book an inspiring and practical tool for achieving success in the invention process. Whether you are a seasoned inventor or just starting, Uhl’s insights will help you navigate the complexities of patenting, manufacturing, and marketing your product, ultimately leading to personal and financial fulfillment.
Author Inventor Herb Uhl
Author: Herb Uhl
Herb Uhl, who pre-designed the Honda Trail 50 and is credited as the inventor of the two-wheeled ATV (All-Terrain Vehicle), has significantly impacted the motorcycle industry. His modification of Honda Cubs laid the groundwork for trail bikes, three-wheelers, and ATVs. Uhl’s “Smaller Adult Motorcycles: Long Awaited New Market Segment” proposes high-end motorcycles for shorter riders seeking quality rides. He taps into an untapped market segment, addressing motorcycle ergonomics for men and women of shorter stature 1.
Additionally, Uhl shares his story of creating the Honda Trail motorcycle, a pivotal moment in motorcycle industry history 2. His influence extends beyond inventions; it shapes how we ride today 3.
In summary, the book and Herb Uhl’s contributions offer valuable insights into patenting and motorcycle innovation. Whether you’re an inventor or a motorcycle enthusiast, their work is worth exploring.
In the annals of motorcycle history, few stories are as compelling as that of Herb Uhl, a visionary innovator from Boise, Idaho. Uhl’s story is a testament to the power of seeing potential innovation in an existing design and the transformative effects such vision can have on an industry1.
The Beginning
Herb Uhl was the first importer of a Honda motorcycle of any kind into the United States1. The Super Cub, known then as the C100 or CA100, was a scooter-like Honda with a pressed-steel frame powered by a 50-cc engine with a three-speed transmission and automatic clutch1. Despite its innovative design, Uhl struggled to sell the Super Cub in Boise1, Idaho because motorcycles were primarily used in the local mountains on the hundreds of trails and old mining roads in the area and seldom for city transportation because in 1960, Boise was still a small town.
The Vision
Rather than seeing the Super Cub as only a great little city transportation bike with little sales potential for locals, Uhl saw potential. He envisioned transforming the Super Cub into an all-terrain vehicle that could be used for hunting, trail riding, on the ranch, and on the open road1. This would have huge potential for the local market served by Herb Uhl’s Herco Engineering Co. dealership.
In his custom motorcycle shop, Uhl began modifying the bikes to his trail and ranch specifications1.
The Success
Uhl’s modifications were a hit. His sales escalated rapidly, culminating in a volume of Honda Cubs sold by Uhl that surpassed the combined sales of all dealers in the Los Angeles region. His success caught the attention of Honda, who visited Uhl to see what all the commotion was about1. Herb introduced them to his trail bike based on Honda’s Super Cub1. Impressed, Honda asked him for the specs and even took one of his bikes home to reverse engineer it1.
The Legacy
In no time, Honda had production models of the first motorcycle-derived ATV, and it was for sale in all Honda dealerships. The successive Trail 90 became the biggest-selling adventure bike in the world3. Despite his significant contribution, Uhl never saw a penny from his innovation1. But for Uhl, it wasn’t about the money. It was about making a contribution and making motorcycles better for the riders1. Plus, he could sell more bikes with less effort because Honda was building his design, which needed no additional modification to serve his clientele1.
According to Herb Uhl
One of my strengths is my ability to understand what the public wants in a specific product line. For instance, when I was a motorcycle dealer, I understood the customers wanted a trail bike and nothing good was available, so I made one by modifying an existing little city transportation bike, Honda’s Super Cub, transforming it into the first motorcycle-derived ATV, and that has led to a multimillion-dollar windfall for the major motorcycle manufacturers which has led to the four wheelers and side-by-sides of today.
I’m sure you remember that the Jeep was the first automotive-derived ATV and look how that has led to today’s super trucks.
Conclusion
Herb Uhl’s story10 is a powerful example of the impact a visionary can have on the world. His ability to see potential innovation in an existing design led to the creation of the Honda Trail 90, and the many ATV trail bikes, four-wheelers, side-by-sides, and adventure bikes that have followed. Uhl’s modifications transformed the motorcycle industry, and his improvements continue to be celebrated in the success of Honda’s new model trail bikes today4, 2. Visionaries like Uhl should indeed be honored for their contributions to the world1.
Note: During Uhl’s time in the motorcycle industry, his store was associated with 30 different motorcycle brands from 9 different countries in order to satisfy his customers’ desires.
I’m Herb Uhl, let’s start off in Boise Idaho. My wife at that time got hit by a car when she was riding her motorcycle and we got about 800 bucks for the damage. I fixed the motorcycle for a couple of hundred and the other five I put into the motorcycle business.
That was the start of the motorcycle business, 500 bucks. I opened my own dealership. I wanted off-road motorcycles because it was Boise Idaho, and very few people ever rode a motorcycle on the highway except to get to the hills in Boise Idaho at that time.
I wanted off-road motorcycles and so I took on Maico (m-a-i-c-o) and I they had Enduro motorcycles at that time. I know years later, Yamaha thinks they invented the name but Maico Enduros were available in 1955 – 56.
Herco h-e-r-c-o (Herb’s company) engineering was in Garden City, part of Boise. If you’re looking North it’s on the left. Simple as that.
I ordered a motorcycle, and I guess I sold a couple of them. Then the importer, Nicholas Gray, the importer at that time out of Detroit, came to see me, and he offered me motorcycles on consignment, which got me in the business. So, my total investment was $500.00.
You could ride from your house to the hills on a motorcycle without license plates. Nobody paid any attention. That’s what everybody did. Very seldom, anybody ever rode a motorcycle on the road. Well, there were a few road riders but not many.
There were a lot of dirt riders because the foothills were right there and so everybody went to the hills, and that was my interest too, I didn’t care about riding on the road. You can drive on the road, you don’t have to ride on it. And there were lots of old logging roads and old mining roads because there was a lot of mining that went on in that area. So, we explored all those old roads and rode in all kinds of places.
I ordered the first Hondas from Japan. In fact, I think I got the first Hondas that came into the U.S. A guy down in San Diego with the name of Sailor Maine also ordered about the same time. We both went into the motorcycle business.
They were actually off-road motorcycles. There was a little bitty article in Cycle World, I think at that time, that had a picture of this motorcycle. Honda, out of Japan, and everybody was wondering if the thing would be any good if it would be junk, or what it was?
It looked good to me, so I ordered a pair of them. I got them in and sold them almost instantly. I ordered more, and they wouldn’t sell me anymore because they weren’t serious motorcycles. Those were built in their race shop, and they didn’t realize that that’s what we wanted. They didn’t get the message for several years. They couldn’t understand it because we wanted motorcycles for off-road use.
When they moved to Los Angeles and set up American Honda, I was the first American dealer to contact them. That was when they were in an apartment house out on Sepulveda Boulevard. They were trying to figure out how to set up a distributorship in America. They were up in this big apartment in the apartment house.
The first bikes I got, I forget what the model was, but it wasn’t a series model. As I said, it was special. Then they came out with the CB 71, 72, and of course, the C-100, the Honda Cub. That was a little 50cc, and so as soon as they got set up on Sepulveda with American Honda in their little building front, I went down to see him. I ordered some of the Cubs and they had a little 150 as well, so I ordered some of those 150s, a couple of them, and ordered a couple of CB-72s and two or three Cubs. When they came in at Boise, I looked at those Cubs and wondered how I was ever going to sell them in Boise.
That’s when I started looking at them as, what I could do to them to make them so that people would want them. I got to looking at them and every time I walked by them, I looked down a little more and I decided that they would make a way better trail bike than the tote goats and so forth that people were using at that time.
There was a guy in Boise that built sprockets and had a machine to make sprockets. I ordered a sprocket to stick over the other one as an overlay. Then I ordered knobby tires for them because that would be necessary. It took several months for knobbies to come in for it.
I tried it out in the hills and found out that it actually worked really well, so I started building them and ordered them in. I guess I sold several hundred of them before Honda noticed that I was selling way more Honda Cubs than all of their dealers in the Greater Los Angeles area together. And these were city bikes, where they should have sold there but here I was selling them out in a little town in Idaho.
Jack McCormick from American Honda called and wondered what I was doing to sell all those little cubs because they weren’t moving. I told him to make them into trail bikes and so he said, “Send me one of them, so I can see what you’re doing.”
I sent it to him and he looked it over. They rode it around and played with it. Then they sent it on to Japan and told Japan that they wanted the exact same thing as a separate model. That was the start of the Honda Trail Bike. Of course, once Honda started building them, then all the other motorcycle companies copied Honda, and there was trail bike Yamaha, and Kawasaki, and everybody had a little trail bike of some kind. That started the ATV motorcycle business.
I was just selling motorcycles. It was just the way things were, you know, I was just selling lots of motorcycles.
(It didn’t bother you that they took your designs and made their own bike?)
No, really because it didn’t even occur to me that it was a big deal but that actually started the motorcycle-derived ATV. And that’s made the motorcycle companies more money than anything else that’s ever been done to motorcycles. That’s where it started, then the three-wheelers came, and from that then four-wheelers, and now side by sides.
In fact, if it wasn’t for that (Uhl’s trail bike design) the side-by-sides would probably say Chevy, Ford, and RAM instead of Kawasaki or Yamaha. So, that really started the off-road motorcycle business.
Getting to a little lake or something up in the mountains required a horse or a hell of a long walk. They were building little scooters with Briggs and Stratton engines on them with no suspension on either end so that they could go up into those places. They called those things “tote goats” which became a brand the company started up to build those little things. They had a piece of plywood on there with a little padding on it and covering for a seat and so forth.
I looked at that Cub and I said, “This will do a better job than that.” it was simple. Really, really simple. It was just looking at it and seeing another use for this piece of equipment that nobody was covering. There wasn’t anybody covering a proper trail bike, so I built a proper trail bike. Just by modifying that Cub and that’s all that was.
Honda never really understood the trail bike. They still don’t. And that you can tell by what they’ve done. In the first place, they didn’t realize that the seat height on the Cub had a lot to do with its appeal. The first thing they did when they designed their own, after copying mine, was to raise the seat height by about three or four inches. So, they never understood it.
They did finally understand that. Somebody told them they needed a high and low-range gearbox and they did that but they dropped it. That was the only thing that they contributed to the trail bike that really improved it, was a high/low-range gearbox.
This new one doesn’t have it. So, the new one is not a good road bike or a good trail bike. It’s neither one. What it is, is an off-road fun bike. That’s all it is. But if they’d left the high low-range gearbox in it, it would be a really good trail bike.
I made a bigger sprocket because it needed to have a lower range of gearing. I made a big sprocket that slipped on over the original and that made it a high/low-range gearing so that it could be used on the trail and that’s the way we sold them. If they wanted to use them on the road, they simply slip that sprocket off and put the chain down on the original sprocket and away you’d go. That was the main thing.
Then they had a leg shield on it and I took all that off. I took their bigger muffler off and put on a small pipe, again for clearance, and so forth. I moved the shock. The shock had to be moved at the top of the shock to give room for the sprocket to clear. I simply did that, moved the bottom of the shock out to the outside of the swing arm instead of the inside, and that gave clearance. Really, that’s all I had to do. And added the knobby tires.
They already had the trail bike. It was already in that design. They just didn’t know it.
The feedback I got from my customers was the best you can get. They were loving it and they and their friends were coming in and buying them too. Now that’s the best feedback you can get.
Special thanks to Callum Blackmore, Eric Stoothoff, and Adam Bale for helping to get the word out. Maybe someday, someone will make an even better trail bike.
I was chatting with a friend about how Kawasaki has been the first motorcycle manufacturer to pay any attention to the short inseam off-road riders with their KLX230 S. (See: 3 Cheers for Kawasaki.)
That move could almost double their possible customers because most ladies and a tremendous number of men have inseams that range from 29 inches down to 26 inches.
I was mentioning that Kawasaki could redesign and make a dedicated frame for motorcycles designed for smaller adults so they could have a plush 28-inch seat height.
His next remark astounded me!
He said, “But they need all the ground clearance they have now.”
So, I replied, “What does that have to do with lowering the seat?”
I thought everyone realized that there is only one basic measurement on a motorcycle that is fixed, and all the rest can be juggled to fit the type of motorcycle you intend to build, and that measurement is your desired ground clearance.
In other words, you can design the top part of the frame to give you the seat height you need and still have the necessary ground clearance.
The example on the left is the current fixed design. Right modified for short inseam seat height.
To put it another way; the height of the seat has nothing to do with ground clearance if the upper part of the frame is designed correctly.
A good example of proper frame design for a low seat height is the Honda Rebel line.
With a very few modifications, the Rebels could be converted into proper adventure bikes for short inseam people.
Now the question is,
Will Honda make those modifications or will someone else have to do it?
Right, now, there are no adventure bikes available to roughly one-half of the world population. Most ladies and millions of short inseam men.
Currently, the most wanted style of motorcycle is the adventure bike! It is a sort of go anywhere kind of motorcycle, just like the SUV is a kind of go anywhere car.
The Swiss actually started it all with the Swiss Army Knife. Now everyone only wants to invest in a product that will do many tasks well and I don’t blame them.
Getting back to the adventure bike; only about one half of the population who want one could safely ride the models that are actually available because the seats are too tall for their short inseams.
It is just not safe to only be able to touch one toe on the street when you have to stop for a light.
Honda could easily fill that gap in the marketplace with adventure bike modifications to their Rebel line of bikes.
Herb Uhl started with the Honda 50 Cub as the base
Uhl’s Cub modifications created the best trail bike
It is almost like it was back in the 1960s. Honda had this slick little city commuter bike called the Cub with independent front suspension, but they really had nothing the average American wanted to help make use of the outdoors.
Herb Uhl (center) featured in Honda promotional materials
I was a Honda dealer at that time, and I saw a possible trail & ranch bike lurking in that Honda Cub design. I ordered a few special parts, made some parts, and had others made, and just like that, we had the best trail bike available anywhere in the world.
The Honda Rebel line is in the same state now.
The frame is correct. It simply needs spoke wheels with a 21-inch front, an independent front suspension because they don’t need excessive travel for the good ride, electronic controlled shocks, and a larger gas tank.
With those few changes, Honda would be amazed at the people waiting in line for such a bike.
They are moving in the right direction. Kawasaki is the first motorcycle manufacturer to acknowledge that the other half of the world’s possible motorcycle riders even exist.
The 2023 Kawasaki KLX230 S
They have spent the necessary R&D time to make a properly suspended low-seat height all-purpose motorcycle that will fit most short-inseam riders all over the world.
Finally, someone is getting the idea that there is an expansive segment of riders that are not comfortable with the standard seat height of motorcycles. I have been reporting this huge oversight to the motorcycle manufacturers since Honda adopted my original design modifications for their trail bike many years ago, leading to the first two-wheeled ATV.
Enter Kawasaki’s KLX230 S for 2023 which has adopted some of the ideas I presented in my 2016 Smaller Adult Motorcycles: Long Awaited New Market Segment book. I am pleased that someone answered the call. This should lead to making the motorcycle market more accessible to riders who have waited in the wings for a more safe-feeling ride on a bike that will accommodate a shorter inseam.
The official word from the Kawasaki team is, “A deeper dive into the data showed an opportunity to satisfy more potential customers by prioritizing lower seat height. With this, we also recognized that it was critical to stay authentic to the KLX concept by offering a lower seat height while maintaining true dual-sport capability.”
They also took another look at the off-road suspension system and conducted a redesign of it to mitigate the spectrum of small bumps in the road as well as rugged off-road terrain challenges affecting both front and rear suspension.
Cycle News field tested and featured the 2023 Kawasaki KLX230 S in its January 24, 2023, issue and demonstrated its ability to enthusiastically impress an avid rider with a 31.5-inch inseam.
Following is the road test from Cycle News that tells all about it:
According to the reviewer, “The KLX230 is certainly a beginner’s friend,” adding that it will appeal to advanced riders as well because, “the devil horns will pop out real quick and the progressive suspension will invite you to push harder.” Adding that, the bike will offer a thrilling experience for “more experienced riders who perhaps don’t have the mobility to throw a leg over an XR400.”
Now what Kawasaki needs to do is make a dedicated frame for their motorcycles built for smaller adults. By making this move, they can have a fully plush seat height of 28 inches and easily provide for almost all of us short-inseam people.
Herb Uhl reviews UBCO’s Electric Trail Adventure Bike. The new company sought Uhl’s opinion of their latest model as he was the inventor of the first 2-wheeled ATV in the fifties. Herb’s design spawned a whole series of trail bikes from Honda.
Herb Uhl’s review follows:
I got to try out UBCO’s 2-wheel drive trail-utility bike with an electric motor in each wheel. The brand manufactures their units in New Zealand.
Their electric trail bike had enough battery for 2 to 3 hours of trail use, depending on how hard you ride it.
The bike was very well built with beautiful welds and well worked out controls.
What I most liked about both wheels pulling is that no leaning was necessary and at almost 0 speed, I could pick my way around most trail junk with almost no effort.
Most of the weight of the bike was that stupid battery.
Electric in-wheel is perfect for a trail bike, just like electric power to all wheels makes sense in a car or pickup. What does not make sense is getting electric power from a battery.
I know you have all seen lightning, so we all know we are surrounded with electric power. Since it exists, it can be harvested.
There are two problems with that; 1) No one has figured out a way to charge us for all that free power, 2) It would add to our freedom, and that must be squelched at all costs.
One of the first things to change when society goes the way of the do do bird, is we will be able to harvest that unlimited energy at the point of use.
My research shows that a small module that weighs 5 pounds or less would provide all the energy a trail bike needs, and you would never run out of fuel.
You think it’s not possible?
Nikola Tesla introduces battery-free electric powered car in 1931
In 1931 Nikola Tesla ran a Pierce-arrow that had been converted to a Westinghouse electric motor, around the Buffalo/New York-area for several hours, sometimes at speeds of up to 90 miles per hour.
The car had no batteries allowed and a witness said Nicola only took a rather large black box with him, hooked up some wires, and away they went.
Do you suppose Dr. Tesla was harvesting electrical energy at the point of use?
10 years before Tesla, brothers introduce electric car powered by atmospheric energy.
Electric cars running on atmospheric electricity were introduced as early as 1921, ten years before the Tesla run.
Tesla’s first experimental electric car project was built in 1897, did not have a storage battery, and never had to stop at a service station. The only mechanical moving parts in his car were the wheels and steering apparatus. Tesla used a new kind of primary battery. The battery could power the car for 500 miles, then could be simply roadside replaced in less than a minute.
The only thing that keeps us from harvesting energy at our homes or on vehicles now is various varieties of greed.
According to stats from UBCO, the all-wheel drive 2×2 electric bike weighs in a 330 lbs., has a 75-mile range, and can operate up to 6 hours with its 3.1kWh battery on a full charge.
Given that Honda and Yamaha’s earliest attempts at racing machinery were designed to be used on the rugged dirt-surfaced courses in Japan like Asama Mountain, they were off-roaders as much as road racleers – street scramblers, if you like, and often shod with knobby tires.
The German Adler Cross scrambler may or may not have provided the inspiration for the Honda RC70 – it depends who you ask. This particular restoration belongs to Dutch spare parts company, CMS. Photography by CMS
It was not until the early ‘60s that the designs became slightly more refined (coincidentally with the increased popularity of motocross in Japan as a result of Australian Tim Gibbes’ Racing Schools conducted there from 1963). But back in 1957, what Honda offered the budding racer was what the factory termed the RC70F, a 250cc twin using the C70 (and later C71) engine, which had the “rotary” gear box favored by several of the Japanese manufacturers. This had first gear at the bottom of the shift pattern, followed by neutral, followed (if the rider kept pressing downwards) top gear and so on.
The RC70 was offered for sale in Japan as early as 1958, and one school of thought has it that the overall look was influenced by the German Adler Cross Scrambler. The two certainly shared many similarities, notably the long-travel leading-link front suspension and the wide cradle tubular steel frame. The frame itself is remarkably similar to the Adler. The RC70 was available with or without lighting.
Of course, the late ‘50s was also the period when Honda was keenly eyeing the U.S. market, taking the significant step of setting up their own distribution center in California-American-Honda in early 1960.
Herb Uhl Herco Engineering, Boise
However, prior to that, at least four examples of the production RC70 found their way to the USA. Two went to Herb Uhl, who had a motorcycle dealership in Boise, Idaho, and who had competed in the International Six Days Trial in Europe on two occasions, riding with his brother Bill who was an Expert-class flat track rider. Herb noted later, “I imported a couple of RC70 off-road bikes from Honda Japan in early 1959 and they had excellent leading-arm forks.
About the same time, another pair of RC70s was sent to Alan D’Alo in California. D’Alo was an amateur racer from Norwalk, California, who annually competed in the Catalina Island “Grand Prix” on an MV Agusta. The Hondas were imported ostensibly to test the market, and came with basic C70 250cc Dream engines.
Local racers were still wrestling with the left-side sift gear levers on these early Hondas, because many of the European racing bikes came with right-side shift transmission selectors. Having to remember which side of the engine to change gears with, as well as coping with the “rotary” gearbox function, was more than most riders wanted to deal with back then.
The “fix” for the RC70 riders was to commandeer engine assemblies from the 1959 CE7ts, once they were released for sale through the fledgling AHMC distributorship. The electric-start CE71 was Honda’s U.S.-spec “dream Super Sport” model, which featured a conventional return-shift transmission, a larger 24mm carburetor (vs. 22mm carburetors that were stock on Dream engines) and a horsepower upgrade due to higher compression pistons and more aggressive camshaft timing.
One of the RC70s was assigned to budding motocross rider Preston Petty, who later founded the plastic mudguard revolution that found a ready market in the booming off-road scene. Petty won several local Southern California races on the RC70F, which later had a CE7t engine fitted. As the Honda was developed, some reports say Petty trimmed off the factory-installed leading-link suspension front end and machined up a new steering head which could hold British AJS telescopic front forks and a wider, smaller 18-inch front wheel in place of the standard 2.75 x 19-inch front tire.
The RC70F varied slightly in specification during the period of its cataloged existence, some being fitted with a high-level exhaust pipe with a substantial muffler on the right-hand side, others with straight-through pipes exiting in front of the right-hand rear shock absorber, and others with low road-style pipes and muffler. There were also dry-sump versions available.
The 1960-61 pre-production Honda 250 Scrambler prototypes also came with single-carb Dream engines, but with return shift transmissions. When the 1961 CN72 Hawk, sport bikes were released, the first thing that happened to the “next generation” 250 Scrambler was again a motor transplant, but this time from a CB72, which had dual carbs, even higher compression pistons and a 10,000 rpm redline.
In fairness to Honda, they were not the only ones who offered “rotary gearboxes” to the public. Early Yamahas, the Bridgestone 175s and Litac motorcycles also had this feature for a few years, among other now-extinct manufactured models. Honda continued to offer the rotary-gearbox option of domestic 250-305cc Dreams and CYP77 Police bikes into the mid-1960s, but no other “larger” models were so equipped after that.
In 2016 I wrote the book, Smaller Adult Motorcycles, where I outlined what was necessary to get almost twice as many people riding and enjoying motorcycles.
The book explained that around half of the world’s population didn’t even try to ride because the most desirable motorcycles (the adventure bikes) had seats way too high for about one-half of the population to touch the ground while sitting at a stop light.
It is definitely a safety issue for a rider to slide almost off the seat to be able to touch one toe on the ground to balance the bike.
The response of the motorcycle manufacturers was interesting, so I’ll outline our progress for you. Many of them have since emphasized the low seat height on their cruisers but they mostly still have only 2 or 3 inches of suspension travel, except for Honda’s Rebel line which almost has useable suspension travel.
Harley Davidson has designed an adventure bike that squats somewhat at stop lights but you have to pay extra for that feature.
BMW and a couple of others have made a seat that has a couple of mounting positions with an inch or so difference in height.
As yet, none of the manufacturers have designed a frame architecture that could be made into a proper adventure bike for short inseam people, except Honda. Just like when I saw a proper trail bike lurking inside Honda’s Super Cub, I can see a proper adventure bike for short people lurking inside the basic frame design of Honda’s popular Rebel line.
Like before, Honda doesn’t realize that they have almost built the adventure bike for us short inseam people that we have been waiting for all these years since adventure motorcycles started. Will they do anything about it? We’ll just have to wait and see.
Honda has already developed the necessary technology, so it’d probably be a very quick redesign. First, and most importantly, they would need to make a smaller version of their Gold Wing fork to give the Rebel Adventure bike independent front suspension. That way, it would have more compliance and a better ride with just 7-inches of travel than if they had 12 to 14-inches of travel with telescopic forks.
Second, the shocks on both ends should be electronically controlled.
Third, it should have a 17-inch tubeless wire wheel on the rear and a 21-inch wire wheel on the front.
Fourth, it should have an easily adjustable seat from a 27-inch seat height to a 32-inch seat height, so that almost any member of the family can ride it just like they can drive the family car.
They already have Rebels available clear from 300cc up to 1100cc, and that should satisfy even the most power-hungry rider in the family.
If Honda made this move, I’d be surprised if they could manufacture enough of them to meet the demand
The Honda CT125 is back/new for 2021. Turns out Herb was onto something all those years ago.
Herb Uhl Herco Engineering Boise ID
Back in 1960, there was a Honda dealer in Boise who was selling far more Honda 50 step-thru motorcycles than a dealer nestled in the mountainous ranges of Idaho had any right to.
That man, Herb Uhl, had noticed the rugged ability of Honda’s 50 before even Honda had. (To be fair, Honda had only been in the U.S. for one year at that point.) And he had been taking The Little Bike That Could and throwing a few choice mods at it, like knobby tires, removing the leg guards, and fitting a larger rear sprocket to turn it into a trail bike.
Buyers were snapping these things up left and right, and it eventually came to the attention of Honda in California, so Herb sent one of his creations to the U.S. HQ for a bit of analysis by Honda’s Jack McCormack, then sales manager of American Honda.
It was a brilliant little machine,” McCormack said to writer Aaron Frank in his book. Honda Motorcycles. “It worked so well because it was light and with the automatic clutch, you could climb logs. To do that on a big bike, you had to have a certain amount of skill. I saw lots of possibilities for something like Herb was doing, selling it as a bike that you could go in the woods and hunt or fish with.
McCormack was so enthused about Uhl’s 50 that he sent it back to Honda’s home base in Japan demanding a production version. Honda, being the small and nimble company they once were before becoming the conglomerate they are today, obliged and created the CA100T Trail 50 for the 1961 model year.
Like the Cun/SuperCub, the ST became a motorcycle that could take you to the farthest reaches of the earth on barely the smell of an old rag. In the 60 years since the first CA100T Trail 50 landed here in the U.S., there’s only been five model updates – 1964 for the CT200 Trail 90, 1969’s CT70 Trail 70, 1981 saw the introduction of the CT110, and 2021 for the new CT125 Trail 125 ABS.
The bones of 60 years of CT’s still reside in the 125. The ride position has barely changed in 40 years.
The CT110 saw the longest model run of almost any production bike ever created and has a special place in my heart as the motorcycle the postman came to deliver our mail on each day while I was growing up in Australia.
The new version in the 125 Trail 125 ABS (silly name, I know), was first shown to the public at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show and borrows heavily from the Super Cub that was released in the U.S. that year.
The Super Cub’s two-valve, single overhead camshell, fuel-injected, 125cc single cylinder motor has been donated, although the CT gets a longer intake and a different exhaust which helps better low-end power, as well as a three-tooth larger rear sprocket, and the CT still retains the trademark heel/toe four-speed auto clutch gearshift.
The SuoerCub’s frame has been used as the blueprint for the CT’s but there’s some pretty big differences between the two.
First, the wheelbase is 0.5 inches longer at 19.4 inches, the front suspension has got 0.4 inches extra wheel travel to 4.3 inches, ground clearance is increased by 11 inches, and the seat height has been raised 0.9 inches to 31.5 inches.
The headpipe has been reinforced, there’s different handlebars with a much sharper upsweep and there are17-inch knobby tires mounted on rims with stainless steel spokes.
Disc brakes front and rear have been fitted to replace the CT110’s drum brake setup, and the gas tank gets an extra 0.4 gallons of capacity to register 1.4 gallons. Finally, there’s a step guard to protect the bottom of the motor.
Riding the CT125, it really doesn’t feel that far gone from the CT110, and that’s a good thing. This is about as unintimidating a motorcycle as you can possibly buy, with the 125cc motor good for (in my hands) a whopping 50 mpg with a downhill and a tailwind. This is a bike designed to get you to faraway places, and one made in such a way you could fix most problems with a Swiss army knife.
The power is enough that it keeps up with traffic on back roads but, like the Super Cub, don’t go taking this on any freeways unless you want to become someone’s hood ornament.
The braking performance is better than I remember from when I had my
