The Surprising Truth About Those Cheap Amazon Dirt Bikes You Won't See Anywhere Else
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- Опубликовано: 4 окт 2024
- We determined that we needed a cheap, simple Woods Bike to round out our motorcycle fleet.
After having a terrible previous experience with bargain basement Chinese motorcycles we had written off the idea of buying one of the current generation Amazon units, until one dropped into our lap at a price that was impossible to pass up
Here's what we found after going through the Hawk 250 Enduro and it's surprising relationship to one of Hondas current North American offerings.
#motorcycle #dirtbike #enduro
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Uncle Tony knows what men want: The Hawk Tuah Fifty
Please stop
@@thegalli Now that's funny right there, I don't care who you are...Larry the Cable Guy.
I wonder if it's from the same company that makes hawk shotguns.
@@yeehaw3792u need help
@@PavelZajec they'll cycle any load
While it is true that these engines are clones of a Honda design, the one you have is not the clone of the OHC Honda, but of a pushrod Honda which is actually a later design (intended for use in thrid world markets where the OHC engines were suffering from cheap oil and bad maintenance). To the best of my knowledge the pushrod 125-230 engine was never sold in the US. For abusive users, the pushrod engine is arguably better as it will put up with bad oil for a lot longer than the OHC engine will and has a gear driven cam. I've worked on dozens of both versions for many years in a developing nation. The XR150L engine is different inside, the bottom end of your Hawk is much more like a pre 1980 Honda XL125--lots of parts will interchange, though the valve train and top end are different as they are the later Honda pushrod design. The XR150 is actually OHC but much more like the older XR100 than it is like any of the older XL125/185/200/XR185/200 OHC engine. A quick look at XR150/XR100 and pre 1980 XL125 cylinder heads on Partzilla will show you how different those engines are. PArtzilla has no diagrams of the pushrod engines, as they were never sold in the US. Honda took the OHC engine all the way to 230cc but had to drop the kickstarter when they went bigger than 200cc. (there may have been a true 250cc trials bike engine based on this engine--not sure on that). It's hard to say how far the chinese have taken the pushrod engine, though the vast majority of "250" labelled bikes with this engine are actually 230cc. The Zongshen clones of the pushrod engine are very good, I have had very few problems with them and most of those have been due to rider ignorance. I'd be happy to talk to you at length about this or to answer any question you may have as I realise that I am being a little disorganised in this comment.
CG125 based. There’s a new variant with 229cc and a balancer(!) yeah, these are super-simple and quite reliable engines.
Very informative comment, thanks for taking the time to explain what you did. Much appreciated 👍🏼
Can you tell me anything about a diablo engine 125cc
You about said it all.. and just to simplify. China clone engines good. Everything attached too it is junk. I use to sell these for bob’s scooter Shack.. I started when they first started coming on the market from china back in the early 2000s I’ve got 78 vintage bikes.. I use to take the 110 and 125 china engines use modified Trx pistons and make early 1970s honda Sl70s out run cr125s . The motors are fine. Been using them and parts of them for years. They were cheep go fast parts for vintage bikes.
Marketed as 250cc, claims to push 230cc, really runs like a 85
That thing looks like something you'd see in a Mad Max film
The extra 2k you spend for the Honda equates to having repair facilities, parts availability and warranty, all of which is important for non mechanics.
If you do your own wrenching, Amazon will deliver the parts
if you use a bike as a woods beater you need to be a mechanic, repair bills or replacements would eat you alive
I bought chain 50 foot at a time because I stretched them that bad, and that was before I started overpacking clutches so they didn't go out as well
@@ty2010 Don't know how your reply relates to my comment at all, but ok
@@davemiller262 Don't know how your reply relates to my post but ok...
fix it yourself bro its fun! My dirtbike is a 701supermoto i got to order all my parts from germany, australia, austria, sweden. its not that bad fr :)
I have a 2015 Hawk. I have put 35,000 hard miles on it with no problems. Just maintenance items like grips tires sprockets chains. The speedometer is the only thing that broke. These are good reliable bikes and I reccomend to everyone, I paid $1600 delivered to my door and had no problem getting a tag. And I ride about 20% of the miles off road 80% on 4 lane highways. Great bike!
@@Woody_Florida lots of miles, for a Hawk, kudos to you !
@gregorydeutsch3530 thanks. I am proud of her.
Skip the Chinese stuff! Look for a good used Yamaha IT 175/200, Kawasaki KDX 175/200/220, Suzuki PE175. Or a four stroke like your old XR200; or something like that from the other big Japanese manufacturers. You’ll be SO MUCH further ahead in the long run… Just a piece of advice from a guy that has been into dirt bikes since 1969.
You can say that again my first Dirt Bike not an enduro. Suzuki RM 125 2 stroke. Great bike this was in the late 90’s when I was a teenager.👍
Ive been looking and ive decided on a yamaha xt250. They are really cool dual sports.
Not in my area. It won't happen unless one waits and shops for years! The trick is that old bike needs a top end, tires, chain and sprockets, cables, and is beat up looking. This old bike I could get for the same price as a new Hawk. For the $2000 I had to spend, I got the Hawk. Ov we 700 miles since December as a second bike. Good enough for what I wanted to tool around on in town and the woods. And I can get parts online just like I do for my Honda.
I just don't understand if the Japanese perfected the motorcycle in the '80s and '90s or dirt bike riding how come the Chinese couldn't just copy it? Yet somehow all of the quality goes down😮 - And until you know there's nothing like late '90s Hondas
You right on the money ! IT 175 , RM 185 ❤
Those knockoff bikes are like having a pre worn out version of the real thing
My favorite is when the frame breaks (after you fix all the other problems that come pre-installed). Ask me how I know.
@@grandmasmalibumust had a bad one, they normally hand select the cans they melt down for the frames😂
They all turn into tweaker mobiles eventually😄. Especially the 50,s and 80 cc
I had the forks come apart when I did a wheelie on one and did a few front flips. what a ride haha. Engine always ran tho
@@dbdave92 they took the pocket bikes from the early 2000's and scaled them up. LOL
same trash metal and workmanship.
I live vicariously through Uncle Tony. I did all the fun stuff back in the 70s, now I need back surgery. How he can do all he still does, is amazing at his age. He must be about 60!!
I`m 70. Already had the back surgery. At 60, I was Flyin`. Now my old 1966 FLH and 2009 Yamaha XT250 just sit there. I work on my trucks,.....
Without doubt I'm a UTG fanboy. When I watch his videos I'm fifteen-twenty years old again hanging out with my Uncle Lou, God rest his soul. Uncle Lou would be 76 this year and he was a badass car guy like Tony. Tony is much more awesome though when it comes to engines. My uncle knew less about cars than Tony (who doesn't?) but he could recite Shakespeare.
I bought a Hawk a few years ago, no problems so far just gotta use good gas, oil, NKG spark plug. I luv mine.
I have one of these, also 5 years old. I bought mine new, registered it for street use and also use it offroad. Unbeatable for the money. The new Japanese bikes have a lot of added junk they don't need, AND almost none of them have kick start.
There are a few more of these in my area too, and they are generally well liked.
BTW, these use a pushrod engine with a gear-driven (no cam chain) cam with a single lobe for both valves. It was designed by Honda as a modified version of their overhead cam engine, specifically for places like Vietnam where a lot of owners didn't maintain their bikes. So Honda redesigned it to be as bombproof as possible. Research the Honda CG-125 for the story on that.
Thanks for putting the engine of there, few other comments mentioned its' a pushrod but none mentioned the name.
Hi... Would you have any links for one? I can't seem to find one anywhere. thnx
I've had one of these for about 3 years. It's fun to ride, super reliable, and cheap to modify to your liking.
Nice. Thinking about getting one or a really small ATV as I only have 3 acres so not very big, but enough room to have a little fun. Had a Honda 300 ATV with a solid axle in the back and it was fun as all get out and super super reliable. Unfortunately I had it stolen in front of my house in the middle of the night by five people in a big U-Haul Van and I was yelling from the window that I've got a gun and they still stole it. They were so quick that by the time I came down from the second floor they were already pushing the ramp back in and driving off. 60 seconds. And I had wedged it between my garage and the my car that night and they still took it that quick😅. I'm putting it in the garage every night no matter what next time. Did you get a brand new one or used one? Either way God bless you 🙏
@@bradpnw1897 I've had a bike stolen before. Sucks. I bought this hawk used with a blown engine. Fixed it all up like new
One Xmas I bought my son a Chinese 110 cc bike , after assembling it I had the first ride on it , my first impression was that it was very unstable, so much so it was dangerous, I diagnosed that the problem was the very narrow handlebars, so I put some wide ones off an old IT 175 on it , problem solved, next thing was that the rear tire had no knobs left after about 10 minutes of riding, but was lucky enough to find a good quality front and rear at the dump , I also found that the exhaust was badly choked with a restrictor , so I removed that, some time later the electric starter stopped working, so I removed that and he just used the kick starter, it was an ok bike after all that. Later on he bought a Chinese 200cc , it was top heavy and just plain heavy, the spokes wouldn't stay tight and the rear wheel collapsed, so I put a Honda wheel on it , it always had a sooty spark plug , so I unrestricted the muffler and fitted a larger diameter header pipe , as well as a hotter plug ,and that really improved the power, later on the rear shock lost all its damping , he got sick of it and sold it. One thing about both bikes was that the motors ran really good , but there will be no more Chinese bikes for us.
Forget that bike I like the dart!
Was thinking exactly the same
It's cute ain't it 😂 and in a hardcore Chevy guy
Had a 1970 Dodge Dart Swinger 340 engine in 1977. Headers, tranny valve body to chirp tires on second gear, So much fun. Except gas mileag.
Glad to see I'm not the only one scratching my head thinking wait used is as much as new. Why? 😂😂😂
The biggest issue with buying chinese bikes is that they have little to no resale value, so even if you buy one and take really good care if it, youll be lucky to get $300-500 for it even in nice shape, where as a genuine honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha will always hold its resale value especially if kept in good condition.
Who cares about resale value You're buying something to use it The time you use it has value also when you buy something you should plan on using it until you get all of the value out of it so if you sell it for $0 you've already gotten all of the value out of it. A motorcycle is not something you should be buying with the intention of keeping its value. It's a tool to be used for transportation or fun when you're done using it it should be used up and finished
So you find a used one if you want one. But yes resale is really difficult.
6oo for a bike and a trailer. Seems pretty good.
Sell it to me then
I buy to wear out, not re-sell.
@ 12:00 you might want that air box.
There's a reason woods bikes come with air boxes and not corny k&n filters hose clamped to the carburetor. Like you always say; "I'm not gonna try and outsmart the factory engineers". 😎
The air box on these flat out don't work. They fill up with oil from the crankcase vent and choke the motor.
@@idahodiy any air box can be modified. Step one: Vent the crankcase outside up high with a cheap fuel filter in the end of it.
@@animoetprudentia2865 so you know better than the factory engineers?
@@idahodiy factory engineers were required to vent the crankcase into the air box to meet emission standards/requirements, not because it made the engine more efficient. Everybody with half a working brain knows an engine isn't supposed to eat it's own excrement.
C'mon man, you're smarter than that. Why pretend to be dumb?
@@idahodiyMy Condor 150 agrees with you. I just put a old compressor hose on for a crankcase breather, up and over the carb…then down past the swingarm.
When we rode in the woods in the 80s we had a 125 on/off Yamaha, a 125 YZ, a 175 Hodaka (you tube says that is spelled wrong because they think it doesn't exist) and a 200E big Red. I had the big red and could jump logs and do things they couldn't but when a 3 wheeler leads the way they don't get their hands beat up blazing new trails.
In south america these are used as daily driver bikes. The starter relays and the cheap spark plug are the biggest problems. The steel rusts faster than a japanese bike
I was in central America, Belize, Lifan is the most popular bike. To import any bike, there is a duty equal to the cost of the bike, hence the cheapest bikes are the most common
I had this Honda 250 single engine in a road bike frame in the 80s. Rode it for years. I still remember that engine fondly. I remember I finally got a crack in a valve seat and took it to a friend who had a head shop and he asked are you going to sell it or keep it. Sell it I said. So he picked up a ball peen hammer and closed up the crack and handed it back no charge. It went for years for the guy I sold it to!
You had the OHC version most likely. The 80s Honda version of this would be the CG125.
Kx 250 with rd400 ,yamaha triz with an xs 650 motor road legal was a blast
1. Honda came out with an XR150l. It has rear drum brakes and several other deficits compared to the Hawk. Itls also built with a Joint CHINESE venture. Out the door new from the dealership its $3k to $4k. Not even close to the Zongshen Motorcycles (Hawks, Tao Tao). Amazon , RPS are just dealers.
2. I bought a Hawk 250. Out of the box carbureted , it hit 50mph.
I have since put a big bore kit, regeared, adnusted the valves, put a new exhaust on and larger carb. I cant easily do 64mph. Your first experience was not relative to most on the Hawk 250 page. It was a great experience assembling, learning to work on, and has been very reliable with nearly 900 miles on it thus far with no issues. There is a channel called The Good Old Boys and he has 5000+ miles on it and its been a great bike. As well as Sean fron SRC cycles. They drowned it, buried it, and it still started. Stock gearing is for torque and 1st gear into 2nd is short and useless unless you regear it.
3. The Honda Cg125 engine (reliable) was oversized into the CG250 which is actually 229cc when you measure the piston bore and stroke. With a BBKit its 250cc.
4. Maintenance on these has been very easy including the big bore kit upgrade.
5. The analog soeedometer is a POS. There is a different zanella cluster that is more accurate which I actually have on mine.
6. @Motocult is. Fabricator that has a lot of mods for thes bikes now.
7. The forks are undersized and not inverted for cost.
I have a 87 Honda XL250R that Ive had for the last 20 years more or less. It cracked the head on two engines, so I decided to explore my options with china motors. I ended up getting a zongshen 4 valve "250" from alibaba for around $500 shipped, a few months waiting and some homemade motor mounts later, I got a brand new powerplant in my beloved old dirtbike. Works great after a good hard breakin.
Dnt downplay those motors ,
leave the unused wiring in place so you have something to strap down important parts you break off
I’ve been riding a Rupp Black Widow in the woods for 20 years.
Upgraded with modern suspension and bigger engine.
Ultimate in simplicity and reliability!
For the money you could do better.
@@KennethGerecke-k8w Really? How so?
I put 8000 miles on a TBR7, second chain, 3rd set of tires. Broken throttle cable is the only issue I've had. It's no Japanese 250. But if you are just bopping around back roads, dirt roads, trails, two tracks, and staying off the highway, it's fine.
I've had two of them. I bought one when I was in St. Croix working a few years back. I left the Island during the first few months of the ordeal in 2020 during which I had left it in the care of a co-worker. Someone cut a hole in the fence at the resort he was staying at and stole it. When I got back I found another one and bought it, and about six months later it was stolen from a different resort that I was living at. But for a cheap mode of transportation, or for beating around the woods, or in town on, they were great for the price. You can't beat them !
U got bad luck or choose horrible hiding spots🤷 either way i feel for you homie 😥🤛
Having that orange colored Dart in the background kept reminding me of actual very clean original Orange Dart GT that I had for a while.
It had the black out treatment with chrome on the rockers and the GT emblems. Plus, buckets with console. It was a great example of a well taken care of original.
i was at a car show in NJ for July 4th, guy comes in with a Brazilian Charger RT...which is built on a Dart body. I've seen the photos, first time i saw one in real life.
@@alertgasper that would be pretty neat to see also!
I can see the day when more people will bring more muscle versions from different countries like even Australia to here.
I watch a video real recently someone made of a car show and cruise night in some city in Australia.
There was actually lots of American imported muscle cars there running around.
@@mr.b2107 around here in New England, the 25 yr old cars are getting imported in since they sneak under emissions issues, rather than have to go thru the "grey market". Australia has a large car show known for its burnout contest, i missed an opportunity to go but we used to have the Worcester Summer Nationals so I assume its similar. Unfortunately the city nickeled and dimed the promoter of that show out of existence.
The good news is with the internet sales sites, it's easier to find cars to import from your couch, you just need the $$. Knew one guy who nabbed an XA Falcon out of a Queensland AU junkyard. between american parts that fit and stuff sourced off evilbay, he made a Mad Max replica for $75,000.
You got a 600.00 sketchy trailer with a death trap on it.
"According to the EPA’s data, the XR150L is powered by an 149cc OHC air-cooled carbureted Single, claiming an output of 12.5 hp at 7,750 rpm. The engine is produced by Sundiro Honda, a joint venture between Honda and Chinese company Sundiro, and produced in Mexico (where the Honda Navi minibike is also manufactured)."
I would surmise they are bolted together in Mexico out of chinese parts to be able to put Mexico on the VIN as to not spook buyers by it saying China on a $4000 bike.
Thanks for the info, I wonder if the frame is made in Mexico due to the statement of origin and the cost of shipping the bulkiest part of the bike.
@@indianaslim4971 Perhaps, I don't know how much of the actual manufacturing has to take place in the location where the VIN indicates the vehicle was "produced" in order to qualify as being made there.
I would highly doubt that it's literally just a "knockoff" bike with Honda branding, or that Honda's joint venture partner making parts for those amazon bikes as they would have some sort of agreement to prevent that. I would imagine that Honda-Sundiro has contracts for their various manufacturers of parts to a higher standard, and the manufacturers double dip and also produce cheaper parts for those sorts of bikes, pretty common.
@@BillWilsonBG17 Digit VIN always have the first digit as country of origin. J through R is Asia, L is China. 3 is Mexico, 2 is Canada. 1 is US.
@@BillWilsonBG as I understand it, if it's labeled as manufactured it has to have parts actually made in that country, otherwise the statement of origin would say assembled in Mexico from parts manufactured in China/Japan or wherever. What percentage is needed for labeling purposes is beyond me.
It's also a way for Honda to still sell old reliable parts that won't pass emissions standards in many places and semi scrupulous importers will sell them wherever because who really knows how many of these they even sell here.
Bro, with the rake that thing has you will leave your nuts on the handlebar first pothole you hit when the front forks snap off 😂
It's like buying a helmet, Depends on how much your head is worth,$15 dollar helmet for a $15 dollar head
And a $500 helmet for a $500 head?
You put a bike on your head?
@@nunya9555I try to at least once a week.
@@motochris5459What if you’re the Six Million Dollar Man?
my helmet was 2 bucks and i over payed
For 2g’s, you can get a used Honda shadow and go anywhere you want
For reals??
Right. Friend has one. 2005. 1,300 dollars 2 years ago. Looks 5 y old only..
Not around here ! Lol. $4,000 for a clapped pos that's gonna need a new carb and shit maybe even a top end the way these people price things.
I have had my 125 for 5 years. I have not been kind to it either lol. Still does everything I ask of it every time. I don't think it will ever die at this point lol
Tony of course a displaced New Yorker down in Tennessee would want to ride in the woods. Cant imagine too many places to ride on staten island.
only at night :) seriously, cities get folks on offroad bikes going down the streets, blasting thru parks, and running from the cops. some cities end up fining any gas station caught fueling one up hoping to cut it out in the summertime.
Richmond Ave?
The new Honda is an XR150L. Made in Mexico. Under $3,000 MSRP, but $5,000 OTD. Street legal but not highway legal. And by highway I don't mean freeways. Where I live I would have to ride around 35 miles on a 65 mph county highway to get to where I could ride off road. The speed limit is 65, but it is not enforced. Normal traffic speed is 75-80. That Honda 150 tops out at around 55 mph. As for Chinese bikes, I learned my lesson about those the hard way. I won't go near one. Way back around 2007-2008 I had a Lifan LF200GY-5 200cc Chinese street legal dirt bike. The engine blew up at 3500 miles, and left me stranded out in the middle of the AZ desert 50 miles from nowhere. Out of cell phone range. In my state, unless you are on private property, your bike has to be titled, registered, plated, and insured. Even if you are way out in the middle if the desert or forest, if it is government land, it has to have all of that. If it doesn't, the fines are huge.
My XR does 60/65 all day. Street legal anywhere in NC. True I tend to avoid fast big roads unless exit to exit
You still got the crappy version of the Honda 150 should’ve got the r model with the better engine
Adventure is what I would call the Ulysses.
Also, hilariously, in wheelnerds, one of the hosts used to say "Any bike is a dirt bike if you don't like it"
Anyone looking for a mint honda 400 four super 91 uk ,reply
We have a riding group in Arizona and we named one of the members "13 Bike Mike".... many of the members have a few in the stable.... I came up with a new disease "MBS" multiple bike syndrome.... to describe these guys with a bunch of bikes... and there is no cure.... but you my friend at 25 are the poster child we are glad you have recovered.....
Complains about Chinese parts all the time and gets a Chinese bike and praises it. 😂 then you wonder why the Chinese parts are flooding the market and can’t get quality.
I'm a steady fan of this channel, but it's true. Many of the comments reflect the same thing: gripe whine bitch kvetch about crap Chinese parts and then the first thing the commenters do is run to Harbor Fright and get the cheapest garbage they can find. And hell, they say, if it breaks soon they can toddle back to Fright and get another piece of junk, cheap.
well said. as Pogo warned, "We've met the enemy and its us".
so you didn't watch the video, got it
Reminds me of mid-1970's XL250/350's, of which i owned a few in the 90's. Can't get them from Honda anymore.
Lolz@@Janzer_
In my office park, there's 3 different import companies that sell these things along with ATVs, etc. In the month or so leading up to Christmas, there are trucks lined up to cart off bunches of these. They're cheap! Well, the weak after Christmas, they're lined up again trying to return them because half of them are defective. The warehouse across from us is good for a few fights in the parking lot, banging on the doors trying to get somebody to answer, etc.
The thing about Chinese products is there is a range of quality. Some Chinese made products are good and well made. The biggest problem is consistency. You may have a fairly good Chinese product, but the quality might be 8 out of 10 are good. You don't want to be one of those two. That being said the quality has gone up in a lot of products.
Building a woods bike. Took my ts90, stripped everything, Preston Petty fenders,fork brace, knobbies.. abused the hell out of it but always maintained it. 90cc? Hell I was about 130lbs
That's a turd.🤣
I've seen better turds.
Last year in the Spring I bought a Brozz 250 in Army green. The only inventory left was 3 Desert Tan ones and the last Green one. So I now have the last sold ever Army Green Brozz 250! I built it, tweaked it, and only put a set of Renthal Bars on it, and an EBC Clutch spring upgrade kit in it after changing the oil @50 miles. Now it's butter smooth, runs great, and will run forever. THEN Honda saw the demand for a trail bike and came out with a 2023 250 retro trails bike. The engine on the Brozz is the same thing from a Honda from back in the Eighties, and the new engine is exactly the same! I don't ride it much as I have WAY too many other things to do, and this past week I just hit over 100 miles on it in over a year! Yes the quality is there and I'm sure i could sell it and get more than I paid for it, but it's fun as hell but will only run 70mph tops. The low end and midrange is crazy and being a very light bike, it hauls butt through all gears until running out @70!
Hey Tony,
Tim here.......i just recently bought a Honda CRF100F, to upgrade from the 70cc China bike (it was a 4sp semi-auto like a Z-50).......i needed an upgrade as my Step-son is ready to learn a clutch......we went from mini-bike, to the 70, now the 100......i got it for $1000......its wonderful!!!......i know what ur sayin, but this "new" 100 serves my purposes perfectly, and the local big bike store is a Honda dealer, so parts are easy to obtain......it was like never used, (its a 2004) i didnt even need to wash it, it was so clean, i got a new plug, changed the oil, put new shoes on it......i'm in it for $1300.....and shud give a lifetime of use......ok, more than ur "woods" bike, but served my purposes......one kick, fires right up, has more power than i need for the yard, and my son can now learn how to shift with a clutch.......ok, guess i got no point here, just enjoying the whole thing......i bought what was a good deal, and useful for my scenario....PEACE my brother!!
You bought a crackhawk
Smoking rocks is always a good time
I had a brand new 1997 xr200 Honda, nicely powered 4 stroke, never had a problem with it. Wish I’d have kept it instead of getting a cr250, twice the power with no longevity.
The dream! (for a daily, other bikes come in mind for 'the dream bike' of course)
absolutely, these things are a steal. $2,000 brand new. first things you want to do to it is get an aftermarket carburetor because the stock one is very lean and get a bigger front sprocket because they gear it really low. other than that the front forks are thinner and the welds are uglier but its a dirt bike and its all there and definitely putting honda ect reputation for quality up for question when deciding which dirt bike to buy
About 15 years ago I had a 125 version. It was bomb proof and slow as molasses. Pretty sure I could have jumped it into a lake and it would have run after a quick dry off.
I sold it to a friend when I moved out of state but I bet it's still going. If he contacted me out of the blue to ask if I wanted to buy it back I wouldn't hesitate.
My buddy had a 125 version back in the day and one day while I was riding it up a trail the back wheel fell off. We rode it all summer and by the fall we were missing a few more bolts and pieces :D. It was still fun
I am an ASE certified Master Tech that's been in the business for some 35 years. We sound similar, in New Jersey, by the time I was 13, my friend and I had 13 dirt bikes and three wheelers in our garage.. . And I had a 1985 xr200r that I acquired with a bent intake valve.... so I went over to my steel table, and with some finagling bent the valve back and got that thing purring. This is how I acquired all of my bikes when I was younger. I remember my 82 KX80 I got, the guy had a new crank for it but he took the cases apart and got lost in Gears and clutch parts and I got it in boxes.... I had quite a few 500 two strokes, favorite being the kx500.... okay I'm getting all over the place here.....
......anyway, I was trying to tell you about the bike ride now because I lost my license years ago. My daily? It's a 750 watt, 48 volt wheel motor, re-laced a yamaha 19in wheel on back, Harley seat Harley headlight, 8 inch stretch 10 inches on the downtube, 48 inch over narrow springer, blabla, suicide brakes, has parking lights has brake lights, 96v spd ctrl, 104Vdc, it does 44.76 mi an hour on my phone GPS......
........ yep. It's a bicycle. It was originally a huffy beach cruiser, I used eight other bicycles to you assemble this frame. I affectionately call it my Huffy-Davidson. I'll post a video of this thing for anybody who's curious to see it. This thing gets so much attention, I get tired of people crowding my bike every time I go to 7-Eleven and telling me how cool it is😎👍💯
Hey Tony FYI if you want to get a little more speed out of that thing, just put a smaller box sprocket on it. I'm sorry, but 26 mph sounds anemic. My first bike, a Honda CT70 would walk that thing at 26 mph. Oh my XR 80s from 1985 what do damn near 55 Mi an hour in Top Gear. Yeah.... bigger front sprocket small ass back sprocket...... but I'm sure you know that already.😎
Had a 1970 Dodge Dart Swinger 340 engine in 1977. Headers, tranny valve body to chirp tires on second gear, So much fun. Except gas mileag.
My dream car used to be a '69 Charger, General Lee livery. That was before I learned Dodge took a government handout and did NOT release the 50th anniversary midnight black Charger with the same body and updated undercarriage. They would've CRUSHED. Now I'll have to settle for a '69 Camaro having switched to Chevrolet, the only US car manufacturer that did NOT take a handout. I can't wait until China releases the $5000 2-seater passenger car that you can order off of Amazon. lol Having said that, I love my Hawk 250. Bought it a year ago and it's doing great with almost 2000 on the odometer. Less talky and more wrenchy. Would rather watch you take that stuff off the Hawk than listen to you talk about it. More Hawk videos!
The MYTH of the superior Japanese motorcycle (or auto) is long gone. There are NO motorcycles, autos, or marine motors that don't include parts from around the world. Even the "Made in America" GM, Ford, Honda, Toyota, Hyundai, etc. vehicles contain parts that are manufactured by subcontractors both here in the U.S. and from China, Thailand, Mexico, etc. There isn't a single modern vehicle on the road that would be sold without imported microchips, wiring harnesses, and other electronics.
This is great. I was very much considering a XR150L but was concerned about not enough power for street. Thanks for putting this out there, I see these on FB Marketplace all the time.
This topic and the comments took me back a long ways to my high school days. My first bike was a yamaha 55 cc street legal trail bike in 2 stroke flavor. At 15 yrs old I become self taught bike mechanic. This was a time when Harleys with sucide clutches were still on the road. I managed to upgrade to a honda 305 super hawk. A buddy of mine was impressed when I was able to run along side of his Harley at 90 mph. As Archie Bunker would say "man those were the days".
Curious...what is a suicide clutch?
@@I.M.SofaKingdom the clutch was foot operated down by the foot rest and not on the handle bar.
Uncle T needs more cheap dirtbike & dual sport content 🤘
I love my Brozz 250!!!!! Glad to see folk loving this’……
Trailer was easily worth $500. Great commentary on woods bike...agree minimum...less plastic crap is safer.
These bikes are really reliable because they use old Honda motors. I just purchased one and the package came damaged. The issue here is, getting one of these Chinese bikes to be delivered to you without being damaged. Countless people get these things damaged in transit because delivery drivers are so freaking stupid these days. Not to mention being shipped from China.
And it has a Kick start that most newer bikes don't have.
You are a great storyteller. I was listening to every word. I'm in California where HAWK Amazon won't deliver. New sub'd here.
You're easily impressed.
I know myself too well to allow myself anything with less than 4 wheels, but it does make me miss my old Yamaha 350 Warrior. I rolled than thing in all four directions, the scary one was forward when the pin for the castle nut broke that held my right a-arm together while jumping, that shift in weight rolled me backwards and to the right while it somersaulted. I landed on my knee and rolled then it landed beside me. Within a minute we found the nut and half the pin, slapped it back together and I went home to get ready to limp through a shift. 10/10 fun
stay safe out there sir!
Dude great reivew!! I love your vibes man ima check out some more vids
Never messed with the bikes, but I've worked on a couple scooters and several Chinese ATVs. I would imagine the same holds true, there is seemingly zero quality control. You don't even know what factory they came out of because there are a few all producing the same thing to varying specs, you can have 2 with the same brand sticker on the plastics but they came from different factories. If you can get them cheap enough they're probably worth the gamble, just don't be surprised when the frames start cracking in weird places and you can't be afraid to work on it. Engines are pretty reliable, carbs on them are junk and should probably be upgraded the first time it gives you problems. On the plus side, parts are cheap and fairly universal for them so that's generally not a problem. I bought a complete generic ATV wiring harness with the coil, regulator, CDI, switches, and a bunch of other crap for $50, which fixed different problems on 2 different ATVs and a scooter.
My Hawk has over 17,000 reliable miles on it. It's never left me stranded. Yes, I've mostly ridden it on the road (@ 80%), but I've ridden it hard off-road excepting jumps (my joints can't take it). As long as you maintain it, that CG230 engine will last just about forever. Enjoy!
I have 4 bikes. I have a hyper naked, a scrambler a old honda dirt bike from 86 and a KLR 650 adventure. I ride the KLR 80 percent of the time. I am now selling off the other 3. I have riden since i was a kid in the 80s.
Anyone watching needs to know, these current China bikes are running a ZongShen engine. Chinas largest motorcycle manufacturer and the engines now are the most reliable &dependable engines coming out of China. The factory produces over 1 MILLION motorcycles annually. Quality has actually improved 10 fold in the last couple years. The quality control continues to improve. The TrailMaster TM35 and TM38(efi) sport this engine and are so solid and dependable it will make you rethink
Spending $3000-5000 for a name brand used bike. $2000 delivered and a $80 carb upgrade ,couple name brand sprockets and chain and your now riding a bike that seems every bit a $4000 value.
Blame it on the ADD baby !😊
Is it just me...or is there a Lotta rake in those front forks...bent steering knuckle...?
A lot of trail/dirt bikes have quite a bit of rake. The bodywork tends to hide it some. Helps the suspension work better since bumps push into the forks instead of just trying to bend them.
Is it just me , at 1520, i see a bent front rim and spokes.
Sorry Tony, i still prefer paying a bit much and know that i will get back home safe and not trying to find signals in the woods for someone to come and get me.I ve owned Honda s Kawasaki, and Suzuki, and i still think they are the best dirts for the money. They still have parts and books for them.A clone its very hazardous to fix , with what parts? Who makes them , and for how long?.You got a good deal, for trailer and bike, i would have bought it for sure, but not going too far in the trails with it. I just know how it feels to get stuck at 11pm at night walking back home , trying to find your way back in the dark. The hawk for for a first bike for a youngster that dont go far is more than perfect.....My two cents.
That thing is defdinetly bent. Somebody sent that rig a little to hard.
Did you watch the video? Is about how that thing has been through the ringer and treated like something you wouldn't feel bad about just leaving in the woods but it hasn't skipped a beat.
@lilmancc35 . Tony did that most likely. He stated it was in much better shape when he got it
Don't go into the woods at night and you definitely won't get stuck out there at night. Doesn't matter what you ride
I was just in the Philippines. Spent days jacking a Kawasaki Baroko 175 around the Island. When I go in bike shop over there 150 is biggest Honda, Kawasaki, on the floor. If you want a 250 or larger you need to order it. The XR150l is very popular over there. They have cool Ford Rangers and Ford Ranger Raptor that have 2.2 litre turbo diesel and 6 speed manual trans that get about 50 mpg, run very clean as well. Local mechanics were telling me the Toyota Hilux is bullet proof and the diesel rangers are right behind it. We cant say that the current Ford Ranger in USA.
Junk... Chinese aluminum castings are brittle and weak as hell! Worked on and scrapped many of these turds.😂🤣
I don't care. I bought a fully functional engine from eBay for $43 dollars. I modified it for v belt drive, so all of my drive train components exist at the hardware store now. Besides that, the engine is as reliable as just about any weed whacker chainsaw engine, whatever.
I dropped the bike twice, once pretty hard, and the pull start, aluminum, hasn't broken and still works. Im sure it's not as good as something that costs more though.
I don't care either... lol Just stating facts of working on these since they started arriving in this country a long time ago. I repair small engines (motorcycles,ATV's, snowmobiles, outboards chainsaws, weedwhackers,etc) and deal with this garbage a lot.... 😂🤣
@@greenbassboosts8872 What kind of bike did you put a 43 dollar ebay engine on? I am assuming it must be a 49cc engine if you compare it to a weedwhacker or chainsaw. Is it a pedal bike conversion,mini chopper, minibike or pocket crotch rocket. Because 49cc engine wont move anything much bigger. I have a little China pocket quad for my grandson that runs those 49cc engines. It's pretty snappy but I have literally ripped the pull start case off it a couple of times. Original was plastic and the last two were the aluminum upgrades if you can call them that. It always runs but it does not suffer from as many problems as the bigger china bikes like mild steel bendable swing arms, crap CDI systems,stators and coils,weak frames, scary weak spokes and rims,kickstart shafts breaking off the aluminum shaft holder inside the case basically rendering the engine case half and engine scrap. If I was going to buy a cheap bike to bomb through the woods, the last thing I would be bombing around on is a cheap China bike. I like making it out of the woods in one piece and not having to walk out either. LOL Have a good day!🙂
@@greenbassboosts8872 Hey, can you post up a little video of your bike on your channel? I enjoy seeing other folks tinkering and ideas. 👍
@@u.p.tinkering the channel is @robertjeffersonbased and there's a few motor bike videos on there. The most recent bike thing didn't work very well but I think you'll be entertained at least
I had Japanese bikes, a through my youth, and then just quit riding for years, but I did get back into riding a few years ago, and ended up with a Suzuki Boulevard, and a V Star, but just didn't enjoy them. I ended up buying a Brozz, which seemed great, but I only ended up putting a little over 2,000 miles on, till it got stolen from my garage up at my farm, when I was storing it for winter. I ended up buying very slightly used Hawk that had almost no miles on it, and still had every decal on it, and it's been a really good bike. As long as a person knows the limitations of the bikes, and can do basic mechanical work to one , you can really wake them up , compared to the way they come stock ( very restricted, for emissions standards). I have a brother who has 2 Suzuki's, both 4 stroke Enduro bikes (DR, or DRZ), and he's had timing chain issues on one, and had to replace the entire top end on the other, and he couldn't have a boat load of miles on either, because he does not ride much. The CG, pushrod motors in the cheap 250(230cc) dual sport bikes are reliable, and really they are limited more by the fact they have the box tubing swingarm, and not the strongest forks, but the Honda XR150L that Tony claims is the same bike ALSO has the same forks, and swingarm. I keep my spokes in check , and have never bent a rim, but I know the limitations of the bikes. I ride for leisure, and know the bikes are not for anything even resembling hard Enduro. That being said the Honda is an OHC motor, and the bike is assembled in Mexico, but is it worth the extra money? Not to me. The HP figure on both the Honda 150, and the Chinese 230cc Dual Sports are pretty close, but the 230 is pretty torquey, AND can be woken up quickly, and cheaply with head porting, and a long duration cam, without the sacrifice of low end torque. They are not for everyone, but they are very capable of filling the needs, and providing a long service life for many. The issue of not having resale value is ridiculous, unless you are talking about the resale value of a bike boughten used, and then sold again, but if you were to go spend $ 6,000 at a stealership for a nice Dual Sport, and sell it a couple of years later, you will loose at least a couple thousand on it, and you probably would have been spending on upgrades during the two years. I see 20 year old Japanese bikes for sale often with lower mileage than with of my Chinese bikes. I also have a KPX, which is a " nicer" Chinese dual sport, and it has beefy suspension, and good rims, and is more on par with a Japanese bike. Its not got the power of a water-cooled 250 4 stroke, but it has plenty for me, and that's all I need.
The front shock rake is wild!
I always enjoy the motorcycle content.
Lifan makes a licensed copy of a couple Honda motors.
Parts are interchangeable.
Any of the horizontal motor stuff is actually pretty good.
The nus, bolts, fastners, frame, etc.. is what they cheap out on.
Swapping in Honda axels and motor mounts/bolts are usually the first recommend mods for these things.
Looks like the front end is really raked
i couldnt stop seeing that, a dirt bike chopper but i think its the lens on the camera
Because it is made from compacted Nestlé bar wrappers
It was probably jumped and stretched out in impact. 😅😅
I've got a Lifan 250 that's been wonderful to ride. 80mpg on highway to work. 3000 trouble free miles so far.
That's getting left on the trail too !
I remember when those really got big in the early 2000s We had a 110 gy6 style four wheeler and we beat the crap out of it !!! I did have to fix a few issues when we first got it. The plug wire was made with a metal core that was rusted I fixed it with an old plug wire from a car It never had any issues after that .
I am thinking about just strapping a harbor freight six horsepower I have hanging around just with an extra rim and belt drive . Simple tension with a push bar. If it goes fifteen miles an hour that's enough for the farm.
Pair it to a CB 750 frame and it's a maxi bike
I've got 3 slightly different modified HF 212s each making almost 20hp each. Porting, cam, carb, etc the usual stuff. On a minibike they all flat out fly. My drag bike runs 8.50s@72 in the 1/8th
The Honda copy engines in these bikes are manufactured by Lifan, Zongshen, Loncin, Jailing, etc. They are very good quality. Another fun fact: Yamaha's licensed Chinese manufacture "Loncin" makes tons of side by side parts for Yamaha's side by sides and other manufactures of side by sides. Loncin is licensed under Yamaha. Another fun fact: The Harbor Freight "Predator" engines are manufactured my Loncin. That makes it a Yamaha product. The Harbor Freight 2000 watt inverter generators run clones of the ... You guessed it... Yamaha MZ80 generator engine (Loncin).
It's basically a Honda. I have the templar x . Got it in feb. It's got 1700miles on it ....i love it
I bought a solid 1995 yamaha xt350. It sat 12 years neglected. With 100.00 i fixed it completely amd daily ride it to work now. Paid 350.00 for the entire bike. Its rare but you can find em still. I found mine in winter this year.
I like this philosophical rant on woods bikes. I’ve got the ideal one. 1980 honda xl125. Starts first kick….looks dingy and has dents. Will go through anything
Hey man I'm glad you did this review.
I've been curious about those Chinese bikes.
Honda and Suzuki have my heart but they also have my wallet pretty maxed out 😅so these Chinese Bikes are Getting my attention
My first "woods bike" was a DR650. (FYI I was 6'3" almost 300 lbs at the time). Dang I miss that bike.
The kymco atvs are really great too, they are likr 3k new and unstoppable. I had one as a kid that was basically a honda 300 clone without 4x4 and it already had 15k miles when i bought it. I rode it trough the woods so fast the suspension would bottom out every day, flipped it a few times and it was still driving straight, once went mudding with it and the engine ran full of water, i only noticed when i did an oil change 3000miles later abd there was two extra quarts. After that it still worked perfect for years before i sold it
I'm liking those old Cherokees in the background
These bikes are pretty good And honestly I bought cfmoto 4 Wheeler and I was amazed by the quality it's been a really good 4 Wheeler I've had it for 3 years now With very minor issues.
The original Hawk Tuah bike for the Hawk Tuah girl!
You have a prospective that Is totally different from myself that's what I like about your show
My chonda was fun until the gas tank ruptured and dumped a gallon of gas on my lap, the exhaust ripped its studs out of the head and fell off, the handlebars bent in half and snapped when I tried to bend it back 10 miles out on the trail. I would only use one of these as an around town bike. They can't take any kind of trail abuse
Wow that XR 150L is nice, I hadn't seen one before.
Front fender is nice to have after some rain .
When I think of Tony I think of the Alice Cooper song “You and me”….Living the simple life but enjoying it! 😎👍🏻
Back in 2006 I bought a delta 250 off of eBay 1700 shipped to the door all the engine was a Yamaha virago with a Chinese frame it was for my wife she had it for 6 years never had a problem
Some chinese manufacturing is impressive these days, been runnin a Talaria (similar to yours but electric) and I love it. I'm a little uneasy exporting money to china but excluding all ethical concerns it's really hard to argue with the price and the product. Not to mention, in the case of something relatively new like an electric dirt bike, what american or european or whatever company is gonna deal with the regulations and lawsuits of making something unique and dangerous. I hate to say that china has more freedom but when it comes to this stuff it seems way way easier to try something new over there. I've had this thought before, what if somebody invented the motorcycle today? It would get super duper banned so quick, shit even cars are too dangerous to get invented these days. Anyway I'm glad you're having fun with your new bike! I'll be surprised if a front fender doesn't find it's way on there once some wet comes along lol but I can't say I don't love the minimal look.
You'll find that "safety" is actually politics. The cyber truck shows this
Love a Ully. Glad to see you enjoying one. Every one is an adventure bike guy lol.