Hodaka Int Full layout.indd

Octane Press, Edition 1.0, July 2014
Copyright © 2014 by Ken Smith
contentS
All rights reserved. With the exception of quoting brief passages for the purposes of review,
no part of this publication may be reproduced without prior written permission from the publisher.
Standard Edition
ISBN 1937747360
ISBN-13: 978-1-937747-36-7
Forewordby Paul Stannard
acknowledgments
Introduction

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two

three

Four

Five

Six

Seven
On the Title Page: Jim Gentry on the prototype 175 at the Trask Mountain Qualifier in 1971. Marv Foster

eight
On the Back Cover: Harry Taylor of PABATCO out testing the prototype Combat Wombat. Strictly Hodaka Collection

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ten

eleven

twelve

thirteen
Collector’s Edition
A limited run of special collector’s edition books have the unique ISBN below. Only 250 of these were published in July 2014.
ISBN 1937747379
ISBN-13: 978-1-937747-37-4
On the Cover: 1970 Super Rat 100MX. Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum Archives
On the Frontispiece: One of the many color graphics created by Hodaka. Strictly Hodaka Collection
Photographs credited to Strictly Hodaka Collection are courtesy of Curt Alexander, Ed Chesnut, Tommy Croft, Marv Foster,
Jim Gentry, Jeff Hackett, Eric Jensen, Scott Mayberry, Tetsuo Nakazawa, Darrell Ohs, Ken Smith, Richard Schwarz, Paul Stannard,
Strictly Hodaka archives, Chuck Swanson, Harry Taylor archives, Jody Weisel and Leon Wilbanks.
Copyedited by Charles Everitt
Proofread by Steve Casper
Hodaka 50th Anniversary Logo by Nell Becker
Design by Tom Heffron
appendixa
appendixB
appendixc
appendixd
octanepress.com
Printed in China
appendixe
6
7
8
The Hodaka Story 11
The art of rats, Wombats, Toads and dogs 41
ace 90 47
ace 100 61
Super rat 77
Wombat, combat Wombat, Super combat 125cc
dirt Squirt and road Toad 111
dirt Squirt 80 123
The 1 75cc Model 129
The 250cc Models 141
Hodaka Specials and Successes 151
other brands with Hodaka Power 165
Hodaka lives on 175
PabaTco Personnel 181
Hodaka Sales 184
Hodaka Production 186
Hodaka accessory engine Serial numbers 189
Hodaka evolution chart 190
Index
191
89
cHaPtertwo
T H e a rT o F
r aT S, WoM b aT S,
T o adS a nd d o gS
c
an you imagine the boss of any of any other
motorcycle brand announcing to the world they
had great delight in releasing their new model, the Road
Toad? It just wouldn’t happen. Over the years you’ll find
a plethora of motorcycle model names that tried to give
an impression of speed or power, such as Commando,
Lightning, Bonneville, Rocket, or Ninja, but few that had
the frivolity of Hodaka’s names. More recently, manufacturers have tried to inject some fun into the naming of
their bikes, but typically only when it applies to a target
group who aren’t necessarily committed motorcyclists,
such as what Yamaha has done with some of the models
in their scooter range. They have some pearls, such as
Frog, Jog, Vino, and Zuma. Almost makes you want to
hop straight on, doesn’t it?
In Hodaka’s case, they not only had an assortment of
peculiar names, they also had crazy cartoon characters
to go along with the wacky names. So how did it all start
and why?
Hodaka’s first two models were the Ace 90 and Ace
100, catchy names maybe, as the term ace in the USA
was associated with someone that was at the top of their
game and somewhat cool, but entirely coincidental.
40
The Ace name came from a Yamaguchi street bike that
had a Hodaka engine that was called the Ace 55. A
larger version of that same bike was also produced
with a three-speed 80cc engine which was dubbed the
Ace 80. So the Ace 90 and Ace 100 names were just
(lefttoright)John
trommald,Marv
Fosterandchuck
Swansondiscussing
anewadcampaign
forthewombat,as
wellastheideaof
creatingmotorcycle
bubblegumcards.
Strictly Hodaka
Collection
thisisanine-inch
Superratdecal.
thisdecalcannotbe
usedfortheairbox
asitissolidand
thecenterneeds
toberemovedfor
theairboxcover
holddownwingnut.
Strictly Hodaka
Collection
41
Hodak a
t H e  a r t  o F  r a t S ,  w o M B a t S ,  t o a d S  a n d  d o g S
Supercombat
thethunderdog250
decalwiththenew
windowdecalwas
blueandorange
producedbefore
colors.Strictly Hodaka
thenamehadgone
Collection
throughallthe
hurdlesnecessary
forapproval.
PaBatconever
Superwombat
officiallysanctioned
graphicproduced
thename
beforethefinal
“thunderdog.”
namewaschanged
Dave Deal
toSupercombat.
dirtSquirtgroundshakerdecal.Darrell Larson
Darrell Larson
reason than it kept the crazy naming and cartoon element
alive, as they considered it still was an important element
in the marketing of the brand.
For the naming of their 100cc fun bike, a sort of offroad all-rounder, PABATCO ran a competition among
its employees. The prize was $25 and it went to
none other than their R&D guru Harry Taylor.
He came up with the name Dirt Squirt and
the associated clam cartoon element was
derived from the fact that clams squirt.
That idea was further developed into the
Racer Clam concept by Foster.
The 175cc models were the first since
the original Ace 90/100 models not to
have some sort of name. A lot rode on
the success of the 175, as Hodaka was
losing ground by the time it was released
and perhaps the last thing it needed
was a wacky name. Nonetheless, it
would have been on the cards that if a
competition model of the 175 had been
44
dirtSquirtpromotionaldecalwithclam.
Darrell Larson
released (only the trail version, the SL, was released) it
might have earned its own off-center name.
With the earlier release of the 250 models (the 250
was released in 1976, prior to the 175 which was
released in 1977, even though the first prototype 175
was mooted in 1969), the mood was similarly do or
die, but one of the two 250cc models (the other has the
dull prefix SL, Street Legal, as did the 175) nonetheless
ended up with yet another name that could only come
from the crew at PABATCO. Enter the Thunderdog (also
called the ED). Although it should be noted Thunderdog
was never an officially sanctioned name by PABATCO
and it wasn’t ever used in advertisements, it just sort
of leaked out unofficially. That said, the dog with the
lightning bolt cartoon did make its way into some
advertisements and onto some flyers. Either way, some
will say PABATCO left the best until last, as you have to
admit Thunderdog is one cool name for a motorcycle.
Or not, as others might claim. There weren’t any
Aussies present when this name was coined, nor any
in-house competitions, it just came from the guys joking
around in the promotions department one day. That
was life at PABATCO.
The only other named bike was the Bullfrog, the
in-house trials model that was initially put together by
roadtoad
promotionaldecal.
Scott Mayberry
Leon Wilbanks (full details of the Bullfrog can be found
in Chapter 11). As far as Wilbanks and Ed Chesnut can
recall, the name just sort of appeared, but might have
initially come from Foster.
Speaking of names, let’s finish off this naming nonsense
with something a touch more serious by expanding a little
more on the meaning of the word Hodaka, which was
mentioned briefly in Chapter One as being “to grow
higher.” An analysis of the word breaks it down into
firstly Ho, which in Japanese literally means an ear of
corn or rice, or which figuratively means, “a growing.”
“Daka” as spelled in this context is only used as a suffix
and means high. All together, the word Hodaka means
to grow higher. The triangle symbol in the Hodaka logo
represents a mountain, as the Hodaka name also comes
from the name of Japan’s third highest (3190m) mountain,
colloquially called Mt. Hodaka. The full name of the
mountain is Mt. Oku-Hodaka-dake and it is in the Hida
Mountains (Northern Alps) in Japan and is famous for
rock-climbing routes.
45
cHaPterFIVe
S uPe r r aT
1 0 0 / M X  I n c l u d I n g  M o d e l  9 3 ,
93a,93B,and98
M
ention the name Hodaka to many off-road motorcyclists and the first response is often, “Hey,
I remember the Super Rat, that was a cool bike.” The
Super Rat is the best-known Hodaka model, and it became an instant classic. The name, the associated cartoon and large decal on the air cleaner cover, the red
frame and chrome tank, the sound of the little engine
revving wildly, its performance and popularity—everything combined to place it, and keep it, as an icon in the
dirt bike world.
The Model 93 Super Rat family covered bikes with
frame numbers B-37205 to B40004, B45263 to B45512,
B46313 to B46812, and B47713 to B48912, all from the
period 1969-’70.
Model 93A covered bikes with frame numbers B53113
to B54312, B56713 to B58612, B61313 to B63112, and
B65813 to B67612, all from 1971. Model 93B went from
frame number B70213 to B72812, in 1972. Another
point about the Model 93B, being slightly different than
the 93A, was that the 93B used a tuned exhaust pipe
with spark arrestor. While on the details, there’s another
that applies to some of the Super Rat production (and
some of the Ace 100 bikes), being that from 1969, some
models had Made by Fuji Motor Corporation on the
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steering head nameplate. The bikes weren’t made by
Fuji, that nameplate just got on to some bikes due to
the fact, noted in Chapter One, that Fuji provided the
financial backing for Hodaka.
As far as the build of the bike, there was certainly
a strong lineage to the Ace 100. The Model 93 Super
Rat used the basic Ace 100 frame, but came with better
forks and shocks, made by Kayaba, than the Ace 100s
of the time. The Super Rat did use the same
transmission (mainshaft and five gears) as
the Ace 100, but had a different primary
gear ratio. The rear hub was a noncushioned hub with a dished sprocket and
a #420 chain. The airbox was enlarged
over the Ace 100 style and the cover sat
inside the airbox assembly.
With the introduction of the Model 93A
came new, improved forks, an improved
exhaust pipe, a cushioned rear hub and
an improved, larger rear brake. A flat sixbolt rear sprocket (#423 chain) was also
added, as well as an improved airbox
design. The 93A did, though, use the same
frame as the previous model.
Harrytaylor
aboardaSuper
ratduringaphoto
shootintheoregon
desertnotfarfrom
athena.Marv Foster
77
Hodak a
S u p e r R a t
going to work at Hodaka. Jim Gentry called me and
asked if I would like to go riding with them out in the
desert, they would furnish the bikes. Sure, so I met Jim
and Harry at a nearby riding spot. When we unloaded
Jim said, ‘You ride this one [a 100 SR prototype],’ and
off we went. The little 100 pulled good in the sand,
was a kick to ride and I had a great time. When we
loaded up to go home they asked me what I thought.
I was impressed and asked what something like this
would cost.”
Wilbanks also mentioned the lost opportunity of
adding a reed valve to the Super Rat, as Harry Taylor
This forerunner to
the Super Rat has
“100 SR” written on
the bottom right of
the fuel tank. The
SR refers to “special
racer.” Strictly Hodaka
Collection Comparison
pipes made for
the 100 SR at the
factory during
development.
Various head
pipes, expansion
chambers
and silencer
inserts could be
interchanged for
testing. Strictly
Hodaka Collection
78
The last model of the red-frame and chrome-tank
Super Rat, the 93B, added a reinforced and gusseted
swingarm pivot, as well as a spark arrestor per U.S.
Forestry requirements.
A stripped-down, race-ready motocrosser had been
brewing for many years prior to the release of the Super
Rat. PABATCO R&D guru and supertuner Harry Taylor
had been building race bikes out of the Ace 90 and 100
models right from the start, and out of the Yamaguchi even
before that. Taylor had turned his hand to building and
racing Hodakas in scrambles, TT, roadracing and trials,
so he had no shortage of input into the development of
the Super Rat. Hodaka had been on the case as well,
with much of Taylor’s input, in building in years past
the 90 SR, 100 SR (Special Racer) and even roadrace
models in Japan. As noted in Chapter Two, the SR turned
into the Super Rat.
PABATCO staffer Leon Wilbanks recalled some of
the Super Rat background, including his unknown, at
the time, involvement in its development. “The Super
Rat was pretty much all down to Harry Taylor,” he said.
“As it turned out I was an unwitting guinea pig in the
development of the SR, in the winter of ‘68, prior to my
A restored Super Rat,
sitting proudly in
Athena City Park, the
setting for the annual
Hodaka Days event.
Jeff Hackett
Promotional photo of one of the first Super Rat’s
delivered to Athena. This photo was taken during the
same outing which resulted in a color poster showing
Harry Taylor airborne on the Super Rat. Marv Foster
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