The Hodaka Club Forum

Hello all, I had reported in the past about finally getting the 250ED of my now 90 year old mate Ron, which I was scared would end up in his son's hands, it would have ended up trashed, totally wrecked and scrapped if he got it, he is that sort of lad. Ron also had 1 1973 Dirt Squirt which was going to go to his son, I said my goodbyes to the Dirt Squirt back then.
Last weekend I finally got to ride the now refurbished (cosmetic restoration with rebuilt motor) Thunderdog up to see Ron so he could see his pride and joy again.
He was happy, so was I when I left as conversation had turned to bikes, as it does and he offered the Dirt Squirt to me for the bargain $200AU which I couldn't knock back, I think he had realised that the little 100 is better of in my hands.
So another Hodaka graces my shed, initial plans are undecided, I will give a good clean, fix any leaks and in my usual form, get the little girl running to see how well it is before I proceed with a restoration, it is complete and in pretty good knick but I will need some new rubber bits, fork seals, tyres etc. Minnimal rust on the chrome so I hope an aquablast will clean them up but the frame will need a repaint.
I think I will ride this in Vinduro events over here in the long term, it should be a fun little girl to ride. The forks will get the damper treatment outlined in an old resonator which I have kept for years (and years!), but what shocks are you guys using on the rear, these ones are a bit shagged and not very race worthy!

Wayne from Oz

I've been extremely happy with the 13.5" Progressives with 65/100 springs on my Squirt. I've raced and trail ridden with them for years - still working great. Ed

Looks like it has a Wombat Engine in it. Still, a STEAL for what you paid! Joe.

You got me thinking Joe, and now I may be a little disappointed, done some poking around and cleaning up of the bike today, a started a list of things to do and things to buy, no real surprises, except that the old mate Ron hadn't looked after this as well as I thought he would, me thinks his useless son may have been playing around with it, found the same sort of unexplained issues on the 250ED when I had bought that off him, things like the side cover had been off but the gear selector hadn't been relocated on the shaft when it was put back on, all the wrong screws in the sidecovers and packed out with heap of washers etc, all fixable.
But I am thinking the bike isn't what it seems, the frame number is C24277 and the engine number is H18252, from what I can gather they are 125 model numbers so I would appreciate some confirmation here.
Have I got a repainted 125 with small wheels?? I would be surprised as I have known the owner and bike since 1974, he already had the Dirt Squirt at that stage but I can't remember any engine/frame swap.
A quick clarification could be made if anyone knows what the head stud spacing is on 100 and 125 motors?

Confused but still happy Wayne from Oz.

It appears to be a 1973 Model 94A Wombat . No matter what, it`s a great deal! Joe.

I am going to have to whip that head off tomorrow and measure the bore now.
And looking at the frame I note that it is actually black around the head stem area then the rest of the frame is red, very curious.
Good deal or not, I am disappointed if it isn't a genuine Dirt Squirt, rather than a small wheeled Wombat. Oh well, the restoration will still go ahead, maybe I won't feel to bad if I customise it from original now, seeing as it might not be original! LOL

Wayne from Oz

Cylinder displacement is molded into the iron just below the bottom fin on one side or the other - so you can directly read what size engine you have.

While it seems you don't have a factory true Dirt Squirt, note that the Wombat frame and the Dirt Squirt frame (and the Combat Wombat frame) all were built on the same frame jig. They are EXACTLY the same except for bracketry appropriate for the model. The Dirt Squirt use a shorter swing arm than the two 125cc models. Any way you cut it, that is going to be a FUN machine to play on!
Ed

Hosk, I think you got a deal and it looks great as is. A '73 M94A 125 Wombat is a great bike and the frame and engine numbers never matched but they're from the same machine and they only made that model for that year. I can understand your disappointment as you though it was a Squirt but I think you've got something there and if as you stated, you plan to ride it for vinduro, then I think you're a bit better off. I have a '72 M94 Wombat and it's a hoot! Just my 2 cents.

Bev