The Hodaka Club Forum

Happy Memorial Day everyone and a special "thank you" to all who have served. I heard of an "orange" Hodaka motorcycle for sale. SR? SC? Nope. 01 Dirt squirt. Who cares? I just had to have it. I was originally thinking of modding a toaster tank DS into a sleeper. Now with this new score, this may be the one. What would it take to convert this bike to the equivalent of a painted tank SR? Pipe, head, and gearing come to mind. Is there much port work involved? Is this a possibility without significant machine tool work? Have I totally lost my mind? (don't answer that, I think I know). Thanks all.

One of our group races a 98SR with a 98 head on a 01 jug including the 2 ring 01 piston. He reports little difference in performance. Why? Because the 98 already has the cdi unit, which lets the little 100cc engine spin up quicker. He also has the bigger clutch for the fanning a 100cc bike needs on an mx track.. The 98 has the close ratio internal gearing, important in a small bore bike. The larger carb with a free flowing airbox is major plus the on 98.. The construction of the frame under the seat area on an 01 is vastly different from 97/98 making air box fabrication for the bigger carb a project. All of these things that make the 98 a faster bike can be adapted to the 01 except the transmission, which you can balance with final gear ratios. I dont think the porting specs will determine the success of making a go fast Squirt, It will be the whole engine package. With the vast supply of parts, could be a fun project.

Thanks olddogs. That was exactly the info I was hoping for. I'm pretty familiar with all the toaster tank Hodies. Not so much with the painted tank models. I need to dig into the bike a bit and see what's there. I bought the bike from the original owner who got it as a birthday gift from her father (who owned a speed shop in town and raced MX and CC as well as sponsored several regional "A" class and national riders over the years. I wouldn't be surprised if he turned a few wrenches on the bike himself. All she said was that it was too fast for her and after a few get-offs, it was stuffed into the back of her folk's garage where it has been sleeping away for over 40 years. Through all the barn grunge, I can see there are no dings anywhere on the bike, nor any wear marks for that matter. Part of me says 'survivor resto' and leave it at that, but the bike keeps whispering "nah - you want to haul a$$". I love these decisions. Interestingly, her dad put head- and taillight on the bike - off a Triumph! Crazy.

I also had and restored an 01 to showroom condition. It sat in my shop and saw light once a year. What fun was that? I left it stock and taught my son to ride on it. As he improved we made performance upgrades. 98 carb and single petal reed cage, The frame was modified for the 98 airbox, A Honda cr 125 cdi was adapted and an h3 pipe added. Eventually an 03 front fork and progressive shocks with aluminum 21/18 rims were added. This process developed over 3 years and we had a bucket of fun doing it, The painted tank bikes are not as rare or valuable so I never felt guilty about modifying it.

My stable includes a very original 01 Dirt Squirt and every time I ride it I realize that it is my favorite Hodaka. It rips, it handles and it is fun to ride. Okay, that describes pretty much all of them, but somehow the Dirt Squirt is just a little better. I have never considered performance upgrades on this one.

That's enough for me, Dale. Survivor resto it is. My understanding is that the 01 DS and the RT have essentially he same drive train and THAT bike rips! Sounds like a fun bike to me. Maybe as is, it would make a good back up to my RS for 100cc reed action. Did you make any suspension upgrades or changes?

Our bike is about as original as a Hodaka can be. It is a blast. That said, the mods that old dogs described would be awesome as well. Can't go wrong in my opinion.

Agreed. I'm thinking back-up race bike and olddogs has excellent ideas. And most importantly, nothing that would disallow the bike to be returned to stock trim (other than adding a couple inches to the swing arm). Thanks guys!

I believe we swapped an 03 swingarm on the 01 to get the longer wheelbase. Direct swap if i remember.

olddogs wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2020 11:24 pm I believe we swapped an 03 swingarm on the 01 to get the longer wheelbase. Direct swap if i remember.

Yes, it is a direct swap. I have an 02 Road Toad with an 03 swingarm installed.

Thanks Dale. Here's a little update on the new kid on the block. This bike is LIKE NEW!! It was owned by a lovely lady whose father was the owner and chief mechanic in one of the more prominent race shops in town from the 50's-2000. They sold Hodakas out of the showroom and so he bought this DS for her right out of the crate. I'd bet it has a total of five hours on it. No wear, no dings, no nothing. Anywhere. The tank is flawless other than some buckle rash on the back of the tank. An interesting thing occurred to me as I was starting to dig into the motor and was whining about the dry, gelatinous oil sludge that was jammed into everything. Hey, underneath all this, after a few minutes with a putty knife, bathy time in the parts washer, and some vigorous brushing, the metal underneath shines like a mirror. In this case, the 42 years of sitting in a machine shed since it last ran did it no harm. The old man filled every nook and cranny to the brim with oil and greased the bike before putting it up. I thought it was another grimy, neglected Hodie withering away in the back of a forgotten machine shed. Should've known. Amazing. More to come as I dig deeper.

PS- I dig the smell of old, grungy oil. Is that a problem?

"PS- I dig the smell of old, grungy oil. Is that a problem?"

No, that is a good thing. I can relate, smells like buried mechanical treasure.

I too love 01s. Great as stock, currently have a racer. 03 forks & swing arm, 21/18 rims,opened up air box, tall seat. 98 motor, PVL ignition,HT3 pipe, Very competitive. Love the original motor, which can readily be built to match the 98, with the added joy of primary kick.
Stock may be my favorite trail scooter.
Bob

While I don't at all mind the smell of old grungy oil, I truly LIKE a whiff of pre-mix in the air when driving the van to an event -- and then Miss Judy rolls down a window and messes it all up.

Ed

PS: It is NOT true that I intentionally loosened a tank petcock to create a small fuel leak to run Miss Judy out of the van! No.

Ed, You mentioned the 2 stroke oil smell. I love it. I use it in my weed whacker and other 2 stroke machines. I was at the local MC shop a few months ago. There was a small piston sized box, setting on the counter. It was a Klotz box with a candle inside, the owner said take it. I couldn't believe my wife liked the smell. She would light it every evening. I would take it to the wood stove in the barn, let it heat up and ad more candle wax and a wick. The nice smell lasted about a month.
Sterling

I didn't mention the price on the box was $29.95. Its nice to have friends in hi places.

Grungy oil is great, but when I need top-notch olfactory stim, I go for 106 octane race gas and racing castor. Smells like victory.