Honda CB750 K3 Cafe Racer – By Trevor Hedge
This 1973 Honda CB 750 K3 Cafe Racer is owned by Victorian enthusiast Bernie Blackall.
Honda produced the CB 750 in answer to requests from their distributors outside of Japan, who wanted something more than the 450cc parallel twin that, before the advent of the CB 750, was Honda’s largest capacity motorcycle.
The CB 750 was one of the original big-bore four-cylinder machines ever produced, a recipe that proved successful and still current today, more than 40 years later.
Boasting chain drive, an air-oil cooled engine, front disc brakes, electric start and a five-speed gearbox the CB 750 was a ground breaking machine from inception.
This 1973 example of the CB750, a K3, featured a single overhead cam as the move to DOHC did not come to the CB until 1979.
This particular machine was used for hillclimb competitions in Victoria during the 1980s before being discovered on a farm in Leongatha in 2011.
Over the next three years the machine was stripped and meticulously prepared for its new life as a bespoke and beautifully finished cafe racer.
The fuel tank, oil tank and tailpiece were all hand made by Bernie Willett from Eltham. Every nut, bolt and washer has been either replaced or refabricated with Leongatha’s Greg Cook also having a major hand in the build. The engine was rebuilt to 1973 specifications to run as beautifully as it looks.
We photographed this machine at Motorclassica.
