The Honda NC50 topic
Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2021 7:56 pm
I know this is a forum for the C90 and not the NC50 so I'll keep the NC50 stuff on this thread only. Here's some history, and the page from which it is taken is interesting as it does reference the Super Cub and the role it played in developing the Express, or to be more accurate, the Roadpal which was the original version of the Express marketed in Asia.
"The method used to start the bike was going to be a problem. They knew women would dislike having to use a kick-starter, but the use of a cell motor, the preferred choice, was obviously impossible due to its high cost. They tested a variety of methods, such as an applied system based on compressed air, a mechanism utilizing the weight shift that occurs as the rider is seated, and the gunpowder cartridge system. Initially, they adopted the "woodpecker method," in which a spring is wound by the reverse rotation of the rear wheel and its unwinding force is used to start the engine. The name came from the starting action of moving the bike backward, which resembles the movement of a woodpecker.
However, this method was never adopted, because the spring failed to wind at the evaluation meeting (held in January 1974), where the snow-covered road caused the wheel to slip. In the end, it was decided to use the pedal to wind the spring.
A test ride was held in April 1974, at which fifteen women, all wives of R&D center employees, were invited to try out the prototype bike. Although some unexpected mishaps occurred, with one bike crashing into a fence after the throttle was opened too wide, the overall scores were satisfactory".
Note the frequent references to women in the development of this highly sexist machine.
https://global.honda/heritage/episodes/1976roadpal.html
"The method used to start the bike was going to be a problem. They knew women would dislike having to use a kick-starter, but the use of a cell motor, the preferred choice, was obviously impossible due to its high cost. They tested a variety of methods, such as an applied system based on compressed air, a mechanism utilizing the weight shift that occurs as the rider is seated, and the gunpowder cartridge system. Initially, they adopted the "woodpecker method," in which a spring is wound by the reverse rotation of the rear wheel and its unwinding force is used to start the engine. The name came from the starting action of moving the bike backward, which resembles the movement of a woodpecker.
However, this method was never adopted, because the spring failed to wind at the evaluation meeting (held in January 1974), where the snow-covered road caused the wheel to slip. In the end, it was decided to use the pedal to wind the spring.
A test ride was held in April 1974, at which fifteen women, all wives of R&D center employees, were invited to try out the prototype bike. Although some unexpected mishaps occurred, with one bike crashing into a fence after the throttle was opened too wide, the overall scores were satisfactory".
Note the frequent references to women in the development of this highly sexist machine.
https://global.honda/heritage/episodes/1976roadpal.html
