cb200 advice

[jwb]

hey vintage people,
i have a 74 honda cb200 that is just sitting in my garage collecting dust. i am selling my big street bike and this will probably be the only street motorcycle that i have for awhile. i was wondering what if any performance mods can i do to make those big bad cars disappear a little quicker?
i like tooling around on the bike, but it kinda scares me that i can not get away from traffic.
thanks in advance for your help,
john

[Diesel]

First off, the easiest way to get the most out of your 200 is to rev the snot out of it. Don't expect too much to happen below 7,000rpm but don't bother revving it much past 10,500rpm either since the intake ports and carbs will limit power that high up.

The next best way to make the bike perform better is to shed some of it's weight. A stock CB200 makes about 17-19hp so lightening it will really help. Next in line is a good exhaust. A properly tuned 2into1 will do wonders. If you're interested, I can give you measurements and exhaust specs depending on what rpm the motor will be spending most of it's time.

Next up is porting. Don't open the ports up, just reduce the size of the hump in front of the intake valve guide and smooth the walls of the ports to remove casting flash. Also match the manifolds to the intake ports. Keep the stock carbs and airbox in place. The airbox will flow more air than the stock carbs ever could and the carbs are adequate for the stock diameter ports and cam.

If you want to spend money, contact megacycle and have them regrind your cam. There is only one grind specifically for the 200 and it's relatively mild so the motor shouldn't loose too much of it's street manners.

Anything beyond what I've mentioned is overkill for a street-going 200. Unless the bike has sentimental value or you have your heart set on racing the bike in a specific class, your best performance bet is to sell the 200 and buy a 350. A tuned 200 motor will cost well over $1200, will be peaky in it's power delivery and still not run as strong as a stock 350.

[penton]

Originally posted by jwb:
hey vintage people,
i have a 74 honda cb200 that is just sitting in my garage collecting dust. i am selling my big street bike and this will probably be the only street motorcycle that i have for awhile. i was wondering what if any performance mods can i do to make those big bad cars disappear a little quicker?
i like tooling around on the bike, but it kinda scares me that i can not get away from traffic.
thanks in advance for your help,
johnsell the little one keep the big one no excuse for cc's