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CT70 MiniBike ResourcesOldHonda.com - Honda Minitrail Page - Dedicated to the Honda Minitrails. Yahoo! MiniTrail70 Club - Very good knowledge source for CT-70's HondaMiniTrail.com - Just about any part you would need for a Honda CT-70 or other mini bike HondaTrail70 - Lots of Great information and tutorials for re-building Honda CT70's Beatrice ATV & Cycle - Great Source for Honda CT-70 Parts
Motorcycle WebsitesHondaCB900F.com - Honda CB900F / CB1100F Motorcycle Articles, Pictures and Information Other LinksSupport My Bike Ride - Cycling to Support The Fight Against Multiple Sclerosis |
Honda Mini Trail CT70 Replica Mini BikesThere has been a lot of talk these days about the Honda Mini Trail CT70 replicas that have been coming out of China over the past few years. In 1998, Honda’s patents for the Honda Mini Trail CT70 expired. It wasn’t long before a large number of Chinese manufacturers jumped all over the opportunity to replicate the popular mini bikes to sell at lower prices than the originals. At first the big name making Honda Mini Trail 70 replicas was Jincheng, and over the years other names such as Rupp, Redcat and Dirt Robber jumped on board the CT70 replicating wagon. Today, it’s not hard to go online and find a number of retailers selling their brand of Honda Mini Trail CT70 Replicas. There are probably litterally hundreds of different mix n’ match replicas of Honda CT70’s using various different parts. Generally, the bikes will consist mostly of Chinese parts, sometimes with some Japanese parts mixed in. Most retailers shy away from giving details one what exactly you are getting, mainly because it varies slightly from shipment to shipment, and even they don’t even know exactly what the bikes will be like the next time around. The replicas that are around today generally consist of 70-110cc Lifan/Jialing engines. Some of the other names making Honda CT70 replica mini bikes are Jincheng, Jintong, Huweii, Zongchen, Run Rider, Panda, Branson, QF,Thumpstar, Skyteam, Rupp and Dirt Dobber. Generally, one of these mini bikes will cost you anywhere from $600-$1500 brand new. CAUTION: One of the things I have seen a lot of is retailers claiming that the Jialing engines are somehow in partnership with Honda. They even link you to a site on the Honda website that shows you information about Jialing and ultimately takes you to the Jialing website. Ultimately when it boils down to it, the engine that comes on your Honda Mini Trail CT70 reproduction, had nothing to do with Honda. Period. Jialing has built engines in partnership with Honda in the past and that is the only reason why that link is there. If you have been into mini bikes for a while now you may have noticed that the prices of these CT70 clones has dropped. As a result, quality Honda CT70 reproduction bikes are getting harder to find and product support quickly dying. Owners of CT70 clones will tell you that replacement parts are hard, if now impossible to find. Even at first glance of a reproduction, it is easy for most people to notice their flaws. Gloss and paint is certainly not as nice as what was once made by Honda. The welds and chroming jobs are very rough and cheap. Low quality paint jobs make these bikes vulnerable to rusting. The list of complaints goes on and is greatly varied due to the number of different clone variations. If you are buying a reproduction of a Honda Mini Trail CT70, the bottom line is you can’t be expecting a brand new original Honda. If you treat it as if it were a restoration project, you may be just as happy with it as an original Honda Mini Trail CT70, because let’s face it they may be cheaply made bikes, but they have some good qualities as well. For one, There is absolutely NO collector value on Honda CT70 Replicas. They are inexpensive. You get a bike that looks just like a CT70. They come with modern conveniences of newer bikes such as electric ignition, brighter 12 volt headlights, and smoother modern front shocks. Some models have even resolved some of the issues common to the older CT70’s, such as the shift forks no longer wearing. Because they are built on the same specifiations as the old bikes, the parts are interchangeable with original CT70’s, so they make great parts bikes. And of course, you can drive the crap out of them without having to worry about it losing it’s dollar value or rarity. As long as you know what you are getting yourself into, a Honda Mini Trail CT70 reproduction may be just right for you. If you want to keep a slick little mini trail, a good way of looking at it is to buy the reproduction mini bike, and drive it as per usual. Perform any necessary upgrades as per your liking. Take care of your reproduction Mini Trail as if it were an antique. Once parts on the bike start to break, and they will, replace them with better, stronger parts. Your bike will slowly improve and you will certainly have a great little mini bike on your hands. Buying tips for Honda Mini Trail CT70 Replicas: At first it may sound silly to buy a used Honda Mini Trail CT70 reproduction, but as the quality of replicas has diminished over the past few years, some of the best replicas you can buy we the earlier ones. In addition, it is likely to have some of the cheaper parts already broken replaced. The earlier the better. Have a look on eBay to see if you can find a good replica before looking at brand new ones. If you are buying a brand new replica, keep in mind that cheaper bikes means cheaper parts. A bike that retails from $600-700 can cost no more than about $250 to produce and to import these reproduction CT70 Mini bikes all the way from China isn’t cheap. So do your research and be sure if you are ordering online to call in and ask to try and find out what you are getting. Do a little bit of comparison shopping and go with what you think will be best. Today, although still not exceptional in quality, the Lifan/Jialing based reproduction bikes seem to have the best rep and are probably the most widely available. But again, I caution you to do your research first. Here are a few places online today where you can find Honda Mini Trail CT70 reproduction/replica bikes. Note that there are significantly less dealers than a few years ago. Many just simply aren’t willing to deal with the customer support issues involved with these bikes.
Here are some other good links about Honda Mini Trail CT70 Reproduction Bikes:
Enjoy! |
CT70 Parts on EbayHonda CT70 ST70 DAX Black and White decal sticker pair
HONDA CL70 S65 CT70 C70 SS50 CHROME REAR CUSHION COVERS
HONDA CT70 CT 70 TRAIL 70 ST70 ST 70 DAX COMPLETE SEAT
HONDA CT70 CT 70 TRAIL 70 ST70 ST 70 DAX COMPLETE SEAT
Honda : CT 1971 Honda CT70 HKO 4-Speed Emerald Green
Rear Fender for MiniBike Mini Chopper Rupp Z50 CT70 LX
Honda Z50 Minitrail CT70 Tail Light Taillight Lens OEM
ATC70 C70 CT70 atc c ct 70 CARB NEEDLE JET SET & SLIDE
HONDA CT70 CT 70 CL70 SS50 REAR SHOCKS
Honda CT70 Headlight/speedometer
HONDA CT70 TRAIL70 CL70 SS50 S65 CHROME REAR SHOCKS
Honda CT70 Replacement seat cover for CT70 1969-71
HONDA CT70 CT 70 CL70 SS50 REAR SHOCKS
HONDA CT70 TRAIL70 CL70 SS50 S65 CHROME REAR SHOCKS
Honda CT70 Rear Fender
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