The Honda CX500 is one of the surprise hits of the modern day custom scene. It’s relatively heavy, it’s water cooled, and it has shaft drive. The frame has an odd, inelegant curve at the rear, and it isn’t particularly stiff either.
On the up side, there are quite a few CX500s still kicking around. The engine looks good, with a Moto Guzzi-style V-twin layout. And because the CX500 doesn’t have the cachet of Honda’s CB series, in most markets a CX500 is cheaper by buy secondhand.
Honda made several variants between 1978 and 1983, including the slightly mad Turbo—which boosted engine output from a sensible 48 horsepower to a reputed 82.
Some motorcycles lend themselves to customization, and need just a few tasteful mods to look great. But the Honda CX500 is not one of them. Sure, there’s potential there—but you have to know how to extract it. Harry Blaise Fryer has cracked the code. Built with help from London’s Jackson Motorcycles, his CX500 is a…
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Against all odds, the eternally goofy Honda CX500 has become a popular choice for custom projects. But it’s hard to get ‘right,’ as bike builder Patricio Germano now realizes. When it arrived in his workshop, this CX500 had already been worked over—but it was in dire need of a makeover. Patricio runs the Invader Cycle…
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It seems strange to see tire warmers on a Honda CX500. The CX is known for its unique engine layout, shaft drive and gawky looks, rather than its performance. It still baffles us how this once despatch favorite became a darling of the custom scene. Still, if there’s a shop that you can rely on…
Read more »For better or worse, some mods have become commonplace. Air boxes get removed, smaller batteries get installed, and subframes are almost always redesigned. Especially when you’re dealing with the Honda CX500. No one ever accused the CX500 of being pretty, and it’s the awkward flow of its rear end that carries most of the blame.…
Read more »Remember the notorious Honda ATC250R three-wheeler? Now you can get that funky 1980s style without the dodgy third wheel. And if you…
Read more »Most marques have a golden era—that time when they dominated a race series, etching into memory iconic motorcycles and liveries. Honda has…
Read more »We live in strange times. So it feels right to kick off 2017 with one of the strangest customs we’ve seen in…
Read more »When faced with a Honda CX500 in the shop, the first thing most builders do is ‘fix’ the frame. It looks awkward…
Read more »The turnaround in the reputation of the Honda CX500 is quite remarkable. Despite its unsavory nicknames, the water-cooled V-twin is now in…
Read more »Three years ago, Poland’s Eastern Spirit Garage exploded onto the custom scene with one of the best Honda CX500s ever built. Its…
Read more »Whenever a new Ed Turner build hits our desks, we do a double take. Karl Renoult—the enigmatic Frenchman behind the brand—certainly has…
Read more »Who’d have thought that the humble Honda CX500 would one day join the CB750 and SR500 as a staple of custom builders?…
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