Discussion
HTP99 said:
I am a non biker, I see these Monkey bikes about and often wonder what's the attraction, they look odd with a grown man on them they look bloody uncomfortable and look just downright dangerous, I asked a bike riding colleague about them, he didn't get them either.
What's the appeal?
I had a modified Grom I built up and then a Monkey that I still have. The monkey is incredibly comfortable (modern one) with one of the best seats on the planet. Sit on one and see. What's the appeal?
Their handling is crazy entertaining as they weigh little and have small wheels, but function as a motorbike, rather than a scooter.
They can be used off and on road and have you giggling the whole time.
They are simple to work on, cost buttons to run and are endlessly modifiable.
Not sure why you would think they are dangerous - they have a good headlights, keep up with traffic, you are going slower than on a big bike and the brakes are good. People pull out on my less than on motorbikes as often they want to see what it is. I have less near misses on them than on bigger bikes in urban areas. From the pic below, with my other bikes in 2019, they are not materially different enough to matter for visibility. If a knobber doesn't see a 6 foot me, with a headlight on, on a Grom or Monkey, they won't see me on an MT10.
HTP99 said:
I am a non biker, I see these Monkey bikes about and often wonder what's the attraction, they look odd with a grown man on them they look bloody uncomfortable and look just downright dangerous, I asked a bike riding colleague about them, he didn't get them either.
What's the appeal?
The appeal is they are fun, always put a smile on your face and make you enjoy riding again. As it's not about speed-65-75mph max. But when you do get up to NSL speeds the scale of the bikes is that small it feels like you are doing 180mph! Yes there are some issues such as if you caught behind someone dawdling at around 50mph or so overtaking them can be a bit sketchy and has to be planned, but in those cases you just sit back and enjoy the ride. But when you do commit to an overtake and complete, it's immensely satisfying!! Also helps if you are feather weight or have a built motor! What's the appeal?
I've always enjoyed riding the monkeybike. As it was my first bike I had got used to the handling traits and the almost telepathic way it dips into a corner just with the slightest weight through your feet. There isn't anything as fun as a bunch of fully grown adults (who might be a little husky) riding these small bikes in a group having the most amount of fun. You can't help but smile and if you happen upon a run and see a bunch of runners riding towards you, I defy anyone not to have a smile on their face.
The 2012 Ace cafe/London monkeyrun riding through Portobello market. Can you spot me?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB0NXn0b-3A
2015 Ace cafe/London monkeyrun
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PpCg8zv7r0
2011 Heartbeat monkeyrun
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm_yURa1DF8
As with most types of biking, it can be dangerous, but no more so than usual. You will always have some prick pulling out from a junction even though they've seen you. But that happens regardless of any type of bike you're on.
I am glad you all have enjoyed the thread and that I might have inspired some to go down a rabbit hole.
3DP said:
Their handling is crazy entertaining as they weigh little and have small wheels, but function as a motorbike, rather than a scooter.
They can be used off and on road and have you giggling the whole time.
They are simple to work on, cost buttons to run and are endlessly modifiable.
Exactly this! That's a great selection of bikes there! They can be used off and on road and have you giggling the whole time.
They are simple to work on, cost buttons to run and are endlessly modifiable.
Parts are arriving for Evo 7. New adjustable heavy sprung pitbike rear shock. And it's serendipitous that the spring colour matches the wheel colour! I've received the engine seal kit for the built YX140, so will be stripped, inspected and refreshed with new gaskets as well. As mentioned not the biggest evolution but still making progress.
Great thread and build!
And timely, as I came into the forum to ask about Monkey’s! Feels silly to start a new one so hope the OP doesn’t mind me intruding.
I just bought this one for £500. Haven’t seen it yet and this is the only pic but I know the guy who’s selling it, he says it’s mechanically sound just a little scruffy and needs tyres.
The plan is to give it a spruce up and have it as a runaround for my OH.
From the tank script and bars, is it possible to date it? I’d like to read up and understand what mods are desirable without going too silly. I’d like to buy all the bits and hopefully get it done in time for her birthday.
We live on a steep hill so some more power would be nice but I don’t want to end up needing longer swingarm etc. some pep and additional rideability, and then some bling.
And timely, as I came into the forum to ask about Monkey’s! Feels silly to start a new one so hope the OP doesn’t mind me intruding.
I just bought this one for £500. Haven’t seen it yet and this is the only pic but I know the guy who’s selling it, he says it’s mechanically sound just a little scruffy and needs tyres.
The plan is to give it a spruce up and have it as a runaround for my OH.
From the tank script and bars, is it possible to date it? I’d like to read up and understand what mods are desirable without going too silly. I’d like to buy all the bits and hopefully get it done in time for her birthday.
We live on a steep hill so some more power would be nice but I don’t want to end up needing longer swingarm etc. some pep and additional rideability, and then some bling.
shirt said:
Great thread and build!
And timely, as I came into the forum to ask about Monkey’s! Feels silly to start a new one so hope the OP doesn’t mind me intruding.
I just bought this one for £500. Haven’t seen it yet and this is the only pic but I know the guy who’s selling it, he says it’s mechanically sound just a little scruffy and needs tyres.
The plan is to give it a spruce up and have it as a runaround for my OH.
From the tank script and bars, is it possible to date it? I’d like to read up and understand what mods are desirable without going too silly. I’d like to buy all the bits and hopefully get it done in time for her birthday.
We live on a steep hill so some more power would be nice but I don’t want to end up needing longer swingarm etc. some pep and additional rideability, and then some bling.
Hi Shirt. Nice bike. To my eyes below all that dust it looks to be a Honda, but then you can get repo Honda Bits and stickers on a Chinese copy-as you paid half a bag of sand for it, I suspect the latter. But none the less it's a decent start. And timely, as I came into the forum to ask about Monkey’s! Feels silly to start a new one so hope the OP doesn’t mind me intruding.
I just bought this one for £500. Haven’t seen it yet and this is the only pic but I know the guy who’s selling it, he says it’s mechanically sound just a little scruffy and needs tyres.
The plan is to give it a spruce up and have it as a runaround for my OH.
From the tank script and bars, is it possible to date it? I’d like to read up and understand what mods are desirable without going too silly. I’d like to buy all the bits and hopefully get it done in time for her birthday.
We live on a steep hill so some more power would be nice but I don’t want to end up needing longer swingarm etc. some pep and additional rideability, and then some bling.
Cheapest way to get more power is either to get a barrel kit to make the 50cc into an 85 or a 110cc. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/196950164871?_skw=barre... this does mean taking apart the head, getting it timed correctly and all the rest of top end fiddling. Or you can get a whole new 110 semi auto boxed engine. They are about £200 new on ebay but look on facebook groups for monkeybikes and something cheap might come up. They won't set the world on fire so you should be good with the standard length swing arm. But would recommend you change the rear shocks to something a bit beefier to cope with the extra power.
You can find barrel kits and Honda parts at https://www.shirebikes.co.uk/ if it is a Genuine Honda. The bits are interchangeable but will be pricey.
Put https://ooracing.com/ as a favourite as you'll need to compile a shopping list. One thing I will say is make sure the charging circuit/stator is at full health. We've made a franken-stator from the original 50cc engine and the first 125 with the broken gearbox fork into a double coiled beast for redundancy. As the original one was struggling with running the lights at idle. And as the build brief was for me to commute on ( I worked shift ) I needed reliable power/lights. Pretty much overkill now as everything on the bike is LED and draws less power.
We had toyed with the idea of going to a capacitor instead of a physical battery to lose to weight and better aesthetics-but we couldn't get it run right and kept risking blowing rectifiers. One of the joys of kick start! Soon gave up on that though and moved the battery into the frame. But a cheap lithium lightweight battery is calling.....
Have fun on the start of your monkey modifying journey!
Thanks for the info, I’ll have a read.
It’s a genuine Honda I’m just trying to work out which year so I can browse for parts hehe. The cars out of shot would blow your mind and he has a genuine ex sbk Ducati 888 corse in his living room. He’s a top bloke and wouldn’t do me dirty, hence my being ok with buying sight unseen.
It’s a genuine Honda I’m just trying to work out which year so I can browse for parts hehe. The cars out of shot would blow your mind and he has a genuine ex sbk Ducati 888 corse in his living room. He’s a top bloke and wouldn’t do me dirty, hence my being ok with buying sight unseen.
I think the dusty ape is HONDA original, have asked in a german geeks forum, never saw those tank badges.
If it is original, it might be from 80s, HONDA quality is great but some parts age,
I would check tires and other rubber parts, inside of tank for rust,
carb for gummed-up gas remnants,
and if it produces no spark the condenser near the points might be shot.
Seems you caught a nice bonsai classic, congratulations !
If it is original, it might be from 80s, HONDA quality is great but some parts age,
I would check tires and other rubber parts, inside of tank for rust,
carb for gummed-up gas remnants,
and if it produces no spark the condenser near the points might be shot.
Seems you caught a nice bonsai classic, congratulations !
Thanks for posting, an enjoyable read, Nigel sounds like a God send!
It’s great to see you enjoying it like this, takes me back to being a youngster. I’ve sat on a Monkey and Grom and considered one for fun, and often see a little pack of them out and about. I also quite liked the VanVan, although I look like an ape sat on one of them
Keep enjoying and having fun…
To the owner of the black Grom, it looks like a mini StreetHawk!!
I always loved the Baja Honda Monkey that looks like an Africa Twin, but they fetch big money!
It’s great to see you enjoying it like this, takes me back to being a youngster. I’ve sat on a Monkey and Grom and considered one for fun, and often see a little pack of them out and about. I also quite liked the VanVan, although I look like an ape sat on one of them
Keep enjoying and having fun…
To the owner of the black Grom, it looks like a mini StreetHawk!!
I always loved the Baja Honda Monkey that looks like an Africa Twin, but they fetch big money!
3DP said:
I had a modified Grom I built up and then a Monkey that I still have. The monkey is incredibly comfortable (modern one) with one of the best seats on the planet. Sit on one and see.
Their handling is crazy entertaining as they weigh little and have small wheels, but function as a motorbike, rather than a scooter.
They can be used off and on road and have you giggling the whole time.
They are simple to work on, cost buttons to run and are endlessly modifiable.
Not sure why you would think they are dangerous - they have a good headlights, keep up with traffic, you are going slower than on a big bike and the brakes are good. People pull out on my less than on motorbikes as often they want to see what it is. I have less near misses on them than on bigger bikes in urban areas. From the pic below, with my other bikes in 2019, they are not materially different enough to matter for visibility. If a knobber doesn't see a 6 foot me, with a headlight on, on a Grom or Monkey, they won't see me on an MT10.
Pete your Grom reminds me of this:Their handling is crazy entertaining as they weigh little and have small wheels, but function as a motorbike, rather than a scooter.
They can be used off and on road and have you giggling the whole time.
They are simple to work on, cost buttons to run and are endlessly modifiable.
Not sure why you would think they are dangerous - they have a good headlights, keep up with traffic, you are going slower than on a big bike and the brakes are good. People pull out on my less than on motorbikes as often they want to see what it is. I have less near misses on them than on bigger bikes in urban areas. From the pic below, with my other bikes in 2019, they are not materially different enough to matter for visibility. If a knobber doesn't see a 6 foot me, with a headlight on, on a Grom or Monkey, they won't see me on an MT10.
Which sold a couple of weeks ago. It was a proper Team Lotus paddock bike, apparently used by Senna
Hello Shirt,
it could be that you black dusty fellow has done a long journey (and you bagged an exotic bargain).
When do you pick it up ? Are there papers & documents included ?
( Do 50cc mopeds need a V5 ? I don´t know about the small print in UK regs. )
If the small stickers about "driver´s dos and dont´s" are in japanese,
and the VIN is somewhere between Z50J-1412384 - 1428713 ,
it is a japanese-market 6V Monkey Z50JB (J2) from 1980-81.
Only thing missing are the golden rims, but since there are non-stock tires mounted,
maybe someone repainted the rims
( or replaced them, as they tend to weld the tire to the rim with rust if not looked after ) .
At that age, expect the clutch discs to be swollen up, and the oil pump filter to be clogged,
but an engine rebuild is done very easy and at reasonable cost, on the workbench.
If there are many original HONDA cross-head screws to be (un)done,
note that you need "JIS-type" screwdrivers or bits as the usual "Philips" don´t fit properly.
it could be that you black dusty fellow has done a long journey (and you bagged an exotic bargain).
When do you pick it up ? Are there papers & documents included ?
( Do 50cc mopeds need a V5 ? I don´t know about the small print in UK regs. )
If the small stickers about "driver´s dos and dont´s" are in japanese,
and the VIN is somewhere between Z50J-1412384 - 1428713 ,
it is a japanese-market 6V Monkey Z50JB (J2) from 1980-81.
Only thing missing are the golden rims, but since there are non-stock tires mounted,
maybe someone repainted the rims
( or replaced them, as they tend to weld the tire to the rim with rust if not looked after ) .
At that age, expect the clutch discs to be swollen up, and the oil pump filter to be clogged,
but an engine rebuild is done very easy and at reasonable cost, on the workbench.
If there are many original HONDA cross-head screws to be (un)done,
note that you need "JIS-type" screwdrivers or bits as the usual "Philips" don´t fit properly.
srob said:
Pete your Grom reminds me of this:
Which sold a couple of weeks ago. It was a proper Team Lotus paddock bike, apparently used by Senna
What a find and with genuine provenance - Smashing Dax type Honda! A good thing I didn't know you had it for sale!.... I wanted to build a modified Grom which was a comedy hommage to the Norton Rotary JPS bikes. Grom seats are horrifically uncomfortable though and they are a bit more serious than Monkey which means you crave a bit more performance. Knee down with titanium hero blobs on the pegs was endless fun though!Which sold a couple of weeks ago. It was a proper Team Lotus paddock bike, apparently used by Senna
It started like this:
Ended like this with a huge list of modifications:
Benni said:
Hello Shirt,
it could be that you black dusty fellow has done a long journey (and you bagged an exotic bargain).
When do you pick it up ? Are there papers & documents included ?
( Do 50cc mopeds need a V5 ? I don´t know about the small print in UK regs. )
If the small stickers about "driver´s dos and dont´s" are in japanese,
and the VIN is somewhere between Z50J-1412384 - 1428713 ,
it is a japanese-market 6V Monkey Z50JB (J2) from 1980-81.
Only thing missing are the golden rims, but since there are non-stock tires mounted,
maybe someone repainted the rims
( or replaced them, as they tend to weld the tire to the rim with rust if not looked after ) .
At that age, expect the clutch discs to be swollen up, and the oil pump filter to be clogged,
but an engine rebuild is done very easy and at reasonable cost, on the workbench.
If there are many original HONDA cross-head screws to be (un)done,
note that you need "JIS-type" screwdrivers or bits as the usual "Philips" don´t fit properly.
I’m hoping so. I’m in Dubai so it will have had a journey. I can’t seem to find many pics of black ones with these graphics but those that exist seem to be early 80s as you say. Only I have seen these sticker kits also…it could be that you black dusty fellow has done a long journey (and you bagged an exotic bargain).
When do you pick it up ? Are there papers & documents included ?
( Do 50cc mopeds need a V5 ? I don´t know about the small print in UK regs. )
If the small stickers about "driver´s dos and dont´s" are in japanese,
and the VIN is somewhere between Z50J-1412384 - 1428713 ,
it is a japanese-market 6V Monkey Z50JB (J2) from 1980-81.
Only thing missing are the golden rims, but since there are non-stock tires mounted,
maybe someone repainted the rims
( or replaced them, as they tend to weld the tire to the rim with rust if not looked after ) .
At that age, expect the clutch discs to be swollen up, and the oil pump filter to be clogged,
but an engine rebuild is done very easy and at reasonable cost, on the workbench.
If there are many original HONDA cross-head screws to be (un)done,
note that you need "JIS-type" screwdrivers or bits as the usual "Philips" don´t fit properly.
I just can’t imagine the seller having a copy, but could be wrong. In any case I’m going to collect it in the morning so I guess I’ll see.
It is home
Engine runs sweetly, if about as noisy as an electric toothbrush. Tyres don’t hold air so need to source some and I’m going away for the next 6 weeks so I anticipate a build up of tuning parts in my absence! It’s kickstart with dynamo electrics and appears to be genuine jdm Honda.
Engine runs sweetly, if about as noisy as an electric toothbrush. Tyres don’t hold air so need to source some and I’m going away for the next 6 weeks so I anticipate a build up of tuning parts in my absence! It’s kickstart with dynamo electrics and appears to be genuine jdm Honda.
shirt said:
It is home
Engine runs sweetly, if about as noisy as an electric toothbrush. Tyres don’t hold air so need to source some and I’m going away for the next 6 weeks so I anticipate a build up of tuning parts in my absence! It’s kickstart with dynamo electrics and appears to be genuine jdm Honda.
Awesome, congratulations on the new bike, will be a fun project!!Engine runs sweetly, if about as noisy as an electric toothbrush. Tyres don’t hold air so need to source some and I’m going away for the next 6 weeks so I anticipate a build up of tuning parts in my absence! It’s kickstart with dynamo electrics and appears to be genuine jdm Honda.
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