gear change question for st70

Honda ST70

Engine no. ST70E-176104
Chassis no. ST70-142611
Year of Manufacture : Unknown

I rescued ST70 from scrapyard. It is now fully serviceable and restored. However found some strange circumstances regarding the gear change. Ignoring the rear part of the gear change rocker lever, the gear positions are as follows:-

1st gear is UP from neutral
2nd gear is double DOWN (change has to be knocked twice from 1st)
3rd gear is DOWN again

This is not like the European C50/70/90 step throughs that this bike is related to.

I found nothing wrong/strange with the gearbox/selection mechanism when I built this bike. Maybe this particular gear change is for the Asian market bike model? What do you suggest?

Gear change is correct for ST-70(C-70) of the period

I have two engines for my st70 and one of them has this very same gear selection. I thought there was something wrong at first but after asking around many people congirmed, like Chief, this is how some st70 engines are.

1 up 2 down is indeed the common European standard.

since it has the odd gear change, i still don't know the exact year of manufacture. It also came with battery indicators, chrome exhaust and chrome handle bars.


Engine no. ST70E-176104
Chassis no. ST70-142611

Mine is ST-70 145xxx and it's a 1972 model

I just received a1971 ST70 from my parents who got it from my uncle who passed away several years ago it only had 71km on it and he kept excellent care of it. They believe he bought it in Japan and had it shipped to the states when he returned from service in Vietnam. I have not been able to get it into 1st gear or neutral but didn't realize the different gear shift pattern from the CT70 which I grew up on. I believe I tried all sorts of patterns to get it into neutral or first with no luck. The description above tells how to get it from neutral to first and then to second, but how do I get it back to first or neutral? Help!

So it has a manual clutch, 4-speed gear box?
If the bike stood still for a long time, you will need to give it a good service.
Change oil and clean / lubricate all moving parts.

You can try to push the bike forward / backward a bit while pushing down the gear lever.

Waynus,
My Uncle took great care of all of his stuff, I'm sure he changed the oil each year and ran the bike for a few Km (why it has 71km on it I'm sure). It is an automatic clutch and the gear sequence according to the manual is 1-n-2-3. I can get it into neutral when the engine is not running by pulling up a half pull from 2nd gear (I'm not sure if it is actual neutral because sometimes there is a clicking noise like it wants to be in a gear). My father had it tuned up a year ago when he received the bike which included a change of oil. I've looked at the oil and the level is good and the oil looks as if it just came out of the can, very clear. My dad did mention that he thought it didn't have a neutral gear, but that cannot be true. I'm thinking of taking it to a mechanic to have them find out what is wrong, but I would rather try to figure it out myself first as that is kind of my approach to this cool trail bike.

A few non-trasmission questions for you.
1. The bike has very little rust, only on the under side of the seat and a few scratches here and there. Would you recommend finding some touch up paint as close to the color as possible or just leaving it as is? I believe everything is original as this bike has been hardly ridden.
2. Also, it is leaking a little fuel around the carb which probably means it needs the o-rings replaced. Are these standard o-rings or do I need to get specific honda 0-rings for this vehicle?
3. I have a friend who knows a lot about motorcycles and has taken an interest in this bike. Although the title work says it is a 1971, it has turn signals on it that he says didn't happen until 1975. He hasn't seen the bike and may have thought it was a CT70 which may be when they put turn signals on CT70s. Any insite to the history would be great.

I really appreciate your help and was very excited to see this club during my searches for information online. I'll have to get some good pictures to post because it is in such great condition. My Uncle also had a 1971 CT70 that I also received (490 miles). Do you know of any clubs around for those trailbikes?

Thank you so much.
Thron2112

Thron,
I think its the set-up of the semi clutch that is bothering you.
Of course you have a neutral gear.
Here's what you should do:
- untighten the nut in the center of the clutch case
- turn the screw a couple of turns to the left side
- push down the kickstart. It should go down easily at this point without any big resistance. If it doesn't, see step 1 and 2 or check clutch.
- tighten the screw in steps of 45° and push down hard the kickstart after each turn.
- as soon as the kickstart grips, stop adjusting and securely tighten up the nut.

1. That's up to you. Touch up paints are available in all Honda colours, especially easy to find in Germany. I have the lady dax white colour in touch-up sticks.
2. Just get a good set of gaskets to service the carb. Make sure it isn't caused by leaking fuel hoses etc.
3. Turn signals depend on the model and year. Even a '69 er could come with them. It definately isn't a CT. Wether or not they are original on your bike, I can't comment.

Good luck!