SketchbookTravels
Homer Knapp's Honda CB92
Homer Knopp bought his first motorcycle from high school buddy Bud Ekins In the 1950s. This would be the first of many machines Homer owned, many of which would be specials that he created himself. Homer's engineering knock wos unprecedented; his wos o mind which worked naturally with mechanics. Understanding the discipline os o puzzle that wos easily solved. he could turn his hand to anything in order to get It working ogoin - or working better.
Adecode after this first purchase. Homer was stationed on Okinawa Island. Jopon. for the first two years of military service (1960-61) with the Ryukyus Command team. Homer didn't travel alone, os he hod his 650cc Triumph pocked up ond shipped out for use on the island. which is where he spent the majority of his two year stint. He only travelled to the mainland once or twice ond visited both the Hondo ond Meguro factories - one of his memories on visiting the Hondo factory. wos being presented with the western refreshments of a wax paper wrapped cheese sandwich ond a little bottle of CocaColo.
Much of the down time of service men wos spent on the milltoryfocility. with entertainment o welcome break from the trials of military life. One of these entertainments was racing motorcycles. on the base. By 1960. off-rood racing wos very popular in the US ond, coming from Colifornia. Homer had off-road riding ond competing in his blood. There wos on American-sty le TT track on the base, os well os o dirt oval. which wos raced on by both service men ond locals alike. Homer would ride his Triumph on both !rocks. but it wasn't long before he acquired o local motorcycle, to extend his Okinowon stable to two machines.
The Honda CB92 had been released a year before Homer arrived ot the base and although the model name for it wos 'Benly' (effectively meaning convenient). the 125cc twin had gained a reputation for its performance credentials. due to Honda winning the Isle of Man 125cc TT team prize In 1959 using both two and four-valved twins. Even Soichiro Honda said in the Benly manual that "Primarily. essentials of the motorcycle lie In the speed ond thrill." The pressed steel frame design and leading link suspension are often quoted as being influenced by the machines of NSU. while the single overhead camshaft engines !hot Hondo used from 1957 onwards
were inspired by another Germon marque. Horex. Like many Japanese machines of the time. Honda took their cues from western manufacturers. but with their innovations ond precise engineering they mode very successful motorcycles. So. with on already proven track record for performance. Homer must hove realised the competitive potential of the CB92 when he was offered a 1960 model by a fellow serviceman.
Homer began campaigning the CB92 on both the TT and dirt !rocks ot the base and he immediately achieved results on the 125cc twin. The standard 125cc top end didn't stay on too long. os Homer acquired o set of 150cc cylinders ond pistons which he used to enter in the 200cc class, with great success. Always wanting to push onto the next thing, Homer started scavenging around the base for parts that would enable him to move up to the 250cc class. Within o derelict B-29, Homer found a pump intended for pressurising the cabin- Homer recognised Its potential os a supercharger. The extended p ipework needed to connect the blower up was fashioned out of a 'big pile of broken folding choirs' left behind one of the Quonset huts. To feed this new Injection system, Homer opted for a small carburettor made by Tillotson, a company famed for developing the first diaphragm carburettor, in the 1940s, wh ich enabled small. hand-held machinery to operate at any angle: it was quite a smart choice for a machine that would spend most of its time going sideways.
On the supercharged 150cc CB92. Homer moved up to the 250cc class ond become unbeatable. so much so that he wos moved up to compete against the 500cc machines. where he was given more of o challenge - he did keep up though. and. on occasion. would place. Unfortunately, during o later race, the timing chain foiled, causing the valves lo tangle. Homer look the engine apart and figured out the issue but never put it back together ogoln. This wos typical Homer-often quite happy with just knowing the solution, he would not be worried about carrying it out. as he would be more concerned about moving on to his next mechanical venture.
On returning to the States, Homer shipped back his Triumph along with the CB92 and the dismantled Supercharged 150cc engine back. Ever the hoarder, his collection would travel with him wherever he went. After serving the rest of his service at the Nike missile base, San Pedro, California. Homer opened up a motorcycle workshop called Hollywood Motorcycle Machine in 1966. His modus operandi was that the shop would serve as base of knowledge for traditional engineering as he believed: "Old motorcycles, old cars, old books and old people should be approached with respect and understanding... Things can be learned from them all."
This workshop would provide a home for Homer's collection and a place where he would happily impart his knowledge and understanding of mechanics and engineering to those that wanted to learn.
Skipping forward a few years. between 19971998 Ted Maejima used to visit Bud Ekins' shop most days. where he would often see Homer. At the time, Ted never knew about the Knapp CB92. It wasn't until a later date when a close friend of Homer's. Tim Mings. suggested that if Homer wanted to sell the CB92, Ted would be the best person to have it. Not only is Ted a good friend of Tim's, fondly referred to as 'his brother: Ted is also one of the few CB92 specialists in the world. Ted is now the worthy custodian of the now legendary machine - he fully respects the part it plays in Homer's legacy which extends way beyond his two years in Japan.
When Ted got the CB92, it was as Homer had left it when he stopped using it in Okinawa. The CB92 had a high seat and the exhaust pipes surprisingly were not high level. as you would now expect from an off-road machine. Motocross was a new sport to the Japanese at the time, with the first All-Japan motocross race taking p lace in 1959. Honda did make high rise pipes a few years after Homer went back to America. but it was usual to run with the standard megaphones when Homer built it. The supercharged engine is not legal for road use, and Ted wants to keep the CB92 running. so he has used a stock engine and other period parts. whilst proudly preserving the Knapp period livery. On the fuel tank. Homer wrote "Okinawa• in Kanji next to the Honda badges, which he painted over with the yellow Tori gate insignia of the Ryukyus
Command Military. Homer used this insignia on all his motorcycles, initially to tell people where he was from when riding outside of the base, and later used it as part of the Hollywood Motorcycle Machine logo. The Kanji on the other panels read 'Knapp Special' and
~SOcc: Back in Kanagawa, Japan, Ted now runs a motorcycle workshop (Ted's Special Motorcycle Works) specialising mostly in Hondas, with Homer's CB92 part of Ted's living stable.
Even though Homer only stayed in Okinawa for two years. his experience in this far off land clearly made an impression on him. He experienced a land with kind and gentle people, who had respect for their elders who also had an incredible manufacturing history. All of this rang true for a man who was not only fascinated by mechanics and the connections it made with people. but he himself was a quiet. reserved, kind and compassionate person, who would willingly help anyone out. whether it was through a mechanical connection or not.
Homer Knapp passed away 18th December
2015.