New Member in Colorado. Honda 185

[Trikemonk]

First post here. Hi all. I have a couple of questions. Yeah, I could have just done a search but what fun is that?
I always thought three wheelers were a stupid configuration to start with and was never really interested in them. I always thought a three wheeler with two steering wheels up front and one big floatation rear drive would be perfect but never seen such a system.
I was working on a neighbors Kawasaki 200 three wheeler and when I fixed it and test rode it I was totally hooked!
I found an old 1980 Honda 185 that was dead. Paid forty bucks for it with near new Wooly Booger rears.
Since I live on a ranch and have always used a pick-up truck for ranch work
I built a small flatbed and a hitch design for the little Honda and I don't know how I ever got along with out this little Honda and the Flatbed.
This Honda was modified with a stick shift, and that was the first thing I removed and put on a foot shifter from a CB750. Then I removed the near stock shifter and put back on the hand shifter and tried it out. I love it! I have never seen such a thing but actually with the Honda auto it works well.
Um, sorry for rambling. I really prefer the three wheelers for going through tough places as the wheel line is always seen. A four wheel design really hides where the wheels are at times.
Two questions. Mine has a bent rear axle on one side. Fixable? I have not tore into it yet. I have quite a wobble in third and above. Here is a picture hopefully. I resized it to 640 x 400. Pretty new at this so if there is no picture sorry.
One more question. I live at 6500 ft and soon the snows will be here. With these big tires I would guess it would drive in snow pretty good?

Thanks for any answers.
Bob near Crawford Colorado

[greythorn3]

NICE TRIKE and welcome to our forum!

Ray

[atc vending guy]

:welcome:
your trike will do well on light snow or packed snow,however if it gets deep you will be doing a lot of fighting at low speed.we get plenty of it here and when it gets deep i park the trikes.how bad is your axel bent?post pics with both tires off and the rear jacked up.

[Vealmonkey]

Your rear axle is fixable. You will have to find a nice replacement, more than likely used. It would be a good idea to get a shop manual. It will help guide you through the removal and replacement process for your rear axle. Since you are removing your rear axle, you might seriously want to look into replacing your rear wheel bearings at the same time since you have to remove the rear axle to replace the bearings. The worst part of the axle removal is if the axle is rusted to the inner races of the bearings. If your axle is not rusted, the whole process will not be too bad, just a little time consuming for doing this for the first time. Also it will be a good time to check and possibly replace your rear brake shoes since you will also have to remove these during the process. A good set of metric wrenches is a must have item for working on the trikes. Lots of patience and your favorite de-rusting agent will help also. If you can read and follow a shop manual, then you will have no problem. The axle being rusted to the inner bearing races is about a 50/50 shot being as these machines are well over 20 years old and some have not seen the best of maintenance by previous owners. Good luck and welcome to the boards.

[y2kane]

Welcome to the board and nice find. Looks to be in pretty good shape for the awesome low price!! :)

[Trikemonk]

I will try to rip the rear end apart this weekend to see how badly the rear axle is bent. I was hoping to straighten it if possible.

I did pick up a little 79 110 for parts and with a quick look it looks pretty similar. But without measuring its just a guess. Besides the little 110 looks like it could be brought back to life. Guy refused any money. Sweet.

I realize that one of these axles are made of very hard material and straightening one is not for the faint of heart...But of course I will try! I restore old Honda SOHC 750's and the old Yamaha 650 twins and I have faced tough stuff before. Well, not quite like this but if I fail I can hopefully find a straight replacement.

has anyone here ever straightened one? If so was any blood involved?

Bob in Colorado

[Daddio]

:welcome: My ex'es grandparents lived in Crawford back in the late 60s. Her grandfather worked on a ranch there, herding cattle. Nice part of the country. The old Honda's are pretty tough. Save that 110 if you can. Here is a link to where I buy lots of my stuff. They only sell good stuff. There are several axles listed. ;)
http://search.stores.ebay.com/rpm-atv50_atc-185_W0QQfciZQ2d1QQfclZ3QQfsnZrpmQ5fatv50QQfsooZ1QQ fsopZ1QQsaselZ310611981QQsofpZ0

[snowwolf]

welcome to the bords Trikemonk where about in co are you im in woodland park

[Trikemonk]

welcome to the bords Trikemonk where about in co are you im in woodland park

Snowwolf, I am near Crawford. Its on the western side of the state. When I left the big city I guess I kinda overdid it a bit as Crawford is just a very small town. I could drive my three wheeler across town in like twelve seconds. And I live ten miles in the country from there.
Crawford is at the base of the West Elk mountain range. I think its about 260 miles or so west of Denver.

[snowwolf]

I just looked on google and im about 5 h from you maybe get to gether and do some riding when i get my bike runing right and get the tag for it