1988 Honda ZB110 Project
I think I got bitten by the Honda 50 “bug” while working on the SMV engine. I saw a pic of one while looking for engine parts on ebay. A couple years went by, and the all of a sudden, I felt like I needed to get one. Found one on ebay for $800. It had a lot more rust on it than was visible in the pictures.
A little history on the ZB. It was only sold in the US in 1988, and we only got the Monkey RT version. There were supposedly around 3000 sold here, about 2 per dealer. The ZB came with the “new” style 50 engine with the roller bearing cam and 12V CDI. The ZB is sized between the Z/XR/CRF50 and the YSR50.The Monkey R was a 4 speed manual with hugger fenders and clipons. Sellers like to call the ZB the hardest to find mini out there. They’re wrong. Try the GSXR50, NSR50/80, TZM50, etc, etc...how about the Motocompo? ZBs come up from time to time on ebay and in local classifieds.
The ZB has been described as having the power of a Z50 engine in a CT70. It couldn’t get out of its own way, and was scary to ride on the street. I looked into upgrade options: big bore, 4 speed, manual clutch, carb, etc. It was going to be an expensive proposition. I came across some info about the Honda NICE engine during my research. The engine was from a NICE scooter from Thailand Honda, was a 110cc, 4 speed, manual primary mounted clutch (instead of being on the crank like the 50s). The best part was that it had the same mounting points as the Honda 50. I got a rebuilt one from Asian Concepts for a lot less than all of the upgrade parts would have cost. Here’s a copy of my review of the engine from PlanetMinis.com.
The NICE comes with an 18mm carb that has a fixed needle and hard to find jets. I was advised that a VM22 was the best match for the stock NICE head that has a 22mm intake port. Now, there’s a bit of confusion about what a VM22 really is. More about that here.
Now that I had the carb, the stock pipe was way too restrictive. I was going to have a friend make me a pipe out of the old one, but after lots of waiting, all I ended up with was a cut up rare muffler. I bought an Asian Concepts brand exhaust system instead. It was junk. That’s another story too, read about it here.
Now it's got a sweet one-off White Brothers Mini Carbon Pro. Looks, sounds, and performs great. Made in USA too!
I geared it to 17/31. It won’t really pick up the front end anymore, but now it can actually keep up with city traffic without winding it way out. The rear sprocket is the same as a CT70.