HONDAELSINORE
seatareall Honda stuffand in prime condition,sothey
complementthebikenicel y. There areafew missing
bits and thereare no excuses or anything here, thefuel
pipe is missing becauseabettertype hadn’tarrivedon
the dayand thetwistgrip is lackingarubber because
the throttle had just arrivedthat morning andwas
fitted forthe shoot. So,asfar asashop window goes,
this 250 Elsinoreisn’t abad thing atall, b ut youwant
to knowwhat the race one is like don’tyou?
Race-ready
Chris Lewis’srace bike isn’tquiteaspristine as his
showbike, but it isever so close and displays the neat
touches thathel pthe machinefunctionbetter in the
race envi ronment.Toour eyes the marksanddings
it wears with pride areevidenceof amachine being
usedand that ’s whatwe’reall about. When building
his ownmachineChris incorporated manyofthe
improvements he usedonKris Winder’sbike,such
as st rengtheningand bracing the frame toovercome
the weak points. He also eliminated oneweak point
totally–the swingingarm.Theoriginal isknown to
wilt abit and if thereisathing of beautyavailable,
such as the Thor aftermarket aluminiumswinging
arm, thengetitonthere. The Thor unitis matched at
the frontby Elsinore’74’syokes runningintaperroller
head bearings and thesechanges ensurethe chassis
behavesasitshould, especiallywhen Maxton rear
units and prepared forks areused at the front.The
wheels arebuilt around Honda hubswith E xcel rims
fitted to them, theyhavehad newbearings and shoes
though, as both areeffectively consumables andthe
shoes have beenchanged at least once.Chris prefers
Michelin tyres torace on andhas hadasetfitted.
While the showbikehas everything stockinthe
engine,therehas beennocompunction toretain
standardsettings orcomponents here. It is stil la
five-speed unit,but instead of the28bhp listedin 1973,
thereisabitmoreavailablenow thanks to modern
ideas on squish and compression.Want to know
exactly? Or moretothe point, do youwant your motor
the same? Contact Elsinore’74 andspeak to thegaffer.
The airbox, carburettor andexhaust areall matched in
to produce usablepower andthe helpofKarl Plant has
been gratefully accepted in matters of engine internals.
Helpingthe breathing is oneofChris’sinlet manifolds
and it is mated toaKeihin carburettorrather than a
Mikuni. “TheKeihinworks for me,” he say sand he
doesn’tfeel theneed tochangeit.
Thereare other Elsinore’74 partson themachine,
theairboxhas been mentioned, as have the yokes,
but notthe rear brake arm for the Thorswingingarm,
nor therear brake lever, whichisslightlydifferent to
standard. Chrisalso hasaspecialtensioner on the
chain that also acts asaguide andkeeps thechain
in the right place during the cutandthrustofthe MX
race.“Actually, the bike isbasically thesame set-up
as KrisWinder’sElsinore,”saysChris, “thereare afew
differences as Kris prefers Dunlop tyres and has a
Mikuni carburettorandwhat is knownas aGPseat.”
The GP seat has morepaddingforthe longerraces on
theinternational scene but for Chris Lewis it lifts him
higher thanhe’s comfortablewith andthestandard
padding isfine for him.
Whatabout fuelandoil? “Motul oilskeepthe
gearboxlubedandamixtureofShell Optimax and
AvgaswithaMotul two-strokeoiladded goes in the
tank andIchange the oil after eachmeeting,” says
Chris aswe windupour chat about his bikes.Below:Notquite
as pristineast he
show bike,but still
well -prepped.AUTUMN 2019 | 39
Race numbers areoften personal and occasionally
significanttot he rider and it is possibleto request the
same orregularriding numberforeach evententered.
This is an unusual situationforatria ls rider but MXers
will alreadyknow this.SoChris ,565...were youborn
in May1965, or willyoube56inMay or what?“The
numberwasonthe bike whenIgot it ...” Ah!