The reliability of Honda motorcycles is legendary. When this 1972 Honda XL 250 arrived at Mule Motorcycles, Richard Pollock had a long list of performance upgrades and cosmetic changes to work through. But when it came to the engine, some timing adjustments and a carb rebuild were all it took for the 51-year-old thumper to run true.
“The donor bike was in top shape,” Richard tells us. “One lesson I learned long ago, was the better the donor, the better the end product.”
Remarkably, Richard remembers working on Honda XL 250s when they were brand new, because his first job was in a Honda motorcycle workshop. “It’s a good trail bike, but not a motocrosser,” he says. “In stock trim; 250 cc, a 6V electrical system, drum brakes front and rear, and manufactured before turn signals were a standard requirement on all motorcycles.”…