1972 Honda 'Flying Dragon' CL350, Frame no. CL350-4037203 Engine no. CL350E-4099691

1972 Honda 'Flying Dragon' CL350
Frame no. CL350-4037203
Engine no. CL350E-4099691
This restored 1972 CL350 will likely never be put at risk in the ruts and bumps of the boondocks, thanks to its rare and unique bodywork. Available only as a special dealer order, the gas tank and side panels were painted in a far-out swirl pattern. Done in Japan using a dip-transfer process and sold here for installation on CL350s and 450s, each paint job was different, much like a fingerprint. Four color combinations were listed – green/purple as seen here, silver/purple, gold/purple and blue/dark blue. The finished product resembled the patterns on custom Damascus knife blades, or to some the scaling seen on ancient Japanese paintings of dragons, hence the "Flying Dragon" nickname for the paint set.

It's believed that perhaps as few as 20 of the painted sets still exist, that rarity due to the initial high cost of the option. At a time when a new CL350 listed for about $900, a customer would have to fork over an additional $245 for the Flying Dragon bodywork, which explains the low number ordered.

For a special display at the 2017 Quail Motorcycle Gathering, Vintage Motorcycle Rescue brought examples of CL350s in all four Dragon color combos. The green/purple bike on offer here began as a very solid K4 base bike that was then treated to one of the shop's concours-quality rebuilds using many NOS parts – even the tires are original-fitment Bridgestone Safety Super 10's. Crowning touch, though, is the NOS Flying Dragon tank and side panels, straight out of factory shipping box. It is left to the new owner to christen the bike with his/her favorite brand of high-test.