My Father put together my first Mini Bike back in the early 80’s. I recently dug it out with the idea of simply getting it running again and passing it on to another family member. It turned out a little too frightening for a 200 lb grown up me let alone anyone I know that would actually fit on it…
The 3 HP Briggs shown here was not the engine my Father had put on it. That was a silver non recoil engine that had seazed up over the years. I dropped this one on as a place holder.. it was basically the same engine. I thought it was pretty fast as a kid of course, anything feels fast on 6″ wheels. By the time I dug it out, it was pretty chopped up, the breaks were gone, the seat that my father had made was pretty ripped up. I got it running and toyed with the idea of just souping up a Predator and putting it on there.
Of course, a brief trip around the ole internet got me hooked on what it was before I got it. It turned out to be a 1961 Caper Cycle Falcon, produced by Ben Hunt (who also made Caper Carts and many other things) of Walla Walla, WA. It was originally powered by a West Bend 700 which was long gone by the time I got it.
After pulling off my old Dymo ID tag, the original sticker was underneath the flat black my Father had painted it and a cool metallic blue which was what it was when I got it. The original red was underneath that … at that point, there was really no way I wasn’t going to do a full restoration …
This was likely an earlier model, but aesthetically, I chose to go in this direction as much as possible.
The tank was always a question for us … We couldn’t get the Briggs to run off it but thankfully, we kept it on the bike all those years. By the time I got to it, there was a lot of rust through around the drain and a host of dents. I separated it, hammered the dents out and converted the rust as best as possible, then plugged it and coated it with Red kote tank liner. The outside wound up with a coat of high heat silver to match the wheels. I was thankful that someone dropped that Palmini cap on there .. really nice addition!
I took a photo of the decal, cleaned it up, converted it to a vector graphic and had WAY WAY too many made .. in case you’re looking for this particular vintage .. HIT ME UP.
For what parts cost for the engine, I just couldn’t justify building it myself. There are far more knowlegeable folks out there and I found one. Frank Moore out of Ohio built me what turned out to be FAR more engine than I ever expected.. seriously, you don’t expect a lil two stroke to move a large guy. It does… and about pulls the front tire doing so..
Short of a slight bend in the right hand chain stay, the frame and forks were in good condition. No rust, thanks to being coated in oil for so many years and no stress cracks or anything. Lots of sand blasting and a little bit of chemical dip on the front “suspension”. Early International Harvester Red was about as close as I could get it without mixing my own formula.
I rebuilt lined the brake band and surfaced the drum, polished up the Pullmax bent fenders and got a set of NOS Odeon twist grips and an NOS Cherry brake lever. The rest of it, cables, bearings, cogs, chain, jack shaft was all from Go Power Sports.
I got a deal on a rather chain pocked West Bend Lightning exhaust. That required some filling but sets in quite nicely. I’m hoping to find a Palmini chain guard one of these days but ..
The first test drive was downright scary. Even bench tuned, I was up to 30 on pavers before I knew it. … and the brakes were definately NOT there. Over time, everything has settled in though. The thing is more reliable than my chainsaw. I rolled with the seat my Father made for a while but finally had a repro of the original made. I hope I eventually find someone to pass it on to. It was a really important part of my childhood and I’m super stoked to have been able to give it another life.
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