Description
Additional photos of this Two Brothers Hawk are available here for your perusal.
After demolishing the competition in the Modified Production Twins Class in the late 1980’s with a specially-prepped Ducati F1, brothers Craig and Kevin Erion (of Two Brothers fame) shifted their focus to the Honda Hawk. Mike Velasco — who cut his teeth working under Pops Yoshimura — was brought on board to tune and refine the Hawk, also known as the RC31.
Despite being some 36 points behind the leader, the Velasco-tuned, NSR400-bodied Hawk would ultimately be victorious by the season’s end, largely thanks to Mike’s stellar work which included utilizing an RS750 dirt-track ignition, installing a host of trick internals including Wiseco pistons, titanium Crower con-rods, titanium valves, and a ported head, and designing a custom dual-radiator cooling system (one unit from an VFR750, the other off an RC30) that brought temperatures down by 70 degrees.
The story of Velasco’s trial-by-fire experience with massaging and preparing the Hawk is told in the January 1990 issue of Motorcyclist and is well-worth the read, but in short, the man was a master of transforming the road-going Hawk into a bonafide, championship-winning race machine. If you’re looking to turn your Hawk into a track weapon, Mike is the guy you want spinning the spanners. Several examples were built over the years, with Velasco slowly improving and evolving his hardware and systems over time.
Today, we’re featuring a stunning 1988 Two Brothers Honda Hawk that was created by Mike Velasco himself. The engine is a Stage 1 J.D. Hord-built 700cc motor that features cams, a ported head, lightened pistons, and Two Bro’s carb kit – it’s been dyno’d at almost 70hp. Less than 500 miles are on the motor at most.
Adorned in a rare RC30-style Two Brothers body kit, this Velasco Hawk now rides on a front wheel off of a Honda NC30 while in the rear there’s a hoop off an NC35 — the latter of which is married to a single-sided swing-arm. In place of the Two Bro’s Hawk’s stock suspenders is an RC30 front-end from Dan Kyle, paired with an Ohlins steering damper and shock – the shock is very rare and has been NLA for years. The suspension is set up for a rider of about 160 pounds. Two Bro’s were also responsible for the lion’s share of the bespoke work done to the bike, including all the wiring.
Unfortunately, the previous owner had this specimen re-painted and the colors weren’t matched quite right, though it’s a very minor issue with a majorly cool motorcycle. The bike still proudly wears the iconic RC30 livery (and features OEM Honda RC30 mirrors/headlight/front fender) complete with cheeky “RC31” lettering on the monoposto tail cowl. The rear spindle and Brembo brake set up is from WW Resto with a modification to accept the NC35 rear wheel.
There’s also a Two Brothers exhaust, Thermae oversized radiator, quick-release fuel-cap, custom housing for the stock tachometer, and custom rear-sets with ridiculously-cool Honda wing logo heel-guards.
Included with this unique and highly-sought-after Hawk are a myriad of invoices and paperwork and receipts documenting the ample list of modifications and go-fast bits — which adds up to over $7.5K (not adjusted for inflation), not including the donor Hawk itself. This bike is currently registered as a Honda Hawk NT650 and has an Arizona title, though our white glove service is always happy to assist with transportation, registration, and paperwork.
There are three cosmetic issues that we identify – a ding in the Two Brothers exhaust, a scratch where the seat and tank meet, and a repaint job that ended up a significant mis-alignment between the tank/sidecover and the front fairing.
The Honda Hawk was ahead of its time, but as of late it’s finally been receiving the recognition it deserves as a mid-sized sportbike that’s a true joy to ride. This Two Brothers Hawk cranks everything up to 11, and may just be one of the best riding Hawks ever built.
