Review | Honda CRF50F
Honda CRF50F Review
I still remember the excitement of seeing my very first bike, a Honda CRF50F, sitting under the Christmas tree. That little two stroke, along with Yamaha’s famous PW50, started the riding journey for countless kids around the world. That was back in the 1980s though, and while times have changed, the idea of a proper first bike has not.
Honda has had the CRF50 in its lineup forever, and it is a classic example of getting the formula right early and sticking with it rather than constantly reinventing things.
The CRF50 really is an ideal starter bike for kids. It is simple, predictable, and built to help them learn the basics properly. Power comes from a near bulletproof 50cc air cooled four stroke, and the automatic clutch feeding a three speed gearbox makes learning how to shift far less daunting for beginners.
My son, Jason, had been asking for a bike since he could barely talk. After a long career in motorcycling and plenty of aches to show for it, I tried steering him toward just about every other sport before dirt bikes. As you would expect, that plan did not last long.
When Jason’s seventh birthday came around, there was a CRF waiting for him downstairs. The look on his face is something I will not forget anytime soon. I knew exactly what was going through his head, and from that moment on, his dirt bike journey officially began.
The CRF is aimed at kids aged roughly 4 to 8, though Jason was a bit tall for it at 47 inches. With a 21.6 inch seat height, he looked slightly cramped at first, and I would say around 45 inches tall is probably the sweet spot for this bike.
At 111 pounds it is not the lightest kids bike around, but it does a great job teaching fundamentals. The relaxed steering geometry gives it excellent low speed stability, letting young riders build confidence as they work through the three gears.
Honda includes a throttle limiter screw to keep speeds in check, but honestly, first gear is slow enough that most parents probably will not feel the need to use it.
Jason spent his first day riding mostly in first and second gear, bouncing it off the rev limiter and constantly asking for more speed. The little engine did not seem to care at all. Fuel use is almost nothing. After about six hours of riding, it had barely used a fraction of the tank.
We did have a small issue with poor quality fuel clogging the carburetor, but it was an easy fix by draining it out. Not a big problem, just something to keep in mind.
Suspension wise, you get a small inverted fork up front with 3.8 inches of travel and a rear shock offering 2.8 inches. For kids at this level, it is more than adequate. Riders coming from race focused 50s like KTM or Cobra might want more, but this is a trail bike, not a mini motocrosser. What it does well is teach solid riding fundamentals that carry over to bigger bikes later on.
All things considered, the Honda CRF50F is an excellent first dirt bike. It is affordable, tough, and does exactly what it is meant to do. Just be warned, once the dirt bike bug bites, as it has with my son Jason, it rarely stops there.
Parts & Accessories
Honda CRF50F parts include a seat cover, a full exhaust, throttle cables, a clutch kit, a stator, and a lever, fluids, bearing kits and an air filter, along with essential riding gear, offering reliable upgrades and replacements to keep young riders’ bikes running smoothly and ready to ride.
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