Here is how Honda describes their Shop Manual:

"This Shop Manual contains general data and information, and procedures relative to motorcycle maintenance, overhaul and repairs..."

As every responsible manufacturer, Honda issued a factory Shop Manual for their 247cc and 305cc motored bikes. Actually, several variants were issued; because Honda sometimes referred to the Superhawks, Dreams and Scramblers as "Honda 250" or "Honda 300" or "Honda Dream" or CB72, etc., different editions refer to the same motorcycles by different model reference.

To make things a bit more confusing, since the CB72/77 motors were very similar to the CL72/77 motors and pretty darn close to those installed in the CA72/77 CA78 bikes, Honda seems to have decided not to issue a manual exclusively for the latter. The result is that all bikes in the 247/305cc group are all covered by the same version of the Shop Manual (despite the fact that Honda sometimes refers to them by different names).

And if that weren't confusing enough, Honda also included the C72, C77, CS72 and the CS77 models into the English language editions of 1960 and 1971.

Are these books rare? Not exceedingly, although you will not come across them every day, nor every week, for that matter. When found, expect to pay anywhere from $30 and up, depending on the condition.

A CD-ROM version of the 1971 English language CB72 CB77 manual is available, from time to time.