im building a cb 550 cafe racer while im looking for another brit bike. whos got em? any cafe racer tec? any old pics. how common (or not) was that look in the states? also where can i get cheap clubman bars?
I just traded my CB500Twin for a CB500Four today. My bud that got the twin is doing a cafe thing to it. I will see if I can find the links he sent me......
A good friend of mine has a 84 Kawasaki gpz 750 TURBO, probably one of the most wicked 80s bikes of all time, I am in the process of building a 78 suzuki gs1000 into a cafe racer. i know its a stretch, but its damn fast for a bike thats that old.
The clubmans bars available now are too low and wide for your bike, they are made for newer bikes with big switches and hydraulic clutches. Make your own from an old set of stockers, just cut and tig weld. It's free too. The commercially made rear set foot rests are fragile and clumsy die cast cheapo alum, cut and weld the stock Honda shift and brake parts, make your own. The center stand won't work with a pipe, I welded a T handle to the spindle and just use it to adjust chain and change the wheel, leave it in the shop. The 350 tail lamp and lic. holder bolt on to replace the giant 500 one. 750 tank fits if you shorten your seat. Make a spacer of aluminum to move your gages 1 and a half inches forward to clear the cables and brake hose with clubman bars. Also a braided steel brake hose with a banjo end fitting helps clearances up there. 2 or 3 teeth smaller on the back sprocket and the 500 will go a hundred with 2 people and all your camping gear. If you are missing the rubber fork gaiters, Norton Commando ones fit and they are cheaper. Wide tires upset the handling and make the steering feel floopy and imprecise. Be really careful not to strip the oil filter bolt, it is fragile Don't use the modern brake pads made for stainless rotors, they will chew up your discs. The stock air box and filter are more efficient than K&Ns. Safety wire the stupid on/off handlebar switch to the ON position so that you don't push the big a mile to an exit and take apart half the ignition system in the dark and rain...yes... AND if you find where to buy a 4-into-1 for it, let me know. A good little bike, you can ignore the red line.
Same clubman bars at mikesxs.com for $26, put your order over $30, free ship... and they ship FAST. fork gaiters, $20. my humble progress so far...
AFX, what kind of tank you got there? Yeah, I need a shorter brake hose, that one's already 6" shorter than stock... tach was rather erratic... prolly replace both gauges with those mini-ones... also...
Foiled, thats a cb350, right? I think this pic got posted before... I have a stock '71 in rough shape, supposedly runs... I WANT A TANK LIKE THAT for it! How rare, and thusly expen$ive are those? I spose I could make one outta fiberglass... That thing needs to be honda red, not yamaha yellow! bitchin...
affirmative, it's a 350. kinda like the yellow... if that tank's available it's probably an Airtech piece. I want to build a CR750 lookalike someday with a similar tank.
nice bikes! any body got brits? i didnt mean to to be completly O/T. i just got a line on some manx/noton hybrid hot rod cafe racer. manx w/ a 750????!!! i hope this pans out. any noton guys know any thing about a real manx? something like this ..
I really like cafe racer style bikes...I'd like to build one some day. Here's one of my favorites, a Kawasaki Mach 1 (500H1) triple. Really simple, but really cool:
I just picked up a 78' GL1000 (Goldwing) that has been put on a serious diet and done up in Cafe Racer style. It needs a little TLC but I think I can get it on the road in a few weeks.
Go to Ace Cafe,a mecca for motorcyles outside London; http://www.ace-cafe-london.com/f2.htm They have hundreds of pics of C Rs I`m very tempted to order the new Triumph Thruxton.The first ones are just getting to the dealers.They will only ship 500 to the USA,each dealer has a small alotment.Most are already spoken for. AWSOME bike $8000. a steal. My only concern is the clip on bars and they moved the foot controls back a little,not as severe as a sports bike,but might not be comfortable on long cruise. Got a great write in this month sports bike. Cafe Racer never caught on here as they did across the pond. Good Luck...JR
Does the BSA/Triumph on the left count as a cafe racer? Will have to dig up the pics from 2003 (this one is from 2002)... the fairing and front fender have been painted the same color as the tank... makes it faster ya know.
I just took my KZ550 on the "Slimey crud run" yesterday. I'll have to get some pics up. I'm looking at getting an RD350 to build into a cafe racer next.
[ QUOTE ] I just took my KZ550 on the "Slimey crud run" yesterday. I'll have to get some pics up. I'm looking at getting an RD350 to build into a cafe racer next. [/ QUOTE ] ah...Egan's bunch. you know what? every RD350 I've seen seems to follow this course- get running, get running better, update wheels/tires/forks/shocks, go fast, try to go faster, seize, sell at a huge loss. not to be discouraging, but I've seen it about 5 times, no exceptions. go find a Gamma instead.
This really makes me miss my RD400 and my RZ350. The RD was definately a cafe racer. And ripped the bigger bikes a new one. Very healthy and never seized till after I sold it. Something about adjusting the injection. Yes I used the oil injection, used it on my RZ as well. Man if I could just find a Japanese RZ500 I'd be set, black and yellow with bumble bee stripes and wheelies for blocks...
[ QUOTE ] you know what? every RD350 I've seen seems to follow this course- get running, get running better, update wheels/tires/forks/shocks, go fast, try to go faster, seize, sell at a huge loss. not to be discouraging, but I've seen it about 5 times, no exceptions. go find a Gamma instead. [/ QUOTE ] Wish I had pics of my RD... built it up from three different bikes, looked great. I got it running, updated a few things, got my novice road racing license on it, then pulled it apart to get it running better. Put it back together and then sold it for a huge loss before I even rode it again. No, I'm not kidding. But it was still cool! And it never seized. (now I'm playing around with an old Ducati... talk about a money pit...)
my beater rd 350 cost me $175 when I was 17. (WAY too young to be driving something that fast!) Pops took a sledge hammer to it when A) he found out I got caught by the cops ditching school riding it and B) as soon as he found its hiding place in the back yard... GAVE what was left to the cycle salvage place... eh, I eventually forgave him... sorta!
[ QUOTE ] AFX, what kind of tank you got there? [/ QUOTE ] I don't know what the take came off of. it came from a pile of bike parts my friend has. They are mostly Hondas, so maybe? I have never seen one quite like it. It has a really cool monza style filler cap. I am grafting it to the stock gas tank pan. I added a few inches of sheet metal to the sides to make it a little taller. I haven't worked on it for a while, as it has slid a little lower on the project list. Also have to finish making the seat pan, cut the seat foam, upholster it, finish the butt fairing (aluminum), find some way to mount the Dunstall rearsets, get it to run on two cylinders consistently, and all sorts of other little crap. Anyone know of any small high output coils to replace the crappy Yamaha ones? It has a 180* firing order.
look at the coils on mikesxs.com, see if they'll work for ya... same as an xs650 right? electronic, or points? oops, 76. points. dont think they'll have it.
Hey, no pics from me, but why is it these posts seem to ignore the Harley XLCR's ?? I always fancied one, fast (for a srock old Harley) and I always reckon one of the better looking HD factory offerings of more modern times. Anyone got pics ? I remember seeing one in a bike shop in London years ago when I was there, not too sure if I ever seen any here.
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