Bikes test using Windows Live MovieMaker
December 3rd, 2011 | Brat Style | No Comments »bratstyle, cafe racers, old school
honda cafe racers page
November 19th, 2011 | Japanese classics | No Comments »
HowStuffWorks.com gives this succinct history of the GB500;
“The 1989 Honda GB500 Tourist Trophy motorcycle was named for the famed Tourist Trophy race held on England’s Isle of Man.
Honda evoked the look of great 1960s British racebikes with its 1989 GB500 Tourist Trophy, but the strategy was less than a success.
With the 1989 Honda GB500 Tourist Trophy motorcycle, Honda sought to bring back the flavor of the great British twins that were by the late 1980s resigned to history.
As a result, styling of the 1989 Honda GB500 Tourist Trophy motorcycle closely followed that of racing bikes from the racing glory years of England’s Norton and Triumph.
Shunning the fairings and 16-inch front wheels of contemporary Japanese sportbikes, the 1989 Honda GB500 Tourist Trophy motorcycle looked very much the part of a 1960 British racer.
Standard-size spoke wheels, fork gaitors, clip-on handlebars, blocky fuel tank, and single seat with tail fairing were all part of the game.
Even the 500-cc thumper with two-into-one header would strike a chord with fans of British machines. The front disc brake, however, was a nod to modern technology.
Despite Honda’s best efforts and intentions, sales of the 1989 Honda GB500 Tourist Trophy motorcycle never took off in the United States, and the GB500′s life span was short.”
Too bad. Because the bike was underpowered (@ 45HP)it didn’t suit North American tastes. Vast open spaces, millions of miles of roads, and a cafe style just didn’t mix. But it’s got a small cult following now with good examples going for a handsome buck. Or should I say Euro?
The stark background really sets off this Honda CB550 cafe racers’ clean, purposeful look. Aftermarket clocks, seat/tailpiece, pipe, fork brace and other touches make for a classic Honda cafe conversion.
What a ball-buster this Honda CB72 cafe racer must be anywhere but on the track! That tank/tailpiece combo evokes an era of motorcycling long gone but with happy memories for those who experienced it first-hand. 
Phillip Sanford created this vivid Honda Goldwing GL1200 cafe racer.
And It’s quite an eyefull! Sanford has done so much it’s hard to know where to start. Well, first I guess, it has to be the paint and colour scheme. Red-rust-brown on yellow might shock the eyeball at first but the more I get used to it, the more I like it! Then there’s the plush two-tone seat that looks like a stock Honda Goldwing seat re-covered, and the big chrome rack on back.
Clearly this is a bike that’s ridden and not posed.Nice touches like the SuperTrapp pipe, big cafe fairing that would be a full fairing on a smaller machine, bar-end mirrors, painted-out fork lowers, final drive and engine guards, and many more personal touches make this Goldwing cafe racer a unique creation indeed.
Bimota is a legendary specialty builder that dabbled in full but limited production hybrids over the years. Co-operating with various manufacturers to create some remarkable high performance bikes, Bimota has contributed to the vast pantheon of bikes backed by the big factories, and sometimes going out on their own to satisfy a hunger for extreme versions of stock production units.
This 750 Honda doesn’t have much “stock” left. Typical of Bimota’s quest for perfection!
So-Cal Miler – Hot Rod Street Trackers and Cafe Racers from Streetmaster
May 25th, 2011 | Articles | No Comments »So-Cal Miler – Hot Rod Street Trackers and Cafe Racers from Streetmaster
So-Cal Miler – Hot Rod Triumph Street Tracker
These new Triumphs just unveiled got me all curious, so I asked Richard Pollock, or “Mule,” how they came about. Here’s what he had to say:
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The story starts with 2 people and one bike. A Streettracker, Richard Varner and myself. The bike was the 100ci Streettracker featured in the Cycle World video. The bike was at the Long Beach show and Richard Varner approached me about the prospect of producing a series of new Bonneville based streettrackers in a lightweight chassis. A limited production run. The blue/white lightweight bike was prototype number one. Shortly after that was unveiled at the Quail last year, we joined forces with the So-Cal speed shop. They were keen to enter the bike market with their vast experience in building fast, beautiful things.
So-Cal Miler – Hot Rod Triumph Street Tracker
We provided what was called the Streetmaster prototype lightweight rolling chassis and over a period of months designed a bodywork package. Tank, seat and side panels were first drawn, then worked up in clay, then digitized to produce wooden bucks and finally art-like aluminum body work. Meanwhile as So-Cal was doing the finish work and beauty treatment to the So-Cal Prototype number one, I was building up from an identical chassis kit, a Café Racer built to requirements and finish treatments as determined by Richard Varner. Upon completition, both bikes were unveiled at the Quail on May 14th to a very enthusiastic reception.
So-Cal Miler – Hot Rod Triumph Street Tracker from Streetmaster
The plan? There will be a build of twenty So-Cal editions in identical layout with some minor tweaks, one paint scheme and each bike will have a number on the panels relating its position in the build sequence. The Café Racers will be built in a limited number to order (Yes, with disc brakes available), and an extensive array of bolt-on parts for stock street models as well as limited custom builds. The parts available will fill a huge void in the aftermarket that exists between British flag stick-ons at one end and extreme race motor build-ups at the other. The Bonneville and Thruxton models have an enormous following and an ever increasing market share. They are very receptive to motor and chassis improvements and an all round fun bike. Why not?
Streetmaster Triumph Brighton Cafe Racer
Further, in the Hot Rod world there are traditions as far what cars to modify and ways to do it that produce the best style and performance results. For some reason, in the motorcycle world, choppers became the motorcycle version of the custom or Hot Rod. Generally speaking, they have developed into less than optimum handling showcases for chrome and paintjobs and run very light on true engineering. There are exceptions, but we believe that a Hot Rod motorcycle should be more about lightweight, power and performance with a dash of the “Retro” Hot Rod car flavor. This is the So-Cal domain.
Hot Rod builders/owners who purchase a ticket to the custom motorcycle world are quickly disappointed with the ride quality of the chopper experience. Enter the true Hot Rod motorcycle.
Link: Streetmaster
Link: Mule Motorcycles
Link: So-Cal MotoSport
Link: So-Cal Speedshop
Streetmaster Triumph Cafe Racer
International classic bikes & cafe racers forum
February 22nd, 2011 | cafe | 13 Comments »
Short video presenting our International classic bikes & cafe racers forum. It’s free, it’s fun, we share experiences, ideas, images, videos, etc., with the coolest bikes from all over the world! Join us at: classicbikes.actieforum.com