Cafe racers

[The Pastor]

Not even close. Café racers were about getting rid of all the bullshit extra heavy stuff, lightening the bikes, making them handle better, making a more sportsbike-style seating position with rearsets and clipons.

On the other hand streetfighters seem to be about adding bling, making a more upright seating position more suited to commuting and wheelies/stoppies etc -- nothing to do with speed at all. How can you say one of those huge tails and ridiculous half-fairings does anything for lightness or speed? It's much more of a looks/style thing.

Completely different philosophy.

Wrong.

Street fighters were (and still are) sports bikes that got binned but the owner didnt have the money to replace the plastic fairings so they did what they could to get the bike legal again.

Althing else is gay and not street fighter.

[Back Fire]

+1 ^^

10 characters

[xwhatsit]

Wrong.

Street fighters were (and still are) sports bikes that got binned but the owner didnt have the money to replace the plastic fairings so they did what they could to get the bike legal again.

Althing else is gay and not street fighter.

Hmm still hardly a café racer philosophy though. I understand the origins of the styling -- twin headlights as fairings had built-in headlights which were expensive to replace, dirt-bike bars as clipons were expensive, naked because couldn't afford to replace fairings. But that's not café racer -- they were modified for speed, took standard bikes and modified them into road racers -- not for economy and getting the bike legal again. Taking the fairings off a sports bike is in all likelihood going to make it slower (at least in a straight line), and adding MX bars is not going to make the rider any more aerodynamic. Streetfighter != modern café racer.

[xwhatsit]

Vincent's never had megaphones - straight open pipes on a Vincent.A very distinctive sound.

I've never met a Vincent -- ought to go to that Classic meet on the homepage, looks like they'll have a few. Even so, that silencer `can' on that Irving Vincent doesn't quite work. Those Egli Vincents have much nicer looking exhausts (looks like a straight-through, the perforated tubing + glass fibre sort).

[The Pastor]

Hmm still hardly a café racer philosophy though. I understand the origins of the styling -- twin headlights as fairings had built-in headlights which were expensive to replace, dirt-bike bars as clipons were expensive, naked because couldn't afford to replace fairings. But that's not café racer -- they were modified for speed, took standard bikes and modified them into road racers -- not for economy and getting the bike legal again. Taking the fairings off a sports bike is in all likelihood going to make it slower (at least in a straight line), and adding MX bars is not going to make the rider any more aerodynamic. Streetfighter != modern café racer.

Yeah I didnt say that they are the same and you were wrong in that regard. Thanks for pointing out the obvious.

[Motu]

I've never met a Vincent -- ought to go to that Classic meet on the homepage,

The Irving Vincent was there last year....sounded gorgeous with open straight pipes like a Vincent should have.

[xwhatsit]

The Irving Vincent was there last year....sounded gorgeous with open straight pipes like a Vincent should have.

Gwaaahh... OK I'm definitely going if there's a chance one of those will show up! I bet it sounds sweet, with a straight pipe, and that big fat intake horn on the end of the carb (despite aesthetics of said silencer).

As I discussed with Mr GiJoe1313 the other night, I am definitely part `romantic' (as far as Mr Pirsig's definition goes) -- one of the best bits about bikes is the peculiar music they make.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Speaking of Vincents, I SAW one theother day ... the pushrod tubes are pretty unmistakeable.

[degrom]

Hi.

I was looking at Cafe racers the other day. They are in the same class as the American Bobbers but are only from Europe.

Do they make there own frames or do they use the old frame?

I would like to make my own frames one day,but I am not really that keen on choppers because they don't handle. I found a Shit load of plan's for chopper frames but can't find any for cafe racers or better handling bikes.(Anyone know of a site with plan's for cafe racer frames?)

Thanks.

Now this is what I would love to build!!! (Picture below... It's a RC51)

http://www.tobefast.com/custombikes.htm

I think cafe-racer's are being replaced by these...

[Bonez]

Now this is what I would love to build!!! (Picture below... It's a RC51)

http://www.tobefast.com/custombikes.htm

I think cafe-racer's are being replaced by these...

Nup Nader Wrong!!

[degrom]

Nup Nader Wrong!!

What's in the past,will always be there... But the future is today.

The harder it gets to get old bike parts, the more people will start to use proper modern bikes for there customs... Even HD is starting to use new technology... (even if it took them for ever to figure out how a radiator works!!!)

[degrom]

Shit... That Gregg guy that built that bike is freaking amazing!!!

The tank on that bike was his first try at building tanks!!! and his only 27...
(He worked with Jesse James for a few months,but two strong personallities don't work.)

[Bonez]

What's in the past,will always be there... But the future is today.

The harder it gets to get old bike parts, the more people will start to use proper modern bikes for there customs... Even HD is starting to use new technology... (even if it took them for ever to figure out how a radiator works!!!)

The future is tomorrow IIRC. Nit picking I know. Cafe Racers are a class of there own just as are the current streetfighers. Nice work in the above site though, I must admit. Btw parts for older bikes have never been easier to get. Still tonnes of after market stuff available. The internet has enhanced this availability no end.

[degrom]

The future is tomorrow IIRC. Nit picking I know. Cafe Racers are a class of there own just as are the current streetfighers. Btw parts for older bikes have never been easier to get. Still tonnes of after market stuff available.

Mmmm... Today I am learning a new abbreviation. (What's IIRC?)

(Do you know of a place where I can get an old CB750 SOHC motor?)

[avgas]

Drop bars, rearsets, fettled motor, open pipes (Dunstalls were hot) and as Ixion said a single or twin.
But twas always open to interpretation.

I was a big dunstall fan - even looking for some for the XS850.....but now i am a convert to 2 companies : Custom Chambers (good ol KIwi) and SupperTrapp (very nice how much)