If I had the time, know-how and money, that's what I'd get. There's some slick lookin' XS750 cafe racers out there...
^NICE! I have always wanted a 00-01 Kawi W650 (looks like an old triumph) with its parallel twin. Those sound pretty sick and look great as cafe set ups. http://www.bikeexif.com/kawasaki-w650-custom-2
LOL she does, but she is married and both of them have a due date with the first grandchildren 2 days apart. Yes everything is a race :up:
She is bidding on a sweet Cafe Racer right now on Ebay, hopefully she wins it. She likes her toys, she is an Air Force pilot a year away from retirement and at one time used to own a Cesna 140 and a Pitts she flew acrobatics competitions in. She laughs about how at one stage she had a "multi-plane discount" on her insurance
Lol yeah I miss creating bikes, my wife is buying a finished cafe racer so I will just have to build my own bike
On those yamaha triples, I see pod filters. They look great, but isn't it a pain in the ass to tune multiple carbs with a pod filter setup? My understanding (which I totally admit is limited) is that the air box helps maintain constant air-pressure, regardless of the bike's speed. That's why factories use them...
I've done it on the street with no issues. I could see it being a pain in the ass for racing trying to get the utmost out of the bike.
Here's a couple of photos of the Harley Cafe Racer I built about 3 years ago. If you could find a cheap donor bike you can build one of these without unloading to much money. I looked at a lot of magazines and photos to get ideas on what I wanted the bike to look like, found a bit I liked here, and a bit I liked there, then put it together the way I wanted it to look. This one is fun to ride since I pulled the motor apart and had Woody Kyle flow the heads and knocked it out to 1200cc. It's on Kawasaki wheels (18" rear and a 19" front) and a Yamaha XS front fork too. Pat Mooney.
Nah ! Sounds like a very cool lady. Ride together out to the strip and throw some 2 seater Pitt's around or a T-6, ride home together and watch the sun go down, cook out....heaven !
I can't get over this bike. If I see it on the street, I'm going to kick this schmuck off of it and steals it.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1978-Yamaha-XS650-Custom-Cafe-Racer-Manx-/290915445315?_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&forcev4exp=true So she passed on this one, while it is cool, she said it is a little too much 'fancy custom cruiser' and not enough 'bad-ass Cafe Racer' :up:
I would lean towards a CB550. Great looks, relatively light (for the era), good power, good parts availability. Also, they are more plentiful than the alternatives from Suzuki/Yamaha/Kawasaki, so prices tend to be more reasonable.
Manxboy that is a bad ass harley... I like how you cut out the tank to fit over the valve cover, I've seen some other harley cafe attempts but they usually don't fit the tank right.
This thread has revitalized my cafe bike lust. Looking CL over and saw this. What's the going rate on a running CB550? Assuming it runs & shifts and the title gets found, I was considering trading my '04 TTR125LE for it. What do you guys think?
Ummmmm, doode. A 16" Kawasaki rear rim mated to a, what? CB350 front rim? I'd offer the guy a 24 pack, and some plastic worms.
I did not notice the rear wheel being different nor did I realize it should have a front disc... good catch, thanks. :up:
