"Cafe Racer" such a loose term! Craigslist "Gem" of the week!
- Thread starter kafehopeful
- Start date
Swapmeet Louie
Put some metal in yer eye....
Jacob Agaetis said:
Ya mean the "drag" bars...?
Jacob Agaetis
Been Around the Block
Swapmeet Louie said:
They look sweet with the 5" risers. Should have put clubmans with those risers... oh carbon fiber clubmans, even betterer.
Anybody looking for a Kaw H1 triple?
http://albuquerque.craigslist.org/mcy/3115435049.html
http://albuquerque.craigslist.org/mcy/3115435049.html
CafeRacer650
Dream it. Build it. Live it.
BCBarker said:
Yeah, that's a joke.
axeugene27
Over 1,000 Posts
http://cleveland.craigslist.org/mcy/3184640767.html
I want to go to there...... but Poor me has no mulah.
I want to go to there...... but Poor me has no mulah.
axeugene27
Over 1,000 Posts
i know if you are selling a 10k bike prob want well lit shots.
CafeRacer650
Dream it. Build it. Live it.
Wahoo650 said:
Not even close. I hope people don't start using "cafe racer" to try and sell bikes to unknowing suckers.
jwarriner
Been Around the Block
CafeRacer650 said:
Start using? I've been seeing this for years. Everything "would make a great cafe racer" these days. I see it tacked onto everything from 1993 CBR600s to the worst 1980s metric cruisers with square headlights and instrument clusters the size of a microwave. I also see overuse of streetfighter. "Hey, I dropped my 1997 Gixxer 750 my parents bought for me, now it can be an awesome streetfighter." FUCK YOU CRAIGSLIST KIDS!
CafeRacer650
Dream it. Build it. Live it.
jdub said:
UGH!!
That's slightly depressing. I hate how people take something unique and soil it for their own advantage. I didn't realize the Cafe Racer movement had been recognized by the a-hole community already. Bummer.
VonYinzer
Over 10,000 Posts
Not trying to start any arguments here, but I do want to make a couple points. Ones that I'm sure have been brought up already but...
Nothing about the "cafe racer movement" is unique. There have been folks building cafes since the 50s. Some of them are members here.
The whole "call it a cafe and someone will buy it" is nothing new either. A few years ago it was "choppers" and before that it was something else. If the buyer is so uninformed that they fall for the bullshit than that's on them.
I agree that the prices folk ask for bikes can be ridiculous. But, I can ask $100 for a penny and if someone buys it... Not my problem.
As was pointed out to me by another member here, someone these bikes may be ugly but I bet the guy who built it is damn proud of what the accomplished. If the bike isn't unsafe, who cares what it looks like?
Nothing about the "cafe racer movement" is unique. There have been folks building cafes since the 50s. Some of them are members here.
The whole "call it a cafe and someone will buy it" is nothing new either. A few years ago it was "choppers" and before that it was something else. If the buyer is so uninformed that they fall for the bullshit than that's on them.
I agree that the prices folk ask for bikes can be ridiculous. But, I can ask $100 for a penny and if someone buys it... Not my problem.
As was pointed out to me by another member here, someone these bikes may be ugly but I bet the guy who built it is damn proud of what the accomplished. If the bike isn't unsafe, who cares what it looks like?
jwarriner
Been Around the Block
VonYinzer said:
I care. People should be ridiculed for turning bikes into complete abortions. Of course this is subjective but we can all agree that some of the ones posted up in this thread definitely qualify. Bad paint choices, upsidedown clubmans, retention of some of the uglier OEM equipment- this can all be fixed. Some stuff can't be fixed. Stupid crazy chops and stretches should definitely be laughed at.
And this turd is definitely laughable:
http://cleveland.craigslist.org/mcy/3160936497.html
CafeRacer650
Dream it. Build it. Live it.
VonYinzer said:
I agree that it is not necessarily unique ( possibly a poor choice of words ) but I guess in my mind, as far as re-surging trends or new trends based upon things in history, the Cafe Racer lifestyle is unique in itself. Compared to, lets say, the hot rod culture, the Cafe Racer culture isn't nearly as large, and it is only embraced by a smaller group of people ( well, it was small ). When I say "unique", I was comparing it the many popular cultural trends in the world. I guess I'd like to believe that there is still a smaller group of guys/ladies out there that can and desire to spend hours in their garage building beautiful motorcycles based solely on what they think and want a motorcycle to be.
I also agree that the ignorant can continue to suffer from their own affliction, but I just don't like when people try to scam each other.
jwarriner
Been Around the Block
A bike that has most of the tenets of a traditional "cafe racer", done tastefully, is pretty rare.
Now I don't want to hear any garbage about how there is no traditional cafe racer. We all know exactly what goes into emulating the cafe racer style. Pretending it's ambiguous and vague and mysterious is a little silly.
Many of the bikes on this board, I would not call cafe. I would not call any of my bikes cafe. Cool, but not cafe. So when I see a CL ad where some assclown has done maybe 1-3 basic ebay cafe mods- or worse, has mods that in no-fucking-way qualify as cafe- and calls it a cafe racer, yes, I'm going to be a little bit salty about it.
Now I don't want to hear any garbage about how there is no traditional cafe racer. We all know exactly what goes into emulating the cafe racer style. Pretending it's ambiguous and vague and mysterious is a little silly.
Many of the bikes on this board, I would not call cafe. I would not call any of my bikes cafe. Cool, but not cafe. So when I see a CL ad where some assclown has done maybe 1-3 basic ebay cafe mods- or worse, has mods that in no-fucking-way qualify as cafe- and calls it a cafe racer, yes, I'm going to be a little bit salty about it.
VonYinzer
Over 10,000 Posts
Being amused, sure. Being unimpressed, a little arrogant in some cases but ok. Being mad that someone calls their bike a cafe when its not what you think a cafe should be is a waste of time in my opinion. I'm not calling anyone out. Everyone here builds what their idea of a rad time is, and deserves some props for that. But, how many here are building game changing bikes? Very few. Cool bikes, yes. Personal expressions, you bet. Really outstanding, genre defining machines? Rarely.
jwarriner
Been Around the Block
I'm more mad about the destruction of Craigslist than the motorcycle. It used to be a decent website for buying and selling things back around 2004-2006. Now it is crap. Dickless shit like this in ad for a 1983 Magna pisses me off:
I consider calling a bike that is not a cafe racer a cafe racer to be a form of spam, similar to the above. That's what makes me mad. The incredibly bad taste is just humorous.
I consider calling a bike that is not a cafe racer a cafe racer to be a form of spam, similar to the above. That's what makes me mad. The incredibly bad taste is just humorous.
