So annoying when people try to cash in on the title 'cafe racer'

[joeschuit]

I didn't know about the Cafe craze because I hardly ever see one on the roads! On average one bike per a month! I hope it become popular because nothing gets my head all twisted than seeing a garage built cafe racer leaned over on a sweep.

I agree. I've been on the road for 2 years on my suzuki gt250 cafe and I've seen maybe one other "cafe racer" style on the road. I read about them all the time and it seems to be over done, but why aren't they riding them? Craigslist is filled with old bikes that have the seat foam tore off and lower bars put on, but nothing actually finished...

 

[hillsy]

Streetfighters have already been done (Triumph, Ducati, Kawaski)

A stock bike from the factory is not a streetfighter - by definition, it is a modified / stripped down sports bike.


Which puts them in a similar category to cafe bikes.


Which is why I also think they will be the next fad.

 

[Rockers CT]

Im telling ya.. 50cc mini bikes are the next new thing...

 

[beachcomber]

I think the point that's being missed here is that in 1960 -1970 - for us it wasn't a "fad", it was a way of life.

We weren't recreating anything - we were CREATING it.

Initially the term Cafe Racer was used to describe the bikes we rode. The riders were given various names by the press - mainly Coffee Bar Cowboys, Boy Racers, Rockers, Ton -Up Kids .....it was US the riders who coined the term Cafe Racer to determine both the bike and the rider, as all the other terms were intended by the media to be a slur.

That said - let's all get on with building whatever it is we're building

 

[leadfoot]

Im telling ya.. 50cc mini bikes are the next new thing...

Love 50cc hondas!! Honda's horizontal single cylinder engine is an amazing piece of engineering...unbelievable potential and bulletproof reliability. You can squeeze a lot of power out of those little bastards if your wallet is fat enough.

Got into them back in '04 when I got my first crf50, went crazy over minis for a couple years after that.

There is a lot of people out there building awesome minis, but I believe the trend is stifled somewhat by the difficulty in licensing them for legal street use.

Here's an old Z50 I rebuilt from the ground up. 88cc big bore kit and countless mods

Here's a couple crf's I built up.

04 crf with 88cc big bore kit with race head

Same bike with some changes

05 crf with 108cc stroker motor built on honda bottom end, 3 speed manual trans. Bike has since been dismantled and sold for parts...motor is being saved to put in an SL90 when I find one with a title.

Here's what I do with 'em after I build 'em ;D

 

[Rockers CT]

I heart RUPPS

 

[sprocket2cog]

do you have any videos up of you riding them ? nice toys, they go all rght

 

[leadfoot]

I heart RUPPS

Tama FTW!

 

[aHbe Racer]

wow sounds like cafe racers becoming just as snobby as HD riders.....never thought id see the day, thought it was about being on 2 wheels and customizing a bike to your liking and not being like every1 else.

Well said, Bonez1122, it's about the ride, the art, the creativity.

 

[leadfoot]

do you have any videos up of you riding them ? nice toys, they go all rght

Took some digging but I found a video my buddy put together of us riding a few years back, not long after I got into stunting. I have much better chops now, but hardly ride anymore as my bike is in pieces being rebuilt yet again...

I'm in the black helmet/white adidas.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/QtlOi5rHvp8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

sorry for the threadjack

On topic, who cares who calls what what? Do what you love, don't worry about anything else.

 

[hillsy]

Well said, Bonez1122, it's about the ride, the art, the creativity.

Yes but it's also about the genre. A bone stock R100RT is not a cafe racer by definition, it's a tourer. Doesn't mean to say you can't modify it to replicate a cafe bike, but to call it that straight up is not correct.

And that's the whole point of this thread - that people are calling shit what it ain't because of a current fad.

And for what it's worth, HD riders are probably the most inclined to "customize" their bikes even before they throw a leg over them (how many HD's leave the showroom floor without $$$ worth of accessories??). They may not be pulling out hacksaws and welders, but they are certainly not leaving them stock. So, are they cafe racers too?? ;D

 

[CresentSon]

Do they have clubmans and rearsets?

 

[bonez1122]

Yes but it's also about the genre. A bone stock R100RT is not a cafe racer by definition, it's a tourer. Doesn't mean to say you can't modify it to replicate a cafe bike, but to call it that straight up is not correct.

And that's the whole point of this thread - that people are calling shit what it ain't because of a current fad.

And for what it's worth, HD riders are probably the most inclined to "customize" their bikes even before they throw a leg over them (how many HD's leave the showroom floor without $$$ worth of accessories??). They may not be pulling out hacksaws and welders, but they are certainly not leaving them stock. So, are they cafe racers too?? ;D

Ah.... very good point.......makes us question just how fluid some definitions are....