Where does one draw the line?

[DrJ]

Cafe man.

 

[xcaptainxbloodx]

In my opinion, "Cafe Racer" denotes a bike that is either a legit 60s british bike that the ton-up boys of old would of ridden -OR- a bike done in that style.

A streetfighter is a sportbike stripped down and possibly (should be) tuned up. Exact same mentality as a cafe bike but the next generation.

The most important thing these bike share is the one part that cannot be bought, the attitude of the rider. Getting a bike and throwing some clubmans or clip-ons and a bump stop seat may very well make a bike look like a cafe-racer and stripping the fairings and changing the exhaust may make it look like a streetfighter but unless its being ridden with the proper devil-may-care (and worked on by that person to get it that way) attitude these bikes deserve, then they are nothing but window dressing.

It also deserves to be mentioned how personal these bikes are. I dont know about you guys, but my bikes are just that, MY bikes. They look and perform the way they do because that is how it fits ME and to hell with everyone else. You show up at one of the big Harley bars on a friday night and what do you see? tons of factory chrome, maybe some airbrushing one or two bikes stand out with personal touches, they get ridden once a week and look it. Locally we have a "bike night" at a burger place and again its more of the same factory gear (but on sportbikes) a couple performance parts or neon kits but thats abou it **I mean no offense by this, its just what ive personally experienced **

You show up at mods vs. rockers or any other cafe gathering (or in my case pour over the pictures) and you can see each persons vision. some are perfectly period triumphs, some are dirty rattle canned jap bikes. Each one has its own soul and that is where being a "ton up boy(or girl)" lies.

Cafe bikes are built out of the (more or less) extinct "standard" bike where as streetfighters are built out of sport bikes. streetfighter comes from the street, when a company like ducati or buell make a "streetfigher" I think its a crock of shit. no two cafe or streetfighter bikes are the same factory streetfighters imo should be called by their true name, "aggressive naked bike" and be happy with that.

To tell the truth, I kinda hate the "cafe" name these days. I work in a cafe, I dont hang out in one, and I cant remember when last I saw a jukebox let alone a cafe full of legit trouble making motorcyclists that would be prone to dropping a coin in and racing the song. These days when people ask what it is I tell them its an old kawasaki made to look like its even older. If they pry deeper I jsut tell them about the rockers.


Its like in the late 90s when pop-punk got all popular and it pissed off the oldschool punk kids. call it what it is, not what it really really wants to be.

 

[Ease]

That's bound to happen - take it as a compliment.
Imagine if you were the guy who invented being emo, lol.

 

[Pugsley]

Hey, What did you do for taillights? I'm planning similar rear treatment, and want to do small taillights in trimmed frame spars...don't need them if the seat and rear fender are shortened...

 

[miss alliekat]

Not sure where the "line" is that seperates a "cafe" from a "streetfighter"...
Some people consider my CB450 a cafe, then others say it is a streetfighter.

I have even heard it being called a tracker. I did win the "best streetfighter" award at this past Mods Vs. Rockers, but thats only becasue their was no cafe class to enter it in..
Well in damp uk, a cafe racer is a bike from a certain era, namely 50,s 60,s. and usually british. You can "cafe up a bike" but it would not be a cafe racer unless it came from that era. People stopped the cafe racing along time ago... Most of the bkes i have seen on the site would over here be called either "scratchers" "rats" or "tricked up" or just plain "tasty ole jap with goodies".
Scratcher is a lightened modified bike with some goodies,(usually sixties, seventies,early eighties and jap) but not far of the standard lines, made to go round corners and be ridden hard enough to get foot rests and exhaust on the ground. suppose this has taken over from the cafe racer thing here. A stock bike can be "a good scratcher" but not actually be one if it hasnt been modified, if you see what i mean.
Streetfighters did tend to be newer crutch rockets (plastic fantastic) with out the plastic and clutter, normally cos its been down the road and to expensive to repair or people cant be bothered, so other bits are put on, but they seem to have become at type of custom in their own right..... Just my interpretation

 

[Druro]

I think it's more based on the original style of the bike, rather then age. For an example, I think that Proteals is a Cafe Racer (perhaps a Street tracker... kinda). To me, it has the old style cues (clubmans/clipon, tank, motor, spokes) which put it in that catagory. This being said, if someone took a W650 and modified it using these similar cues, it would be a cafe racer (even though it is still being sold new). Another great example is the Royal Enfield.

IMHO, Streetfighters are a bike from newer times. If you were to put a "date" on it, I would say it was 1985 with the original GSXR. Early GSXR's (and later on, the Bandits) are one of the most popular bikes for "fightering". As mentioned, it's basically sport bikes, or sport bike inspired (ie: the GSXR powered Bandit 1200). They also tend to have cues like USD forks, aluminum rims, wave rotors, higher tails, etc.

I think one of the biggest cues is the controls. On a cafe, often you see the bike going from high bars (or worse, buckhorns) to clubmans or clip ons. With streetfighters, it tends to be the reverse, with the bikes going from clip ons to flat, euro or even dirtbike bars.

As was ultimatly mentioned by Fossil, they mean the same thing, just a different era of bike. They can even be compared to Bobbers of the 50's and 60's. The idea of a cafe racer, streetfighter or bobbers even is to remove as much stock crap as you can while modifying the engine and bike for speed and handling. The focus was to go fast, and then go faster then the next guy. The question of streetfighter or cafe is simply us trying to classify our bikes to certain period styles.

For me, my CB350f is more a cafe racer, while my GS is now a fighter. Just figured i'd weight in on the subject ;D

 

[Ease]

Erace it - Only line you should be worrying about is the (double) yellow one.

 

[klx678]

I agree... CAfe RAcers and Street fighters are practically the same bike in spirit, but just from different time periods.
I see Cafe Racers as the grandfather of the Streetfighter, same bloodline and attitude.

Actually it seems they are colliding when going different directions. The street fighter is a sort of de-evolved sport bike where the cafe bike is an evolving sport bike. One is built up to handle better and have better performance with a sport riding position and sometimes a modicum of streamlining. The other has the performance and sport position, but is being stripped down of bodywork (granted originally because of the cost for replacement panels, but now as much for looks). Sort of opposites colliding in the middle... and a blurry middle at that.

 

[kawasakifreak77]

There's a line?? No one informed me of this! We need to start sending out memos for things like this...

If things go my way, my KZ650 will have wire 17's & a ninja swingarm... So in my mind it all just meshes together, I'll just stick to calling her a 'severely modified UJM' LOL!

 

[CresentSon]

I'd like to interject an opinion if I can.

The reason we are having issues defining the these terms is the simple fact that we live out of phase with the era of true "Cafe Racers". What made a cafe bike was the fact it was in England parked in front of a cafe with a leather clad rocker inside waiting for the tune to start so he could show his mate the exhaust cloud.

Any discussion of how close or far we are from the line is a purely philosophical debate. I think that this group arguing philosophy is about like preschoolers discussing the pertinence of God.

That is not to say that we aren't smart enough, we just have other things to ponder that are more relative to our environment; going fast; wrenching; style; etc... We are here because we acknowledge the line, because it separates us from squids, mods, weekenders, and the rest. Coming close to that line is the badge of honor that defines what we do, and to some degree why we do it.

We then decide to piss on that line and build whatever the hell we damn well please within the scope of a bad ass ton pushing, asphalt slinging, knee dragging, twisty ripping, classic styled bike purely designed to look slick as hell and move too fast for our own good.

I don't care if you have a jap crap with a Ninja swing arm and inverted forks, or if your bike is so Brit the Queen Mom wants a turn. If your ready to hit the streets... get out there!

 

[e30m3]

Actually it seems they are colliding when going different directions. The street fighter is a sort of de-evolved sport bike where the cafe bike is an evolving sport bike. One is built up to handle better and have better performance with a sport riding position and sometimes a modicum of streamlining. The other has the performance and sport position, but is being stripped down of bodywork (granted originally because of the cost for replacement panels, but now as much for looks). Sort of opposites colliding in the middle... and a blurry middle at that.

Great way to put it. +1

 

[bunnyman]

Great way to put it. +1

Yeah- case in point- I saw some dude's ratty ol' R1 with a dirtbike numberplate/headlight, a few mismatched panels, a torn up tail section and stunt cages. I would call that a street fighter if I ever saw one. No 12 o'clock bars, nothing else stunt, but the stunt cages were there and looked like they have done their job a few times.