New to the Cafe world

e30bimmerman

e30bimmerman

New Member
Hi guys, My name is Tyler... I'm an automotive technician for ford at the moment although most of my experience is in the euro world of BMW and Porsche. I've just purchased my first bike which isn't what i was originally looking at getting but i do think it will be a great first bike and first build. Its a 1971 Honda sl175. I've been wanting to build a BMW r75/5 for a long time but cant find one in my budget. so far im into my sl $300, so i think i did alright considering I bought it from the original owners son who was also my service writer at ford, and it only has a little over 1000 miles on it. but i wanted to see if anyone out there and I'm sure there is, but if someone out there knows anything about these bikes and where i can find some good parts and what all i can do to it, that is without breaking the bank.
 
I guess I should show you all what I'm working with, so here she is
 

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What I'd suggest first is gathering up some 'inspirational' pics of what you want it to look like.

I think it's awesome now, but that's because I have a cafe racer already and am working on more of an 'enduro' / board track/flat track inspired SR500 currently.

It's a great bike for a cafe racer - swap out the tank and seat, put some clubmans on and some fresh street rubber and you're 90% of the way there!
 
Yeah so far I removed the fenders, I've been looking at allot of pics of other cb and cl 175's not to many sl's that actually have been converted. I have a good friend who is building a cb360 right now and he already had a few suggestions. His build is turning out amazing so i may be taking some of his ideas. I think the one thing I'm having trouble with so far is figuring out what stuff will fit on my SL. My brother has been riding for a few years now and has a bmw s1000rr which is an awesome bike which he wont let me touch lol. But i do have a wrecked r6 that has some good stuff on it. I was looking at taking the forks off and seeing is they might be able to be modified to fit or vise verse. either way I haven't done much research. any help with sites for cool stuff or ideas would be much appreciated
 
From one automotive tech to another, welcome! Nice E30 M3.

I'm in the process of building my first bike as well. Good luck! And have fun.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk
 
Thanks, that's actually my brothers e30 m3... its amazing though that someone actually can spot that its an e30 m3. not to many people know what that is. I have an 89' e30 325is that's under construction as well (to many projects lol) s52 turbo swap and the whole 9. but thanks man. The whole family are BMW crazy. Brother has the e30 m3 e36 m3 super charged by active autowerks. POPS has a e30 325 and an e39 540i, my MOM has an e46 325is, Brother in-law has had e26 635csi, e34 540, i don't know the e code off the top of my head but he had a 735i, and now another e26 635csi. great cars. but this isn't a Bimmer forum so ill lay off lol :P
 
Welcome to DTT!

I also have an SL175. Really neat bikes. The frame really lends itself to the cafe style being all tube construction.

A couple things you'll want to do right away:

1. Get a CB or CL 175 front end (fork legs and 18" wheel at least). The SL forks can be used, but are a bit long. You can internally shorten them to save some money though. The SL wheel is too big for a good handling road bike.
2. Get yourself some shorter (and better, old Honda shocks blow) rear shocks.
3. Find an early CL175 tank. They look terrific. Its just my opinion, but the SL tank (though really cool) is too short and bulbous for a "cafe" bike.

Other than that, its all personal preference.

Keep us posted man! You'll have a blast with her Im sure. Theyre really fun little bikes.
 
sweet! thanks for the advise. my buddy with the cb360 used cbr600 forks for his build so he said i could have his old forks from his bike if I wanted them. Would they fit though?. and would you say to keep the drum brakes or go disc?
 
The 360s arent a direct bolt on. The easiest way to do it is to do a bearing swap. The best way is to have a good fab guy swap the steering stem from the 175 trees into the 360 trees. Than they'll bolt right up. If you do that though, you'll have a front tire thats as wide as your rear. You could use a CL175 wheel, but youll have to get new spacers made, and do a wheel bearing swap to use the 360 axle.

Honestly, a 360 front end would be rad. A definite upgrade from the little 31mm forks on the SL.

For the 175 Id keep the drums. They (in my opinion) look better and if in good shape, perform fine for a sub 300lb bike that tops out at 80mph.
 
yeah i don't know much about bikes, i do have the tech skills and knowledge of mechanics but info like that is awesome and really helps. my buddy is an amazing welder and fab guy so he may be able to do that. I figured on the brakes though. from what I've been told by other guys is that the drums will work very well for a bike that weighs as little as my sl and with the speed it can do. now sense we are on the subject of speed, would changing the sprockets do any decent changes in top speed?. I'm wanting to be able to cruse on the highway with it. so if i would be able to do around 70 with it that would be amazing. if now no big deal, i guess when she's on the road ill just get use to looking fast and not really going fast lol
 
A sprocket change can get you some more top end, but you would lose so much "off the line" power that its not worth it. Honestly man, if highway riding is what you're after, the 175 is the wrong bike. Its really not made to sustain such high RPMs for long periods of time. That bike will be a blast on the backroads, and in the corners but long dostance riding will cause extreme wear on the motor and the top end especially. Hell, even the bigger Hondas like the 350s suck for highway riding.
 
yeah i figured as much. no biggie. I was planning on riding it around on the side streets most anyways. its just quicker where i live to take the highways. but riding on the side streets and up and down the mountain will be fun as hell anyways. not really looking for a ton up bike for a first anyways.
 
oh now I just thought about this question its been something I've been thinking about. but, my bike is kick start only. how would i be able to have rear sets and not have them in the way of the kick start. or if you have any other ideas on how to have rear sets in general with kick start that would be awesome. I would prefer to keep the kick start cuz well to be honest i think kick start is much cooler and old skool than electric start.

im probably just being a noob but yeah :P
 
You need to figure out where you can mount the rearsets that they will be as comfortable as possible, and function correctly. Once you have that sorted, go ahead and check the kicker for clearance. If you have an issue, fold up pegs are an option, as is heating and bending the kicker arm. Get the rearsets sorted first though. You may not have an issue.
 
ok, the only reason the question even came up is because another guy on a youtube video said he had to delete his kicker because his rear sets got in the way. I was already thinking i could mod the kicker if necessary or get fold-ups. just food for thought really. I really do appreciate you input. like i said im a noob to bikes so anything is good from someone who has been there
 
Thats why DTT is here man. So you dont have to make all the dumbass mistakes many of us already have. Haha... Good luck with her.
 
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