"Rat" bikes.

[Ludeykrus]

Here is a good example of a ratbike:

Not to nitpick, but I believe something like that would be considered an 'adventure bike/cycle'. The way it was explained to me is Rats are dirty, dull, and aged from years of not caring about looks, with some ghetto-engineering thrown in for quick fixes. Adventures are intentionally distressed and loaded down with stuff to make them look crazy......

[Headphase]

nice matt black bike Ludey

[TheCafeKid]

treading into cafe with it hehe but it looks sweet.!

[Jd Powell]

If ya wanna see some rat bikes go to some big Harley rallies. (No I'm not brand bashing) The Harley crowds often have rat competitions. These bikes are generally put together with parts from many different models/manufacturers. Usually they are low budget beaters, though I have seen countless rats at rallies that were as done-up as the one in the photo.

Bobbers came about at the end of WWII as the returning GIs removed the front fender and any other heavy/easily damaged parts they could to lighten their bikes for such sport as flat track racing. At this time bobbers were mostly Indians and Harley's as the japs did not have any full size bikes in the US at that time.

Choppers originated on the west coast shortly after the bobber thing got started. These bikes are defined that the frame has been chopped. Some got the raked out front end, some became hardtails, I have even seen some choppers that were frame-raked in the center giving the broke back classic hot rod look.

Cafe racers originated in Europe in the 40's and were mostly smaller than 500cc. Lightweight and nimble But rarely good for anything over 100mph on the street. Mostly all euro bikes as again the japs did not make full size bikes back then.

Street fighters also originated in Europe, but within the past few decades. These bikes came about because the job of motor-courier is huge over there as their cities are much smaller and denser than ours. These bikes quickly had their plastics crashed off or removed, moto bars improved slow speed agility. These are usually japanese sport bikes due to their economy, performance and agility.

I have tried to write this as unbiased as possible, and there are many possible interpretations and grey areas. I have seen far to many people squabbling over whether a bike is a chopper,bobber,cafe, etc. The differences are huge and many bikes fall into multiple categories.

[t3rmin]

Alright, as a new ratbike owner, I've gotta get in on this:


Planned paint scheme was flat black with a flat white stripe. After the almost-dry black coat got rained on, I said forget it and put it back together as is. Now that's the ratbike spirit! Hasn't even been washed since I bought it! Also note crappy seat repair with Shoe Goo and old Suzuki hand grips.

[TheCafeKid]

figured id throw mine up there...

the rat...soon to be cafe...bike

[Ironriot]

I'll throw mine up also



Waitaminute.... Wrong rat?:-D

[Ludeykrus]

treading into cafe with it hehe but it looks sweet.!

If that's at me, then yep!

Basically, I imagined a bike like this a looong time ago (rat/bobber/cafe/thing). Got this bike most of the way through before finding out what a cafe racer was....was kinda neat. When 'improving" the bike , like making a new seat, I've been working in a lot of cafe inspiration....to the point where I am probably going to pick up a '78 GS 750 this week to turn into a proper cafe so I'm not tempted to change the 450L into one :shock: \\/

[PAULYBOY]

the rat...soon to be cafe...bike

Kid, thats still a sweet bike! I really like the paint scheme. I'm thinkin gold leaf over satin black with a satin clear over the whole durn thang.

[flyanimator]

Is this a ratbike then as its matt black

That's definiteley not a rat bike. It's more of a track day special with that custom frame and all the other tid bits. True, rat bikes are flat black for the mosty part, but what mkes it a rat is it's low cost and "beat up" appearance. A rat bike usually looks like someone took a bunch of parts from a junkyard, slapped them together and put two wheels on it and called it a rat bike.

This is a pretty good example of a rat bike, low budget (usually less than $1000 in total) and junkyard dog appearance.

[simon kuether]

This be a rat!!Cheers,Simon.

[jwhelan65]

Rat?

A rat for now...

[Hammered]

This is the general idea behind what most rat bikes look like. It really has become an "art" form with some.

[jed.only]

look up George The Painter of "The Horse" mag fame. its an HD, but, that is a ratbike to me.

[bakalorz]

How do you know you have a rat bike ?

I got a clue that my bike looked kinda ratty when the friendly officer that was running my papers check asked me:

"Is that bungie cord holding your gas tank onto the frame? Thats a safety violation and won't pass inspection."

Uhm, no officer, its for holding maps in place so I can read them when I ride. (It really is, I'm too cheap to get a proper tankbag with a map pocket)