Another cafe racer........

[midnightcafe]

Are yout original shocks an eye/eye configuration or eye/clevis? I'm looking for sportster shocks but my '79 750 had eye/clevis shocks on them

[yaddy]

Shocks are eye/eye configuration and these are 365mm long if i remember rightly, the 650 katana shocks are slightly longer than the GS650 ones.

Just to clarify:
The 450 tank isn't an idea of mine, and while it suits cafe styled bikes, i have to say that i don't particulary like it. Just my personal opinion but for what it's worth, i think they are too short in the length from front to back. Also, i've seen a pic of one from the underside and i'm pretty certain looking at it that they will not fit the frame without cutting the underside out, re-shaping then welding back together.
Out of the two tanks i have, i will try to make the fibreglass one work, if it doesn't, i've only lost time on it (valuable i know). I can always revert to the stocker if needed, i may run the project along with both tanks in mind as suggested and see which ends up staying on there anyway.
I really want this bike to be a one-off, i was trying to build it in such a way that from first glance, you cannot recognise the bikes genes. That katana tank is instantly recognisable, no matter what paint i ran on it. Not a bad thing i know, just not what i had in mind.

I don't like the front mudguard either, i've been trying to source a chrome one from a 650GL but having no luck over here. I honestly don't see me using the one on there at the minute, unless i take to it with a hacksaw or something and reshape it somewhat. I'd rather get hold of another and let someone have this one, who could use it for what it is.


Cheers for the comments so far, they all help to steer the bike along. It's a first time build for me (i've done resto's before but never custom work), so every comment is invaluable. I wasn't sure of which tank to use earlier in the week but now, i will be trying my hardest to make this fibreglass one work. So thanks to all so far for the comments i needed to help me make a decision.


Edit:
Ohh, and by the way, that tail unit is a genuine old school original, same as the tank. I bought the tail from a guy who was dismantling a kiddies roundabout, it was on a pretend motorbike and i thought i could use it. I got these pics from over at the caferacer forum and this tail is the same as mine, i filled the top of it to hide the indentation as i didn't like it. Wish mine came with a seat-pan though, i had to glass a base myself. It must be as Zooks first said, my raised rear making it look streetfighterish, i'll see what i can do on that in the next week or so.

[Zooks]

.................................Maybe a ''StreetCafé''

Cafe-fighter sounds better.

[Buffalo Bill]

I like the looks!

Hey Guys--A 450 Tank is the way to go..its funny because there 1 on Ebay right now and the bidding is up to $275..I just recently bought a 1980 450 for $150--Pic below is the bike kinda put together with the 450 tank, A Ducati style SS Seat I picked up on Ebay for less than $100 shipped--need to make a seat pad but not a big deal...Also I picked up a Pair of Harley Sportster shocks that are like New of Ebay for less than $45.00...Shipped!!! They fit right on and look great-I am looking for a Headlight of a Euro bike that has a spot for the speedo so I can run a nice clean triple tree--Hope I can get somthing---So look out for those deals to save some cash!!!

I dig your bike and the tank/seat match is great, but that ebay price for a tank is too much! I never shopped for tanks alone, so maybe that price is typical. Cafe projects should keep to a threadbare budget, (in my philosophy) just to force improvisation and creativity.
I once saw a tank fabricated from stainless steel welded together and polished. That made a big impression me.

[yaddy]

Cafe-fighter sounds cool, maybe i should rename my thread to "another cafe-fighter", that would be a cool bike genre.
Stainless tank Bill? I bet that was bitc*in, would love something like that, very original and wayyyyy cool. I agree with the "cheap as you can build it" philosophy, it can bring out some novel and interesting ideas to a build.

[Old Colt]

Most of the stainless alloys are not real easy working for forming a tank from. but once done I bet it would be a sweet looking tank. Generally it would polish up a bit brighter than an aluminum tank.

I am building up an X6 Hustler and would love to have an original style fuel tank that is 3" longer but the chrome side covers on the tank kind of have me flummoxed. I could form new ones in aluminum but not sure I can make them in stainless.

[yaddy]

Hey Old Colt,
X6 Hustler, is that one of the old Suzuki's, T20 six or something? My Dad used to have one of those i think, kinda reminded me of an old Honda with the chrome sides on the tank. 2 Strokers weren't they?

[Old Colt]

Yes, that is exactly what I am working with. I have had the bike in boxes since the early 70s and I am getting inspired to get it back together. Took awhile but I find the simplicity of it appealing, especially as I just bought a $2800 USD Carbon-Carbon clutch for a customers EVO 8 I am building.

[yaddy]

Nice one Dude, i think the "six" stood for 6-speed gearbox didn't it? I asked my Dad about it today, he said it was a "little flyer" with shi*e brakes, lol.

I'd like to see some pics of that Dude, if you have any yet?


Meanwhile:

I'd like to offer my apologies and also take a slice of that there rather large humble pie

So, the tank choice was still nagging at me today, even after i thought i'd made my decision. I got home from work and dragged the bike out onto the street so i could stand back from it and walk around etc, It's the first time i've looked at the bike from more than 4 feet away since i started re-building. I popped both tanks up there again and i have to say:

The fibreglass tank looks well skinny when you walk around the bike, makes it look more like a superdream 250. I sat on the bike for the first time since i've owned it and it didn't get any better, felt more like a CG125 with a weight problem!

Stocker tank looked hard as nails, i have to admit. Makes the bike look bigger and a bit more aggressive. When you sit on it, you have to reach around the tank and it makes you look hard (like smoking does when your thirteen, lol). I even went for the "wife test" and over her brew, she mumbled "the silver one".

So, sorry to change my mind (yet again), but i'm going to try to make the stocker fit the profile of the seat and if not, a different tank will be sourced, or a different seat will be made. This fibreglass one just doesn't do it from more than 4 foot away.
So all those who went with stock, well done chaps. Sorry i doubted you!
It does mean the bike will be swinging away from a cafe bike though, but as long as it looks cool, i don't mind that.

[Old Colt]

According to Suzuki the X6 was the first production six speed bike. I recall being impressed that the bike would carry the front wheel in third gear. I do not recall the brakes being particularly bad, I do not actually recall any good brakes back then, Car or bikes.
I have no pictures of value yet, the bike is just being mocked up and I have been collecting parts for a few months now. This one will be built with clipons, rearsets and a larger front drum brake from the T500 laced into wider 18" alloy rims. The front end will be a set of shortened and valved GS 550 forks and the rear will ride on a rare set of alloy bodied Konis.
The engine is getting larger cabs and expansion chambers but on the inside it is getting an RD350 crankshaft swapped in so it will live happily well above the original rev limit. This swap has become common in the vintage race circles but less common on street bikes.

I am looking to see how you redirect your project now.

[yaddy]

Tank update

So then, over the past week or so, i've done a couple of small alterations to the appearance of my bike. I managed to drop the rear end slightly so it's not as "arse happy" now, it still points skywards a little bit but i like the angle it's at now, so that'll do for me.

Then i fibreglassed the rear section of the tank to a shape that was somewhere near to meeting the seat, after that is was copious amounts of filling and sanding to get a smooth finish. I also tried to create some additional lines in the rear of the tank to carry the stock lines through to meet the seat, the pics don't show this up too clear because of the colouring in the filler etc, i hope to get a dusting of black paint on it this week to show up any high (or low) spots and also keep the bare tank from rusting out.

I plan to fit an original cafe tank in the future but for now, the stock will see the project through to completion and who knows, i might just leave it on there, depending on the finished look.



In this pic, i tried to create a flow into the extension from the original part of the tank using the seam along the bottom and the crease on the lower part.


This pic shows the fibreglass hiding under the filler, my plan is to drill and fix "nutserts" into the underside of the tank to allow rubber mounted bolts to secure the tank from underneath. I'm not sure if this is a good idea or whether a simpler "hook" type of thing with a rubber strap (like a battery strap) might be better, just in case the nutserts were to come loose at any point. Any suggestions on this would be gratefully received?



In this one, you can see how close i was with the fibreglass without adding any filler. I'm lucky this wasn't a smidge further out otherwise the fibreglass would have showed through the filler, it actually does in the first pic but it's only the resin thats poked through and will paint just as good.

[yaddy]

The tank as mounted before adding the extension





This one shows the extended tank with the "lowered" tail section.

[Old Colt]

That looks good,
I myself like the hook & strap, but I recognize it maybe a bit difficult to bond the hooks on the back of the tank since you have filler over the glass already.

[Old Colt]

Do you like that sharp crease on the back corners of the tank? I ask maybe since I clamp on the tank at times when I ride and like softer edges there. This may just be me though.

[yaddy]

Hi Old Colt,

The underside is bare glass, other than a spot of filler on the sides, if i went the hook and strap method i would add a layer or three of glass onto what's there now and extend it up into the "tank well" for a proper bond, I'd place some kind of hook/s within these layers.

I would prefer to use nutserts so i can just bolt it down but i do worry that over time, these may come loose and end up rattling about inside the fibreglass void in the tank. The strap may be the best method, did you think this because of the same reasons i am worrying over it, or did you have another reason for choosing the rubber strap method?


I've sat on the bike with the tank offered on there, i don't notice the tank edges as it's fairly skinny at the rear (compared to my 1000 anyway). I have a final pass with stopper to make on the filler and also a bit more shaping before priming up. I'll put some thought into your suggestion here, i can always make the corners more rounded if i need to.

Cheers for the quick reply Dude