Topic: Cafe or nay?

[beemerbum]

Just got a pretty complete "72 K2. I've already "restored" a 77 k7 and a 71 K1, ALL 750's. By restore I mean, these bikes will not score 99 points in any contest, but you have to be pretty knowledgeable about these beasts to tell there is an occasional aftermarket part here and there. Here's the question: Would any of you guys be tempted to modify or give the bike a "cafe" treatment or brat etc. instead of returning to reasonable original. I know this is a personal problem but out there in this forum lives vast experience in this regard.What's the percentage of "stock" vs custom out there?

[Don R]

 I'm a big fan of custom without cutting. JMHO.

[seanbarney41]

+1...nothing wrong with custom as long as you have a totally functional motorcycle when you are done

[754]

Not cafe probably..but streetfighter, streetracer style...sure go for it..

[FunJimmy]

I'm a big fan of custom without cutting. JMHO.

Ditto. I tried to keep my cafe frame as stock as possible.
Did cut a few tabs and passenger pegs though.

[PeWe]

Modify by replacing parts was one huge reason to buy a CB750 back in the days.
These days seems to be here again. Chopper, racer with complete fairing, half or 1/4, café whatever the parts could make. Dunstall, Rickman, Bimota, Dresda and various tank-sidecover-body makers. Back then people left the stock 4-4 with center stand and stock tank with side covers and lost it, or repainted it with back then funky design. I had to find new 4-4, tank, side stand, all from Yamiya to my avatar bike.

Save the OEM parts so you can turn it back to a stock CB750 which is the condition many want to buy and pay for.

I cut my frame after some thinking.... Frank's frame kit for better service. I have had great help of it. Same bike has now 1005cc, nothing for CB750 purists anyway 

I should not cut the frame on a really good stock bike as delivered from Japan with all small details stock, even all nasty X-screws and no plans at all making more power.

I sometimes see horrible looking CB750 for sale the owner believe is a Café or whatever it can be called. The only one that like it is the builder/owner. Like an ugly child that only the mother like 

Completely different to build a bike with parts from scrapyards only. This is the way to give the parts a second chance. Here no restrictions in my mind since all is scrap metal.

I also understand street fighters. Owning a from the beginning expensive racer, drop the bike so the fairings will be damaged beyond repair. Fairings that cost a huge amount of money. Only thing left is to run the bike naked, modify the bike so it will match like other handle bar, headlights, exhaust etc.
I guess this has made the bike producers to build bikes with that look and the old style bike back again.

[Terry in Australia]

I'm a big fan of custom without cutting. JMHO.

Me too Don. "Back in the day", we modified our bikes to go faster and handle better, and there were heaps of aftermarket parts to do it with, just like there are again now. Apart from Harley's, Honda CB750's are probably the biggest market for aftermarket manufacturers nowadays.

I personally hate cheap arse black painted wheels, exhaust wrap, frame "hoops", Chinese seats and those stupid Coker tires that I see on today's "One in a million/built not bought, blah blah blah" Cafe/Bobber/Brat monstrosities. During the original "Cafe Racer" period, none of these items were used, and they wouldn't have been, as they do nothing positive for the performance of the bike. Speaking of performance, most of the guys who ride these bikes now wouldn't know a hot cam from a hot dog, because it's not about going fast, it's about looking good. 

Not surprisingly then, you don't see too many bikes now that even look like the ones we rode back then, bikes that looked much like the bikes that were raced at the time, the Yoshimura or Moriwaki modified stock CB750's that were modified to handle, stop and go really fast, or even Honda's factory CR750 racers that were beyond the average mortals grasp. The fact is the modern "Cafe Racer" doesn't look like anything that we rode back then, they're mostly just copies of what everyone else is doing now and don't pay homage to period performance bikes, they really should just be given a new name to distinguish them from the real thing.

Same/same for Bobbers, no matter how much I squint my eyes a CB350 with Coker tires doesn't look much like a modified 1950's Harley or BSA, and I still don't know what "Brat Style" is, except maybe what the hipster riding it is wearing?      

[SG103]

I was lucky enough to get a 1975 cb750f from the original owner with 15,000 miles. It would be an easy restore, I'm driving it this summer but next winter I'll tear into it. My reasons are: I bought the bike to make it into a cafe racer; I want to build my own bike (I don't intend to even have the Honda name on the tank); I'm looking for a winter project of one to two winters with $12,000 budget (which is not an expensive bike).  I bought a wrecked 2007 GSXR for parts. Have purchased fork conversion parts from Cognito moto, and now waiting for snow.
I've been on this site for a while and know some of you will think this is a bad idea, but the thing is I don't want a 1975 superbike. Today's R6, and GSXR's are light years ahead of the CB750.
Arnold

[ekpent]

 Bike that has cosmetic and or mechanical issues that is far from a nice original survivor- Yay
 Bike that is a nice original survivor with original parts and paint and just needed a refresh- Nay

[slikwilli420]

Doing a custom right you will be surprised how fast you will burn through that $12k budget. I'm well past that on one of mine and have not done the engine yet.

[Johnie]

I agree with Eric...

 Bike that has cosmetic and or mechanical issues that is far from a nice original survivor- Yay
 Bike that is a nice original survivor with original parts and paint and just needed a refresh- Nay

Take a trasher and make it nice.

[seanbarney41]

I was lucky enough to get a 1975 cb750f from the original owner with 15,000 miles. It would be an easy restore, I'm driving it this summer but next winter I'll tear into it. My reasons are: I bought the bike to make it into a cafe racer; I want to build my own bike (I don't intend to even have the Honda name on the tank); I'm looking for a winter project of one to two winters with $12,000 budget (which is not an expensive bike).  I bought a wrecked 2007 GSXR for parts. Have purchased fork conversion parts from Cognito moto, and now waiting for snow.
I've been on this site for a while and know some of you will think this is a bad idea, but the thing is I don't want a 1975 superbike. Today's R6, and GSXR's are light years ahead of the CB750.
Arnold

This!...yeah you were lucky to get a nice survivor but now it seems your luck has run out and you, idiotically, intend to ruin it.  The #$%*?  You don't want a 1975 superbike and you know that today's R6 and GSXR's are light years ahead?
SO SAVE YOURSELF $6K AND GO BUY AN R6!

[BomberMann650]

$12,000 build budget?!?!?

Just what are you paying for?  Shop service?  Nos sandcast swag?

[FunJimmy]

$12,000 build budget?!?!?

Just what are you paying for?  Shop service?  Nos sandcast swag?

Start shopping at Cognito and you'll soon find out.

[BomberMann650]

$12,000 build budget?!?!?

Just what are you paying for?  Shop service?  Nos sandcast swag?

Start shopping at Cognito and you'll soon find out.

Even at their top shelf product pricing, that's a lot of m-units and spoke wheel hubs!

[The Lone Builder]

I was lucky enough to get a 1975 cb750f from the original owner with 15,000 miles. It would be an easy restore, I'm driving it this summer but next winter I'll tear into it. My reasons are: I bought the bike to make it into a cafe racer; I want to build my own bike (I don't intend to even have the Honda name on the tank); I'm looking for a winter project of one to two winters with $12,000 budget (which is not an expensive bike).  I bought a wrecked 2007 GSXR for parts. Have purchased fork conversion parts from Cognito moto, and now waiting for snow.
I've been on this site for a while and know some of you will think this is a bad idea, but the thing is I don't want a 1975 superbike. Today's R6, and GSXR's are light years ahead of the CB750.
Arnold

This!...yeah you were lucky to get a nice survivor but now it seems your luck has run out and you, idiotically, intend to ruin it.  The #$%*?  You don't want a 1975 superbike and you know that today's R6 and GSXR's are light years ahead?
SO SAVE YOURSELF $6K AND GO BUY AN R6!

You took the words right out of my mouth!

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Do what you want. It's your bike. Just finish it.

[Terry in Australia]

God, for $12K USD, you can buy so many great bikes, why the hell would you want to spend 12K and end up with a cobbled together "special" based on arguably the least popular CB750 ever made? And removing the tank badges won't fool anyone, they'll just say "There goes that banana who spent $12K on a CB750F because he didn't want a 1975 superbike" or words to that effect............

[SG103]

I've been on this site for close to a year and there is a lot of good information on here. I know some of you don't see the sense of my project and that's ok.  Building a bike is fun, I've built a 2015 Harley Davidson Street Glide that I brought home and tore apart with 1 kilometre on the odometer. I love this bike and is a great conversation subject at the local coffee shop. I've had the bike now for two years and only have 1,400km on it. It's not a particularly fun bike to ride but it was great fun to build. The Build is the fun part, I always try and build something that is safe and comfortable to ride. which makes it even more challenging.
If I want to ride, and I do ride a lot, I use my 2000 Goldwing that I've had for 17 years. This motorcycle suites MY needs and more.
Arnold

[BPellerine]

if ya just gotta do it start with a basket case,you will throw away most of the stock stuff anyway,from what I see.bill

[754]

Not a particularly  fun bike to ride..
 Well many think they are, so what exactly did you do to make it "safe and comfortable to ride"  .?

 I don't  care what they think at the coffee shops, but I do care what bike builders or show judges think..
After the first  criteria..it MUST be rideable is met..
Second it must be FUN to ride..

[AirCanuck]

Do what you want. It's your bike. Just finish it.

Bingo

[MoMo]

I agree with Eric...

 Bike that has cosmetic and or mechanical issues that is far from a nice original survivor- Yay
 Bike that is a nice original survivor with original parts and paint and just needed a refresh- Nay

Take a trasher and make it nice.

+3

[SG103]

What I mean by safe and comfortable to ride is: I didn't put a 26 inch front wheel on my Street Glide, stuck with the 19inch engineered at the factory. And I don't have obnoxious loud pipes. And what I mean by not particularly fun to ride is that going over bumps with a Harley Davidson Street Glide can be a bone jarring experience, and it seems to have narrow power band (you end up shifting a lot). Although the new Milwauke 8 is a big improvement.
Arnold

[PeWe]

I was lucky enough to get a 1975 cb750f from the original owner with 15,000 miles. It would be an easy restore, I'm driving it this summer but next winter I'll tear into it. My reasons are: I bought the bike to make it into a cafe racer; I want to build my own bike (I don't intend to even have the Honda name on the tank); I'm looking for a winter project of one to two winters with $12,000 budget (which is not an expensive bike).  I bought a wrecked 2007 GSXR for parts. Have purchased fork conversion parts from Cognito moto, and now waiting for snow.
I've been on this site for a while and know some of you will think this is a bad idea, but the thing is I don't want a 1975 superbike. Today's R6, and GSXR's are light years ahead of the CB750.
Arnold

This!...yeah you were lucky to get a nice survivor but now it seems your luck has run out and you, idiotically, intend to ruin it.  The #$%*?  You don't want a 1975 superbike and you know that today's R6 and GSXR's are light years ahead?
SO SAVE YOURSELF $6K AND GO BUY AN R6!

Yamaha XLR 1300 has nice look too. Earlier can get the inlet mod getting additional almost free horses.
http://xjr-tuning.com/artikel/1651/Tuning-Kit-Yamaha-XJR.html

Honda CBR1100XX Super blackbird, good power, react nice when twisting the throttle. I like the handbrake that use the rear brake at the same time. this bike can be found here in really good shape for not that much.

R1 and R6 have really high insurance costs here.