Topic: And so it begins... Japauto build

[Ricky_Racer]

This is just an announcement to put pressure on me to keep working on this project. I've been collecting parts worldwide for many years for this last personal build.

Original Japauto race tank and seat. Vintage Ron Krause oil tank. NOS Dresda swingarm. Koni shocks. 38mm NOS Marzocchi Japauto front end with air valves and early CB750 gauges. French JPX Japauto 18/18" mags. Front and rear drilled K-zero iron rotors. HA900 built motor with ported head and Yoshi Road & Track cam. Yoshi vintage 4-1 exhaust. AP Racing rear master and caliper.

Well, I'll try to keep this thread going, but I (as always it seems!) am financially constrained to a slow build. Really though, I'm just glad to finally get started. I hope you enjoy my journey.

Since this is my last project, I'll be blowing out everything else, NOS and old, in my shop not related to the Japauto build. So, if you're looking, PM me so we can talk by telephone about your what I have. I'll also be posting here and on FB.

To be continued. Thanks to all of you!

RR

[wolf550]

YES! You can do it!

[newday777]

Cool beans Ted. Good to hear you say it's a go! I'm back in NH for the summer and fall. I stopped and saw an old friend last week that had a Seeley race shop in the 70s when I was a parts manager. He has a couple sets of NOS Morris wheels for sale(rear disc 18") that they bought in 1976 for the Seeley 750 frames and have been on the shelf since. They have a set of Tickle rear sets too..... I can email pictures if you want. My pictures are rejected here as they are too big.....ugh....this is the only forum that does this.....

[Ricky_Racer]

Thanks for the message, Newday. But at 75, I'm ending my thirty-year involvement in bike building. I had a huge collection of rare parts over they years: NOS Hayashis, PVMs, Morris's, RC parts, Drouins, Webers, Cerianis, and so on.

The Morris wheels would be perfect for a CB750F depending on whether they are six bolt or five bolt. For my Japauto, I found a NOS set of rare JPX Japauto wheels in France and imported them. Pic attached...

Thanks again. Ride well, Newday.

Ted

[slikwilli420]

Cool beans Ted. Good to hear you say it's a go! I'm back in NH for the summer and fall. I stopped and saw an old friend last week that had a Seeley race shop in the 70s when I was a parts manager. He has a couple sets of NOS Morris wheels for sale(rear disc 18") that they bought in 1976 for the Seeley 750 frames and have been on the shelf since. They have a set of Tickle rear sets too..... I can email pictures if you want. My pictures are rejected here as they are too big.....ugh....this is the only forum that does this.....

Are the Morris wheels wide for a race bike or skinny street versions?

[newday777]

Cool beans Ted. Good to hear you say it's a go! I'm back in NH for the summer and fall. I stopped and saw an old friend last week that had a Seeley race shop in the 70s when I was a parts manager. He has a couple sets of NOS Morris wheels for sale(rear disc 18") that they bought in 1976 for the Seeley 750 frames and have been on the shelf since. They have a set of Tickle rear sets too..... I can email pictures if you want. My pictures are rejected here as they are too big.....ugh....this is the only forum that does this.....

Are the Morris wheels wide for a race bike or skinny street versions?

They appear to be standard width of the street rims. I don't know what the width of the 'race bike' would be.

[newday777]

Thanks for the message, Newday. But at 75, I'm ending my thirty-year involvement in bike building. I had a huge collection of rare parts over they years: NOS Hayashis, PVMs, Morris's, RC parts, Drouins, Webers, Cerianis, and so on.

The Morris wheels would be perfect for a CB750F depending on whether they are six bolt or five bolt. For my Japauto, I found a NOS set of rare JPX Japauto wheels in France and imported them. Pic attached...

Thanks again. Ride well, Newday.

Ted

Those jpx rims look great Ted. Have fun on the build. You do have some cool stuff.

BTW we lost Landis (the guy that bought some parts from you) this past January.
Stu

[754]

The wide ones are like 3.00 or 3.5 inch or wider., the original roadrace ones were magnesium.

[Ricky_Racer]

Sorry to hear about Landis, Stu. He seemed like a nice man.

Ted

[slikwilli420]

Cool beans Ted. Good to hear you say it's a go! I'm back in NH for the summer and fall. I stopped and saw an old friend last week that had a Seeley race shop in the 70s when I was a parts manager. He has a couple sets of NOS Morris wheels for sale(rear disc 18") that they bought in 1976 for the Seeley 750 frames and have been on the shelf since. They have a set of Tickle rear sets too..... I can email pictures if you want. My pictures are rejected here as they are too big.....ugh....this is the only forum that does this.....

Are the Morris wheels wide for a race bike or skinny street versions?

They appear to be standard width of the street rims. I don't know what the width of the 'race bike' would be.

At least 2.5" wide front and 3.5" rear.

[scottly]

Cool beans Ted. Good to hear you say it's a go! I'm back in NH for the summer and fall. I stopped and saw an old friend last week that had a Seeley race shop in the 70s when I was a parts manager. He has a couple sets of NOS Morris wheels for sale(rear disc 18") that they bought in 1976 for the Seeley 750 frames and have been on the shelf since. They have a set of Tickle rear sets too..... I can email pictures if you want. My pictures are rejected here as they are too big.....ugh....this is the only forum that does this.....

Would that be a fellow named Ross? My Seeley, 7521, may well have come from him. It had John Tickle rear sets and Morris wheels, both of which were 2.15" wide.
 

[Stev-o]

Sounds like a great project, Ted. Subscribed...

[seanbarney41]

I gotta see as much of this as you will show, too!

[newday777]

Cool beans Ted. Good to hear you say it's a go! I'm back in NH for the summer and fall. I stopped and saw an old friend last week that had a Seeley race shop in the 70s when I was a parts manager. He has a couple sets of NOS Morris wheels for sale(rear disc 18") that they bought in 1976 for the Seeley 750 frames and have been on the shelf since. They have a set of Tickle rear sets too..... I can email pictures if you want. My pictures are rejected here as they are too big.....ugh....this is the only forum that does this.....

Would that be a fellow named Ross? My Seeley, 7521, may well have come from him. It had John Tickle rear sets and Morris wheels, both of which were 2.15" wide.

Indeed he is.
Do you have pictures of yours and parts that you bought from them? He's trying to identify more closely the parts he has.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Very cool parts, Ted. Looking forward to seeing this build.