The Look. Old Look.

I really admire old bikes. I also admire newer bikes that were made to look old. Just the idea of riding something that could potentially trigger memories and conversations from older people excites me. Nothing beats a trip down memory lane and sharing that ride with some one when they stop you because your bike reminded them of this one time, or when this happened. Hence my love for...

Royal Enfields...



Triumph Bonnevilles and Thruxtons




Ural motorcycles...



and Nortons...


I haven't had any of those experiences since I just got my bike. I have seen it happen to some friends who drive old muscle cars, and some older person stops and strikes up a conversation reminiscing about the time he fogged those rear windows up on a look out one night in high school with his sweetheart. The thought of being able to experience these things motivates me to keep working and cleaning up the GS.

Since my bike was built in 1982, its now considered to be a vintage motorcycle being that its over 20 years old—so that's a start. It does have a bit of modern styling since it was built in the 80's. It was right about the time that motorcycle design was taking a turn into the modern bikes. The old "standard style" was being phased out by Japanese manufacturers, or so it seems through my research.

One of the more popular things to do to these old Japanese bikes, 70's and early 80's models, are turning them into Cafe Racers. According to Wikipedia, "Cafe Racer" is defined as...

"A café racer, originally pronounced "caff" (as in Kaff) racer, is a type of motorcycle as well as a type of motorcyclist. Both meanings have their roots in the 1960s British counterculture group the Rockers, or the Ton-up boys, although they were also common in Italy, Germany, and other European countries. In Italy, the term refers to the specific motorcycles that were and are used for short, sharp speed trips from one coffee bar to another."

Basically, guys turned their little machines into faster cooler mode of transportation from one cafe to the next. These styling paved the way for modern sport bikes as far as looks. Triumphs, Nortons, BSAs and Enfields were the popular choices in those days since they were all readily available in Europe. These days, older Japanese bikes, since they closely resemble in style the European bikes of those days. Here are some examples....






The most popular Japanese bike to turn into Cafe Racer is the Honda CB750. With is styling and powerful DOHC engine makes it a perfect platform for a cafe racer, but other bikes, if done right, can be just as good. And that is what I will be trying to do with the GS.

As per my previous post, I mentioned that the seat pan has been fixed. Instead of matching the OEM seat, I will be attempting to make a cafe racer seat with a new cover. I'm trying to be as cheap as possible, but there are somethings that I will not be as thrifty with... and that is the way it looks and the way it runs. I figure I can offset the cost by doing the work myself. I completely understand that there are some things on the bike that I will have to have someone else do, and I'm fine with that. Provided those people do their job to the best of their ability.

I'm a pretty creative person, so I'm anxious to start thinking of changing the entire look of the GS that will hopefully spark the conversation I have been looking at having. =)

GZ