Tire Pressure:

Up to 200lb load: Front (cold) 26 PSI, Rear 28 / Up to vehicle capacity (300lbs) front 26, rear 34

Oil:

Mobil 1 V-Twin Motorcycle 20W50 Motor Oil

Battery:

XT12A-A Xtreme Battery from batteriesplus.com

A note about the battery: Apparently the CB350 really likes having a charged battery. The battery in mine got really low and even after kick-starting the bike would stall as soon as I shifted into first. And then I couldn’t restart it. I replaced the battery and the problem went away.

These are not the only compatible options but this is what I’m using on my bike based on info from the internet and real live people.

Twenty-three years later and I’ve got a couple of tattoos and my very first motorcycle. Well that’s not exactly true. In 1998 I had a CB360 for about 8 months. I was living in San Francisco at the time, broke as hell and could never afford to get the bike registered or take a class to learn to ride it. Probably shouldn’t have bought it but it was a friend’s and he gave me a great deal. So Technically she was my first. But now I’ve got this 1973 CB350 that I’m actually riding. Here’s what she looked liked when I first saw her in the Craigslist ad:

When I got her home I immediately took the sissy bar / luggage rack off. That would be step one towards her transformation to Cafe Racer. But first I have a lot to learn about motorcycles in general.

Airing on October 13th on Discovery HD Theater, this wild ride will consist of thirteen rip-riot, ground pounding episodes focusing on the history of the café racer and the lifestyles of those who build and ride them.

Expect to see rare historical film footage and more rockabilly music than a Gene Vincent reunion tour, all in stunning high-def format broadcast on your favorite channel, Discovery HD Theater.

In addition you’ll be able to watch as a handful of builders produce some of the most amazing motorcycles all paying homage to the grand daddy of modern sport and race bikes.

Be sure to get plugged in to http://www.caferacertv.com and definitely follow us on Facebook and Twitter as this two wheeled love story unfolds… You won’t be disappointed!

- The Cafe Racer TV Team

Click Here for TV Schedule

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We are now down to the main event. I got the the camshaft out and the cylinder head off this afternoon, and then spent a while cleaning a lot of the carbon buildup. It looks like the pistons are in fact seized, so we are soaking them now in some pb blaster, and we will see if we can get them moving in the morning. I’m going to have to head over to the Honda dealer soon and get a gasket kit and make some friends, because I will probably be a frequent customer in the coming weeks.

The engine is off! It took quite a bit of negotiating on my part, but I finally convinced it that it would be better off on its own. I needed to take it off because much of the access is through the top, and having it separate is going to make things easier in the long run. Now, I need to do a bit of reading before I jump into pulling it apart. Hopefully, it will be a seized piston issue, so that I do not have to get into pulling the entire transmission apart.

And, as you can see in the other pictures, I ran into a nice little home last night while opening up the engine covers. It looks like the bike was the humble abode to a mouse family in the past few years.

So, after weeks of cleaning, organizing, preparing, and mostly doing other stuff, the work on the bike has begun! As you know, the list of obstacles that need to be overcome include: a seized engine, stuck brake lines, no keys for the locks, bad carburetors, bad tires, misaligned shocks, and general rust. And these are the things I know of right now; As work progresses, I am sure more issues will present themselves.

So, first things first. I need to get it running. That means freeing the pistons, which involves taking the entire engine block off the frame, pulling it apart, cleaning it, and perhaps boring out a few millimeters from the engine wall. Currently, I am in the process of taking the engine off the frame, which so far has been quite the adventure. It is of course complicated by all of the things that are blocking its departure, like the gas tank, the foot pedal frame and the exhaust pipes. But it is only a matter of time.

Needless to say, I could not be happier.

Finished CB350 Spitfire Build

The Honda CB350 Vintage Fighter “Spitfire”  is complete, we took it around town with a photographer to get some nice shots of the work. 

This bike is an example of the kind of custom work Roc-City really strives for, a very minimal look with a highly developed form.  I spent most of the design time considering how to combine the necessary parts of the motorcycle to simplify the overall appearance, and still achieve a unique and eye catching result.  Not much on this bike is left over from the original donor bike, it’s actually easier to name the parts that are stock, such as the engine, frame and wheels.  The all aluminum bodywork is handmade for this individual bike, no templates or forms were ever made in producing the parts, and there were actually no drawings made before beginning the work.  When I began stripping the bike down, I really had no plan for the outcome, but let a mental picture begin to form in my mind as I created each part.  As the bike grew nearer to a finished piece, the design decisions became more critical, as new parts not only had to function themselves, but also had to work well with the look of the rest of the bike. 

cb350 spitfire

If it has to do with two wheels and it strikes my fancy, I’ll post it up here. I hope you enjoy it and if so, share it with fellow enthusiasts, drop me a comment and subscribe to future updates.

So, it finally happened. I bought my first vehicle, and to my, and everyone else’s surprise, it is not a car. It is a 1971 twin-cylinder Honda CB350. It has a seized engine, uninstalled carburetors, a stuck front brake, worn tires, a questionable rear suspension, and no keys. Its red. And it is beautiful.

To give a bit of back story, my best friend Raji and I are leaving for India this winter, and are going to be traveling from the southern tip of the country all the way to Tibet, which we will free at the end of the trip. We have no idea how long we will be gone, or how we will be getting around for that matter. We assume that we will be doing a bit of everything – walking, biking, taking the train, and, hopefully, riding motorcycles.

So, because I have always been interested in engines, because I am going to India, and because it is just plain amazing, I bought a used bike on craigslist for cheap after some extensive research, picked it up, and am about to commit the next few months of my life to yet another project.

I will keep you up to date with how it is going.

another customer ordered a dunstall style seat a few weeks ago, and that’s mostly ready to go out, but again, he wanted a polish finish… so I did that up too…

for all it’s worth, I should find a good polishing company to do my stuff, I hate getting covered in black dust when I do this

found some video of a cr110 to go with the tank too

Poquito, poquito… Partiendo de una Honda CB350 del ’69″ han sacado esta cafe racer de estilo “vintage” inspirada en la  Matchless G50 .

Akí la historia de esta transformación. Y el link de a la galería del proceso.

Visto en: Bike Exif

I thought it was time to post another nasty little Harley cafe racer. Here at HONAHA we are aware that HD’s aren’t considered traditional cafe bikes, but I think they have a lot of potential. This bike is very nicely done.  Notice the custom polished tank, the twin pea-shooter mufflers, and at the center – that  nasty American v-twin and a belt drive.  This is a great example of how you can take a normally bland Sportster and turn it into a really cool cafe racer. I took the liberty to find where some Harley cafe parts can be found – airtech streamlining.  Its time to step up Sportster owners.  No excuses.

Photographed by gilesclement

Thanks Jonathan, Simone and Dave

Sinar F
Rodenstock 210mm f5.6
Tmax 400

– License

This bike looks like it came straight out of 1970′s deadstock – looks like James Dean should be leaning over the handlebars smoking a heater. It is funny how the simplest things are often the most stunning – this bike is bare minimum – no fluff, no swag, no bling, just pure cleanliness. I love the bare bones approach to this bike – from the white walls, to the flawless routing of the cables and wires, to the missing air box and battery tray…. absolutely amazing work! Even the tank decor is crisp and simple. I love it. This bike is the purest thing we have seen at HONAHA for a while.  Take a lesson form this bike – keep is clean and simple.

More information about this supercharger HERE

I wanted to extend an invitation to all my HONAHA readers to check out my new start-up company called ecowell. This is a very exciting opportunity for me as a founding partner. You can find more information on our website so please take a look around and be sure to visit our online store. Thanks for the continued support, I would love to get some feedback on what you think of ecowell.

Here is a little change of pace form the classic cafe, or street tracker style Yamahas. These bikes are from the streets of Japan, and demonstrate yet another way to make these old bikes look pretty sweet. And as all of you know, here at HONAHA, we really appreciate new ways to improve old bikes. Stay tuned-2009 is full of surprises.