Arkansas. There must be something in the water.  First we starting seeing the incredible “neo-vintage” builds from One-Up Moto Garage in Fayetteville, such as this CB600 featured on Return of the Cafe Racers, which made our list of the 2015 Best Bikes on Instagram. Now we have this lovely, sexy, “barn-built” cafe racer from Arkansas native Will Hight: a 1973 Honda CB350F.

The CB350F, as you may know, was a completely different animal from the regular CB350.  The latter was a 325cc parallel twin, whereas the CB350F was a 347cc four-cylinder, offered only from 1972-1974.  At the time, it was the smallest four-cylinder motorcycle ever mass-produced, an exercise in one-upmanship from Honda executives and engineers.

The little inline-four offered 34 horsepower at a redline of 10,000 rpm, good for 98 mph flat out.  The CB350 twin was lighter, quicker, and cost $300 less, but the brilliance of the CB350F was in its sophistication and engineering.  Perhaps Cycle said it best in 1972:

“We are again reminded that some motorcycles have an appeal transcending mere numbers…there is some indefinable something about this newest Honda that gets people turned-on and lusting after its shiny little carcass.”

Below, we let Will himself tell you about this incredible build.

CB350 Four Cafe Racer:  The Build

I purchased the Honda from Taylor Henschell from @oneupmotogarage. It was just something on his back-burner he wouldn’t get to for a while so he gave me a great price.

After we loaded it up I brought it to my girlfriend’s farmhouse, which is the only place I have access to a garage. I didn’t quite have a plan at this point I just knew I wanted to give it a more aggressive stance, whether it be through taller shocks or just cutting the back-end off and starting from scratch. When I didn’t find any shocks that got more than 1/4 inch taller I decided to hack the back off and go with a mono shock.

My first attempt looked like this:

I had intended to make a top mount and then strengthen the swingarm. When I got the top set and let all the weight sit on the spring it compressed completely. The swingarm had way too much leverage on the small 10″ shock, so I had to rethink my whole scheme. My second attempt was to make a swingarm brace and reuse both the top and bottom mounting points I had already welded into place. I’d seen this style on a few bikes both factory and custom so I had more confidence this time.

Since I was building the bike on a farm (a chicken farm to be specific), I had access to all kinds of steel tubing that would normally be used to mend the chicken houses. So with the help of a pipe bender and welder I just set out trying different options, finally making one work.

The rear fender was from a Triumph Bonneville I did before this build. It bolted right on with no fabrication, so I figured it was meant to be on there.

After I had figured out the mono shock issue the only thing left was to build a seat. To build the seat I just winged it and kept bending pieces until I got was I was looking for.

After that everything fell into place, I repaired a slightly dented 350f tank I found on eBay. I mounted some new Shinko street tires, made a seat pan and shaped the foam on it. Finally, I mounted the head and tail lights. It came out looking something like this:

The seat was upholstered by a place my girlfriend found nearby called Belton’s Upholstery in Rogers, AR. They did fantastic work.

The paint color was chosen based on what was a available, if I could do it again I’d go with a pearl white with gold accents.

For the photo shoot I did on the farm, I thought it would be cool to show the bike in the environment it was built from. I’m very pleased with the final result, but I’m still looking into a front end swap, both for handling and for an updated front brake caliper.

Follow the Builder

Follow Will on Instagram:  @wil_hight

Recently, Janne Heitakangas of Turku, Finland, sent us this incredible NX650 scrambler.  We shared the bike on Instagram with the caption “Good as Gold.”  Geoff Baldwin, editor of Tank Moto magazine and the man behind Return of the Cafe Racers, commented to say:

“I don’t know why exactly but something about this bike’s proportions really appeal.”

We couldn’t agree more.  Perhaps it’s that bit of California rake, combined with the slightly uptilted seat and stubby front fender.  And certainly helps that the builder, Janne, is an automotive design engineer, who must certainly have a trained eye for proportion.  Whatever the reason, this bike has that elusive “It Factor” that every builder seeks.  Even more amazing, the bike was built on a budget of $550!

We will let Janne himself tell you the rest.

Good as Gold:  NX650 Scrambler in the Builder’s Words

This is my first real build project.  With my old motorcycles, I’ve mainly done bolt-on type of customizations. With this bike, I wanted to do as much as possible on my own. The idea was to make a retro-looking old dirtbike, but with a “modern,” more reliable technique that would be lighter and more nimble then the original Dominator. I work as a design engineer in the automotive industry and this have helped me in many ways during the project. I started of with visualising the bike in Photoshop and making the frame in CAD. It was really important for me to make the bike look really clean and get the lines, proportions and symmetry right.

The base for the build was a 20 year-old Honda NX650 Dominator 1995 that was manufactured in Italy. I kept the bike in stock condition the first summer because I wanted to learn what I wanted and needed to customize. I ended up loving the bike and there wasn’t really that much I wanted to change other then the looks.

Clutch was slipping, the bike needed lowering and stiffening up the front end and just loosing weight.

All the parts I stripped off the bike I sold.  I ended up making over 500€ (550USD) ,and I decided that would be my budget for the bike. So I didn’t really use any money building the bike other then buying the bike. This was possible because I did most of the work myself and used a lot of scrap parts. The most expensive part I bought for the bike was the Shorai Lithium battery.

I use the bike daily and on all types of roads so the Michelins hybrid type of tires was the most ideal but I will need another setup for the snowy Finnish winter-season.

Many NX650 builders just leave an empty gap after removing the stock air filter box. I decided to build a storage box and covered it with the same leather as the seat. It’s really big and goes through the whole frame and fits my tablet, phone with charger, and a couple of beers. All the electrical components are under the seat and the Shorai Lithium battery is fitted between the frame and the tank.

I left the attachments for the baggage rack in the rear, and can now attach it quickly to have my dry-bag fitted.

After some work on the clutch this baby wheelies a lot. I noticed that the crankcase breather spitted oil in the air filter when you wheelie. So I fitted a separate crankcase breather in the front and high up on the bike…problem solved.

Many of the fuel and oil hoses are now transparent, its nice to see the engine pumping oil and gas around while running.

The visible parts are a huge mixture of different bikes, all I don’t even know where they are from. The front mudguard is from Yamaha XT660, and it is meant to be mounted onto the tire and pointing backward. The rear fender is from an old Harley.

The tank is a CB 125 K5. This is a tank that not very people use on the Dominator, since the fuel tap collides with the frame. (The normal choice would be the CG125.) I found this tank and just loved it and refused to make any changes to it. So I made changes on the frame instead so the fuel tap fits. I think it’s real charming with all the dents and scratches. 

The blue bates style front light came with a chrome ring and I started to look for something more matching. I ended up putting a copper frame on it and it looks great. Brakes are stock but I have given them some golden color like many other parts in the build. Seat is custom made; I sketched the looks and a local seat upholstery made it.

Exhaust looks like stock but has been modified to fit the new frame and they are just for looks, they are quite empty on the inside and the sound is awesome. The steering bar is a modified MX type bar, I used a grinder to remove the support bar and changed the angle a bit and then added some color and brown grips.

A black mini speedometer with illumination was installed to keep track of the speed.

Follow The Builder

Follow Janne on Instagram:  @janne418

Here at BikeBound, we’re suckers for father/son builds.  That’s because this blog is largely a father/son endeavor, and there’s nothing like a motorcycle to bring generations together.  This time, it’s a 1982 CB450T Hawk, decked out as a street tracker by Tyler Thompson and his father, Brent.  Tyler, who as 16 at the time, came up with the idea for the build and followed through with it, helped along here and there by dad.

Brent and Tyler Thompson

The go-to platform for street tracker builds is the Yamaha XS650, but the Thompson men are Honda die-hards, so Tyler decided on the parallel twin CB450T, an evolution from the earlier CB400 and CB360 air-cooled twins.  What a great choice.  Dubbed the “Hawk,” the CB450T was known to be much smoother than competitors like the XS400, given its twin counterbalancers, and the 447cc motor offered a respectable 45 horsepower at 9000 rpm.

We’ll let Brent describe the rest of the build from here.

“Triple 3” CB450T Tracker:  In the Builder’s Words

As young boy I can remember heading to Welland County Speedway (our local flat track) in the summer to watch the Flat Track races on Saturday nights. My sister’s boyfriend at the time (and now husband) was James Sehl. He hailed from one of the most legendary Flat Track racing families in Canada. His Uncles were Dave and Doug Sehl. They were both American Harley Davidson factory riders in the early 70’s. His Father Jim Sehl was the builder and tuner of these bikes, and all these years later he is still considered the “Godfather” of Flat Track. He currently sponsors and builds the bikes for our national #1 plate holder Donny Taylor.

I rode dirt bikes as a kid until my 20’s, but never raced them. Water skiing and wakeboarding took over the next 10 years for me. At 29 I found myself gravitating back to the dirt bikes again. My son Tyler was just a couple years old and his interest in motorcycles was already ridiculous. In fact his first word was “dogma,” which a couple months later we found out meant “dirt bike.”

I was now racing the Steel City Riders full MX season and doing some CMRC races as well. By the time Tyler was 3 he had his first PW50 all decked out in training wheels. He joined in on the racing at 4 years old and has been racing ever since.

Build Process Collage

In 2005 I was competing for “Rider of the Year” at SCR. (The highest total amount of points in three different disciplines of racing). I was doing MX and CMA Hare scrambles and decided to try my hand at Flat Track to get the third discipline. I was hooked instantly (and won the overall rider of the year).

Shortly thereafter Tyler said he wanted to race flat track as well, so we tricked out his current Honda XR50 with an extended swingarm and an oversize jug and went racing. I guess that was our first build together.

As the years passed, we pulled back out of flat track racing because we both enjoyed MX just a little more, but we still go to Welland every Saturday night and watch the racing. The third generation of Sehl’s, Matt Sehl (my sister and James Sehl’s son) has made it up into the expert class we are there supporting him every race night.

It was in the parking lot of a Welland County flat track race that my son Tyler saw his first “street tracker.” It was a beautiful Yamaha XS 650 all tricked out with an aftermarket flat track fibreglass body, seat and even number plates. Tyler instantly fell in love. He said “Dad…I want to build one.” And that’s how this build all started.

Tyler and I are both Die Hard Honda riders so naturally he wanted to build a street tracker out of a Honda. Problem is all the kits you can buy online are for the most common build the Yamaha XS650. So we decided to build one that’s unique. Off to Kijiji he went and decided the Honda CB450 was a great engine and frame to work with on this project. He wanted to keep the theme of the “Twin” as all flat trackers are either singles or twins.

Tyler found a good donor ’82 CB450T and organized the meet. It was fair, ran rough, had loose forks and made a crazy cam chain noise. But he bought it (with his own money). He rode it for the remainder of the summer while we came up with ideas and mocks for the planned winter build. My sister Kary Sehl and husband James heard of the build and donated a cracked up fibreglass racing tail and seat that was once on one of their race bikes. The stock subframe had to be completely cut off and rebuilt to make this work. We then headed out to Zdeno Cycle to find a tank that would complement the racing tail and come close to fitting the seat. We decided on an old Honda CB650 Nighthawk tank. Of course the tank was all dented and beat up but we took it home anyways. Tyler stripped the paint and did all the bodywork himself to fix the dents and get the lines to match with the tail and seat. He also added 5 layers of fibreglass to the tail section to stiffen it up and make it roadworthy.

Once we had the tail and tank starting to look like one, it was time to cut the frame. Modify the backbone to accept the new tank and Weld on a fabricated entire new subframe. The subframe was also built to accept the new rear shocks, taillight, led blinkers and licence plate.

The front forks were excessively loose so we tore them apart to find a missing slider bushing. A complete rebuild and all new bushings had them up and running like new.

We dropped the engine and completely tore it down. We discovered a cam chain tensioner bolt lying in the transmission and a completely plugged oil sump pick up. We replaced the cam chain and put in some fresh piston rings to tighten things up a little. We removed the stock muffler and modified the head pipes to accept new Emgo reverse megaphone mufflers. True duals really finished off the look. Tyler also wrapped the headers in black fibreglass heat wrap to keep that old school racing feel.

We installed pod filters and changed the jetting accordingly. While the carbs were apart we also discovered the reason why they bike ran poorly, the right carb had the primary and secondary Jets reversed.

While the engine was being torn apart we sent the body work and tank to another friend of the racing circle David Drowns. He has two boys who also race at SCR and asked if he could be the one to paint the bike. He wanted to keep the build in the family. We came up with a beautiful old school colour scheme with some fun current colours. He refused to use decals under the clear so all the emblems and striping is all just paint.

We rewired the entire bike. Relocated the keyswitch to the lower frame and installed and “Acewell” all in one speedo console for a super clean look. Updated the levers the match the bike theme and a café style single mirror.

To complete the look we were going for here we ordered actual flat track side number plates. Tyler has raced all his life with #333. So we thought it would be fun to call this bike the “Triple 3”, of course done in the same old school black and gold trim.

When the day finally came to fire it back up again we knew we had a winner. She came to life sounding like we were at the races. A true tracker sound and feel. The bike is very agile, and the engine responds with a crack of the throttle and a roar out the tailpipes like its going into corner 3 at Welland.

Seeing Tyler head out on his maiden voyage will be one of the most cherished memories of all for me. We spent the whole winter in the garage. Building, teaching, learning and bonding.Building something that is truly unique and most of all, making his dream a reality.

The only problem now is everywhere he goes, he comes back late. The bike gains so much interest people are constantly stopping him to talk about it. And of course he is willing to tell the whole story all over again.

Follow the Builders

• Follow Tyler on Instagram:  @t_dot33
• Follow Brent on Instagram:  @bt233

The Thompson men

During our Florida swing last fall, we were fortunate enough to meet “Presidente Daniel” of the Vintage Iron Club, a community of like-minded vintage bike enthusiasts based in Palm Beach County. He let us know that he was working on a very special raffle bike for the club’s upcoming festival, Iron & Clematis 3.  The bike is this 1972 CB350 Street Tracker, and it will be raffled off to raise funds for the Paley Foundation, a charitable organization and institute dedicated to finding alternatives to amputation for children:

The Paley Foundation is dedicated to changing the current standard of care from amputation and a life of prosthetics to innovative and proven limb reconstruction and lengthening whenever possible.

This is a great chance to win a one-of-a-kind bike, and all funds go toward a great cause.  Below, we let Daniel give us the low-down on the build.

1972 CB350 Tracker:  In the Builder’s Words

I bought this bike in four boxes, completely torn apart–heads off, jug off, engine out–basically it was frame and a bike in a box deal. I built the bike and sold it twice to friends on payment deals–stupid mistake. Got it back both times and the second time the kid had screwed it up by doing several things, trying to fix it himself, running a fresh build too hard, and storing the bike in the rain for four months. I got back a bike that was running bad and falling apart. So after two failed sales attempts and keeping the few payments I got from them, I decided it was time to do something good with the bike.

I donated it to the club for our annual raffle bike. A lot of us pulled it together to help bring a great bike back once again!

I fabricated the bike into a Street Tracker this time around. To save me time, DJ at Jupiter Cycle and Racing stepped in to help out. He took the engine from me and rebuilt it again from head to toe and all for free to help out the charity. He also did the test and tune to get her purring!

• Loud Mouth Customs painted the bike for free for the charity.
• Avon Tires donated the tires.
• Legendary Motorcycles donated the seat pan and cushion.
• Benjie’s Cafe Racers High Side stainless steel exhaust: donated by me.

And the club members all threw in parts to help bring her back again.

Iron & Clematis Vintage Motorcycle Festival

So now on Feb 13th at Iron & Clematis 3 Vintage Motorcycle festival she will be raffled off to one lucky winner! Tickets for the raffle can be bought at HERE.

You do not have to be present to win. Look up http://www.thepaleyfoundation.org to see the charity details.

Our club VP Bart Springer hooked us up with this charity. It’s such a great cause. These kids are so tough and knowing we are helping them by saving limbs is such a great cause.

Event Time/Location

Saturday, February 13 11am-8pm
500 Clematis
West Palm Beach, Florida
Bikes 25 years and older

 Show Highlights

• The Urias Family Glob of Death Motorcycle Daredevil act.
• Pin Up show.
• Four live bands.
• Bike judging.
• Silent auctions to win painted seat and tank set ups by some of the top guys and gals in the industry.
• Product raffles.

It’s truly is a festival not a kick the tire bike show.

El Presidente Daniel
Vintage Iron Club
RUST NEVER SLEEPS
vintageironclubmc@gmail.com

Follow Vintage Iron Club

• Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/VintageIronClub
• Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/vintageironclub/
• Web:  http://www.vintageironclub.org

Cafe Racer SSpirit of San Sebastian, Spain, consistently turns out some of our favorite builds.  We’ve shared their R51 scrambler and, more recently, we featured their Honda CBX custom, whose six-into-one custom exhaust sounds like nothing so much as an F1 car loosed on the public streets. Now the boys from San Sebastian are back with another “CBX”…only this time, it’s quite possibly one you’ve never heard of:  a 1982 CBX400F.

The CBX400F (1981-1983) followed in the footsteps of the beloved CB400F, but it was superior in almost every way:  power, handling, braking, comfort.  The only catch?  It was only available in Japan.  The bike, which offered 48 horsepower and redlined 11,500 RPM, could outrun all of the 400-450cc twins, and a great many of the 500-550cc bikes of the era.  In 1982, Cycle Guide said of the bike:

“The CBX400F wails like a runaway air-raid siren as the engine approaches redline, and the shrieking resonates inside your helmet so loudly that it’s all you can hear. The intake roar alone is menacing enough, as though you and the seat are about to be sucked into the 26mm Keihin CV carbs at any second. And you can’t help but feel that something—a piston, a rod, perhaps one of the 16 valves that is being hammered open almost 100 times a second—is going to come flying up and eunuchize you on the spot.”

That’s a description that even the great Hunter S. Thompson would admire, and it only makes us lust harder for this unobtanium machine.  We’ll let Hugo from Cafe Racer SSpirit give you the rest of the story.

CBX400F Cafe Racer/Brat:  In the Builder’s Words

We were seeking a different build. We were also interested in building a medium displacement bike for city riding. Low cc, but with some power. We came across a very interesting bike, and thought something nice could be done. The bike was pretty low mileage and needed some attention. It was a great opportunity!

The CBX400 was a bike which was just sold in Japan. At this time, it was pretty much a futuristic machine, with many technological advances. It reached 11k rpm and developed 48 horsepower, which is more than 10 horses and 1500 rpm higher than the CB400F.

We wanted to build a clean bike. Stock tank was just not appropriate for the build, so we decided a Kawasaki one would fit it much better. We couldn’t have chosen a better tank!

The subframe is an interesting part also because of the monolever. We proceeded to do the U subframe and next step was changing the monolever to a more sporty one. This change not only improved the handling of the bike, but also thanks to it, the Firestone Deluxe had more space in between with the back fender.

The result, a good looking 400cc bike, with a thin & elegant tank fitted and the motor standing out also. In relation to the exhaust, we had very good experience with the Marving Race exhaust fitted in previous builds, so this was the one we fitted. The Marving exhaust works very well with the K&N filters.

For the color of the tank we got inspired by the BMW 1M. As we said before, it’s a little but powerful bike! Since the tank is Kawasaki also, the orange color suits it also perfect!

Chrome front and back headlights were chosen so that it could get along with the exhaust and rims also.

Follow the Builder

Cafe Racer SSpirit:  Facebook | Instagram | Web

Today, we’re excited to present one of the sexiest, most well-sorted Honda CB cafe racers we’ve come across:  “Class Act,” a 1977 CB550 built by Bill Docchio of Sin City Vintage Cycles and owned by Tim Gerst of Boynton Beach, Florida.

We had the pleasure of seeing this bike in the flesh last weekend at Iron & Clematis 3 in Palm Beach, put on by Vintage Iron Club, and it’s truly incredible.  Builder Bill Docchi works out of a very well-outfitted personal garage, and his attention to detail is unparalleled.  This bike has so many small but mighty touches, from the handmade tank (welded to the bottom of the stock tank to retain the original rubber mountings) to the hand-formed seat pan and tail section to the custom-milled velocity stacks, and the bike was Dyno-tested to dial in the carbs.

We’ll let Bill Docchio give you the full story.

“Class Act” CB550:  In the Builder’s Words

A little bit of background of myself and Sin City Vintage Cycles. I grew up in a motorcycle shop here in Waterbury, CT, called Doc’s Motorcycle Parts. My father opened the shop back in 1969, and my earliest childhood memories are of spending time in the shop and all of my dreams and aspirations involved motorcycles. Even in those early days, I was addicted to racing bikes, drag racing, motocross, hill climb, road racing…I just loved all aspects of motorcycle racing. So when I got older and started working on and building bikes, I always had that racing influence and tried to incorporate that simple form and function design into anything I built. The other major influence I take is from the Harley scene where bikes were usually built with overall appearance being the most important design element. So in general, when I am building a bike, I try to first make the bike perform and handle to the best of its ability, second I try to make the bike as simple and clean as possible, and lastly I then try to make it as appealing to the eye as possible. Sure at times there has to be concessions made to each of those aspects, but overall this is what I set out to accomplish.

Eventually I left my father’s shop to pursue a different career path, and after a couple years of being out of the motorcycle industry, I got the itch to start building bikes again. I built and sold a couple bikes and people started to take notice so I started Sin City Vintage Cycles. What makes my shop different than a lot of the others out there is that I work out of my garage. Granted most garages don’t have 3 bike lifts, a Bridgeport, lathe and metal working tools in them, but I am able to build bikes with zero overhead costs. I build these bikes because I love to build bikes and not to make money, so that is very important to me. I am also able to pick and choose the projects that I work on. For me, to build a bike for a client a couple things have to align properly. It has to be a brand and model bike that really appeals to me and the client and I have to have a clear understanding of what the finished bike will look like. If all these things match up then we move forward. And finally, I think the most important thing that separates me from other builders is that I only build one motorcycle at a time. For me it is the only way I can truly build a one of a kind custom where I can dedicate the proper amount of time and attention to every single detail of that motorcycle.

So Tim Gerst contacted me because he saw a bike I had built advertised for sale. He wanted to build a heavily modified CB550 and his vision for the bike mostly matched what I wanted to do with one. So after emailing back and forth and solidifying some details I got to work. I first had to find a bike for him because he didn’t own a CB550, so after searching I found the perfect bike–0nly problem is that it was 12 hours from me in Ohio somewhere. I’m not going to lie, that drive sucked, but it was well worth it because although the bike wasn’t running, it was straight and functional. The process of building the bike was the same as all my bikes. I start with stripping all the unnecessary crap and electrical, cut the back half of the frame off, and start building back up. Tim’s bike is cool because the supports on the frame to support the rider and rear shocks were completely changed to give a more aggressive weight forward riding position, while making the back half look cleaner. After that I moved to the gas tank. I cut the original gas tank so that just the bottom of the tank was left. This allowed me to retain Honda’s original rubber mounting which keeps vibrations to a minimum. So the top of the tank is built and welded to the original bottom and the end result is a handmade tank utilizing stock mounting. Shock mounts were then modified to look cleaner and give the proper tire to frame clearance, the seat pan and tail section were hand formed, rear set mounts were welded on the frame, unnecessary mounting tabs removed, and from there it is disassembled.

While the frame and bodywork were off to paint I then go through the motor. Completely disassembled, polished, powder coating, replacing any worn parts and reassembly. When the frame returns from paint, it’s reassembly time, and this is where I really enjoy the building process. As the build progresses I try to perfect every aspect of parts, spacers, mounting, and positioning of various components. Because we weren’t running a front fender, the fender mounting bosses on the lower legs were removed in the lathe to give the lowers a clean look. Aluminum spacers were made to join the gators to the lower tree so wire ties weren’t needed. I milled an aluminum upper triple tree, an ignition cover, and too many to list mounts and spacers. I wanted to use velocity stacks but I disliked any of the aftermarket ones so I milled four velocity stacks and built screens into them to keep and rocks or road grime from being thrown in them from the rear tire. Laced and trued the wheel hubs to aluminum rims with stainless Buchanan spokes. Once the bike was finished, I used the dyno at Doc’s to get the carburetors dialed in. While it was time consuming and I probably tried 25 different jet combinations I was able to get the stock carburetors with velocity stacks perfectly jetted which I was told numerous times couldn’t be done. Maybe it was dumb luck but the bike runs as good as it looks.

I am happy with the end result, my client Tim loves the bike, and for me the most satisfying part is that if I had a CB550 café racer, this is the exact bike I would have built for myself.

Contact the Builder

Contact Bill Docchio of Sin City Vintage Cycles:  Email | Instagram

Video Walk-around

The Honda CL77, also known as the Scrambler 305, was the scrambler version of the CB77 Super Hawk.  The bike had a larger-diameter frame than the CB, and the starter was eliminated to reduce weight and run a larger front downtube.  The 305cc parallel twin offered 28.5 horsepower, with a redline of 9000 rpm, and the machine’s off-road prowess was proven when Larry Berquist and Gary Griffen won the 1968 Baja 1000 astride a CL77.

Today, we have a very special 1965 Honda CL77 tracker built by Dillon Sheppard of San Rafael, California, who is just 20 years old!  Obviously, we have a bit of a prodigy on our hands.  We’ll let Dillon give you the full scoop.

CL77 Street Tracker:  In the Builder’s Words

Beginnings

My names Dillon Sheppard and I’m 20 years old and have just finished restoring my first vintage bike. I’m great friends with Davo Giusti, one of the best Honda guys around the Bay Area and he inspired me to build my own bike one day while I was just sitting around his hobby shop. He brought me over to his trailer and rolled out a rusty beat up cl 77.

It wasn’t a pretty sight but over the next few months with the help from friends I brought it back to life. And there was a boat load of amazing stories along the way, from having to use an air chisel to get the pistons out, to trying to pop wheelies with one motor mount bolt in and no tank or seat cause I couldn’t wait to ride it.

When it comes to custom parts the biggest aspect that stands out at first glance would have to be the exhaust. When I started out I wanted an exhaust no one else with a Honda scrambler had. Davo and I bounced ideas off each other until one day I was given a shortened GSXR muffler from a friend Richard building his own tracker, a Yamaha XS 650, and once I saw it I knew I was going to make the 2 into 1 work.

From there I took some pieces of stainless exhaust pipe and started figuring out the routing. That was the easy part however. Davo gave me two super hawk downpipes that I had to make fit into the stainless collector, they were nicely chromed though so I didn’t want to cut them too much. In the end it worked out, but not without a lot of marking and cutting and welding!

Other than the exhaust the bike is put together with lots of different parts. The tank, off an SL175 wouldn’t fit the original petcock because it hit one of the carburetors. So I made a block off plate and silver soldered it on and instead used the crossover tubes to individually feed the carbs, using inline petcocks.

For the XR seat kit I wanted a sub frame that was sturdy and easy to work on and could hide the wiring. Which leads to the electronics. I didn’t want a battery or really anything but the very basics. The wiring includes a regulator and capacitor so the headlight can be run. Otherwise it’s very basic, only three wires run from the cap to the front of the bike, power to the coils, headlight, and ground.

The bikes been a lot of fun to build and is even more fun to ride and I couldn’t have done it without the help of Davo and everyone else down at his shop in San Rafael.

The Honda CM400 was an air-cooled parallel twin available from 1979 to 1982.  It was a precursor to the Rebel, and known as a particularly bulletproof starter bike.  Max Droog of Phoenix’s Droog Moto Concepts set out to sex up one of these 80s machines, building a scrambler/tracker hybrid he calls a “Strambler.”  We’ll let him give you the full story.

CM400 “Strambler”:  In the Builder’s Words

This build is transformed from a 1981 Honda CM400C. Features a lot of cool additions. Mono shock conversion, hand built trellis sub frame, custom tank that was stripped down and clear coated. I installed a BMW R1200GS steering damper with handmade mounts. The headlight is mounted upside down to fit and be tucked in the forks, also with handmade mounts.

The bike is a scrambler/tracker hybrid I like to call a ‘Strambler.’ Super fun bike to ride, really a go any where type of ride! Custom single sided exhaust that has a nice growl to it. Build was all done by me including paint work and fabrication!

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Droog Moto Concepts:  Email | Instagram | Web

Argentina’s Herencia Custom Garage, based in Buenos Aires, has quickly become one of our favorite builders.  We recently featured their incredible R100 tracker, and now they are back with their 34th build, this 1994 Honda XR600R street tracker.

“HCG” is an extension of the menswear brand Herencia Argentina, which is heavily involved in the country’s custom culture scene.  Federico Lozada and German Karp build custom bikes to order, as well as hot rods and rat rods. German gave us the full specs on this, their newest beauty.

XR600R Street Tracker:  Details

• Bike: XR600R, 1994
• Forks:  KTM690 w/Brembo caliper
• Bars:  Pro Taper
• Hand controls: CRF donor bike, Shimano Short Reach lever
• Lights:  Dual KC LEDs
• Tank:  Custom modified
• Tail:  Herencia Custom Garage w/integrated light and glovebox
• Rear Shock:  Redone at Ivan’s shop
• Wheels:  19/18 Avon Distanzia on Takasago rims
• Alloy Akainik chainring
• FLO MX footpegs (a pain in the a– to adapt them)
• Stainless Exhaust with Herencia custom-designed muffler
• New carb with UNI filter
• The charging system was upgraded with a new one who charges a battery to run the dual KC’s
• Subframe rebuilt at HCG
• Motor:  Ultra-detailed by IVAN MOTORS, who forced us to build one of the cleanest and most detailed bikes that we have built.
• Also has a surfboard carrier!
• Paint by Alejandro Minissale of Minissale Paint Shop

Photos by Pablo Franco.

Follow the Builder

• German Karp:  @karp_hcg
• Federico Lozada:  @fedecubik
• Herencia Custom Garage:  Web
• Herencia Argentina:  Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Web

Today, we’re proud to present this 1985 Honda CB750 RC04 (Nighthawk) brat bike by Sven Schmidt of Germany’s Smith Cycles.  The RC04 was the German version of the Nighthawk.  Though  customs are a dime a dozen these days, this particular CB immediately leapt out at us with this low, mean lines and attitude.  Some bikes just have that “It Factor,” and this is one.

Honda Nighthawk Brat Bike:  In the Builder’s Words

(This has been translated from the original German.)

Hi, I’m Sven from Halle (Saale), located in Germany! I have a 1984 Honda CB750 RC04, rebuilt to be a bratstyle bike. The Honda had run 34,000 km in the initial state. I had to rebuild the engine, replace the clutch basket, and with the open air filter, I went with larger jets, so it runs beautifully. Then I devoted myself to the rear frame, cutting off the old and welding on a new loop. I wanted to build it such that my wife could ride with me on long-distance group rides.

I had to revise the whole electrical system–all the electronics that were located in the headlight have been moved under the seat. I wanted to go with a Bates headlight. I moved the whole ignition under the bench seat and included a Li-Po battery. The electrical system was actually the biggest task of all.

Besides that, the fork has been cut, the bike fitted with shorter dampers. The speedometer has been fitted with control lights, and here and there little things have been changed. The seat I built myself with fiberglass and leather, and the tank was painted white/candy red, and applied with multiple coats of clear lacquer.

Overall, I invested about two months of work. I think all in all, the bike has become quite pretty. My next project is a Honda CB900 SC01 Café Racer.

Cheers from Germany!

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Follow Smith Cycles on Instagram:  @smith_cycles

There is nothing quite like the blood-singing mania of screwing the throttle of a big two-stroke. Sadly, there are few of these blue-smoking screamers still around. Even at their height, the suspension and brakes of these machine-age banshees lagged behind their power.

Enter Keith Carlson of Indianapolis and his RD400 cafe hybrid. Keith, in a stroke of genius, has mated a ported and polished 1977 RD400 motor to a 2002 Honda CRF450R frame, creating one of the wildest scream machines we have ever featured.  We will let Keith give you the full details of the build.

Custom RD400/CRF450F Cafe Racer:  In the Builder’s Words

The bike started as two projects. A 2002 Honda CRF450R and a 1977 Yamaha RD400. The Honda chassis was used and the stock Showa suspension was shortened; the wheels were switched to 18″ Excel with Buchanan spokes. All the stock Honda Nissan brakes were used also. The engine, control switches, and wiring harness was used from the Yamaha RD400.

The RD400 is a 1977 twin cylinder 2-stroke. The engine was then dismantled, the cases were hydroblasted in PA, the cylinders were sent to Team Scream Racing in FL where they were ported. Original DG radial heads were modified and VForce 3 reeds added. The stock ignition points system was replaced with an MZB Powerdynamo ignition.

The fabrication began with Porterbilt Motorcycles and Hot Rods in Indianapolis. Here the motor was placed and centered in the frame and the initial design ideas were set in place. The final fabrication was then completed at Drinan Racing, also in Indianapolis. Here, Dan Drinan hand built the fuel tank, subframe, frame cradle, headlight bucket, and exhaust mounts. All the aluminum was then polished. Nothing is painted on the bike.  It is anodized, powdercoated or polished. Here is a list of the details:

• Engine:  RD400 Yamaha 1977, Vforce 3 reeds, MZB ignition, DG Heads, ported cylinders.
• Frame:  2002 Honda CRF450, stock hubs, Showa suspension, Nissan brakes, Excel rims, Buchanan spokes.
• Miscellaneous:  Bike is a premix only 32:1 Klotz oil and has storage under the seat for three 8oz bottles.

More RD400 Pictures

Max Droog of Droog Moto Concepts, based in Phoenix, has been turning out some incredible builds.  Recently we featured his CM400 scrambler build, and now he’s back with this burly scrambler based on an ’81 Honda XR500. The XR500, introduced in 1978, was the first model of the venerable Honda XR model line. In 1981, Honda discarded the unpopular 23″ front wheel for a 21-incher, and debuted the single-shock, “Pro-Link” rear suspension.

We’re big fans of dual-sport based customs, and Max outdid himself with this bike.  He wanted to build a scrambler that not only looked rad, but could go anywhere.  We’ll let him give you the full rundown on the build.

XR500 Custom Scrambler:  In the Builder’s Words

I picked this bike up and could tell that it was going to need a lot of work. It was missing just about everything and looked like it was sitting outside for the last 10 years. I brought it home, got it running and started to figure out my lines.

I went through the entire motor, new Wiseco oversized piston, timing chain, all seals and gaskets to name a few. I knew that I wanted a rad looking scrambler, something unique, different, something that could go anywhere!

I first decided that the original front end had to go. It had drum style front brakes that sucked horribly so I swapped the front end out for a CR250 front end. Nice adjustable inverted forks with awesome hydraulic brakes. I then chopped up the tail, went with the classic style hoop and added some support mounts for extra rigidity.

After some frame work I picked up a Honda CL350 gas tank and fitted that with hand built mounts. The tank is odd, its more or less a two piece tank that has fittings on the bottom to let the left and right side transfer gas to one another, so fitting that along with the cross over tubes was a treat, but made it possible. I then stripped off all the 30+ year old paint and gave it a muriatic gasoline mix bath and let it sit and age, which really darkened the metal and gave it that old weathered look. At first, I was skeptical about the seat to tank gap, as usual rule is that everything should flow as one, but I think on a build like this the gap actually works quite well and shows off the build aspect on how the tank is put together and mounts, so I left it!

I fitted the exhaust to follow the rear frame and exit up high by the tail light. I fitted a small taillight in the rear to make it street legal along with the headlight. The headlight is recessed in a tracker style setting. I used caged mesh and stainless sheet metal to make the housing for the light and added some rivets for an industrial feel. I wanted to keep that touch so came up with the sheet metal front fender that was bent and worked to flow with the lines.

The bars where swapped out with 1 1/8” fat bars and super comfortable Biltwell grips. I wrapped the wheels in Kenda BigBlock tires that are actually awesome on the street and in the dirt. A TrailTech endurance speedo was added and has a lot of nice options for the rider. Overall this bike has to be one of the funnest bikes I have ridden. It has suspension for days, and a real get the F*** out of my way attitude. It is also for sale too!

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Droog Moto Concepts:  Email | Instagram | Web

Coffee + Bikes:  The Perfect Combination

Ian Davis is the founder of Blip Roasters, a premier coffee roaster in the West Bottoms of Kansas City, Missouri.  Blip has been building a community based around coffee, motorcycles, and sustainability. Their philosophy is music to our ears:

“Riding moves us through life, and coffee is our opportunity to re-align during the curves thrown by the daily grind.”

Recently, we caught sight of Ian’s 1976 Honda CB550 Four while he was blasting through Tennessee alongside Danielle Vee, moto-goddess extraordinaire.  We were immediately struck by those wide vintage-style enduro bars, that stubby subframe, and the beautiful paint job by Nick Rodriguez of NRodzOriginals. Here was a build we had to have on the blog!

Ian built the bike with Anchor Moto, a custom chopper shop in Kansas City.  Ricky Anchor was kind enough to give us the full scoop on the build.

Honda CB550 Brat/Tracker:  In the Builder’s Words

The major portion of the build was actually the motor. Ian’s bike was leaking and just real crusty. This was the catalyst for the redo. I tore down the entire bike to the ground. I rebuilt the top end with fresh rings, valve job, new timing chain, and new gaskets everywhere.

From there the frame got chopped up a little. I moved the loop that was already on it and moved it forward 6 inches to get the short subframe proportions correct. Cut a seat pan out and put the foam I always use on it. A local upholstery shop did the design I drew for them and also did the cross bar pad.

I cut a section of Model A spare tire ring for the rear fender. Then molded it in around the frame rail. Ian spent some afternoons at my shop doing some of the shit work. Like grinding tabs off, smoothing out rails, and really giving the bike a good cleaning.

Nick Rodriguez did the amazing paint job on the tank and fender. This paint made the whole build come together and pushed us to get the bike to the caliber of the paint.

Once the frame was painted we started with the delicate operation of putting everything back together. Clean. Polish, loctite, repeat. Every part was done this way. I wired the entire bike and had it running proper after check the timing and set up the points correctly.

Bike runs flawless and really is a good handling motorcycle. Done on a budget but nothing was overlooked. We found some vintage style mx bars and put new controls up front for a more seamless look and they perform better.

My shop is called Anchormoto. Been building bikes for 13 years and do everything from bikes like Ian’s to full blown vintage Harley choppers. I’ll do service and general problem solving on any bike pre-1980. There are plenty of other shops that can work on new bikes I really like and only have love for vintage cycles.

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• Anchor Moto:  Facebook | Instagram | Web
• Blip Roasters:  Facebook | Instagram | Web

Hat tip to Danielle Vichinsky for turning us onto this build!

Argentina has been turning out some killer customs of late, especially trackers. Recently we discovered Low Budget Customs, aka LBC Motorcycles, of Buenos Aires, and we were blown away by the array of builds in their portfolio. Seb and his partner, JC, have built more than 130 since starting their shop. For our feature, we settled on “Class of ’76,” a retro-styled tracker build based on a 2013 Honda Tornado.

The Tornado is the Latin American version of the Honda XR250L, with a DOHC four-valve engine producing 23 horsepower.  A very popular bike in Argentina, the Tornado is quickly becoming a favorite among custom builders. This particular build leapt out at us with the long bench seat, padded tank, and tracker-style number plate.

Honda Tornado/XR250 Tracker Build Story

The man who commissioned the build owned a number of motocross and enduro bikes during the 1980s. He wanted a build would call to mind that vintage motocross nostalgia. Seb and the team at LBC started with some preliminary sketches, then kicked off the build.

The team modified the sub-chassis, installing a flat bench seat, and moved all of the electronics into a box beneath the seat.  They installed a flat track-inspired number plate, complete with headlight, and Renthal bars with Biltwell grips. According to Seb, the hardest part was making the stock tank fit with the vintage-inspired look.

We think they did a wonderful job, with tank’s pinstriping perfectly matching the angle of the seat.  The tank pad is a fine additional touch, and the large tank size is reminiscent of a Paris-Dakar adventure bike.

About Low Budget Customs

According to Seb:

About LBC, it started as a hobby in 2013 building the first bike for a friend who liked how we used to customize our bikes with very little money at that time, but with big results. That’s how we opened the first custom bike shop, really tiny, and from that moment to present, we (me and my buddy/partner JC) have built around 130 bikes of all kinds. We have a huge garage right now that used to be a car repair shop until the mechanic that had been working there since the 70s retired. We have customize it, too, and it’s packed with bikes waiting to came to life!

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Follow LBC Motorcycles:  Facebook | Instagram | Web

Other Argentine Trackers

• Honda XR600 Tracker by HCG
• BMW R100 Tracker by HCG
• Kawasaki KLR250 by Triple Ocho
• Suzuki GSX750 by Triple Ocho
• Honda XR250 Tracker by Gonzalo Ortigoza

The Honda GB500 TT (“Tourist Trophy”) was inspired by the Isle of Man TT racers of the 1960s, bikes like the Manx Norton and BSA Gold Star. Then, as now, TT riders braved the 37-mile Snaefell Mountain Course, blasting through tiny villages and between stone walls at unbelievable speed.  Like those old trophy racers, the GB500 is an air-cooled single, and even fresh from the showroom floor, the bike offered a slew of cafe racer design cues:  clip-ons, wire wheels, solo seat, and tank with knee grips. Though not the most powerful or sophisticated machine, the bike garnered a cult following, and many owners got hold of their bikes via the gray market.

Steve Jones, the owner of this beautiful GB, has invested in a number of tasteful modifications that retain the original identity of this rare machine while improving the performance, looks, and handling. We will let him give you the full scoop.

Custom GB500 TT:  In the Builder’s Words

The bike was in need of much TLC when I purchased it privately from a Velocette enthusiast; he had used this machine as a general runabout and neglected the maintenance. Despite this I paid over the odds for it because it was a very rare bike here in the UK; they were never officially sold here by Honda.

The first thing I did was completely strip it so I could repaint the frame and soda-blast the years of grime on the engine. While this was being done I sent the tank, side panels and front fender off to the paint shop to have it repainted in the original Honda Black/Green with Gold pin striping and new graphics.

After reading a few articles about the California models having the anti-smog pump and very restrictive exhaust system, I decided to remove it all. I sourced a custom-made Jack Batson stainless steel exhaust system, which is considered by fellow GB owners to be the best money can buy.

The removal of the anti-smog pump is very easy, but you need to blank off the front of the engine and fit rubber caps on the vacant nipples left on the Keihin Carb.

I decided that I wanted to café race the appearance to my own personal taste, but did not want to take away its original identity. I obtained some classic shrouded Hagon shocks to give it the more 60s classic look. The fairing is a universal Ducati 900ss style, but I had to make the cradle and mounting brackets.

The standard clip-ons were not suitable with this fairing and the only way around the problem was to purchase a set of Tommaselli fully adjustable clip-ons. Then, because of the extreme angle of the bars, I had to fit a remote master cylinder with reservoir. The fairing also went to the paint shop to be colour-matched.

The Rearsets are from an XBR500 and were a perfect fit, although my very old aching knees are finding them a little too extreme. The seat is a standard GB item but I got it reupholstered in calf skin and faux suede, just to be different.
The engine is standard although it spent five hours on a race Dyno trying suitable jets for the carb. It is now pulling about 45bhp at the back wheel.

She is a fabulous machine to ride and is completely at home on the fast twisty roads, with a top speed of 110mph which isn’t bad for a 500 thumper and considering that awful thing from India only puts out 27bhp.

We discovered this blown KZ650 by Magnum Opus Custom Bikes at this year’s Handbuilt Show, only to realize that this custom shop, run by Ezio Covelli, is located in the same town as our headquarters:  Wilmington, NC! Now Magnum Opus is back with this oh-so-wicked, bloodred CB750 “Brat Cafe.” We love a cafe racer capable of two-up riding, which was part of the concept of this machine, and we also loved the contrast of the worn, un-repainted engine with the rest of the build.

We will let builder Ezio give you the full details.

CB750 Brat Build:  In the Builder’s Words

This is a commissioned build from a customer out in Charlotte, NC, whose initials are C.J. When he commissioned this bike, there were no CB DOHC available in a 400 miles radius (at least in good condition and fairly priced).

So U had to literally buy all the parts separately from six different states:  frame, motor, suspension wheels,etc… I basically started with no bike A month later, after a lot of scrubbing and painting, I had 80% of the bike lying in front of me, so I quickly started putting everything together and started feeling again like I was working on something that I could actually ride one day.

The owner wanted the ability to transport a passenger, while keeping the package cafè racer oriented. So that’s the reason why a Brat/Cafè seemed the right way to go.

This specific color, pin striping, and decal were picked based on a very touching story that involves the loss of his brother. The paint job was done by Erik at Rare Air Werx in Wilmington, NC.

The seat and rear hoop were custom made to match the frame. Battery,wiring and electronics hidden within the lines of the bike and under the gas tank. LED strip onto the rear hoop for the tail, stoplight, and indicators. New headlight, indicators and brackets.

I got rid of the original controls in order to clean up the front end and machined and installed a new starter button within top triple tree nut. Everything else: cables, brake lines, instruments, clutch lever, master cylinder are new. The brake caliper has been rebuilt and the rotor drilled.

He didn’t want a freshly painted motor like most guys would; he went for the distressed look the motor earned in the past 36 years, and I must admit that contrasts beautifully with the new look and stance of the bike.

He was also looking for a particular grunt so we opted for straight pipes and jetted the carbs accordingly to guarantee a strong and steady pull throughout the whole RPM range.

The straight pipes make the bike sound like a Lambo and I’m not exaggerating You’ll get attention wherever you go. After all, loud pipes save lives

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• Magnum Opus Custom Bikes:  Facebook | Instagram | Web
• Rare Air Werx:  Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Web

The Honda CB900F, a successor to the venerable CB750, was introduced to European markets in 1979.  Later named the Honda Bol d’Or after the French endurance race–a nod to the machine’s racing heritage–the bike was designed to compete against the advanced DOHC fours from Kawasaki, Yamaha, and Suzuki.

In 1981, Motorcyclist magazine clocked a low quarter mile time of 11.84 seconds, and the 95-horsepower, air-cooled straight four was praised for its midrange punch.  The bike came standard with dual front disc brakes, as well as a rear disc, and the air-assisted fork featured Honda’s anti-dive control (TRAC).

Despite a habit of dropping out of gear and breaking con-rods, the bike was praised by many journalists of the period. Kevin Cameron of Cycle World has called the bike:

“The ultimate statement of the old air-cooled technology Honda had done so much to create.”

Known colloquially as the “Honda Boldor,” the CB900F often gets overlooked in custom circles in favor of its predecessor, the CB750. For this reason, we were especially excited to come across this custom CB900F scrambler by Vonsmotz of The Netherlands.

About Vonsmotz

Partners Richard and Lex share a common passions for making things, and their creative pursuits have included painting, industrial lamps, photography, graffiti, and later their own motorcycles. Both have day jobs, but hope to make Vonsmotz something more in the future. They have several projects in the works.

Honda “Boldor” Scrambler:  Build Info

The base bike is a 1982 CB900F, known in the Euro market as a Honda Bol d’Or or Boldor. The crew from Vonsmotz operates under the mantra:  less is less!

The bike was completely rebuilt from the frame up. The wheels were powder-coated, and the brown seat is made of nubuck leather. The dual headlights–one of our favorite aspects of the build–are Hella models from the 1970s. The rear shocks are custom-make Hagons. As for the exhaust, Richard says:

“It’s a loud modern ghettoblaster that makes your neighbours your best friends!”

We will soon be featuring another of vonsmotz’s builds, a Ducati 900SS scrambler. In the meantime, follow the builder on Instagram:  @vonsmotz

We’re always thrilled to showcase the first custom bike from a promising young builder.  Like first loves, there’s nothing quite like your first build. There’s that first fumbling through wiring looms, those hours spent over disassembled carburetors, that struggle to see what the bike looks like under all those layers of factory chrome and foam.  And there’s nothing quite like cracking the throttle for the first time on a public road, riding a bike you built in your own shed or garage.

Patrick Couturier of Gatineau, Quebec, certainly knows these sensations.  He bought this 1973 Honda CB500 on April 3rd and finished the build on June 12th…what a whirlwind!  We’ve been seeing a lot of neat customs come out of Canada of late, from Al Baljeu’s XS750 cafe racer to the CB450 tracker by father/son team Tyler and Brent Thompson.

The CB550 gets most of the attention in the custom scene, but its predecessor was a pretty neat machine. The CB500 Four was introduced in 1972, a 50-horsepower standard that offered similar styling to the CB750 and performance to rival the 650 twins of the day.  Motorcycle Mechanics called the bike a “show-stealer.”  The little machine could reportedly hit 115 mph, and a CB500 won the 1973 500cc TT Production race on one, beating out Suzuki T500 two-strokes. The bike was only produced from 1971-1973, as the CB550 came out in 1974.

CB500 Brat:  In the Builder’s Words

This is my first build. I bought it on April 3rd and rode it on June 12th! I tore it down completely and had the wheels, tree, tube, fender and frame powder coated.

Almost every thing is new except inside of the engine. This includes all cables, switches, electric ignition, mac 4/1 exhaust, Antigravity battery, and much more!

I had a machinist friend of mine make some new extra tight swingarm bushings, and the bike goes really well down the highway! I am looking forward to building another one soon!

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We were fortunate enough to meet Toby Jones of Florida’s OtC Custom Motorcycles at a show put on by the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club earlier this year.  We ended up featuring one of the bikes at that show, the shop’s KZ650, which stood out with a paint scheme inspired by the old Ford 8N tractor. Now Toby is back with another build, this time a CB400F cafe racer.

As you may know, the “F” here stands for “Four.”  The CB400 Four was available from 1975-1977.  It was the descendant of the CB350F, but offered more of a cafe racer look, with streamlined styling, lower bars, and rearset pegs.  Though these sporty little 37-hp fours couldn’t compete with the two-strokes of the day in terms of power and acceleration, the motoring press loved them for their sophistication, refinement, and pure fun.

Unfortunately, the CB400F didn’t sell very well in the States. Riders of the time didn’t like the cafe riding position or styling. Today, those same elements make these bikes a hot commodity for builders like Toby. We’ll let him give you the full story on the build.

CB400 Four Cafe Racer:  In the Builder’s Words

I’ve got kind of a “thing” for all midsize Japanese four bikes, but particularly the Honda CB400F bikes. When Honda brought these little bikes out 40 years ago the motorcycle press went crazy over them, but buyers in the USA didn’t dig them at all. The handlebars were too low, the pegs set too far back, they didn’t have four pipes coming out the back and they were just too plain looking to fit in the mid-seventies motorcycle scene.

Low and behold 40 years later, with the café racer deal and the vintage bike thing in full swing, bike nuts just can’t get enough of them. With their light weight, their ten grand redline and six speed tranny they are an absolute blast. I built one a few years back that I sold (bad move) and decided I really wanted to build another.

I don’t really do stock restorations, but dig other peoples restored bikes and would never start a build with a nice restorable bike. Besides with supplies of decent ones running low and prices running high it just doesn’t make sense.

This bike was listed as a parts bike with title that went along with a really nice high dollar one. It did run (kind of) but it had some typical wiring, missing parts etc. issues and the owner agreed to sell just the parts bike. The old bike was taken down to the bare frame and it was sent out to be sand-blasted and welded in a couple of weak places. It then, along with the swing arm battery box and a few other pieces, was given a coat of black urethane enamel.

The motor had a timing lock bolt broken off in the upper case (common CB400F deal) and someone had gone crazy with a drill trying to get it out so I located a used set of cases and cleaned them up. While it was apart the cylinders were honed and fitted with new rings and a valve job was done to freshen everything up. At this point the engine covers were all cleaned and hand polished.

On this build, because I wanted to preserve the things I dig about these little bikes, I stayed with the Parakeet yellow tank and black side covers, but did lay on some black stripes with red highlights. Also painted and striped a Legendary Motorcycles seat from Dime City Cycles.

My buddy Tom from Sarah Zentz Upholstery hooked me up on the seat cover. Dime City also supplied the mini tach and speedo that I fabricated a bracket for to clean up the cockpit.

The front was dropped about an inch and a half and the alloy clip on bars were fitted. New gas shocks were fitted to the rear to replace the mushy stockers and Excel alloy rims were laced up with new stainless spokes.

I had intended to go with a short reverse megaphone muffler, but after firing the bike up with the stocker (in respect for my neighbors) I discovered I really liked the way it sounded and may stay with it. Like all my stuff, with the exception of the upholstery, valve grind and sand blasting, everything was done right here in the garage.

After installing and tuning the carbs for the velocity stacks I’ve finally got to do some seat time on it. If you’ve never ridden one of these little pocket rockets you wouldn’t understand, but if you have you know what I’m talking about. The original designers had it right 40 years ago. It just took us time to catch up.

-Toby Jones

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The Honda FT500 Ascot is a rarity these days, an early 80s thumper styled after the Class-C flat-trackers.  In fact, FT stood for Flat Track, and Ascot was a reference to the famous California dirt track.  No wonder builders have been turning these lesser-known Honda singles into street trackers.

“Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery…”

Enter Sean Skinner of Motorelic, who built this incredible 1982 FT500, featured on Pipeburn earlier this year. The bike, decked out in Honda racing colors, was a big hit in the customs world.  Recently, we heard from Sjoerd Veenstra of Motolifestyle, who had shot a bike that looked strikingly similar:  this Honda FT500 street tracker by Tim Olgers of The Netherlands.

As it turns out, Tim–a paramedic in The Netherlands–loved Sean’s FT500 so much, he decided to try his hand at building such a bike for himself. Once we realized the close resemblance, we were wary of running the bike, but Sean and Tim worked it out. As they say, “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”

Both Tim and we at BikeBound want to ensure that Sean Skinner and Motorelic get credit for inspiring this build, and you can see more of Motorelic’s work on Facebook and Instagram @MOTORELIC.

Below, Tim gives us the full story on how this bike went from a non-runner to the beauty you see here.

Honda Ascot Street Tracker:  In the Builder’s Words

A few years ago, after a divorce, I started over in another town and with another job as a paramedic on the ambulance in The Netherlands. We have workshifts of 24 hours and after that we are free for a few days.

As I had a lot of time, I decided I could build a motorbike for myself in my little shed. I built a cb350f cafe racer, and from that day on i never stopped building bikes. The last one is this Honda FT500 that I found via marktplaats, a kind of Craigslist in the Hague in Holland.

I was looking for this particular bike because I had seen Sean Skinner’s FT500 build, and I would like to have such a great bike for myself! These bikes have never been sold in the Netherlands so finding one wasn’t as easy as I hoped, but I found one at the other side of the country. The guy I bought it from was a sixty year old former architect, and now that he lost his job, he was in motorbikes and surfing all day long.

The FT was a non-runner and the guy told me that while riding the bike he suddenly heard a loud bang and that the engine was revving very high after that happened. After that he couldn’t start it again and as he was not able to fix it he sold it to me. Together we threw the bike in the back of my car and the adventure began…

I stripped the bike and when I removed the head of the engine I saw that something had been in the combustion chamber that didn’t belong there…a lot of damage was done to the head, piston, and valves, and I found a few pieces of metal of which i didn’t have a clue where they came from… Later on I found out that it was the butterfly valve of the carburetor that had been sucked into the engine!

As there was so much damage, I decided to port and flow the head and put in new valves and a Wiseco forged piston. As the carburetor has seen better days, I swapped it for a brand new Mikuni vm38 with a uni filter. The whole engine was cleaned and new gaskets and seals were fitted and the worn starter engine system and pinion were fixed as these are always broken on these bikes. The engine was sprayed with cast iron paint.

In the meantime, I welded a rear hoop on the frame and got rid of all the tabs on the frame that I didn’t need. I stripped the frame and after a few layers of 2k primer it was painted black. Then I started making the seat and sidepanels out of alloy sheets and made a seat which was formed to follow the lines of the gas tank and rear.  I chose a Honda XL gas tank that I adapted to the FT frame.

I lowered the front fork for about 4 inches internally, mounted the steel brake lines and after cleaning I painted the wheels gold. I made a 2-into-1 header out of stainless and fitted a small muffler at the end. A set of cross footpegs were fitted, and I made a front number plate out of alloy and some tubing and fitted two did bi-xenon headlights with halos. Sounds easy, it wasn’t…

I fitted a lipo battery, new sprockets and chains and sorted out the electrics. At the hoop, I fitted a LED strip rear light with integrated signal lights. I painted the bike in HRC colors with rattlecans and put a 2k clear coat on top that I polished to perfection.

When I finished the bike, I went for a test ride at the woods and was laughing all the time! This thing pulls like a rhino and turns like a butterfly! Woehaahahaah it’s a great handling bike and a real head turner and I had a great time building it!

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To see the original build by Sean Skinner of Virginia’s Motorelic, head over to Pipeburn.