Coffee With Cafe

The bastard now lives in boxes on the garage floor

2009-08-31T06:56:00.001-07:00

Eric and I took the bastard apart over the weekend. Not a lot of parts on the front end seem to be broken - a bad sparkplug, needs a new chain, perhaps a carburator rebuild. Had to buy a jack with jack stands, but that was inevitable.

Pictures to come soon, but in the meanwhile more eBay purchases:

Stainless steel bolt set: $26.99 USD
Petcock kit: $29.99 USD
Fork seals: $9.96
O-Ring chain drive: $59.99 USD

Frame paint - PJ1

2009-08-27T11:12:00.000-07:00

Need white or gray primer - 6 cans
Need black frame paint - 6 cans
Need clear coat - 6 cans

parts, parts parts! part three - petcock rebuild

2009-08-27T10:45:00.000-07:00

Necessary, leaky gaskets are no bueno!

$31.99 USD

New Aero CDI unit is a go!

2009-08-27T07:45:00.000-07:00

After reading the feedback on the SR500 forums, a number of users have recommended the plug n'play aftermarket Aero CDI unit. Easier to start, and a crisper run? Done and done!

Total cost w/shipping: $138.83USD

Tidying up the undercarriage of the bike is going to make this little screamer look slick as snot with the Battery Lesser.

Here is the problem with Google translator

2009-08-21T12:30:00.000-07:00

I need to track down a part, but here's what Google returns on one of the largest Japanese SR400/500 modification shops:

Thank you for always available SR Hall mail order parts. SR Part mail order SR Hall, is located in the irregular, We issued our mail magazine. Bon appétit and subscribe to e-mail newsletter Lovely gift you hit the lottery, Related items and only received a notice of readers e-mail newsletter Mori says the award is a nice hug. You can simply register your email address you registered. Thank you so feel free to register.

http://www.sr400.jp

I am laugh.

btw, batteries and wires suck

2009-08-21T12:14:00.000-07:00

...with that in mind, I have decided to slim up the bike a bit by eliminating the battery. moving to what's called a 'battery lesser'. I believe this will work in coordination with LED lights, if in fact I decide not to work with normal bulbed lights. This will also allow for fitting a K&N filter underneath, without having to scrunch up the filter beneath the seat from the back of the carburator.

battery lesser and mounting plate cost - $169.12 USD

This is what the undercarriage will look like, completely naked and slick - or as they say in Tokyo - scatune!

parts, parts parts! part two - the cafe look

2009-08-19T10:45:00.000-07:00

AdKiller

While reading through Cafe Racer magazine, I happened across an advertisement for Omar's Dirt Track Racing. For those who're building a cafe and want to go light on parts (and the pocketbook), the proprietor Robert Ward offers a really nice selection of dirtbike, cafe replica parts (Manx/Clubman galore) and other pieces for thumpers. As that I was looking at 1200+ (not including shipping from Japan) for a USED aluminium tank and seat, I decided to go the good ol' fiberglass route. You see, Omar's offers a services a lot of people don't know about - they treat their tanks. Those of us in the United States use gasoline with ethanol in it, which literally eats up tanks. A number of European and Asian tanks are untreated, thus fuel sludge begins to clog fuel injectors/carburators, causing thousands of dollars of damage to bikes.

AdKiller

So, after speaking with Robert (and checking fittings), I decided to go for a hybrid - a Manx Tank and Clubman seat. Pairing these bad boys up with a set of rubber pads on the gas tank, it cost me $709 USD (plus thirty bucks shipping). Not a bad shopping day! Paypal card isn't ate up yet, either. ;)

Now it's just a question of what color to paint the bike. Pretty in pink, or blood red!

parts, parts, parts! part one

2009-08-17T13:07:00.000-07:00

Ebay finds today -

Yamaha 500 XT500 TT500 SR500 NEW Complete Gasket Set - $38.00 USD

(to fix those leaky gaskets)

Yamaha sr500 sr 500 regulator/rectifier - $29.00 USD

(the bastard needs lights)

Yamaha SR500 SR 500 brake lever levers 78-81 -$6.95 USD

Yamaha SR 500 SR500 clutch lever levers 78-81 - $6.95 USD

(so her hands don't hurt when she rides)

Yamaha XS650 xs 650 gas cap seal RD400 SR500 - $9.99 USD

(no more leaky gasoline on the tank)

Total bill w/shipping - $119.74 USD

Not a bad start! There seems to be a large market for parts for the Yamaha SR500. These bikes are apparently huge in Japan; a lot of modders and customizers turn these single thumpers into slim, Manx Norton-styled cafe racers. At this rate, I should have this bike shaped up and ready to roll by late autumn, if I do the work myself.

The next purchase is likely the largest and most expensive one I'll need to make for the bike - the cafe seat, rear cowling and tank. This is the one I am eying, although it's a bit out of reach for this paycheck. Maybe in a few weeks!

erin's first motorcycle, 'the bastard'

2009-08-17T12:58:00.001-07:00

After 55 miles on a hardback seat, with no lights, leaking oil, nasty backfiring, a slew of middle fingers on the highway, numb nuts/ass/fingers, a mouthful of bugs and $850 later, I brought her home a (sorta new) 1979 Yamaha SR500. The previous owner lived in Harrisonville, which if you're not familiar with the greater Kansas City area - it's in the middle of nowhere.

I rode her wild, opened it up at around 65MPH on the highway and was surprised at how much torque there was on the top end. The Supertrapp pipe roars so loudly and the erratic thumping of a single, everyone in town and on the highway couldn't help but turn their head to see the bastard in action. Although the speedometer was broken, I could 'feel' how fast I was going. Although I lagged behind a lot of cars pushing 80+ on highway 71, I knew there was a lot more power underneath it's scrappy exterior. With oil spattering all over my legs from leaky gaskets and gasoline sputtering out of the gas tank, I felt something on this bike akin to what one can only describe as 'road rat reality'. It sat really, really close to the ground; I could almost touch the highway with my fingertips as everything was vibrating around me. Although I am accustomed to the comforts of my Ducati Sport Classic, there was something primal about this bike that I simply didn't get from my modern cafe racer.

I almost want to keep this one for myself, but I promised her I'd get her a real bike. So here is to the humble beginnings of a cafe racer in the making, the bastard.

Pics coming soon!