the Cafe Racer build commences!

Hey Dudes,


I've been prowling here for about 3 months now. Sucking up all I can of the wealth of knowledge that exists here. I've been waiting to start this build thread until I had some specific questions and something of interest to show. So I introduce to you my plan to build a Cafe Racer/Boardtracker inspired motorized bike.

It all started when I decided I was going to relocate to Gainesville, Florida to go to college. As Gainesville isn't all that big, I started exploring my options for personal transportation, as I was intent on keeping my 1991 Nissan 240sx parked for the better half of the year to rebuild the engine at my leisure. Pedal power would probably be adequate to get me around town, but I've always had an affinity for things with engines so I narrowed down my options to three different routes:

1) Buy a Moped or Scooter - I decided this route wasn't really worth it as the price hike in fuel has made Mopeds pretty desirable lately. I looked for a few months and when I couldn't find one of sufficient style for the right price I gave up on the idea.

2) Buy a Kikker Hardknock - I am real keen on the Kikker's. I love the old school bobber style, but I can't bring myself to spend the kind of dough they want, even though I think it's an excellent value. check out their website: Welcome to the Home of the Original California Pocket Bike TM

3) And the reason why I am here, build a Motorized Bike. I fell in love with the Derringer Bikes and wanted to build something similar for under $500. So that is the plan I am running with.


I did a photoshop of what I want the final product to more or less look like:

I picked up the chassis for my build. The ubiquitous Schwinn Jaguar.



Soon after I found an old rusty mountain bike being put out for trash, so I grabbed the straight handle bars and bolted them on.

I decided I would definitely need to track down a General 5-star moped gas tank. After looking for more than a month and getting discouraged at the extreme rarity of finding the petcock and cap for less than double the price of the bike itself, I found this tank on Ebay at the last minute, ended up winning the auction at $36 shipped!




So now I've got to figure out how to mount this thing...

My friend in Gainesville just moved into a new place, he did some yard work in the backyard and ended up finding this little beauty after he cut back a vine that had been covering it. It's a 1977 Cimatti, only has 1,000 miles on the odometer, it's probably been sitting since 1978, heh.

I took the headlight with integrated speedometer and made a mount out of some aluminum yesterday:





it's not the most elegant mount, but it's rigid! I plan on retrofitting an LED cluster into the housing in the future. I think the headlight really makes the bike take on a much more menacing look. I'm going to pick up one of those pyramid mechanical speedos to use the wheel attachment for this speedometer.

So that's it for the first installment of the build. As you see in the photoshop I did, I'm planning on adapting a moped seat. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to make my own, or if i should buy one..

I wanted to ask your opinions of running shocks to the rear axle to support the seat, as im not sure if it is a good idea to add stress there. I'm open to suggestions about how I can make this work, got any ideas?

The 67.5cc engine kit will be ordered in a few days and i'll definitely keep you guys posted with the progress!

That tank would be great for the long distance machine I will need for my America ride

What model is it from?

Jemma xx

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it's from a 1977 General 5-star Moped. I think it'll hold 2 gallons. Good luck finding one though, the tanks themselves are easy to find but the caps and petcocks are virtually non-existent.

Looking Awesome Nice work, love the seat

nice looking build !!!
seems to be coming together according to plan

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Bill (aka azbill, aka azkronic)

yesterday is history,
tomorrow is a mystery,
but today is a gift...
that's why it's called "the PRESENT"

Hey, this one will look pretty sweet I bet. Nice find on that gas tank.

I think adapting that straight seat will look pretty awesome if you ask me. looks like you could pull it off of that similar style motorcycle as well as a moped.

No idea about the shocks though...but it sounds like a great idea

i love the concept! very original! please keep us posted on the build.

yeah, i went through the same stages of search for a little two-wheeled local transportation that you did. i looked more at the Hooper Imports 110cc Trail Ryder (Chinese Honda CT70 repro) than the Kikker, though (same engine). when i stumbled onto this forum, though, i knew i wanted to build a motorized bike.

anyway, good luck with your build. i'll be on an eager lookout for updates!