check out this cafe rat bike

sly409

sly409

XS400 Addict
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This showed up on my facebook feed through one of the cafe racer pages I follow

http://www.returnofthecaferacers.com/2013/03/rafal-rodents-honda-cb550.html

I love the paint idea, fake rust! It looks like it sits pretty low too, great for the vertically challenged riders lol.

I think I'm going to build my cafe seat based off this style. Any ideas of how the seat can sit so close to the rear tire without hitting it during bumps and stuff? set preload to max?
 
Typically, bikes like that aren't really ridden. I'm betting the tail rubs the $hit out of the tire when the guy simply sits on it. But hey, if you care more about form than function, just replace the shocks with solid struts. You'd look sooper awesome for those 2 minutes your back could take the jolting. :)
 
Looks awesome, but yea I imagine the bike to ride like a brick. Also the dropped handlebar seems pretty uncomfortable. Still think a ratbike should develop naturally, as a consequence of neglect and low-budget repairs and random parts combined. Although I have to say this makes me want to look into rust look paint as well..
 
Most of the xs400's that are around these days are already rusty and put together with mis-matched parts:laugh: They are cool and they don't even know it.
 
You just need stiff shocks. If you have a shock designed for the xs400 max preload will allow you to get away with around 2" of clearance; perhaps less. If you want a smaller gap than that you need a shock made for a heavier bike. At this point the ride will start to get too stiff for the street if you're interested in performance. If you're just going up and down the bar strip it isn't going to matter.
 
Stiff shocks with big balloony tires, rubber isolating the seat unit and keep an eye out for potholes, railway crossings, expansion joints, road debris... Oh and start eating a shit-ton of fast food with lots of soda (stay away from the diet cola) and sit as still as possible reading the forums letting the fat make its way south...
 
I think it looks like the bikes I've been seeing in wrecking yards, a dilapidated wreck being parted out before being crushed for scrap metal value. If that turns you on, have at it...
 
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