1976 Honda CB750 Supersport - Ruby Red

Written by Ian Lee.

“We all know the thrill of the hunt, scouring around for neglected machines in backyards and toolsheds. Peeking under windswept tarps, and the skip of a heartbeat when you see the outline of the infamous CB750 Supersport fuel tank in some dimly lit shed”. Dustin Kott describes it in such illuminated terms, and he should know because he has done it. Many of us have stolen glances into an open shed/garage door, hoping to find some forgotten beauty, but it’s only a lucky few who actually stumble across anything of note. Dustin Kott is one of the few, and this is his latest build: the 76 Ruby Red Supersport. 

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1976 Honda CB500T - Caffeteria 36

Written by Ian Lee.

It feels so much more meaningful when you do something yourself. It’s even better when others have a chance to take enjoyment in what you have decided to do. And to be able to affect a whole area’s bike culture is an amazing task in itself. Sam Maksimovsky – who is only 16 years old – of Caffeteria 36 has done this, and along with building up the café racer scene in Moscow, has built a bike which is testament to his passion for this style of bike. Taking a 1976 Honda CB500T and his father’s advice, he has built into it his own styling cues, based on his fondness for the culture of the 60s & 70s. Oh, and having nine months of Russian winter to build the bike came in handy as well. 

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1980 Honda CX500 "Testardo"

When it comes to creative Italian bike builders, the guys at Emporio Elaborazioni Meccaniche always bring something original to the table. For their latest build, they decided against using a local bike like a Guzzi or a Ducati and chose the humble Honda CX500. "We suggested this cheap bike to work with the customers request to have a cool but inexpensive custom" says Andrea. Back in 1978 when Honda first released the Honda CX500, they used the advertising tag line “First into the Future!” to launch this motorcycle – referring to it being the first water-cooled, shaft-driven V-twin. Now 30 years into the future, these clever guys from Rome have reshaped this Honda into a street tracker the Japanese would be proud of. 

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Honda GL200 Café Racer - 'Dolores'

Sometimes we receive bikes that have something more captivating than stunning looks. Something more powerful than the number of horses they output. Something more impressive than the number of hours that have been spent building the bike. They have a great story. A story that is more fundamental to the build than any other part on the bike. This is one of them, and this story starts like many others on this site, person buys rusty old donor bike for next to nothing and decides to resurrect it into a beautiful little café racer. This is where the story differs from others. This time the owner's Dad had seen the start of the project and had heard of the plans his son had for the bike, but unfortunately due to cancer, he didn't know whether he will be alive when the bike was finished. But here's the kicker, the day before his father dies he says to his son, "your bike will be amazing, and I'll see it from the sky". So this is the story of a bike built in memory of a father who unfortunately didn't get to see his sons dream of owning a custom motorcycle...

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Honda CB550 - Bridge City Cycles

Portland, Oregon is not only one of the 'craft beer' capitals of America, but it's also one of the 'craft motorcycle' capitals as well. There seems to be so many great custom shops, motorcycles and events coming out of Portland – there must be something in the Portland water beer. One such shop that we've been keeping our blurry eye on is Bridge City Cycles. Started by Anthony Mautemps and his wife 2 years ago, their business is going from strength to strength. "We'll be moving to 5,000 square foot facility in May" says Anthony. "Fortunately, the move is just across the street." Bridge City Cycles specialize in vintage and classic motorcycles from Europe, America and of course Japan. Their latest build is this super lean and clean Honda CB550 café racer...

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Studio Motor's Honda CB750

By guest writer Ian Lee.

I went for my first ride in a tuk tuk this week. Do you think I was in Singapore? Nope. Laos? Not even close. Thailand? No siree… I was actually in a workshop on the outskirts of Sydney. I got the idea of it though, garishly decorated and loud, a simple means to get around. Hailing from the same part of the world, comes a bike that is the healthy opposite to the idea of a tuk tuk. Well thought out aesthetics, the note of 736cc of Honda quad cylinder power, and a race fairing beat out of galvanised plate come together to show (once again) the talents of Donny Ariyanto at Studio Motor. If only as much thought went into tuk tuk design as went into this. 

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2003 Honda GL Max - 'Café Latte' Clubman

When you get given the job to build a café racer for your local Mayor, you don't want to screw it up. So when Eric Caprin from Caprin Racing in Indonesia was approached by Heru Bambang (the Mayor of Balikpapan) he knew he had to pull out the punches for this build. It became even more daunting when he was given the brief of building a 70's styled clubman café racer, using the very uninspiring 2003 Honda GL Max 125cc motorcyle as the donor. "He give a me a challenge to build a 70's café racer from this little motorcycle" says Eric. "This concept is a daily rider that is a bit more mild and not very wild." The theme and name for the bike comes from the Mayors favourite drink and daily caffeine fix – the 'Cafe Latte'.

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Honda GP250R Café Racer

By guest writer Ian Lee.

Inspiration. It can come from so many sources, and affect different people in different ways. Some people take no notice of inspiration. Some people use just their surroundings for inspiration. And some people actively seek out inspiration, grabbing it by the collar and headbutting it into submission. Darrell Schneider from DS Restorations (DSR) is one of the latter. After more than 25 years in automobile restoration, Darrell decided he needed a change, and a challenge. A long history with motorbike riding, with no further thought than fueling them up and riding them, gave Darrell a basic idea of where he could start. The challenge brought up the bike we feature here today, the DSR GP 250R Café Racer. Built mainly around CRF250R components, with inspiration drawn from numerous bike builders, it’s proof that sometimes it’s worth it to challenge yourself, you never know what might happen… 

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Interview: Shasta Smith - The Vintage Monkey

Let's be honest, there's not a lot of females working in the motorcycle industry. So when I recently stumbled across a site called The Vintage Monkey, I was pleasantly surprised to find it was run by a fiery red head from Sacramento called Shasta Smith. She doesn't claim to be the female version of Shinya Kimura, but she is passionate about building vintage motorcycles, so we asked her a couple of questions...

Can you tell us a little about yourself and The Vintage Monkey?

I (Shasta Smith) have personally been a motorcycle enthusiast since I was a teenager and have always had a fondness for vintage motorcycles. I have a 13 year background in design for construction (architectural design) and on really good days I get to incorporate motor-sports into the interior of buildings. I operate The Vintage Monkey full time. The Vintage Monkey acquires vintage motorcycles and respectfully modifies them based on designs by Shasta Smith. In support of the brand, The Vintage Monkey designs and manufactures apparel and accessories. 

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