T8's 750 Cafe Racer Project

[T8erbug]

Rear Tank Mount

Rear Tank Mount

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!! :dancing: Last night I was able to finish up the tank mounting situation. I used a piece of tubing I had left over from the rear end of the bike and welded a piece of 1/8" sheet metal to it to cap it off. I cleaned up the weld then inched away at the length on the grinder till I got the tank mocked just right. I didn't know where the stock grommet and bolt went from my last tank so I found a grommet through Fastenal that would work and I had some extra 8mm bolts laying around so I used one of those. I welded the tube in place then drilled and tapped a hole in it. If you do this be sure to drill and tap your hole last because you'll want to line your tank up and get it as straight as you can. Here are some pics. Don't mind the rust or the ugliness of the welds. After a good sandblast it will all look much better. Plus it doesn't have to be too pretty because it's all getting covered up.

Now I can work on the fitment of the seat plug and do a final alignment and shaping. I already have the fiberglass ready to go so hopefully that's the one of the next things to get done.

 

[spyug]

Some very nice fabrication sir. It is coming together nicely. Well done. It is going to look really nice when completed. I can't wait to see.

 

[nvr2old]

Nice job. I like the line that fades into the tail..well done.

 

[nikosg]

its good to see someone with a sense of proportion! very nice work going on here.

 

[moto]

oh my god, I'm so tired, but this bike is so inspiring.

 

[Good Times]

It's looking great T8er. Keep up the good work!

 

[T8erbug]

Thank you all for the kind words! It means a lot to me that so many folks are diggin' what I'm doing. Didn't do a whole lot to it this weekend because it's pretty much time to clean the carbs and I'm dreading it. I did, however take it for a gravity assisted, 7 mile long ride today. Got up to 45MPH with the rolling chassis. I just felt out the braking capability of the front brake, the footpeg position, and the stability of it as a whole. It rode very nicely and tracked straight. I'm stoked to throw the motor in her and put it through some corners under power. Lastly, I am bringing on my second bike project this upcoming weekend. My uncle is GIVING me his Yamaha XS400 fo freeeee. I'm stoked! Anyways, yup, I just wanted to thank everyone who has been following my build!

 

[ChewedFood]

I'm diggin' it too, man.

 

[T8erbug]

What do you need? I have one for the N & EN and one for the LN.

EDIT:Here is one for the N & EN. The only difference I can see is the fuel gauge.

View attachment 21050

I'm not sure which one mine is.. I just know it's an 'E' model. Is that the same as an EN? Ha I'm embarrassed I don't know!

In other news I picked up my new motorcycle this weekend. 1980 Yamaha xs400. I'm going to build it into more of a brat/cafe bike that I can take around the fields and hills. Since it's a twin and my bike is a one seater I figured it would be great for a chick so when I invite a date on a motorcycle ride she can be taken by surprise when we pull up to the garage and I give her one for herself haha. If she's gonna be with me she might as well know how to ride! I don't want to end up with a chick who makes me sell my motorcycle

 

[mlymanz71]

I'm not sure which one mine is.. I just know it's an 'E' model. Is that the same as an EN? Ha I'm embarrassed I don't know!

In other news I picked up my new motorcycle this weekend. 1980 Yamaha xs400. I'm going to build it into more of a brat/cafe bike that I can take around the fields and hills. Since it's a twin and my bike is a one seater I figured it would be great for a chick so when I invite a date on a motorcycle ride she can be taken by surprise when we pull up to the garage and I give her one for herself haha. If she's gonna be with me she might as well know how to ride! I don't want to end up with a chick who makes me sell my motorcycle

Smart thinking man, just got caught up on the build since I haven't been able to get on here in a while. Bike is looking sick! If you need I think I have the schematic of the wiring diagram you are looking for and can drop ya off a copy.

 

[T8erbug]

Ok so I've been working on the seat some more kind of widdling away at it night by night. I know it looked close to being complete by the pics but there was a lot more to be done. The front portion that fits up against the tank has been most of the work but the cowl also needed some work so it would be symmetrical. I also have been thinking about all the rake and trail I have taken away and how it is going to quicken my steering tremendously. With this may also come adverse handling behavior aka tank slappers. SO I bought a 2007' GSXR steering damper and will be retro fitting it. I also have the rear brake situation to solve. It ALMOST worked out to where I could use the stock caliper bracket with no mods besides an offset bracket. I figured the shocks may get in the way before mounting them but hoped for the best. After mounting them my thoughts were confirmed. The caliper just needs to be moved from in front of the shock to behind it. I thought of a few solutions but decided on cutting up and modifying the stock caliper bracket, drilling/tapping a hole in it and running a heim set-up to the swingarm. It should hit a few birds with one stone and also be pretty tough. It minimizes the machine work necessary and just simplifies the whole rear brake set-up. I talked with Ben this weekend and we should be doing a lot of machine work within the next two weeks or so because he is out of school for the break. I took the carbs apart and cleaned them although they were already spotless (the guy I bought it from wasn't lying when he said he just cleaned them!). I already have the new shift linkage built and ready to go so all I need to do to finish up is.

Steering damper and necessary bracketry
Headlight brackets
Foot pedals
Re-weld the outer shock mount brackets to make them pretty
Finish seat and cowl
Add necessary brackets for seat and misc.
Rear brake heim set-up

I'm sure I'm forgetting a couple things but these are the big items. Springtime ought to be right on time for this little baby to be back on the road!


Here's the GSXR steering damper


Here is the shaping that's been happening








Still not done but getting closer to laying some glass

 

[T8erbug]

Rear Brake Set-up

Rear Brake Set-up

I forgot to mention when I was at Warp-9 the other day talking to Rob he was stoked to inform me that for my rear wheel rotor pattern ONLY they just built a full floating rotor that matches the front! He'll swap me for the one I have for $40. Not bad! He showed it to me and it's awesome. I'm stoked for it now and I'll be sure to post some pics when I get it. Anyways here's how the thing's shakin' down.

This is how the stock unit started out


After de-tabbing just to make it workable


This is where it would mount up stock but as you can see there are some major clearance issues. It would have fit but the biggest problem is that it is a floating caliper and as the pads wear the clearance that it has disappears. If the pads were to wear at all it would start to hit the shock.


Here is about where it will all mount up when I'm done. For those of you wondering why I don't undersling it, it's mainly because of where I'd have to route the brake line as well as it just looks funny with the caliper because of it's shape. Trust me, I mocked it up haha

 

[T8erbug]

Smart thinking man, just got caught up on the build since I haven't been able to get on here in a while. Bike is looking sick! If you need I think I have the schematic of the wiring diagram you are looking for and can drop ya off a copy.

I think I may need that diagram when it comes time to throw the motor back in. Thanks mlymanz!

 

[T8erbug]

One More Pic of the Corral

One More Pic of the Corral

The garage looks a lot better with two bikes in it! Threw some old dirt bike bars I had laying around on the XS400 just to replace the nasty swoopster ones that came stock on it. Also was able to use some of the old GS stuff like the MC for the front brake to get it working again.

 

[Spiff]

Awesome thread, just read through it all!
I'm curious about the gsxr rearsets, did you use the gsxr shifterarm? Did it bolt right up to the GS750 with the correct number of teeth and all?

Keep ut the good work !

 

[T8erbug]

Awesome thread, just read through it all!
I'm curious about the gsxr rearsets, did you use the gsxr shifterarm? Did it bolt right up to the GS750 with the correct number of teeth and all?

Keep ut the good work !

Thanks! Yeah I did use the stock shift arm and it seems to line up. I mocked it all up before I took the motor out and it tightened up really nicely and seemed to grip correctly. Give it a try. These rearsets work great because as long as you set them up right they clear the kickstart too.

 

[Spiff]

Oh, forgot about the kick cool, I might look into this as opposed to the universal kits they sell online. Might be a cheaper option too

 

[T8erbug]

Oh, forgot about the kick cool, I might look into this as opposed to the universal kits they sell online. Might be a cheaper option too

It's definitely cheaper. Trust me. I checked. Online. Ha jk but yeah it really is the cheaper route and in my opinion it's the better option because you don't have to design and machine your own brackets. Plus I think the torzochi kits look good but they're just so bulky. With a stock gsxr rearset or any other sportbike for that matter they are a slimmer unit and you have the option to install aftermarket pegs, levers, and footpedals.

 

[loud et]

Really seeing your craftsmanship and taste in this build.
Drooling over those YSS shocks and those wire wheels.....

If I ever quit being so cheap I will be working on a tasteful build like this.

Will be watching.

 

[Chuck78]

Wow T8, your bike is looking GREAT! Wish I had the time and money to just geek out on my bike. My mods are so sporadic, but then again, I have had a bike to ride nonstop for a few years now.

Are you running the engine stock/rejetted for now? I remember you posting a while back about engine mods. I'm picking up almost 2 spare engines (one seized - parked since '86, good bottom though), so that I can keep a runner in the bike and build the 920cc 10:1 kickstart GS750 based beast! Hope to get it to that stage by summer. If you tear the engine apart for anything, DEFINITELY swap in some Wiseco 844cc pistons, it is WELL WORTH IT for the extra cc's and compression ratio. Are those EMGO pods??? I'm really digging the K&N RC-2222 filters. The EMGO's are a bit restrictive to the throat openings due to the thick rubber flange, partially blocks the little air passages to the sides.

What model YSS shocks are those, Z-302, Z-362, Z-366?? I was considering Ikon's for $380, Hagon's for $299, and thinking about others (YSS, Works). What made you end up with those versus the ones I mentioned? I think the Hagon and Ikon are oil dampened, and the YSS all look like gas shocks with 60 clicks of dampening adjustment. The YSS also look to use more aluminium and look pretty trick, but are definitely more money. I'm holding out to make the shocks the last big expense to the bike, since they are so easy to swap and I should really be saving up as much money as possible to get the best shocks I can afford for the bike that I will probably never sell.

Keep up the awesome work. The way it looks, both of us will be burning through corners on our 1st gen GS750's next season!