Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

QLDZX6R wrote:O.k, Simon Weir (assistant Editor-Bike Magazine) finally replied to my question and it appears it is a Harley Engine inside a Norton Frame,he not positive on size but thinks its a 1200.

hmmmm, looks like the initial guess may be right ? It is definitely a Sportster motor, the larger ones are 1200cc, its probably an early 90's motor (saw one today that looked *almost* identical).

Gosling1 wrote:looks like some custom cafe racer - Hog motor, perhaps in a Norton frame ? yucchhh

Kudos Gosling

bonester wrote:There was a kit years ago that could turn a Sportster into a Vincent replica- maybe this is one?

Looks like a custom Vincent to me, not sure.

sorry if it's stupid question but what is "cafe racer" ? Are they used to go around cafe (doh) and why is the shape like that ?

QLDZX6R wrote:O.k, Simon Weir (assistant Editor-Bike Magazine) finally replied to my question and it appears it is a Harley Engine inside a Norton Frame,he not positive on size but thinks its a 1200.

Looks a bit like an XR sportie engine ...... the racing model

QLDZX6R wrote:o.k, don't know why you'd choose a harley engine..maybe ducati or aprillia. Thought it might be a new retro from ducati or a new Norton (Yanks have bought their name)

Well you see the later motors are very reliable and have very few problems ..... a guy i meet does harley rides and has 450,000 klm and case never been off
mate did 180,000k on his Evo before he sold it

and the torque from the engines is huge ...... i guess in a sports frame it would be awesome

sorry if it's stupid question but what is "cafe racer" ? Are they used to go around cafe (doh) and why is the shape like that ?

I think:
In the UK in the sixtees there were two groups- mods and rockers. One lot rode scooters, the other motorcycles. (I think the rockers rode MCs) They did race between cafes- London's ACE cafe being one- I think that is where the term came from. I guess the shape is similar to the British bikes of the sixtees that were raced then.

javaman wrote:sorry if it's stupid question but what is "cafe racer" ? Are they used to go around cafe (doh) and why is the shape like that ?

Bonester hit the nail on the head. The only things I can add is the following:

They are shaped like that for speed. You can go a lot faster on an old Pommie twin (or single) if you have low 'Clubman' type bars, or the style known as 'Ace' bars ( they are a really old chunky look, and the riding position is almost the same as you get with current clipons...the name came from the 'Ace' cafe)

The reason why the rockers needed speed was simple - the basic premise of a 'Cafe' racer was to beat a song on a jukebox !! If your bike was quick enough, you could do a lap around your local biker cafe roads, when a certain song started, and if you were quick enough, you could be back before it finished........most cafes had a route that went something like.......1/2 mile down road, Left over rickety bridge, fast straight with S bend,(careful of the bustop ), Left again down Drury Lane, then L onto High St and back to the cafe.....maybe 3 miles tops....(or a variation of this theme..... )

The old 'Ace' cafe in London was one of a number of legendary cafes, it gained its notoriety from the fights between the Rockers and the Mods...

Here endeth the history lesson.......it would have been fun to live in London during the swingin' 60's I reckon.......

Certainly sounds like a good time,nowdays it would be more like "watch out for the speed camera here,and the wire rope fence there"

so very true ....