I picked this up for $400 with a title. 1980 Yamaha XS400
She wants it to look like this (but with tangerine wheels):
Here we are this past Saturday:
Where we are at now:
I know that the tires wont be to everyone's taste, but man do they look burley. This isn't a bike to be ridden in anger (or bad weather) or ever go off pavement.
Still need to work on the wiring for the lights and turn signals and need the brake lines to show up.
Masterfully done!
Gorgeous! Man, I was thinking she got hosed when you have the Ducatis sitting there, but she's got an attention grabber that's for sure.
Thanks!
The 1098 is hers. She got jealous when I built this last summer and wanted something less hardcore than a superbike to play with.
Nicely done! Great looking bikes that still look rideable. (unlike most cafe racers)
Great job!
WHAT Is that headlight from?
That is a V-rod headlight.
looks better there than where it came from for sure. It just looks right
Looks great!
That turned out great. You guys have some great toys to play with
A week? I spent 3 months screwing with my handle bars and shortening my control cables. I feel like a chump.
That's very nice! Mind sharing some details? (wheels, forks, etc?)
I bought a $80 parts bike for the mag wheels and disk front, but then found out that the 16" dia rear didn't allow any decent tires in the style that we wanted. So I bought a 18" dia rear rim, swingarm, and rear brake from another model XS400. I had to fab up a bracket for a master cylinder.
We bought the seat, but I had to make my own rear hoop as it wasn't a standard size for tubing benders.
I recessed the tail light with turn signals into the hoop.
I painted the motor a combo of wrinkle and gloss. Then added some polished bolts.
I did the paint myself, the only thing I farmed out was mounting the tires onto the freshly painted rims (couldn't powder coat - the cush rubbers are molded into the wheel) I built a battery tray under the seat to fit a small Shorai battery. I used a Trail tech Vapor speedo.
Still need to buy shocks. I rode it for the first time last night down the street after getting the brake lines installed and bled. I have to figure out the lighting. I have LED turns on the forks with resistors, but they are not working. Also the brake light isn't working. I have the stock rear light switch and one built into the front brake lever all hooked up to the stock wiring harness.
The plan is to get this ready for the Mods vs Rockers tomorrow night. I work better with a deadline.
I have a more extensive build thread HERE
Almost.....
The battery is not charging.
I like that a lot. Nice work.
Beautiful work sir.
WOW! Both are fantastic! That Guzzi is epic! Do you have any more pics?
Also, Ohio plates? Where? I cover Ohio for my office.
That recessed taillight is a brilliant idea (pun intended.)
octavious said:WOW! Both are fantastic! That Guzzi is epic! Do you have any more pics?
Also, Ohio plates? Where? I cover Ohio for my office.
Thanks! We are on the far west side of Cleveland.
the Guzzi turned out better then I expected and it is a blast to ride, but the XS400 seems to get more attention when we are stopped somewhere.
the Distinguished Gentlemens Ride is this Sunday and we are ready.
Here are some more pics -
And here is the build thread
Picked up some new (cheap) shocks that are a little longer - to give it the Mall Terrain Vehicle look
I love both of those bikes. Kudos
Beautiful bikes! I love the knobby tires, and the color combo is spot on. Nice work!
Really nice work on both bikes. Nice to see some other old mods bikes here.
How is the ride with the knobby?
My wife's bike is up for Bike of the Month on a cafe racer website that I have the build thread on - feel free to sign up and vote! If you are into modifying old bikes (or reading about other peoples projects), that is a great resource.
that is pretty kick ass scooter you build for the bride. Not sure if more jealous of the toys or the fact that you have a wife that likes the game.
That said, I am going to hold you to task for one ( very subjective) design detail that I really liked on the example but did not carry over. The header pipe on the example has a square look about, it with the down portion of the exhaust header pipe paralleling the down-pipe on the chassis. That feature really caught my attention for some reason.
That said, you did not crate a clone of the example, but rather your own vision and is a lot of ways I prefer what you built. Love the taillight and tires.
Pete
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