bensalf's 4 year caferacer build

oh!,------I didn't mean the finished article, the whole machine,
just finished the rear led lights,
stu

 

other electrical bits are, front and rear led indicator lights, did away with the self cancelling feature, and changed the flasher relay for an electronic one.


also fitted ,2, pressure operated brake light switches, these replace the banjo bolts on the front and rear master cylinders


stu

 

next ,onto the brakes. all 3 callipers stripped cleaned and undercoated

cleaned up the groves and pistons with scotchbrite,


front master cylinder needed to be rebuilt, sight glass was also cracked, so started to gouge it out

finally got it out, (it put up a fight) ,installed new watch glass crystal, with black silicone

piston stripped out

new rebuild kit obtained and master cylinder rebuilt with new alen screws

stu

 

rear master cylinder stripped down.

new repair kit obtained


link rod cleaned up.

here's the rebuilt cylinder mounted behind the exhaust hanger

oh,! and there's the card reader, mounted underneath the seat pan. I fitted the end of the reader in a small plastic box, with a hinged lid, to keep the elements out.
stu

 

next the levers and grips.
I ditched the original levers , in favour of some adjustable ones, got some grips with the same anodising.

brake lever fitted straight on. but clutch needed some modification to make it fit.

clutch lever now fitted

stu

 

I got the bike out from under the covers ,today ,to snap a few more pics, that I did'nt have before
heres another of the card reader with hinged lid attatched



bar end mirrors fitted

stu

 

had new stainless steel brake hoses made up, and fitted, here they are bolted to the master cylinder , with the pressure switch banjo bolt, fitted for the brake light

stu

 

Is that a Kitty Kat on top of the MC??

 

Don't you hate how those close up flash enabled pics make everything look less than stellar?

Is there a sight glass in that MC?

Bike looks great, I'd love to hear how that exhaust sounds, do you have a vid clip by chance?

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Is that a Kitty Kat on top of the MC??
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ha,ha, its a little mascot lego man, I always make one, painted in the same colours as the bike.
here he is , mounted in the mirror hole, he's called BELP. --Bar-End-Lookout-Post.

here's another from the green/white Honda C.X. ,on page 3

and here's another ready for painting on the next bike.

stu

 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't you hate how those close up flash enabled pics make everything look less than stellar?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
yes, you've noticed on a lot of the close-up's, how they blur out, my pensioner's hands aren't as steady as they used to be.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is there a sight glass in that MC?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
yes there is , its hard to tell, but its a watch glass chrystal, cemented in with black silicon sealant, and its filled with fluid.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bike looks great, I'd love to hear how that exhaust sounds, do you have a vid clip by chance?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

sorry no I don't have a vid, clip , don't think I'd know how to go about doing that, but I was "blown away "with the sound,
in fact I thought it may be a little too loud for the neighbours.
so I got some baffeling insulation and set about wrapping the baffles.

wired on some loft insulation first, then the baffleing material

also installed some "penny" washers in the bottom of the baffle to quieten it a bit more, it still sounds awesome though
stu

 

stu

 

front brake hoses fitted and bled.

stu

 

you may be interested in the hose end finishers I made.
I used some old armoured cable glands that I had, and used the back nuts from them.

I made the breather hose ,from the engine to airbox.

I cut a small rectangular hole in the side of the back nut, just large enough to fit the jubilee clip through

here's the hose in place, on the engine breather


stu

 

next onto the tank, which was missing from the original bike, I found a good example at a local breakers, but it needed some internal work, but was complete with fuel tap and level sensor

I made up a makeshift turntable, to spin the tank, with some screws inside,
it got rid of some loose stuff , but after a while it buggered up my drill chuck

so I had a go at electrolysis.
I made some blanks for the petcock and fuel level sensor holes

made up a sacrificial anode

solution made up with baking soda and water, and hooked up to battery charger

initial results were promising


filtered that lot from the first solution
then again

and again

and about another dozen times, went through 5 packets of soda,
in fact the system seemed to be making its own rust ?
in the end I made a flexible hose , and attached it to the end of my shot blasting gun, and blasted the inside of the tank,
using the filler hole and the fuel sender hole
it looked like I was removing an old tank liner job

 

Your "tank spinning fixture" is quite creative....!

 

getting better all the time

it ended up pretty good after the blasting, so I rinsed it out with petrol, then swilled it with phosphoric acid.
dried out ,and all was good.
sliced off the bottom lugs that the side panels push into.

I got the tank back from the sprayers, and fitted the Monza fuel cap, I'd been itchin to try on.
I had previously soldered the brass threaded ring, onto the neck of the tank, so I screwed on the new cap.

love it


stu

 

after I got the tank , seat and front mudguard ,back from the sprayers ,I took the seat to the upholsterers.
a week later I picked it up, and was very pleased with the results


I had the zipped pocket made to house a disc lock

stu

 

Isn't it an '83 XJ900 tank?

 

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO----------that's pretty much it, apart from having the exhaust down pipes made, the only other things I didn't do myself was the
tank and seat spraying, and the upholstery.
all other painting and spraying, and making parts was done by myself.

so thank you for watching and for all your comments, and questions. if I am able to help any others on here ,then please ask-- just as I have had to do many times
in the past.
SO HERES THE FINISHED RESULT






stu

 

I've since removed the little red screen I made, as 2 of my mates said they didn't like it
(what do you think?)
also added the bar end mirrors

I made the seat ,hinge upward ,towards the back, with a spring catch at the front.


thank you all ---stu

 

For future refrence: Washing soda is a far more effective electrolyte than baking soda. You'll end up using less of it to get the same result.

I think the screen looks good, though to my eye it would look better if it were a 4" high flyscreen.

Over?!
But it's not Spring yet!

 

-----------------------------------------------
Over?!
But it's not Spring yet!
---------------------------------------------
yes , but I'm already half way into my #2 machine.
stu

 

they're quite possibly the same tank! but mine was from a 600.

stu

 

I've deleted the messages now from my inbox, which was full, for those who have been trying to contact me .
thanks
stu

 

very nice bensalf.

 

All I can say is I wish it was mine.
Awesome job man. You should be proud.

 

Almost to nice to ride.....
Nice job on the hose clamp covers innovative .
is the card reader the key?

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
is the card reader the key?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
yes exactly, inserting the card in the reader, switches on the reader which in turn switches a 50amp relay, to turn on the ignition.


stu

 

Hi how did you attach the filter to the plate?

 

The long machine screw with the nut on it. The other end of that filter consists of a metal plate with a hole for the mounting screw. It's essentially flipped around so the normal "outside air" portion of the filter is now on the inside.

It's a super-clever repurposing.

 

yep, exactly as "kmoe" said.
I cut a larger hole on one side of the filter, then drilled a hole on the other side ,for the screw, with sealing washers,
I also cut a piece of alloy pipe to go inside the filter ,over the long screw , so as not to crush the filter.


stu

 

Cheers, this Is perfect for what I need for my trike as a full airbox won'tfit now.
I love this kind of home engineering , can'twait to see what he comes up with next.

 

Hi lads another question did you use the original rubbers from the airbox to the carbs mine are a bit cream crackerd plus could do with being a bit shorter any thoughts on alternatives?

 

I used original rubbers between airbox and carbs, it would be difficult to find alternatives, due to the grooved flange on the boot.
stu

 

Chacal sells brand-new airbox boots. The airbox is somewhat adjustable, and your old boots are likely shrunk somewhat.

 

stew I've Never heard of Cumbria, but I looked it up and wow looks like a beautiful place.

 

Aye,it is very nice I am right on the edge of the lake district national park with only a few houses dotted around snd 2 minutes walk from the nearest fell.
I'm very lucky to live where I live.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aye,it is very nice I am right on the edge of the lake district national park with only a few houses dotted around snd 2 minutes walk from the nearest fell.
I'm very lucky to live where I live.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
was up there last may, on a biking trip for 5 days ,with 8 other lads, based at "windermere" . had a great time
stu

 

There are some awesome bikong roads around here through all the mountain passes etc.
Some great pubs aswell for that wee tipple which always helps when sleeping under canvas! : )

 

True, true.

 

Congratulations, great detail work and a beautiful bike. Hope it runs as great as it looks.

 

Just have to say thats a awesome looking job you have done and good read.
You have given me some ideas on my build so might be pinching some of yours hope you don't mind.
Do you have anymore pictures of the hinge setup on seat as i think thats a great idea.

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you have anymore pictures of the hinge setup on seat as i think thats a great idea.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
yes, very early on in the build ,I cut the back olf the rear subframe off , and welded a "u" shaped flat bar in its place., in order to bolt the hinge to




this is the underside of the seat, I fiber-glassed an alloy plate , across the end of the seat, to bolt the moving part of the hinge to.
I just used a heavy duty hinge I had for the job

you cant see the hinge here, but its bolted to the seat plate and the frame, at the back of the alloy tray

here's the finished set up, with the battery in place, which slips into the seat hump when closed

if you look at the top of the last pic, I fixed a door catch to the underside of the seat ,which latches into the original front seat locator bracket
stu