Thoughts on bobber conversions

I sometimes fantasize about turning my bike into a bobber, but the reality is, I am not sure if I even like them, and more importantly, I should get it roadworthy first.

 

Well, make it sewer rat then.


Incidentally, I went for a ride on a brand new Indian Scout Bobber a few weeks ago. That was the most uncomfortable ride I ever had. The whole leaned forward/feet forward folded in half position was awful. It was hard to control in anything but a straight line.

So, there. I rode one. It wasn't good. And that was a brand new properly working bike.

 

What I can't stand are those "cafe racers" that get rid of a beautiful sloping teardrop tank and put in an ugly, angular tank in a straight line with some hideous seat that looks like a stinger from a giant wasp with part of it cut out. The tank and seat almost never match the bike, each other, the frame, or the handlebars. Damn hipsters.

There's me being negative. Lol

 

café racers were ok when it was needed to do the Ton so "Ton-Up Boys"
http://caferacertv.com/history/the-history-of-do-the-ton/

 

I too was thinking about the cafe racer hype as I read this thread. And tbh, I'm styling my xj550 in that way too. In my defense, the PO had already modded the bike to some kind of cafe racer/scrambler/bobber/whatever thingie; I'm just trying to clean up his mess and go for one style. In fact, I've gone back to stock for the fuel tank and the airbox.

My two cents on the topic: if you've got a decent bike, take it back to stock and enjoy it. You want to go bobber crazy, get a project that someone else f***ed up or lost interest in. I've bought a Honda CB900 Bol d'Or recently that came with a second bike for parts. The plan is to leave the first one stock, and if the engine and frame on the spare parts bike are salvageable to do something with that.