Boxerworks.com

Has anyone noticed the seemingly growing number of "cafe bike" parts for sale on E-bay? For example, sub frame for a /6 or /7. Cafe bike they say. Fuel tanks, handle bars, mud guards, gauges and grips. All LOOK stock but must be special since they are "cafe bike" parts! Worth 5 times what stock is worth so they must make the bike go faster and look cool! If that's the case, I have a huge stock of "cafe bike" parts in my storage. Who knew?

The whole cafe thing has spun out of control. I was considering going the cafe look route with my /5 but after really spending some time researching it I came to the conclusion that though the cafe bike has the great Ace cafe type of nostalgia to it, a /5 that honors the BMW heritage with maybe a police solo seat or whatever speaks to you is really timeless.

but.....those cafe parts MUST make it go faster!! Should for the cost

The cafe riding position can be so extreme so that the bike ends up being virtually unusable of anything but shorts trips, add to this that most of the guys doing this stuff are on the wrong side of 40 and you have a project that ends up with a bike that it hardly ever used and ends up being sold on at a serious loss of cash.
Notice that many of the cafe build threads concentrate on the cosmetics, hoping against hope that the BMW reputation for reliability means that the end up with a bike that runs. With some exceptions most cafe'd airheads that I have seen just don't look right, whereas the original BMW sports bikes such as the 90/S and the RS just look good and work really well on the road where it counts.

Much better to spend the money getting the bike back to good useable condition, yes it will cost more than the bike is worth, but you should end up with a bike that has another 25 years good use in it and it's value will increase.

As I wrote on a ADV thread" why buy a bike for $1500, spend $3000 on it and end up with a bike that is worth $1200!"

Rant over

Charles

chasbmw wrote:The cafe riding position can be so extreme so that the bike ends up being virtually unusable of anything but shorts trips, add to this that most of the guys doing this stuff are on the wrong side of 40 and you have a project that ends up with a bike that it hardly ever used and ends up being sold on at a serious loss of cash.

As I wrote on a ADV thread" why buy a bike for $1500, spend $3000 on it and end up with a bike that is worth $1200!"

Rant over

Charles

OK, posting here on the cranky old man board, where I'm a young one at 45. Which is the wrong side of 40?

And could I have sold my barbacks as "cafe barforwards" and gotten $150 instead of $30? Always missing the trick, here.

It's a club! ...or as George Harrison put it, "You've got to pay the dues if you want to sing the blues, but you know it don't come easy..."

"Cafe" really only applies to old stripped down Brit Bikes that could barely do 100mph. Besides "Cafe" sounds like a place where you order crumpets and drink macchiatos with your pinky extended. I prefer the term "Pub Missile".

mattcfish wrote:"Cafe" really only applies to old stripped down Brit Bikes that could barely do 100mph. Besides "Cafe" sounds like a place where you order crumpets and drink macchiatos with your pinky extended. I prefer the term "Pub Missile".

That seems like a euphemism for something else...

Major Softie wrote:

mattcfish wrote:"Cafe" really only applies to old stripped down Brit Bikes that could barely do 100mph. Besides "Cafe" sounds like a place where you order crumpets and drink macchiatos with your pinky extended. I prefer the term "Pub Missile".

That seems like a euphemism for something else...

Snork!

Major Softie wrote:

mattcfish wrote:"Cafe" really only applies to old stripped down Brit Bikes that could barely do 100mph. Besides "Cafe" sounds like a place where you order crumpets and drink macchiatos with your pinky extended. I prefer the term "Pub Missile".

That seems like a euphemism for something else...

I'm on the wrong side of 40 as well.

To be honest, the looks of BMW Airheads are an aquired taste. If they were women, their bodies would be somewhat heavy set (not in a Rubeneque way), and they would have humongous.......be very well indowed. On the other hand they would speak with a wisper and faithfully let you ride them all day and every day without complaint.
Italian machines have the sex appeal, but many of the other less desirable qualities of the fairer sex as well, demanding more and more monitary contributions for their favors.

The Cafe crowd can't afford a Ducati, but need the abuse.