We’re quite proud of our talented crew of International contributors, folks who are constantly on the search for unique, custom-made speedbkes wherever they are. Among the rarest machines we’ve featured over the years are customized Moto Guzzi cafe racers....
Each year, our staff endures one of the most fun meetings in all of publishing. We gather to sample the wares of local food trucks in hopes of determining what vendors to invite to our Reader’s Ride-In Bike Show. I know it’s a thankless task, but one that...
Though none of us are dedicated followers of social media, occasionally, images emerge through the cyber stew that are truly inspired. Our next issue features a retrospective on the ton-up artistry of the Japanese illustrator Kamau 666. Little is known about this...
Feedback from you, our readers plays a very large part in deciding what sort of custom motorcycles to feature in the pages of Cafe Racer. This is invaluable information to have as with a readership that covers a vast demographic spectrum – our youngest...
2019 Reader’s ride-In Custom Bike Show Is A Go! If you’ve got a customized speedbike and want to show the world what you ride, this year’s show is the place for you! Cafe Racer’s annual Reader’s ride-In is the ONLY custom cafe racer show...
It’s easy to forget in today’s highly specialized streetbike market that way back in the early 1970s, race bikes were built from ordinary motorcycles. There were few, if any, purpose-built factory racers along the lines of today’s superbikes so if...
Inspired By Custom, For Custom. That’s the official tag line for Royal Enfield’s Shotgun 650, the Indian firm’s latest incarnation of their globally-popular, parallel twin lineup. The Shotgun was released last summer and immediately seduced custom motorcycle enthusiasts with its voluptuous lines, frisky performance and easy adaptability. RE kept things real with the Shotgun, avoiding… Read more: Shotgun Central
The stopping and cornering capabilities of our 1974 Norton Commando 850 has been improved in ways the engineers at the British factory could have never imagined. High-tech running gear was molasses-in-January slow to reach British motorcycles back in the 1960s and ’70s, even though disc brakes had been standard issue on many British cars and… Read more: Give Us A Brake
Story by Mike Seate • Photos by Nikki Marie Photography As British manufacturers discovered more than half a century ago, line-ups can expand quite easily by designing new motorcycles around existing engine platforms. Indian’s Royal Enfield struck sales gold in 2018 with their versatile 650cc parallel twin engine introduced in the Continental GT cafe racer… Read more: FIRST RIDE Royal Enfield Shotgun 650
CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE Differentiating different batteries: A traditional AGM or sealed lead acid battery (1) is larger and far heavier than a Firepower lithium cell battery (2), which is equipped with a built-in LED test light, and the tiny Shorai lithium battery (3). Story and Photos by Mike Seate We’ve experienced a love-loathe… Read more: CR TECH Lithium Batteries Explained
Story by Mike Seate • Photos by Nikki Marie Photography As British manufacturers discovered more than half a century ago, line-ups can expand quite easily by designing new motorcycles around existing engine platforms. Indian’s Royal Enfield struck sales gold in 2018 with their versatile 650cc parallel twin engine introduced in the Continental GT cafe racer… Read more: FIRST RIDE Royal Enfield Shotgun 650
