For some time now I have been itching to start restoring the CL90, or at least have it running again. I wanted to tear into the thing every time I watched diy Youtube videos, Wheeler Dealers, Rick's restorations or reading restoration forum threads. But I was reluctant opening that can of worms, this went on for 2 years. Until one day a self proclaimed mechanic appeared at my doorstep. He claimed he owned a CL90 himself when he was young and kept it for a couple of years before a Japanese tourist offered him a wad of cash for it. He said when he saw me wheeling it out of my garage, as he passed by (he was a tricycle driver) he immediately recognized it and had to turn back to talk to me and have a better look. He pointed out a lot of features unique to the make & model like it was contact point-battery ignition type and had the same engine as S90. After talking a while he convinced me he has experience with 60's Honda engines and I agreed we start overhauling the engine asap.
Actual tear down began after a few weeks I met mang Richard. I just made sure the guy was legit and sure enough some people and businesses were his customers before.
We made quick progress and in an hour and a half later everything was dismantled, he had some bad news for me as he made a list of a lot of missing internal parts, like the oil pump gear, 2nd and 4th drive gears, new seals etc. The good news is all the parts are available at a shop he frequents at Valenzuela. I gave him some cash but not before taking a photo of his drivers license and a signed waiver, just to be safe.
While waiting for the missing parts I cleaned up the aluminum crankcase, you cant tell from the photos but they were spotless - I should have taken a photo of the wire brush I used or what's left of it.
Next I tackled the 18" rims - the spokes need replacing, while the rusted stainless rims were sprayed with rust converter -Turco then brushed to see if they were salvageable. The rear rim has some holes and both have pitted surfaces and now I'm thinking of either repair then powder coat them black or go buy new ones.
The tires although old and cracking, surprisingly could still hold air.
Next post would be my first attempt at Polishing the crankcase covers.
I never thought I would get the chance to see this British classic in the Manila International Auto Show. So I quickly snapped some photos of what was displayed on the booth that day, that's me reflected on that shiny fuel tank. Talking with the people there I found out these babies are exclusively distributed by the Hardcore Bros. Custom. Hope to get to ride one of these someday, specially that army green one.
Hirap pala mag-isip ng name para sa blog ko, tapos pag check ko me may-ari na pala. I ended up with Retromech kasi nagustuhan ko ang look ng vintage motorcycles, Cafe Racers in particular. And I also happen to love robots (mechs) Ano ang Cafe racers? di po sya karera ng kape, sa mga pilosopo. Ayon sa wikipedia;
A Café racer, originally pronounced "caff" (as in Kaff) racer, is a type of motorcycle as well as a type of motorcyclist. Both meanings have their roots in the 1960sBritish counterculture group the Rockers or the Ton Up Club, although they were also common in Italy and Germany and other European countries. Rockers were a young and rebellious Rock and Roll counterculture that wanted a fast, personalised and distinctive bike to travel between transport cafés along the newly built arterial motorways in and around British towns and cities. The goal of many was to be able to reach 100 miles per hour (called simply "the ton") along such a route where the rider would leave from a cafe, race to a predetermined point and back to the cafe before a single song could play on the jukebox, this was called record-racing. They are remembered as being especially fond of Rockabilly music and their image is now embedded in today's rockabilly culture.
Furthermore;
The cafe racer has a lot in common with the chopper or bobber scene in the USA and both have their roots with post-World War II veterans. Riders rejected the large transportation-oriented motorcycles of the time by taking these motorcycles and removing parts deemed unnecessary. While American GIs would take military-spec Harley Davidsons and "chop" off anything unnecessary to improve performance, European veterans took similar measures with their motorcycles. Both looked to make the standard factory motorcycles faster and lighter, although the difference between the nature of the US and European road systems led to somewhat different results. While the Americans favoured a low heavy cruiser style of motorcycle for straightline comfort, the Europeans preferred a higher, more nimble motorcycle better suited to the more twisting roads of their nations. In Britain, many roads can be traced to Roman origin and even older roads following terrain. There were no interstates/autobahn type roads until late 1950's. 'A' roads were(are) better surfaced and wider with multiple travel lanes in built-up areas or between urban areas but may be only two lane undivided highway in low traffic areas (such as the M1_motorway). It must be remembered that it was also a style born largely out of the poverty of Post-War Europe and so not given to the excesses of later Harley-Davidson Billet-Barge style customisation.
Get it now? Although me following na to worldwide http://www.cb750cafe.com/ mukhang mahihirapan pausuhin ito dito sa pinas, di sya kasing popular ng chopper design kasi mukha syang pantra short for pantrabahong motor, or pang tricycle, which is sort of demeaning sa lahat ng may-ari ng below 200cc na standard bike (including me!). Ang uso kasi dito eh mga
underbone or mopeds like honda wave, which i also like but not the modern ones but yung luma;
Meet the Honda Super Cub! Ang lolo ng mga modern underbones today! Ayon sa Discovery channel's top 10 motorcycles ever sya ang #1!
why? check nyo to
That's enough for now, next time i'll post more about Cafe Racers!
