Mark Bliss is a man of many talents, but it’s his work with motorcycles he’s most proud of. Both of...
Yamaha Cafe Racer
Yamaha’s first motorcycle appeared in 1955. The 125cc two-stroke YA-1 went straight to the racetrack and started winning titles. Yamaha has built on those race credentials over the years, winning at the IOM TT and the Paris Dakar. Yamaha continues to run a successful factory race team in Moto GP.
Yamaha’s contribution to the custom motorcycle world includes the highly successful and long loved SR400 and SR500 singles we see in so many café racer builds. Other Yamaha custom favourites include the seventies XS650 twins and more recently their XSR700 and XSR900 Sport Heritage range.
Rapid prototyping, CNC machining, 3d printing! Whatever happened to good old hammers, spanners, and the occasional grinder? I get a...
When you are the organiser of what is arguably the biggest custom motorcycle event in the world it goes without...
There’s two ways you can build a custom motorcycle. One way is to have a design idea that’s laid out...
As it always goes, popularity affects price, so the days of picking up a bargain XS are gone and it...
You could be forgiven for thinking that laying bricks and building custom motorcycles have nothing in common. But if you’re...
Thanks to their continued support of custom workshops, Yamaha Motorcycles have played an integral role in the growth of the...
Due to the surging demand for nostalgia-infused motorcycles with a retro aesthetic, it was no surprise that Yamaha decided to...
“Raw & Rough. I´ve always wanted a little Cafe Racer for the urban and offroad section. It’s a kind of a...
After building his own bobber and plenty of customer bikes, James decided it was time to set himself a new...
Despite its 43-year production run ending in 2021, the SR400 remains a hot favourite amongst riders in Japan. The SR400’s...
It’s not often that I feature Bobbers on the site and even less often that I feature custom motorcycles from...
The Yamaha XS-V1 Sakura (Prototype ie coming soon!) oozes Cafe Racer style and should pck plenty of punch based on...
Yamaha’s XS650 would have to be in the top 5 list of most customised motorcycle in the world. It’s bullet...
“Yamaha and Abarth have created the XSR900 Abarth – a lightweight high-performance retro special whose authentic café racer design reflects...
I never thought I was a fan of muscle bikes until I rode a Yamaha XJR1300. It was in 2015...
Shaft driven motorcycles have been around since the early 1900’s, but Yamaha’s shaft driven debut didn’t come until the late...
Trevers father, John Scales, was a 2 stroke road racer during the 1970s. “I heard so many stories from my...
The Yamaha XV920 ‘Double Shot’ is a prime example of Yamaha’s timeless cruising motorcycle, skillfully transformed and rebuilt in the...
This 1981 Yamaha XV750 Virago has been transformed into a cafe racer, featuring a metallic gray finish with gold accents....
As 2014 comes to an end I thought I’d take a (close up) look at some of the incredible work...
Opening up the emails I receive through the “Submit a motorcycle” link on the site is one of my favourite...
A couple of years ago I had the pleasure of meeting the Muharremi brothers, the duo behind the United Kingdom’s...
Japanese workshop AN-BU Customs has developed an instantly recognisable style of their own. Their recipe involves mixing tight proportions, with...
Yamaha’s Yardbuilt series is the brainchild of the companies visionary project manager, Shun Miyazawa. The series kicked off back in...
This 1975 Yamaha RD350 underwent a café racer conversion in 2014. The changes encompassed an orange repaint over a black...
Yamaha’s legendary XS650, it’s reputation precedes it. The XS is one of the most widely customised bikes in the world so to...
David Gonzalez from Ad Hoc is renowned for customizing Yamaha motorcycles. He gained international acclaim for his work on the...
In Osaka, Japan 28-year-old cafe racer enthusiast Yuya Ueda has been riding his SR400 for 8 years and it’s lead...
This 1982 Yamaha XV750 Virago has undergone extensive customization with a range of unique components. These custom additions include a...
Daniel cut his teeth on cars and bikes at a young age. “I drove my first moped at the age...
This Cafe Racer thumper hails from the Japanese workshop Gull Craft. It’s an extensively modified Yamaha SR400 Cafe Racer complete...
“We want to challenge the trope of nostalgic and aesthetically led custom motorcycles by encouraging others to experiment with the...
“Building motorcycles is probably the only thing I am good at.” professes Aseem. “The FS350, my first custom motorcycle, was...
Berry Bads Motorcycles are yet another Japanese custom tuner/builder who’s work has caught my attention. With a gallery full of Bobbers,...
I know I’m probably going to get a few frowns for this as it’s certainly not a Cafe Racer,...
Spotted this great Yamaha R5 “Giant Killer” custom on Garage Project motorcycles. After a bit of digging all I managed to...
Nothing makes me happier than featuring custom motorcycles that have been built in my hometown. Today’s café racer is the...
Not content with simply building a tidy Yamaha SR based Cafe Racer, the crew at Rocker Classic Cycles decided to...
Auto Fabrica has transformed this Yamaha XJ600 into a one-of-a-kind modern classic sports bike known as the “Type 24”. This...
For a motorcycle that once laid claim to being the quickest street production bike, the Kawasaki 500 Triples certainly have...
There are a handful of motorcycles that became the poster children of the “new wave” cafe racer scene at the...
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know there are very few commonalities between nautical craft and motorcycles. Infact the...
Established by Dare Jennings, Rod Hunwick and Carby Tuckwell, Deus ex Machina in Camperdown, Sydney, produces motorcycles for the post-modern world. What the hell...
The quick turnaround on this build was made possible when Pat acquired the Virago as an unfinished project. “The previous...
During the mid-70s, the Yamaha RD400 was the ultimate middleweight sport bike. Known for its explosive power and lightweight frame...
Gold Rush is Daniel’s 3rd XJR1200 based build. As you would expect by now he’s become somewhat of an XJR...
Over in the UK Shaun & Carl of custom workshop ‘Down and Out’ Cafe Racers usually play with parallel twins, but...
Bernhard Naumann, aka Blechmann, grew up in Burgenland, a federal state of Austria in central Europe. Growing up in a...
My dog doesn’t care for the Yamaha XSR900. When I arrive home on any other motorcycle the small ball of...
While Yamaha has previously focused on customising bikes from their Sports Heritage range during the Yardbuilt series, Faster Sons will...
No sooner had the doors of the 2015 One Motorcycle Show closed for another year, than the brothers Busch and...
British vs Japanese engineering. It’s a debate that I’ve often heard between motorcyclists. It’s easy to see why each party...
For the Yardbuilt 2017 XSR700 project, Yamaha selected 7 workshops from different European locations to take part in the event. Representatives from Italy,...
I’ve been covering the Yamaha Yardbuilt series of custom bikes for some time now and have really enjoyed the projects...
After my recent purchase of a Yamaha TW200 I have rediscovered my love of “little” bikes. While I’m not about...
Here’s a great segment from the cutting room floor of Cafe Racer TV. In this online episode they reveal the...
After one full day of owning the 1979 XS650 Special Giancarlo’s called it quits. Stranded on the side of the...
In motorsport, race teams are always looking for new ways to improve lap times. Back in the fifties when motorcycles...
This Yamaha SRX600 has been meticulously transformed into a bespoke cafe racer with a sleek and unique style. It boasts...
Looking at this custom Yamaha SR500 built in Japan turns me in to the equivalent of that crazy fish in Finding...
Yamaha produced the mighty TZ 250 from 1973 all the way through to 2004. When the model was first released...
After more than 35 years of production, the Yamaha SR400 has had little in the way of design modifications. The...
I met Michael Capraro some years ago at a communal motorcycle workshop I was involved in. His enthusiasm for bikes...
It’s getting easier and easier to build a cafe racer. It used to be that you’d either have to pay...
Yamaha’s ‘Race Developed’ series of motorcycles from the early seventies left a lasting impression on the motorcycling world. The 1973...
Adrián Campos and the crew at Spain’s Bolt Motor Co. are back again with yet another impressive build. This time...
I hate to say it but there is a downside to riding a classic British cafe racer. Sure you’ll revel...
One of the biggest decisions you’ll make when building your own Cafe Racer, or any style of custom motorcycle for...
The Yamaha Yardbuilt series will soon be celebrating its 10 year anniversary. Originally the brainchild of Yamaha Project Manager, Shun...
With 200bhp on tap and an astounding 2.5 second 0-60mph time, the Vmax V4 engine is well suited to dragstrip...
Despite its huge success, the Yamaha XSR700 is, in my opinion, one of the least classic-looking modern-retro motorcycles on the...
As anyone starting up a new company should do the pair decided to launch their brand with a bang. So,...
There have been many custom workshops that have evolved their brand into an apparel range. In Taiwan, the clothing label...
The red ‘Monster’ which was built back in 2013 for the Yokohama Hot Rod and Custom Show and the blue...
Feast your eyes on Jay LaRossa’s 1978 Yamaha SR500 “Solus” in this short video by Ricki Bedenbaugh. This video reminds me of...
The Wrenchmonkees have just released details of the bike that represents a half-century of custom motorcycle builds from the Denmark based...
If you happen to be near The Dues Ex Machina store in Camperdown Sydney this week a quick visit is definitely in...
All hail Yamaha. As part of their Yard Built series they’ve been sponsoring some of the wildest, genre-pushing builds we’ve...
Cafe Racer SSpirit, located in San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa, is a motorcycle customization workshop founded in late 2014 by a family...
Deus Bali appeared on the scene only a few short months ago and it seems they are already wheeling some...
Stu Lloyd grew up in the UK during the late ’70s and early ’80s. As a young boy, his leisure...
Sadly it looks like Yamaha’s venerable SR400s time is coming to an end. Like so many other motorcycles falling victim...
It wasn’t until I featured our first Yamaha TRX850 cafe racer back in 2013 that I learned of their existence....
There was always a motorcycle in our house when I was growing up, but my father’s real passion was collectible...
This Yamaha XS650 stands out as a captivating and tastefully modified representation of the popular classic Japanese motorcycle. Crafted into...
The Yamaha XS650 could easily be labelled as the greatest British motorcycle ever built outside of Britain. Powered by a...
Few motorcycles have the cult status of Yamaha’s SR400. During the past decade, the SR has come into the spotlight...
“Purpose Built Moto came about after I started modifying street bikes of my own. I then became frustrated that no...
The Varkain (“Finnish for By Stealth”) Yamaha SR400 is one of my favourite creations to come out of Raider Motorsports...
Vintage Steele of Brattleboro, Vermont, transformed this 1975 Yamaha XS650 into a café-racer. The bodywork, featuring the original four-gallon fuel...
The story of the TX750 is one that Yamaha would rather we all forgot. The bike, which was set to...
Greg Hageman, aka Hageman Motorcycles, aka Doc Chops may not have been the first to build a Virago cafe racer,...
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