Yamaha XJ750 Project - Cafe Racer type thing

Max Headroom wrote: »

You finished already..............:D

I've a bit to go yet.:)
The tank on that is really long, must be a bit of a stretch riding it.

It's been a while since I updated this. Have only been doing a bit here and there - have been distracted looking at donedeal at more modern bikes (VFR's, Fazers, Hornets, Bandits, Ducati's etc) :rolleyes:

So with everything starting to fit together I started to trim back the excess from the flanges and the top.

Rolled over the section around the head tube




The front of the tank is now a much more curved shape when looking at it from the top compared to the original shape I started forming.

Then started to fold over the lower flanges.


This is just rough for now - I will probably make this edge a bit more sharp.





A a quick check back on the bike.


Tank size really now shows up how huge the seat is.





Still lots of marks on the metal from the shrinking dies but these should all planish / file / sand out. I probably made more work for myself here by using the standard shrinking jaws for steel - when I had a set in a drawer from another unit with finer serrations for aluminium :banghead:- I switched about half way through.


I had bought a cheap screw on filler cap but decided to go with the Monza type cap in the end.
This arrived through Parcel Motel today.

Trying it out for size and position





or do I go offset?




I think it looks better in the centre position.

Started making a few internal baffles then for the tank just to slow the movement of fuel.


Do motorbike tanks usually have baffles?They won't do any harm anyway.



Next steps the flange for the petcock - I've taken a scan of the old one and will cut a new one on the cnc for welding onto the base.
Then I need to finish welding the base and centre section
Then it's trim the top and sides sections and weld together with probably a fair amount of time then to be spent on planishing / metal finsihing

Onto the seat and rear hump then.

I might bring it into to the July 19th Killarney Cars and Coffee on a trailer if I have enough done by then.
I know when people filled out questionnaires at last years meets they said they'd like to see projects.

Max Headroom wrote: »

Like the flow over the rocker covers..very tidy.....unless you're going racing the baffles won't be noticable. ...pity you won't see them tho .lovely bit of engineering....

Thanks. I didn't start out with a specific design for this except for like you say the line of the engine and rocker covers. My main goal was to make sure the bottom of the tank in teh front section was parallel to the rockers . The way the original tank jarred with that line is what bugged me most about the standard bike.

I'm going to try continue a visual line in some way from the engine back to the tailpiece also.

Max Headroom wrote: »

Please stick with this...looking forward to seeing it finished..would be a shame to throw in the towel...like so many...;)

I'll stick with it alright. The main purpose of this was the metalwork practice as well as a first foray into bikes. I'll get it to some form of finished state out of stubborness if nothing else.

I'm also looking forward to seeing if I can make I thought was a fugly bike into something that looks half decent.

So a little bit more done on this
I took a paper trace from the old tank petcock flange, scanned this in and imported to CAD.



Cut it out on the mill (which is embarassingly in need of a clean - looks worse in the pictures)



Lined up in a similar location to the original



And welded in




Put in all back on the bike again. Took off the original large seat and just placed a CBR600 seat (more on that later) on to see what it looked like.


The XJ is looking nice and skinny now and makes the CBR seat look really wide.
I think it is going to look good with a single seat and rear hump of some sort.

I've decided that the centre mounting for the filler cap is how I am going to go. Was just trying to get an idea of how far forward also.
I think this is where it is going to end up


And in relation to the mention of a CBR.
Even though it isn't suitable as a starter bike for me, this thing followed me home last weekend.:o





I know I know ...I'm not finished the first project yet and the second one is already here....
It looks better in the pictures than up close. It's been idle for about 7 months so a bit of furry aluminium here and there and rusty screws & bolts all around . Nose cone fairing is broken also at both indicator mounts.This one is running though after fitting a new battery. It's a 1999 CBR 600 F4

I'm having thoughts about making the full fairing out of aluminium in a retro style .

Something like this
https://www.bikeexif.com/honda-cbr600f but with the fairing a bit more complete rather than stopping half way down.

or this
https://www.returnofthecaferacers.com/yamaha-motorcycle-cafe-racer/retro-yamaha-r6/


It would be a bit of a challenge and I might have trouble converting from vision to reality but if it worked out it would be quite cool I think.

I'll wait and see how far I get with the XJ750 and then decide. The CBR may just get restored. Maybe I should really have just bought a Bandit / Hornet / SV650 and focused on getting a licence ...

A small bit more work done tonight

Time to finalise the filler cap location

Out with the Q max punches again - I love these things



Nice clean edges


Flared it a bit to get the filler fitting nice and low


Fitted the threaded part of the filler assembly and welded it from the inside for a nice clean look outside.



Screwed on the cap once everything had cooled down


Happy with how it looks

Blanchy90 wrote: »

They said the same to me when I had my licence 9 months and I pretty much said "ah go on" and they gave me a quote :pac:

Interesting, that's good to know

OK Carrying on from where I left off
I welded it all up one Friday night







Went over the inside with the torch






Then that Sunday I put it on the trailer and brought it to Cars and Coffee Killarney where we had a new Project Corner


Here it is sitting behind local racer Kevin Coyne's bike. He is off to the UK to complete in the British Superbike Championship

My friend owns KC Print, where Cars and Coffee is held, and he kindly printed up two pull up banners with pictures of the build process.
I didn't hang around the bike as I was doing other stuff during the day so I'm not sure what people thought of a part finished heap on show!

Left it untouched then for a week but started again last weekend - grinding down the welds - horrible job




Which gets me to this stage






Still a lot of sanding and planishing to do but it's getting there and I'm happy enough so far as a first attempt at a tank.

Max Headroom wrote: »

I know youre a perfectionist..:P...but i would have been proud to leave those welds on display...looks more "custom" to me.....:)

I hear where you are coming from. I did consider doing that but decided against it. Maybe on the next one :rolleyes: