Can't see the wood for the trees!

[SumpMagnet]

You know how it goes....window shopping for the bits you don't need yet while you save your pennies for the stuff you do...
Well I fancy a mild cafe racer look for my F2, with dropped bars and a single seat. None of these parts came with the hike in a shape I would ever use, so I had a casual look on eBay to see what was about.

The world is full of 'CNC machined' alloy clip one retailing for £20! Cheap junk I hear you say....and I probably agree. Then you see the SAME cheap junk being sold for £50 by middle retailers... And again at quite steep priced by 'specialust' suppliers of Cafe Racer parts.

Once upon a time, price was a measure of quality. Now it seems everyone is buying in junk at rock bottom prices and jacking up prices...  So how the hell do you find quality online now?

In my part of the world the local bike shop us a distant memory. I can go 10 miles and find a place that will 'book me  in' for a service and charge £200 to adjust the chain and top up the oil but when I needed a clutch cable for a 10 year old bike, it was a special order job and would take a week.

[paul G]

I used these Tarozzi rearsets on my Z650 cafe.
Quality superb but not cheap.

https://www.discovolantemoto.co.uk/honda-rearsets-79-c.asp

[paul G]

I used these Tarozzi rearsets on my Z650 cafe.
Quality superb but not cheap.

https://www.discovolantemoto.co.uk/honda-rearsets-79-c.asp

[Laverda Dave]

I agree with you Paul. Tarozzi are good quality and are usually supplied with plenty of special washers etc to aid fitting. As you say, they are not cheap but are worth it. I fitted a pair to my Morini 350 Sport because I was fed up with looking like a performing monkey every time I rode it with the standard footrests fitted (Morini used the same footrest arrangement for both the Strada and Sports versions! 🙄).

[SumpMagnet]

Ahh..yes...the drop bars forward peg look. The 'crapping frog' as it was known Rear sets are another thing to sort later.

Maybe I should forget clipons and get a set of proper retro 'ace bars' with the clock protector loop. Proper 80's fare they were.

[Laverda Dave]

😁, ah yes, the 'Ace Bars' look. I had a set fitted to my CB160 in 1980 when I had 'L' plates. I was told by a policeman to refit the standard bars before tacking my test otherwise the driving examiner would almost certainly fail me for acting like a boy racer! I did and I passed 😊!

[SumpMagnet]

I had a CB125T2 ... last of the pre restriction 125's....a genuine tarmac shredding 14Hp. Great little bike. Blue... wish I still had it. Ironically....I never had another honda after that for nearly 25 years even though it was a great little machine that I owned for years and did close on 20K miles on.