Honda CB125T Cafe Racer Project

[mattress_man]

Here's a blog of my CB125T project. Been keeping it up to date on Facebook but thought it would be good to put it on here and get a bit more expert advice!

The bike arrives. Ebay impulse buy (never again... if you're listening, kids, save up for a nice bike don't spend £75 on a wreck!). The good thing is it's all there and the engine turns over. The reason for the super cheap price is it was listed as seized. It wasn't the engine though, the rear brake had fused and it had been left in gear giving the impression that it was seized. Luckily when I turned up the owner had discovered this.

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This shows a little better the initial condition

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So I didn't waste any time getting it stripped down. Literally everything was infested with spider's egg sacks. There was also a mouse nest in the battery box, he/she/it had chewed through the live and the earth so I'm surprised I didn't find a corpse!

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The objective of this swift tear down is to get the bike into my basement. You can see the door behind the railings. Bikes must be disassembled to go in and out. This'll be number 3!

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Even though the tank is fuel tight its in a pretty bad way. I'm sure it could be restored but I'm not a fan of the shape. This is where the 'cafe' thing started. Having looked at a lot of bike projects online it seemed the 'cafe' thing was something that people did for two reasons. 1. they think its cool and 2. they don't have any money to buy all the parts for a honest restoration. Having watched 'Cafe Racer TV' those guys chuck thousands at a modern day 'cafe racer' which is essentially a race bike on the road that still looks a bit vintage. But I don't think a GSXR front end with Brembos is really justified on a CB125T. So number 2. it is then!

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So, a stripped frame and an engine, if you count the wheel rims too these are the only things that I got for my £75.

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During the tear down I was pretty lucky with seized bolts etc. Here you can see the two that defeated me. The top engine mount and the center stand. I had thought it would be possible to leave the stand on and just carry on but it really gets in the way when you're turning the frame over etc. Incidentally yes, I did strip the frame with a power drill and a wire brush attachment. It's very hard work and one day I look forward to splashing out on getting a pro to do it.

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So finally something goes back on the bike! In this case a couple of coats of anti rust primer. That little tin (250ml) will do about 3 frames, amazing how it lasts.

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Wilkinson's multi-surface enamel spray paint gloss black. Really good stuff! The only thing letting the finish down was the brush marks from the primer coat. I did start sanding down the primer but very quickly got bored. Kinda like the homemade look anyway

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Here's the replacement tank. It's off a CB200 and cost £25 on Ebay. When it arrived it had £5 written on the side in marker pen and when i looked inside I realised why. It had a seriously thick layer of corrosion and when I had a poke around underneath I revealed a pin hole. But needless to say I was pleased. It's a great classic shape and it gave me a chance to try out some electrolysis.

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So for those of you who haven't done this on a tank here's how:

1. Fill the tank with water. and add a couple of table spoons of baking soda. This makes the liquid alkaline and a better conductor. Give it a shake and then brim the tank by adding a bit more water.

2. prepare your anode! This is the bit you can't see in the photo as it's inside the tank. It's a piece of threaded bar that is extended inside the tank in a way that it goes as far in as possible without touching the sides. Electrolysis works by 'line of sight' i.e if the rusty metal can't 'see' the anode then it won't be affected.

3. To mount the threaded bar use a spray can lid sat over the filler hole. Cut a hole in the lid and pass the threaded bar through. Now secure it with bolts, now you see why you use threaded! The bar is quite heavy so use bungie chords to anchor the lid. Remember it (the bar) can't touch the tank. I found that you can feel its right when you can lightly touch the tip of the bar and feel it swinging inside, a heavier touch and you can feel it bang against the side. Anyway, if its wrong you'll get plenty of sparks later!

3. Get yourself a 12v car battery charger. The one in the picture has a 'boost' option for starting a car so that was ideal.

4. Attach the positive to the threaded bar and the negative to the tank. The threaded bar is a sacrificial anode, it gets eaten away. If you connect this up wrong then your tank will be eaten away.

5. Before turning on the charger disconnect one of the leads. Now turn on the charger and touch the lead back to where to removed it. You should see some very small sparks. If you get showered in sparks then the bar is shorting on the tank. Adjust and repeat as necessary.

6. I don't have any pics of the results but after about 20 mins you'll get a load of gunk bubbling up to the filler hole. When it has finished bubbling it's done. This takes about 4 hours but the longer the better. The good thing is it's only the rust that dies, the metal isn't touched, so leave it a week if you want to!

7. 'Done' means it has turned all the rust into a black oxide crust. Funnily enough the recommended way of dislodging this crust is with Coca Cola. So you need to drain the tank and fill it back up with coke! I used a hand full of nuts and bolts to help it but that's because my tank was particularly bad. The chunks of black rust that came out were about 1cm thick!

8. Once the black stuff is gone you are left with fresh shiny metal. Now the gutting thing is it will immediately rust again. I didn't realise this (stupidly) and didn't do anything about it so now I'm suffering the consequences. Anyway I recommend filling it with petrol or something cheaper like parafin etc. Anything that's going to inhibit the rust and also is easy to get rid of afterwards.

9. I've just realised I've given details of a potentially dangerous process without a disclaimer so here it is. YOU ARE MAKING HYDROGEN! If you use stainless steel as an anode you are also adding chromium compounds to the water which are carcinogenic! So be careful

Anyway hope that was of help, on with the blog!

Trying out the tank for size. Also restored the wheels with some hammerite silver spray.

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Grinding off the clips and hinges on the rear of the frame. The original seat looked OK on top but underneath the metal was completely gone so it was discarded. So I'm preparing the way for a custom seat.

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Here's my favourite part of the project. It's a headlight off a 1940s Vauxhall 10. It's a Lucas light and only cost me £10 in a local flea market. If you are in Cardiff, ask me for directions cos there's loads of cool car and bike stuff there.

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Here it is mounted on the bike. I'm using 34mm pipe clamps x 4 and two brackets I cut out of some sheet metal left over from a barn construction. To be honest the metal could be stronger so I might replace it at a later date.

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At least it looks like a motorbike now

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This is the slightly embarrassing method for putting a gold stripe on the tank. Later on you'll see I do it properly on the seat pod

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Here's the progress shot showing the way I'd like the bike to sit. But check out the rear wheel! Fair enough I'm going to lower the front an inch or so but I'm gonna have to get some much longer shocks for the back. Unfortunately I've found that you can't raise the back too much as the swing arm fouls on the exhaust mount. This could be altered but I need to keep things like suspension safe and not stray too far from original.

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starting to mock up the seat. I've got the battery there to see if I can get it inside the seat pod but it's not gonna work. It's a really tall battery so I'm going to have to rethink. The battery does actually fit in the light shell with everything fastened up! But the light is very heavy as it is and those home made brackets are not that strong.

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Here's the metal seat. It's the same metal as the headlamp mounts and in this application it's super strong! I can't weld so it had to be riveted. The three screw heads pointing forwards are where a hinge lies so when you undo the screws down the side you gain access to the rectifier, condensor and flasher unit underneath.

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In this shot you can see the leather I added to the tank. It's padded with some upholstery wadding too. The original cb200 had a ridged plastic insert here but the tank didn't come with it.

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Making the seat cushion out of hardboard and blue seating foam. In retrospect I should have added a base layer of denser foam and I have a feeling that when I hit a bump I'm gonna regret it.

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And here it is all covered in leather... I say leather, it's really just cheap PVC stuff but it'll do.

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Update on basement madness: I dismantled the bike to take it out of the basement and reassembled it for trailering to my girlfriend's parents. Luckily they have a lot of space and her dad has some decent tools and a powerful battery charger! So upon getting it home (see below) I decided not to take it apart again... getting silly now. So now the bike lives outside under a tarp. Man, I can't wait to have my own place and a decent garage!

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Luckily the cheapest options are also the most basic and classic looking. This £8 rear light even has a downward pointing window to light the number plate... M.O.T requirement 1 of 999 done!

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OK so here's how you do paint the proper way paint the detail colour on first then mask off what you want to keep!

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Throughout the project I've been checking out loads of classic bikes and have been inspired by the Velocette Thruxton and other models. My mate is an illustrator and drew me up a Honda logo in the style of the Velocette font. Very pleased with this. I've been trying to keep everything simple and functional on this project but this is pure indulgence Please get in touch if you'd like something similar, I'm sure he'd appreciate the work!

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OK so I did get a bit carried away here. The idea was always 'if it ain't broke don't fix it' but this was free. I designed some new dials for the bike using the above logo. Went for a vintage look and printed it on normal paper. Several coats of clear will hopefully waterproof it. The real challenge was getting the dials apart. They are not suppose to be apart! You have to cut and lever open the seal underneath and the whole plastic case and window comes away. I re-sealed it with some epoxy and it's holding up fine.

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After an initial and partial engine inspection ages ago I had forgotten I'd broken the clutch cover gasket. So filling it up with oil was a big mistake! I'm so lucky I noticed it as I was heading out and would have returned to find 1.5 liters of oil all over the place! I ended up cutting my own gasket out of some gasket paper and it works a treat. Definitely recommend getting hold of some. I think I spent about £15 on some decent stuff and must've made about £100 of gaskets already! I have heard people advising against this so use caution, a clutch cover is a fairly low pressure gasket (I think) and I would never make my own for a head or cylinder base.

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Here's the wiring that's under the seat pod. My technique was to wire all the components to the headlamp case. So every connection is made behind the headlight. I achieved this by using 7 core trailer wire. There's two that run from the seat pod, one from the generator and one from the coils and rear brake switch. There's also one that drops down from the ignition switch.

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When you break it down like this there are surprisingly few connections to make. I divided it into lighting and ignition and connected up the ignition switch so you get one then the other on the two key turns. Not yet sure whether it's fully road worthy, it all works and the engine runs great it's just the lights that might need some attention. Might need to run a dedicated power source from the battery for the headlight and earth it nearer the light as it currently runs back to the seat pod to earth.

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Here's a good view of the headlight. Not yet sure if it's MOT worthy but we'll see in time. You can also see the horn here. Absolutely amazed it still works, it was so rusty and pretty much seized up, lots of blow torching fixed that!

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I find this quite funny. I've got a vision of someone nicking my keys in the pub and running out to the carpark looking for a yamaha bike. HAR HAR

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Exhaust pipes! Finally I can properly get it running without annoying the neighbours! These are second hand, the right one being a lot more second hand than the left It had a sheared mounting bolt and a rattle inside. I fixed the bolt but I guess the baffle is loose inside. It doesn't seem to be a problem when idling in terms of exhaust note but I guess I might hear the odd rattle going over bumps. Never mind, they work and sound great!

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Here are the pod filters. I haven't yet fully checked the mixture but it's running fine at an even idle and has good throttle response. Not gone for a ride yet so can't really tell so it's a work in progress. The main problem I've got is the idle jets blocking up with the crap from the tank even though I'm running an inline filter and the petcock has a filter too! I've had them out to clean them and even though I can see daylight through them I think there is still some petrol varnish inside causing probs. Does anyone know the anatomy of an idle jet for this carb? They seem so chunky for such a small opening that I can't help but think there's a bit more going on inside there, some sort of baffle or mini reservoir? maybe not.

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And here it is as it stands today. The only big things on my list are the rear shocks, tyres, sprockets/chain and a rear mudguard to match the front. All quite expensive things so I'll think it'll be sat here for a while. Plenty of time to be getting on with the little things then. I've got the logo to paint on the tank, the clutch cover to polish, wiring to tie up, last rusty bits to paint. Not gonna list everything. Anyone got any advise on cables? My clutch and front brake cable are both too long now the bike is stripped. I think I can make do but I was wondering about getting some made up to length... although that sounds expensive.

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I'll keep this blog updated and I'd really appreciate any feedback and advice. Even the boring stuff like M.O.T and insurance, still gonna keep me off the road if there are probs! Thanks in advance.
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1981 Honda CB125T - Cafe racer project.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=246188

[Harley]

That is looking really good! I have myself a honda cm 1983 and slow goings as mine was in a terrible state when it arrived, but I got mine for free, but I guess that tells you all. however if you need any parts for example, the rear shocks I have are the same, but have no rust...? Anyway looking great!

[mattress_man]

Cheers Harley. Yeah I was aware that the CM shares a few parts, good to know you've got one on the go. I'm looking to get as much lift as possible on the rear shocks so I'm after a pin to pin measurement of around 340mm. I'd like 350mm but that pushes the swing arm into the exhaust mount. Are the CM's identical? I've got a feeling that the shocks on mine have been replaced to help a short rider so I could be getting things mixed up.
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1981 Honda CB125T - Cafe racer project.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=246188

[nisp]

WOW! thats a tidy little bike clean lines

I live in cardiff could you pm me a location of this flea market? im rebuilding a cx and need parts
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Suzuki TS 50 1999 Honda CB 125 t2 1981 Yamaha XJ 600 s Diversion Honda cx 500 MZ ETZ 250 1985 Yamaha FZR 400 1981 Suzuki TS 185 1984 Triumph bonneville 790 2001 MZ TS250 1979 Suzuki sv 650 1999 KTM exc RFS 450 2007 Hercules mx 125 1976

[Harley]

I am not sure, but I am pretty sure mine are only 300mm end to end, I think thats down to the cm being more of a low rider style... Ill have a proper measure up tomorrow and let you know!

[U_W v2.0]

https://www.sendspace.com/file/27x0f1

thats a carb tuning manual. your carb looks very similar to whats on my bike (mostly because mines a clone of the honda CG125 or some honda 125 i forget lol)

anyway, you carb looks the same as the one on the manual.

it might prove helpful to you
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BCF's biggest cunt list: Cansa, Pits, Rob

[neatbik]

Awesome project, nice one.

I especially like the headlight and the clocks.

[mattress_man]

Cheers guys. And thanks for that carb manual secretreeve!

I went and bought a can of this today

https://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_202903_langId_-1_categoryId_255221

It's great stuff. Not the strongest of chemicals but its the application that's the best bit, really good nozzle! I found out today that the air intake for the idle jet was blocked on one carb and the intake for the main jet was blocked on the other. A few blasts of that stuff and it was all clear again.

I've also noticed that having an inline filter (it's a cheapy one) on it's side lets a bit of sediment past the gauze. So it's best to have it upright so the crap settles in the bottom of the gauze cup. Kinda obvious really but there we go.

Had the battery on charge all day too so all the lights were working as they should this eve. I did however get a lower wattage headlamp bulb from Halfords too just in case I run into probs later.
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1981 Honda CB125T - Cafe racer project.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=246188

[Harley]

Ths shocks off the cm are 350mm point to point, but the connection at the bottom I fear is different, could you post a picture of one of the shocks off of the bike, top view preferably?

[Fizzer Thou]

Here are some pages from the Honda sales catalogue of the time of the CB125T2

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https://i666.photobucket.com/albums/vv23/WiNot_Rhencullen/Snaps/HondaLeaflets030.jpg

The shocks that I have on my 125 were from a friends trials bike and I found them in his box of scrap.After cleaning them up I found that they still worked perfectly.I will measure them up tomorrow.There is an advertiser in the VJMC magazine who refurbishes standard Jap shocks.I will see if I can find his number/emaiil address.
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Just talk bikes.What else is there?

Always have a 'Plan B'

[nick.h]

Make your own control cables, especially if they are custom.

You can buy the ends, or make them out of old bolts. With some silver solder, a metal pot and a blow torch you can braze the ends on.

My dad made one for my thunderace when the ex-up cable went.
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[Italjet MM5A] ll [Rieju RS1 Evolution] ll [Suzuki GS500e] ll [Suzuki GSX600F] ll [Honda CG125] ll [Pug Elyseo 125] ll [Yamaha YZF750R] ll [Yamaha Thunderace] ll [Yamaha R6] ll [Triumph 955i] ll [Hayabusa RZK3] ll [Suzuki RGV250] ll

[mattress_man]

Cheers Harley, 350mm would be good to make fit, wanna get that nose down racer stance. The shocks on the bike are eye to eye. I expect you are talking about an eye at the top and a bracket at the bottom? I've seen a lot like that, usually on more modern bikes.

Thanks for the images Fizzer. Interesting that you have trials shocks, I've seen that done on other custom road bikes. I've found trials shocks that are the size I'm looking for but I never know what travel they have. No point in getting longer shocks if they're still going to bottom out on my seat pan.
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1981 Honda CB125T - Cafe racer project.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=246188

[mattress_man]

Didn't think about making the control cables, I've bodged them in the past to make them longer but that was on a field bike.

I've got all the brazing gear so might have a look at getting the parts and giving that a bash. Cheers Nick.
____________________
1981 Honda CB125T - Cafe racer project.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=246188

[Valentino Mossy]

Cracking work so far !!! The clocks are very nice !

Cardiff flea market.... is that bessemer road market ?

Just up the road from there in merthyr....

Get yourself on the wales section of bcf..... !
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Ducati 916,white framed corse replica https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=239309
Ducati 160 monza jnr soon to be cafe racer
https://blauschatfroums.freeforums.net/

[Suntan Sid]

That's really cool!
Where did you find the original bike, looks like it was at the bottom of a lake!
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"Everybody needs money, that's why they call it money!"

[Frost]

Lower the front and jack the back up and it'll look epic i think

After putting all that effort into everything, how about treating it to some tyres that don't look like they've been fished out of a canal?

[TUG]

That's amazing but the seat should be flush with the tank and the tail is a bit urm... well haha.
Keep up the good work, lovely bike.
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Haz ER-5, innit!

[Tim..]

Nice project.

The leather and cap on the tank and the clocks are nice touches.
Agree with losing the gap between seat and tank though
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Project builds: My VFR400 nc30 build thread + Honda Britain Rep VFR + What? Another VFR +Project 'cos I want one' + V8 coffee table
www.marshallracing.co.uk
OCD - Helping to bring the standard of my bikes up and make me slowly go mad since 1999

[woll]

Done a bloody good job upto now Just think the seat needs to be longer so there isn't a gap between the tank and seat.
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Current Bike- Suzuki DRZ400 SM K6
Previous bikes - Derbi Senda Xtreme50r, Honda CBR 125, Kawasaki ZZR 250, Yamaha DT125R, Suzuki Bandit 600, Gas gas ec 250, Honda CBR600FW
Damaged spleen, damaged kindey, 2 popped lungs, 2 broken ribs, broken face, broken wrist and 5 back fractures... remember kids walls hurt

[mattress_man]

Thanks for the replies guys. Agreed about the seat. I had planned on making another one at some point. I was proud of the curvy ribbed thing I made but I will eventually replace it with a more classic/basic looking shape, and fill in that gap! I guess one day I'll have one of those tail sections with the welded on loop but I've got a feeling that's for another project.

Tyres are on the list as a finishing touch and should make a big difference, got any recommended sources?

I'm putting the Honda logo on the tank now so I'll put some photos up soon.
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1981 Honda CB125T - Cafe racer project.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=246188

[blurredman]

Cable operated disc brake noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

Seriously, you're better off with a CG drum front end. I have the unfortunate experience of using a CB125T from time to time. It was good; just not the brake..
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CBT: 12/06/10, Theory: 22/09/10, Module 1: 09/11/10, Module 2: 19/01/11
Past: 1991 Honda CG125BR-J, 1992 (1980) Honda XL125S, 1996 Kawasaki GPZ500S, 1979 MZ TS150.
Current: 1973 MZ ES250/2 - 18k, 1979 Suzuki TS185ER - 10k, 1981 Honda CX500B - 91k, 1987 MZ ETZ250 (295cc) - 39k, 1989 MZ ETZ251 - 50k.

[woll]

PS. How do you find bike like that for so cheap? I would love one that cheap.
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Current Bike- Suzuki DRZ400 SM K6
Previous bikes - Derbi Senda Xtreme50r, Honda CBR 125, Kawasaki ZZR 250, Yamaha DT125R, Suzuki Bandit 600, Gas gas ec 250, Honda CBR600FW
Damaged spleen, damaged kindey, 2 popped lungs, 2 broken ribs, broken face, broken wrist and 5 back fractures... remember kids walls hurt

[mattress_man]

Hi Blurredman, I take it the CG front end would be spoked? Might look into that cos I fancy some classic looking spoked wheels that are easy to fit.

Woll, the bike was cheap because the seller thought the engine was seized. The bike was also a complete wreck, total basket case on wheels. The good thing was the seller was an honest guy who passed on the bike for no profit. He'd got it off a farmer for the same price as a project for him and his son. Unfortunately his son couldn't see the fun in it and bailed. I was watching it on Ebay for about 2 weeks, its strange it was there for so long for so cheap. I guess the moss growing on the forks and engine was a downer

The project I had before this was an XL125 with a seized engine. I ended up buying a new engine because it was cheaper than a rebore, so I get why people are put off by the word 'seized' but surely it's all part of the fun eh?
____________________
1981 Honda CB125T - Cafe racer project.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=246188

[blurredman]

[nisp]