Celebrating Mothers day as that is what it is today back home and thinking of my MUM as she passed away 7 years ago, she was always patient with any of my Motorcycles no matter how noisey.
Thought I would put a funny Rockers video today of what I remember watching as a kid.
Been a while since I have tinkered in the Barn, I am starting to do a bit of creating on a machine I have had as a stock bike and sat in storage for many moons, and I thought to myself, why not create something that I personally rode back in the day and in the style of what was the latest Motorcycle hitting the TON back in London.
I have loved bikes as a kid and my bedroom was literally covered from walls to ceiling in motorcycle posters, of course I loved the Cafe Racer scene and had many Dunstall style bikes on my wall, but wanted to have something similar when I was old enough to ride. I actually put Clubman bars on my first ever little moped as a crazy 16 year old, I had a Bikini Fairing on the front and a little expansion on that ride, I loved it.
I was a Dispatch rider in London and Birmingham, delivering stuff all over the UK but many trips around the City of London to iconic places like Buckingham Palace , The House of Lords, Newspaper and Magazine Companies, to dodgy Porn Video tape sellers in SOHO, but I loved it. In London especially, you needed to be able to carry as much as you could for the better wage, but you also needed to be a streamlines as possible to speed through the busy roads of London.
The Creation I am putting together reflect my life, so not a quick build, this is something I will take my time on and weather you like it or not, it will be something that is really a part of me and my life on two wheels. It will take some sorting out to fit the Original Avon fairing that was indeed on a Dispatch bike in London, I have had it years its beaten up and half missing but that’s perfect as we never had any money for lavish New parts, we bought stuff out of a paper called the “Exchange & Mart” then fitted it and never really had time or cash to fully paint it, so this will be great for the ride and I hope I can fit this to the machine to work just like it did when I was a lot younger. LOL!
I used to spend many an hour looking through that rag as it was only 15p and I am sure people back home in Blighty reading this will also remember doing the same, no internet then ha ha.
I am happy that I can do this and reflect on the years that have seemed to have flown by, no idea where the 140 pound Skinny Fella went to but I can always reminisce with this build, the bike was super heavy but strong as an Ox, I hope to get the bike completed sometime this year and will show it as a feature on the website.
I may go with a different seat of mine, I have already tried 5 different seats and still not happy, but thats half the fun of designing something and when I get it right, I shall feel a whole lot happier.
You used to see so many of this style when I was riding around Oxford or regent Street, on a busy Tuesday morning, having a fairing and side Panniers gave me so much more loading space, some days I would even fit a back rack and a top box, but that did get a little over laden at times.
I think I have a screen for it but can get one from a company here or in the UK, so no worries on that, but a long way to go as I have to allow for the steering to move smoothly and not catch anything mid turn.
Of course I shall have a headlight in the fairing, an old style one too and the obligatory Fog lights as well, fun times ahead and thought that i would share.
It is always hard to write about friends that pass away but even more so when its a Motorcycle Crash.
I wanted to share this as Ronnie and I became really good friends about 10 years ago, he commissioned me to build him a Cafe Bike to his specs and he was over the moon with the end result and when I heard he passed away In January, it was a very sad day indeed as Ronnie Loved to ride.
Ronnie was the Owner of Northwest Honda-Ducati and motorcycles were his passion and life.
So I thought I would post some pics of the bike I created for him and he rode a lot, a great friend who I will always be honored to have become a part of his Motorcycle fraternity.
RIP Ronnie.
Just after 1:30 p.m.on Monday, January 17, 2022, Ronnie Lunsford, 63, of The Woodlands, was traveling northbound on FM 149 at Stone Creek.
According to DPS Lunsford was riding a Honda CBR1000RR when he struck a Honda CRV SUV that was stopped behind a Saab 93T sedan which was stopped and attempting to make a left turn onto Stone Creek.
Lunsford was transported by MCHD to Memorial Hermann in The Woodlands where he passed. There were no other injuries. Lunsford is a very experienced rider and a long-time member of the motorcycle racing community.
He mentored two-time Superbike World Champion Colin Edwards II.
He spent years road racing with CMRA, WERA, and CRRC as well as racing flat track and motocross. Over the years he won 28 CMRA Sprint Championships and 18 CMRA Endurance Championships.
In 2004 he was inducted into the CMRA Hall of Fame.
In 1986 Lunsford bought the Northwest Honda Ducati dealership on I-45 from his father. He recently retired from there and sold the dealership so that he could spend time with his wife Janet his two daughters Leigh and Lauren and his two grandchildren. While the owner of Northwest Honda Lunsford organized the Honda sponsored Houston Ride For Kids-a a fundraiser for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.
The first ride was in 1993. Over the years the ride has raised millions.
The 2021 ride raised $1.1 million.
A great rider and Motorcycle enthusiast and I am so honored to have Created the Lunsford Honda for him.
From the Very start, Ronnie was really specific on the set up, the stance, the performance and the handling that he required for this special build.
He wanted a certain Red too, so a lot of time was spent getting the bike to exactly how he wanted it and we spent many a good time having a chat about the creation as I began the build of this Cafe Bike.
A thing of Beauty and when this was completed, it sure pulled hard and handled super well in the corners, using a set of CB400-4 Bars and cables for a More comfortable ride.
Custom Gauges and a cool hand made display console for the Oil light and of course Neutral and High Beam, these were a nice touch to this Classic Machine.
This is my hand made Fiberglass front fender thats Bobbed to 22 inches and fits nice and tight on the forks, hugging the wheel like a new glove.
Looks nice with the hand pin line and then plenty of clear coat, this is exactly how Ronnie wanted the bike to look, so many New Parts used to.
The Gas tank was one of my very own, made from my own mold and incorporates a Monza style flip filler cap and has aluminum plating molded inside to allow for petcock and brackets to bolt to.
Here is the way it came out of the paint booth and it is quite stunning to be honest and was really stoked at the finish this has for Ronnie.
I built a Boxed rear swing arm thats 23 inches in length, a slightly longer wheel base than stock and gave the Geometry a kick in the shins but worked great in the corners.
Ronnie wanted 18″ Rims and this set up was perfect for his height and weight, I spent a lot of time getting this right and was super stoked to get it rolling and off the table.
Every nut and bolt is either stainless steel or chromed, this is virtually a Brand New Motorcycle and no issues at all with this set up.
Ready for the Built Motor to be fitted into the chassis, a scary time sometimes as you have to wrap all the frame to hopefully not scratch that show paint.
All together and so much detail here, I am sure you will miss a lot of things done to this build, but boy, what a Machine this turned out to be.
So glad that I was able to create something that reminded Ronnie of the race days gone by and I know that he was super excited to receive it from here in California.
Thanks for reading this and I hope that you liked what I created for Ronnie Lunsford, RIP Ronnie.
Hey Everyone
I have been pretty busy as of late as the Barn is now built but still waiting on a few things to get it functional to be honest, and with the price of Building materials higher than a Coke addict, I shall just take my sweet ass time in getting it completed.
Anyway, the weekend is here, I hope to have a little ride over these next couple of days as we have some great winding roads where I live, tree lines corners and big off cambered corners with drop off, make for an exhilarating ride to be sure.
Hope you can get some time in the saddle like this fella on His 650 BEEZA!