What are the basic tools to make a Café Racer?

Are you considering customizing your motorcycle as a Café Racer ? Do you want to complete your project in the best conditions? So take advantage of our experience to support and advise you. From technical documentation to the organization of your workshop , find out what are the basic tools for making a Café Racer .

Obtain the technical review of your motorcycle

Unless you know the smallest parts of your two-wheeler inside out, the first step is to get a first tool . It will prove, for many, very useful: the technical review of your motorcycle . For all brands, Triumph, Moto Guzzi, Harley, BMW, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki and all the others, you can find them online for free or via forums. Otherwise, it is of course possible to buy them (count about thirty euros).

From then on, you will have access to the complete detail and operation of each part. You will gain confidence when it comes to leaning on the engine of the beast and the cycle part. In addition, in addition to the various essential technical data , you will find the electrical diagram there . Necessary information to ensure your electrical modifications in complete safety and not only for neophytes!

Relying on detailed documentation will save you a lot of mistakes. This will allow novices to solve many problems without having to go through a professional. Enough to make substantial savings !

Choose the best place to prepare your Café Racer

Rome wasn't built in a day! As you can imagine, transforming your motorcycle into a Café Racer will take, depending on the preparation envisaged and your knowledge of mechanics, a certain time , or even a certain time. Never mind ! This is part of the fun of customizing your machine into a Café Racer. And precisely, to keep it pleasant, a minimum of organization will offer you real comfort.

If a tool is above all an object allowing to carry out a work, it can also be defined as a means of carrying out it. This is why, insofar as your motorcycle will be immobilized for several days, or even a few months depending on the case, plan to dedicate a room to this activity alone. It is important to reserve enough space .

Indeed, your spare parts and accessories, depending on the degree of the planned modifications, can quickly become cumbersome. A mirror, footpegs, hoses or brake levers will take up less space than a saddle, fork, fender or tank. But all the material will ultimately represent a substantial volume, to be anticipated so as not to be overwhelmed.

Which room should be favored to set up your workshop?

• a garage ;
• a garden shed;
• a corner of the basement;
• a closed car park.

(Well, we grant you, it still looks like a truism this list. But to have seen rooms transformed into workshops, finally…)

More seriously, the principle of reserving a place will allow you to leave the site in the plan, without having to constantly store and take out your parts. So many opportunities to risk misplacing items and especially to waste time.

Advice from the workshop : to work in the best conditions, provide parking space for a car. Also remember to clean regularly by getting rid of everything that has become useless and clutters you.

Optimize your garage workspace

You have found the ideal place to finalize your Café Racer project . Your motorcycle is perfectly stabilized on a motorcycle stand . However, there is no need to rush. Sit down for a few minutes. Pour yourself a coffee and look at your future Café Racer, enjoy its lines. Immersing yourself in its shapes will guide the choice of your accessories and preserve the harmony of the bike. Imagine it as you want it. Our article " Café Racer, Scrambler or Tracker, which preparation to choose?" will no doubt provide some answers to your questions.

Now take a step back to study the place. You can't wait to get started and the question of what are the basic tools to make a Café Racer becomes clearer. However, it is important that your workspace is at the top to allow you to work quietly. Indeed, do not forget that you will spend time there, alone or accompanied. So might as well make it pleasant to live in while remaining functional (the workshop, not your buddy!).

Between the storage of the various accessories , the layout of your equipment and the necessary tools, anticipating your needs is imperative. Thus, you ensure a serene future and a successful project . How to optimize your motorcycle workshop? 4 tips:

• exploit the walls by installing shelves and tool panels ;
• providing a workbench or work plan with a vice is a real plus. It must be solid and stable (you may need to cut metal parts or perform welding);
• prefer a motorcycle lift to put your two-wheeler down (failing that, a cinder block and wooden wedges, but you will lose stability);
• install high-performance lighting (walking lamp, LED spotlights).

As a reminder: the use of chemical products (Beware of their storage ! Report to the comings and goings of these charming little mischievous beings called children ), just like the exhaust gases are harmful. Also, remember to ventilate your workspace well. Always for the sake of safety, do not store your heavy equipment at height and be careful with sharp tools (this goes for toddlers, but for you too!).

Workshop tips:

• use transparent boxes or bags (one per type of element is ideal) to sort, collect screws, bolts, nuts and various spare parts. A little effort necessary to lose nothing, avoid oversights and errors during reassembly;
• to access your hand tools quickly and easily, the use of a workshop trolley can be a plus. Be careful, however, to check and store it regularly.

Have the basic tools to make a Café Racer

Your Café Racer project is now on the right track. Question motorcycle clothing, you are ready. Your jet helmet (or full-face helmet, everyone has their own look!), your vintage mask, your leather jacket, your boots and your gloves are just waiting for you. Your workshop is clean and tidy . Your tools are arranged by type, on your panels attached to the walls, or carefully listed in your trolley. The motorcycle parts and accessories , recently received, are patiently waiting in their boxes. It's clear, you can't wait to remove your shock absorbers, examine the clutch, install your new mirrors and turn signals or tackle the wiring harness and install your M-Unit bluetooth box . You are ready to give the first turn of the key. Come on, we're almost there, but still a little while! Now is a good time to do a checklist of your equipment and check that nothing is missing.

Essential hand tools in your motorcycle workshop

• set of metric or inch wrenches for American;
• set of flat and Phillips screwdrivers;
• 1/4 ratchet box with its set of sockets;
• flat and cutting pliers;
• flat nose pliers: practical for removing hoses.

Power tools required to prepare your Café Racer

• cordless drill driver (more practical);
• grinder: for the different cuts, but also to grind a fixing or a weld for example (using the appropriate disc);
• multimeter: very useful, even essential in the case of electrical modifications. The "first price" models are sufficient to test continuity or locate 12 volts (tutorials available on the internet).

Reminder: the vast majority of two-wheelers are 12 volts DC symbol DC.

Consumables necessary for the mechanic, the motorcycle and the workshop

• rags, workshop paper towels, scotch-brite and adhesive tape (for this type of product, take advantage of the low prices of the ACTION brand);
• degreasing cleaner (WD 40, gasoline or White Spirit);
• cleaning brushes;
• grease (standard bearing grease from DIY stores);
• oil (the Motorex and Putoline ranges are available to order from Blackpines );
• sandpaper (prefer coarse grain 120, to strip rust. A grain 500 then 800 before painting);
• spray paint (ideal and easy to use for small parts such as different supports);
• steel drill.

Most bikers already have three-quarters of this inventory. Attention, this is the basic material necessary for a simple preparation . Obviously, the more the modifications will be pushed, the more the list of tools will lengthen. We are at your disposal to help and advise you , so do not hesitate to contact us via our form .

In addition to testing the different products in our shop and offering you the best accessories , our workshop experiments just as scrupulously with the different tools . Find in our catalog the selection of products used and approved by our team.