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The Kneeslider

Doers Builders and Positive People

VD Classic Cafe Racers

By Paul Crowe

VD Classic cafe racer

Jean Francois Vicente, of VD Classic in Strasbourg, France, began modifying motorcycles over 20 years ago and over the years started creating a few accessories of his own for various models from Triumph, Ducati, Voxan, MZ and many more. The results he achieves are really great looking bikes in the cafe tradition, classic lines, subtle and clean. This is the kind of modification that makes a motorcycle stand out without shouting. It looks like he will build a bike for you or sell you the accessories you need to do it yourself.

The Accessories are listed for: Yamaha XT500, Yamaha SR500, Kawasaki W650, Triumph Bonneville 800, Triumph Thruxton 900, Sportster 883 and 1200, Buell S1 and M2, all of which provide a great starting point for a cafe project. Very nice.

More photos and link below:

VD Classic cafe racer

VD Classic cafe racer

VD Classic cafe racer

Link: VD Classic

Posted on August 9, 2007 Filed Under: Motorcycle Builders, Motorcycle Business, Vintage Motorcycles


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Comments

  1. Hopkins says

    August 9, 2007 at 1:32 pm

    Too bad their prices are outrageous. 600$ for two plastic number plates…

  2. kneeslider says

    August 9, 2007 at 1:52 pm

    Maybe that’s an opportunity for someone else to make them for less.

  3. todd says

    August 9, 2007 at 2:29 pm

    beautiful biks. This is the sort of bike I wish was available down at East Bay Motorsports. I’d want to buy one of each… not that I could.

    -todd

  4. davidabl says

    August 9, 2007 at 3:01 pm

    One of the manufacturers ought to take this guy on as a consultant.

    I look at his bikes and wonder why the bikes weren’t designed that way in the first place.

    Yamaha, are you listening? The SR500 is still in production (in Japan.)
    J&P cycles for kits?

  5. GAMBLER says

    August 9, 2007 at 8:45 pm

    gorgeous scoots!

  6. Bryce says

    August 10, 2007 at 6:57 am

    That little Suzuki is my favorite. All of these bikes look like the mental image I had of motorcycles as a small child.

  7. kneeslider says

    August 10, 2007 at 7:22 am

    Wouldn’t it be nice to walk into some little dealer somewhere and see these all lined up?

  8. Matt in NC says

    August 10, 2007 at 5:48 pm

    I miss the Skorpions from MZ. I always wanted one.

  9. RH says

    August 10, 2007 at 11:52 pm

    Funny how bikes that aren’t “styled” and simply have what is needed to ride have a lot more style……

  10. dave says

    August 11, 2007 at 9:17 pm

    So, Paul…

    Would there *really* be a draw to a dealership that had custom cafe bikes? How about re-built older cafe jobs?
    Imagine for a moment: A multi-line dealership (Honda, Kaw, Suzuki, Yamaha, KTM, etc..) That has a ‘Vintage’ area. Everything from museum pieces, to re-built stockers, to custom cafe’s… AND the NOS ’70s-’80s parts needed to keep ’em going for a while… Not to mention a dedicated service bay just for the ‘old’ bikes. Would people like this? There’s been talk of this very thing, and the 2 schools are either yes, it’s time… Or no, it will never work, people just want (insert fad here).
    I love to see things like VD’s customs.. makes me feel all warm and fuzzy..

  11. kneeslider says

    August 12, 2007 at 9:17 am

    Dave,
    Yes, I think it would work. There seems to be this idea that every guy getting a little older wants a Harley or custom chopper. There are quite a few guys with no desire to ride in some pack of choppers, putting on the “look” to “stick it to the man.” If you like the look of bikes like the examples shown above, unless you build or rebuild your own cafe or vintage bike, you’re out of luck. There are few to choose from.

    The comment above about how expensive some parts are is interesting, think about what some guys pay for custom chopper parts or even some HD parts, somehow, parts for everything else are supposed to be cheap. But the guy who wants individual parts is not the main customer here, it’s the guy who wants the whole bike already done. Afterwards, though, parts availability is a big thing, no one wants a great looking bike that can’t be fixed.

    Think about all of the custom choppers sold. Those owners didn’t want to build one and many couldn’t or didn’t have the time, but they had the money to buy. Suppose the fellow that prefers a cafe style or vintage bike had a choice of some really nice ones ready to go, I think they would sell. There are some guys already doing some of this, Steve Carpenter is working the CB750 segment and there are a few others but there’s room for quite a few more using different bikes, too, as long as they are high quality. Some guys are bound to build some junk for a quick buck but a few will stand out and that’s what I’m referring to.

    That said, not every city could support a dealer like this but if a few dealers established themselves as specialist shops doing really nice work, something along the lines of what this French fellow is doing at VD Classic, the internet gives them a nationwide or even worldwide customer base. In the old days (before the internet) this would probably go nowhere, but today, … The market is probably not big enough for a manufacturer to get into it, but small shops, yes, or as a high quality sideline for a multiline dealer, yes.

    This is easy to test. Build a few really nice examples and see what happens. Maybe advertise on The Kneeslider 🙂 and ignore the “it will never work” naysayers. How do you know if you don’t try?

  12. dave says

    August 15, 2007 at 1:48 pm

    Well, it’s an interesting thought. Yep, guys like Carpy, and the guys at Colorado Norton, doing high-end restorations… Then VD, Mecatwin, and others doing new bikes… Begs the question: Would it be a custom-build off of new motorcycles, or ground-up “restorations” on iconic, plentiful old bikes? From a dealer standpoint, the customization of new units is a hard swallow… The dealer doesn’t own the bike, and it pays floor fees every month until it’s sold. Also, factory warranties are gone if you were to do the hard work to make some of these bikes look right. Now, if there was a way to convince the mfg’s to “allow” dedicated shops to do “custom” versions of production bikes, well it might go someplace.
    You’re correct on the subject of the internet making life easier. But again, will the guy that peruses the internet actually go into said dealership? Mind you, this will more likely be a travel-day (weekend) to see the bikes in person. How many are willing to do this? (and trying to keep the pricing civilized, no $20k 750 nighthawks, for example.)
    There are LOTS of current bikes that can be ‘cafe’d.. Strip ’em down to the naughty bits, and it’s amazing the potential that even the blandest UJM has.

    Class, discuss:

  13. Earl says

    August 16, 2007 at 2:26 am

    These are some of the best looking bikes I’ve seen. An SR500 based cafe racer? Yeah, I’d dig it. Oh, I’d have to win the lottery to buy another bike, but nonetheless, these are gorgeous.

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