Cafe Racer v Streetfighter

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Is it me, or is the term 'cafe racer' slowly taking over from 'streetfighter'. Not long ago, cafe racer was just used to describe old bikes like the Triumph Tiger, then it seemed to encompass any modern bike that looked like that style. Now it seems like many naked bikes are called cafe racers instead of streetighter. I wonder if the word streetfighter is being slowly phased out by cafe racer, no doubt due to the renewed interest in the 'Ace Cafe' culture!

[tony.mon]

Dunno.
To my mind, they're quite separate styles, and I'd be able to categorise one from the other quite easily.

However it's hard to pin down with a description....

Bars are different, certainly. Streetfighters have them high and wide, cafe racers are clip ons or Ace bars.
elbow stop seat gives it away, too.

Tanks on CR tend to be simple, oblong and shiny (or black) as well.

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Totally agree with all the above but noticed a lot of modern chopped bikes referred to as cafe racers recently on ebay and in magazines!.

[seb421]

Agree with Tony, to me they are a mile apart

one is a retro style racer with the tiny bars long sweeping tank and a snub rear end, very minimal race look with a simple classic paint scheme


Fighters usualy have long or upswet tails, fat tires, modified / removed fairings, added belly pans, mad paint schemes, up right rental wide bars, often twin head lights and loads of chrome bling or black powder coating


i know what you mean tho, every where you look now its cafe racer this cafe racer that!!


look at this bloody mess, brand new race bike with some supposed cafe racer look going on, personally i don't like it



It's just another buzz fad thing, what ever sells they will print i guess

[benny hedges]

cafe racer = ancient bike that you cant get bits for, put together with home made seat and sprayed with whatever rattle cans are lying in the garage.

streetfighter = crashed bike put together with whatever will fit, preferably cheaper than the cost of putting the fairing back on. resprayed by a 1st year art student with an airbrush to distract from the scraped & bent frame.

neither will be ridden in anger, but will be kept in the garage as a talking point. hence the cup rings on the tank.

absolutely pointless building a bike unless it will be ridden.
so when you bin your bike, or have an old 80s IL4 in the garage, do it a favour and break it for parts instead.

[Snoogle]

cafe racer = ancient bike that you cant get bits for, put together with home made seat and sprayed with whatever rattle cans are lying in the garage.

streetfighter = crashed bike put together with whatever will fit, preferably cheaper than the cost of putting the fairing back on. resprayed by a 1st year art student with an airbrush to distract from the scraped & bent frame.

neither will be ridden in anger, but will be kept in the garage as a talking point. hence the cup rings on the tank.

absolutely pointless building a bike unless it will be ridden.
so when you bin your bike, or have an old 80s IL4 in the garage, do it a favour and break it for parts instead.

Cheeky Hippo lol
I don't even have a garage, mine's been under the cover outside...it's a right b8stard taking the cover off just to rest me mug on

[tony.mon]

cafe racer =

neither will be ridden in anger,

True.
When was the last time you saw a cafe with a juke box in?

Ace excepted, of course.

[Porkpie]

posted in wrong thread now moved

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A mate made a good quote. 'Streetfighter is a bike that's had a fight with a street'.

[tony.mon]

A mate made a good quote. 'Streetfighter is a bike that's had a fight with a street'.

But a cafe racer would surely do rather well against a building?

[benny hedges]

A mate made a good quote. 'Streetfighter is a bike that's had a fight with a street'.

HHHahahaha lol i like that!

[Snoogle]

A mate made a good quote. 'Streetfighter is a bike that's had a fight with a street'.

I like it!!

[seb421]

A mate made a good quote. 'Streetfighter is a bike that's had a fight with a street'.

You forgot to close the line,

'Streetfighter is a bike that's had a fight with a street, .....and Lost!'

hahaha

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LOL Seb. Deffo fits the description of some of the streetfighters I've seen.