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Bill's 1795 Sohc CB400F Cafe, sohc, sohc cb400, sohc cb400f, cb400, cb400f, sohc4, 4 cylinder, inline four, Sohc CB400F Cafe

I bought the yellow cafe racer from the original owner in 1977. The bike was a blue 1975 model that was sold as a leftover in 1976 for $1000.  When I got it it was essentially stock (but with a banged up tank and front fender). I got bit by the cafe racer bug (all the rage back then). The motor remained essentially stock but for a Martek ignition and the carbs rejetted to suit the J&R exhaust system.

That's a Shoei FM-2 fairing with custom-made "lowers" in front of a set of clubman bars (bolted to a polished upper triple clamp). I mounted an oil cooler to those funky case savers, and added a steering damper and laced up a set of Borrani aluminum rims.  Boge-Mulholland shocks replaced the worn-out stock units, and the forks got treated to aftermarket springs and oil as well.

The front disc got drilled, the chrome front fender got replaced with a fiberglass aftermarket piece, and I ditched the tattered stock seat for an aftermarket flattrack-style solo seat. An RD350 taillight fit perfectly inside. Running Pirelli Phantoms or Michelin M-45s (in the sticky PZ2 compound) I used to drag foot pegs through all my favorite corners. Then like an idiot I sold it. I bought the red 1975 CB400F from the original owner in 1986. It had 14,000 miles on it and was really clean, but the owner had tried to "improve" it by repainting it in a then-trendy shade of metallic charcoal. I ordered a new tank and side covers from Honda and then drained all the fluids and coated everything in cosmoline and put her to bed for 13 years. I got her up and running in 1999, but by then I'd been spoiled by modern bikes. Not wanting to ruin her stock condition by trying to make her more rideable, I sold her to a private collector. Besides which, I've got another 1976 CB400F that I rescued from an abusive owner. She'll be even more of a '70's-era cafe racer than the yellow bike once I've finished.

     Bill Metz