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The Dime City "Brass Cafe" - Featured on Bike EXIF

Monday, October 11, 2010 2:21:33 PM EDT

Well, everyone, the day is almost here! Cafe Racer TV debuts on Discovery HD Theater this Wednesday night at 9:00PM EST. And if you're anything like us, you're waiting with your kickstand down to enjoy the show!

 

As most of you know, The DCC Crew has been toiling away for the past couple of months resurrecting a 1968 CB450 we pulled from a junk yard.. What a wreck she was, but with a little time and patience we managed to bring her back to life with some good looks and guaranteed "ton-up" performance.

 

Chris Hunter, the guru behind BikeEXIF, was kind enough to feature "The Brass Cafe" on the front page of his acclaimed website. The DCC Crew thanks you Chris! And we also thank all our friends, family and the others that helped us over the last 90 tireless days while completing this project. There is no way we could done it without you all!

 

- Herm and Jason

 

 

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You can read the full article on BikeEXIF by clicking here.

 

Be sure to tune in to Discovery HD Theater this Wednesday night for a closer look at The Brass Cafe along with several other great bikes! Their website, www.caferacertv.com opens up the morning of the 13th and if it's half as cool as the teasers we've seen we're all in for a treat! Behind the scenes footage, interviews, in-depth bike pics and even a digital bike show we're contestants can judge other bikes and win free swag!

 

Go, go- Cafe Racer!

 

0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike Media Features By Jason Michaels

Support, it's not just for groups..

Wednesday, July 14, 2010 11:49:16 AM EDT

The clocks tickin' and wrenches are a turning at Dime City folks..  Despite Herm's frustration with my constant antics and artistic woes we're making fine progress. The Brass Cafe is coming along great! Ahh the life!

 

In an effort to expand Michaels skill-set we put him on the task of developing a swing-arm brace for this little road rumbler. With some general direction from our good friend PJ, Michael had the basic idea down...

 

After a couple of hours of cutting, grinding and shaping he produced this fantastic tri-fecta of support that would ensure stability whilst piloting The Brass Cafe to the Ton. Great job Michael! I don't care what your friends say about you. Your alright man..

 

 

[complex angles for support meets aesthetic harmony]

 

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[here's a top down shot from the backside, the swing-arm floats above the new brace]

 

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0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

Use it or...use it.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010 4:04:37 PM EDT

It's no secret, that here at Dime City we try to use everything we can from these old rust buckets when reconstructing them for their new life.

 

Along with our philosophy to keep the soul of the original motorcycle alive, we also want to show people that what they have in their garage can be rebuilt into the bike of their dreams with a little patience, some ingenuity and basic tools.

 

 

[shaving down the top triple tree in prep for a smoothed out finish Dapper Dan would be proud of]

 

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[weld those old riser holes shut, this baby's getting clip-ons]

 

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0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

Dime City, the cafe racer hub..

Thursday, June 17, 2010 4:52:05 PM EDT

So sorry for the gap in BLOG posts everyone! I actually got a chance to get out of town for a few days and took advantage of it! 

 

That said...back your regularly scheduled broadcast!

 

Making some good progress on The Brass Cafe, here's some shots of the front drum hub we modified with an intake vent. Go go cafe racer!

 

 

[things done by hand are just, well, better!]

 

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[compound angles...not fun!]

 

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[starting to take shape!]

 

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0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

Just venting..

Monday, June 7, 2010 12:16:31 PM EDT

Working on the drum vents..  Brass mesh behind polished aluminum.  Swanky!

 

Just let it all out man...it'll all be over soon enough!

 

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0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

Setting things up..

Sunday, May 30, 2010 11:31:27 PM EDT

Another one of Herms' great ideas. He's the thinker for sure.

 

He's so cool.. Man.

 

What you see in the picture isn't what you think it is. Can you figure it out?

 

 

[someone send us a better band saw.. cut cut cut]

 

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[hmmm... have you figured it out yet?]

 

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0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

Tank'd in Dime City

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 4:08:20 PM EDT

Started making some good progress on the fuel tank.. Sides and top were removed in favor of some in-house hand-tooled sheet metal. Thanks for the use of the dolly Greg!

 

Keep an eye out for the finished product, the fuel filler cap is gonna be the bees knees!

 

 

[the DCC grind is a fun one at least..]

 

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[hey, next time don't cut so much out man!]

 

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[mmm...nothing says loving like TIG welding in the morning.]

 

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0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

Grab your bathing suit..

Monday, May 17, 2010 10:33:06 AM EDT

Well, after finally coaxing the engine apart The Dime City Crew was met with a nice little surprise..  Good thing we were wearing board-shorts!

 

From here we continued to break down the engine only to find (to our surprise) that despite the initial findings, that it was in fantastic shape! Like we said, Diamond in the Rough!

 

She's gonna get 4x bore pistons, a hopped up CAM, some porting as well as electronic ignition and some other goodies.  Should make for a run at the ton!

 

[the pools we're small but they offered some relief in the wretched Florida heat]

 

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[nothing like a little swamp sludge incubated in the Florida humidity to get your day going]

 

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0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

She's home..

Friday, May 14, 2010 11:38:40 AM EDT

To our fellow ton’rs,

 

There's nothing quite like the feeling of welcoming a new project bike into the stable. The mix of emotions fills your heart and mind and leaves you, in some case, breathless. Heart pounding, mind running and soul singing…it’s something we have all felt. Especially, when you have meticulously and painstakingly, nay- almost diabolically, mapped that special build for the specific project with the hopes that you can exercise your creativity in a way that will leave you fulfilled at the culmination while at the same time, inspiring others along the way.

 

This my friends, is what the Dime City Cycles crew lives, breathes and will eventually, die for.  The pursuit of happiness found in wielding wrenches, shaping raw elements and resurrecting these old forgotten gems for all to enjoy. What a gift it truly is..

 

And with that, we give you the first glimpse of The Dime City “Brass Café”, a weathered and worn, but not wasted 1968 Honda CB450. We were fortunate to find her completely intact all but for a few items. The two wheeled gods of mayhem were smiling upon us as we spent hours searching in the infamous Florida heat and humidity.. Hidden amongst an array unique machines, a Triumph 500 single, a Zuki done up and used for the Wall of Death in some long since forgotten Circus show and a plethora of machines just begging for salvation we came across her, resting quietly just waiting to be delivered.

 

 

Over the next few months you can expect to see more of a journal rather than a traditional step by step build you are used to, as The DCC Crew peals away the layers toiling into the night with exacting precision to reveal this honest to God, diamond in the rough.  To get the full scoop you’ll have to tune into Café Racer TV debuting on Discovery Channel HD Theater on October 1st where they will be covering not only The Brass Café, but a handful of other fantastic builds by our peers all over the US.  In addition to Café Racer TV, you will also be able to plug into the DCC Blog for the detailed build process beginning on Oct 1st.

 

Thank you for all the support we have received from everyone thus far, you know who you are.  We could not do this and wouldn’t be here were it not for your help and investments of time and energy. We will be forever indebted to you.

 

The DCC Crew

 

 

0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels

[checkout the updated and continued BLOG post on The Brass Cafe here. Also, be sure to checkout caferacertv.com!]

Café Racers and clean lines are in, and Dime City is the epicenter for these two wheeled mayhem machines! Follow us as we join forces with Chet Burks Production TV (http://www.cbptv.com), Discovery HD Theatre (http://dhd.discovery.com/) and a hand picked selection of other top-shelf builders of these labors of love over the next year in the new, soon to be world famous TV series, "Café Racer!"

 

Airing in twelve segments beginning October 1st, the wild ride will consist of thirteen rip-riot, ground pounding episodes focusing on the history of the café racer and the lifestyles of those who ride them. Expect to see rare historical film footage and more rockabilly music than a Gene Vincent reunion tour, all in stunning high-def format broadcast on your favorite channel.
 
Here's a little taste of what you can expect to see:
 
 
In addition, they will also be exploring a selection of noted builders/shops around the U.S. One in particular happens to be Dime City Cycles! The Crew is proud to announce our involvement in the production, and in homage to Soichiro Honda and the almost perfect CB450 he conceived we will be building The Dime City "Brass Café" throughout the series.
 
"The Brass Café" will embody everything that is classic café racer. Vintage, one-up, hand tooled seat, purpose built indented tank, 7" light with visor, and don't forget that sweet Dime City "Manx" rear end!
 

With a deep and luxurious scheme shod with black and brass, it will pull hues from the Steampunk genre which is so curiously being explored today. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk) Sporting hand-tooled, solid brass accents and plating, it will follow all the classic café lines while forging a path for new ideas and inspiration. All the trimmings will be present making any Ton'r more than pleased.

 

The vision behind The Brass Cafe is one of purity, both in style and heritage. Dime City will pursue classic forms in metal working, paying respect to the builders of the 50's and 60's and what they stood for...and simultaneously hoping to inspire a renewed interest in the motorcycle as the ultimate expression of form and function.

 

Keep the addiction shakes at bay between episodes and plug in to The DCC Diatribe BLOG; (http://www.dimecitycycles.com/blog) where we will be chronicling the build step by each maniacal step! Learn techniques on hand-working metal, watch Jason cause mass amounts of frustration for Herm, and see how Shopdog keeps the whole operation running smoothly.

  
In addition to the action packed BLOG, be sure to follow us on Twitter; (http://www.twitter.com/dimecitycycles) for up to the minute happenings twisted with the usual Dime City flair for the unusual! We'll also be throwing out random product discount codes throughout the build on items we're using to create The "Brass Cafe" so if you don't already have a twitter account, set one up! There never existed a better reason than this!
 
More to come soon! 
 
The Dime City Crew 
 
0 Comments | Posted in "The Brass Cafe" - TV Bike By Jason Michaels