This month's customer build belongs to Mike Mitchum (Cincinnati, OH) and his 1977 Suzuki GS550.
"This a custom, cafe racer bike that I built in my garage. The bike was purchased as a non-running disaster (for $250) and was transformed over the course of just under 3 years. This is my first build, and I did all of the work myself except for the majority of the powder coating and the seat upholstery."
"The bike was purchased in its neglected state, and I decided to jettison the OE wiring harness. I started from scratch and wired up the Motogadget M. Unit Blue, Radiantz LED light bar, Rizoma bar-end turn signals, Motogadget m switches, LED headlight, Rick’s Electric stator, and reg/rec, Dyna coils and electric ignition, and Antigravity battery to a custom wiring harness. Connections are made with Mizu waterproof connectors as opposed to the typical bullet connectors from OE harnesses. I ran some of the wiring through the frame in various places to keep it nice and tidy without too many wires zip-tied to the frame."
"Speaking of the frame, I got rid of all the unneeded tabs and smoothed them off with the trusty angle grinder. I also welded on a frame hoop, which I bent myself on a pipe bender at a maker space. The passenger footpeg brackets and center stand brackets were amputated as well. This left things tidy but also meant that I had to find a new way to mount rear sets. I made what I still consider to be temporary footpeg brackets and powder coated them at the same maker space where I bent the frame hoop. The wheels are the OG steelies and they weigh a ton! I sandblasted the hoops and had them powder coated along with the hubs and then laced up some stainless spokes from Buchanan’s. The front rotor was turned at O’Reilly’s and I treated the front and rear to a set of EBC pads and shoes. Timken and All Balls bearings were used in the hubs. Lastly, they were wrapped in Continental rubber and heavy-duty inner tubes."
"The suspension was freshened up with a pair of Progressive shocks in the rear and a rebuild of the front fork including new seals and a new pair of Progressive springs. I also have a custom-made Cognito Moto top clamp to keep the fork attached to the steering head. As if going balls to the wall on my first build weren’t enough, I decided to challenge myself a little further by delving into the world of carbon fiber fabrication as well."
"There are several handmade 100% carbon fiber components on the bike. These include the seat pan and rear cowl, front headlight cowl, front fender, rear hugger, gauge mounting bracket, chain guard and heel guard inserts, license plate mounting bracket, engine badges, and stanchion cover tubes. I also skinned the fuel cap cover and the exhaust silencer in carbon fiber. Part of what drew me to this material is the aesthetic appeal and also the fact that I can't say that I've seen a garage-built bike that used carbon fiber in any amount."
"I named the bike "Tanso", which means "carbon" in Japanese. The Japanese Kanji painted on the bike reflects this name."
"When it came time to paint, I decided to blackout the engine with VHT engine enamel and then sanded the fins to expose the pop of raw aluminum on the edges. I smoothed the tank, laid on the graphics and stripes in red and black paint, and then laid some BMW crystal silver as the main color. All the paint is PPG Omni. The tank and all the carbon fiber parts were then treated to a few layers of matte 2K clear from SprayMaxx."
"Apart from the carbon fiber, I think the details on the bike are what I am most proud of. This includes the split seat with red inserts and matching diamond stitching, handmade chain guard, the color-matched tube that hides the wiring for the side-mounted plate light, all the bits that make hose and wire routing tidy, and the fact that the body of the bike is kept clean by running wiring through the frame."
"I love riding the bike in fair weather and I can’t wait to get going on my next build... an ‘81 Yamaha Virago! ✌"
Excellent work, Mike, and thanks for choosing Dime City Cycles!
DCC Parts List
2.5” Black Mini Speedometer w/ Black Face & LED Indicator Lights
2.5” Black Mini Tachometer w/ Black Face – (1:4 Ratio)
Satin Black Throttle Assembly for 7/8” Handlebars
DCC Originals Universal Café Racer Rearset Linkage Kit
35mm Norton Commando-style Fork Gaiters
29.5mm Valve Shims (various sizes)
