• Ciao Guest - You’ve landed at the ultimate Guzzi site. NEW FORUM REGISTRATIONS REQUIRE EMAIL ACTIVATION - CHECK YOUR SPAM FOLDER - Use the CONTACT above if you need help. New to the forum? For all new members, we require ONE post in the Introductions section at the bottom, in order to post in most of the other sections. ALWAYS TRY A SEARCH BEFORE STARTING A NEW TOPIC - Most questions you may have, have likely been already answered. DON'T BE A DRIVE-BY POSTER: As a common courtesy, check back in and reply within 24 hours, or your post will be deleted. Note there's decades of heavily experienced Guzzi professionals on this site, all whom happily give endless amounts of their VALUABLE time for free; BE COURTEOUS AND RESPECTFUL!
  • There is ZERO tolerance on personal attacks and ANY HYPERLINKS to PRODUCT(S) or other competing website(s), including personal pages, social media or other Forums. This ALSO INCLUDES ECU DIAGnostic software, questions and mapping. We work very hard to offer commercially supported products and to keep info relevant here. First offense is a note, second is a warning, third time will get you banned from the site. We don't have the time to chase repeat (and ignorant) offenders. This is NOT a social media platform; It's an ad-free, privately funded website, in small help with user donations. Be sure to see the GTM STORE link above; ALL product purchases help support the site, or you can upgrade your Forum profile or DONATE via the link above.
  • Be sure to see the GTM STORE link also above for our 700+ product inventory, including OEM parts and many of our 100% Made-in-SoCal-USA GTM products and engine kits. In SoCal? Click the SERVICE tab above for the best in service, tires, tuning and installation of our products or custom work, and don't miss our GT MotoCycles® (not) art on the BUILDS tab above. WE'RE HERE ONLINE ONLY - NO PHONE CALLS MADE OR RECEIVED - DO NOT EMAIL AND ASK QUESTIONS OR ASK TO CALL YOU.
  • Like the new V100, GuzziTech is full throttle into the future! We're now running on an all-new server and we've updated our Forum software. The visual differences are obvious, but hopefully you'll notice the super-fast speed. If you notice any glitches or have any issues, please post on the Site Support section at the bottom. If you haven't yet, please upgrade your account which is covered in the Site Support section or via the DONATE tab above, which gives you full site access including the DOWNLOADS section. We really appreciate every $ and your support to keep this site ad-free. Create an account, sign in, upgrade your account, and enjoy. See you on the road in 2024.

850-T Brat Custom Build

bassboy3313

Tuned and Synch'ed
Joined
Dec 11, 2018
Messages
27
Location
Milwaukee, WI
Hey guys! I recently picked up a 1974 Guzzi 850-T project for dirt cheap. This will be my first motorcycle build ever, which I am excited about. I have restored/built a few cars in the past with my current one being a late 70s BMW e21 gruppe 2 build. I wanted to try my hand at a cafe/brat style build, so here we are.

I bought the bike from a friend who has had it for awhile now. He got it in stock running form and rode it for a bit. He then decided to try his hand at working on it and making it a little cafe style with a hand made seat and such. From there it sat in the back of his shop for a good number of years until I asked about it.

Here is how he got it many years ago.
1247679744668973274

Here is how it looked when I picked it up and brought it home.
1282355413265211758
2971698527702881511
7561587774178359973

I want to give a huge shout out to Jake (judgefargo) for his build thread and the details he has posted. It is going to help me immensely with the electrical, gsxr front forks, etc. My plans for this bike includes gsxr front end, custom monoshock rear suspension, minimalist aesthetics while keeping the classic vibe going. I want this to be a balls out build to test the fabrication skills I have learned from my previous car builds. Stay tuned for updates!
 
First steps of the tear down process and eyeing up how I will do the mono-shock setup.

7682128876404358342%253Faccount_id%253D0

8995322029327016785%253Faccount_id%253D0
 
There is a way to beef up & brace the swingarm plus add a monoshock that goes to the cross member on frame where center tube stops. I opted for bracing and dual shocks on my LM3.
If you do a search you'll see how most do this mod.
 
Thanks for that Dave. Now I'm going to have to do the bike!! hehee

I'll tell you what. Lets try and motivate each other and see whom gets to ride the bike first! haha

Will be keeping an eye on this build, all the best,
Jake

Hey guys! I recently picked up a 1974 Guzzi 850-T project for dirt cheap. This will be my first motorcycle build ever, which I am excited about. I have restored/built a few cars in the past with my current one being a late 70s BMW e21 gruppe 2 build. I wanted to try my hand at a cafe/brat style build, so here we are.

I bought the bike from a friend who has had it for awhile now. He got it in stock running form and rode it for a bit. He then decided to try his hand at working on it and making it a little cafe style with a hand made seat and such. From there it sat in the back of his shop for a good number of years until I asked about it.

Here is how he got it many years ago.
View attachment 16067

Here is how it looked when I picked it up and brought it home.
View attachment 16068
View attachment 16069
View attachment 16070

I want to give a huge shout out to Jake (judgefargo) for his build thread and the details he has posted. It is going to help me immensely with the electrical, gsxr front forks, etc. My plans for this bike includes gsxr front end, custom monoshock rear suspension, minimalist aesthetics while keeping the classic vibe going. I want this to be a balls out build to test the fabrication skills I have learned from my previous car builds. Stay tuned for updates!
 
Got the front end off and started gathering the gsxr front end parts. Currently just waiting on the steering stem bearings to come in the mail, otherwise I have everything else.

I ended up finding a 2009 Harley Street Glide front laced wheel with dual disc brakes locally, so I snagged it up. The axle size matches the gsxr perfectly. I want to reuse the Guzzi rim to match the rear, so I figured I would need custom spokes and nipples to relace the Guzzi rim and Harley hub together. As luck would have it, both wheels have the same size nipple holes and quantity. All that is needed are spokes and nipples for an 18" Harley laced wheel (the one I got is only 17"). Found a set of brand new 18" Harley spokes and nipples for $20 on ebay.

The only other thing needing is to redrill the hayabusa front rotors (gsxr rotors didnt have the extra meat for redrilling) to match the bolt pattern of the Harley hub.

Stay tuned...
 
So, in order run the stock laced rim up front with the GSXR front end, I am using a Harley-Davidson narrow glide front hub. It has the same 40 spoke, same axle size as GSXR and is dual disc as well. I then needed to redrill the hayabusa front rotors to match the Harley rotor bolt pattern. To do this I measured the ID of each rotor bore and had a centering jig 3d printed. Worked like a charm!

6979818236563090222%253Faccount_id%253D0

5542782075666734207%253Faccount_id%253D0

3094105950225011321%253Faccount_id%253D0

4735503265900052162%253Faccount_id%253D0
 
For the monoshock setup, I ended up getting a Ducati 900ss rear shock as I have read others using it too. Well, looks like its too long at 13" eye to eye, unfortunately. I would have to weld the front mount to the underside of the cross bar, which would get in the way of the carbs and make more work than necessary.

4187939017959160809%253Faccount_id%253D0

6827651092147011252%253Faccount_id%253D0

1366718647509898709%253Faccount_id%253D0


From my research, it looks like an 00-01 CBR 900rr or 929rr rear shock is 11.25" long and would fit alot better in the space. So, I am on the look out for one of those to test fit.
 
The point of no return has arrived!!!!

8018600391907805202%253Faccount_id%253D0

7137640269690131199%253Faccount_id%253D0

3861580691533884039%253Faccount_id%253D0


And the monoshock subframe modifications have started as well. Using 1/2" PVC, heating and bending to shape is a lot cheaper and easier to work with for the mock up stages than steel.

3132653801586321167%253Faccount_id%253D0

7733740377242557743%253Faccount_id%253D0
 
Looking good.

Are you worried at all about the back of the frame spreading around the swing arm pivots ?

I guess the battery plate and the lower gearbox mount bolt will tie it all together.

G
 
Looking good.

Are you worried at all about the back of the frame spreading around the swing arm pivots ?

I guess the battery plate and the lower gearbox mount bolt will tie it all together.

G
Yeah it's still a work in progress, so as things pop up, I will address them.
 
Cool mate, very cool.

I think we will be on the bike just about at the same time (yeah right!).
Shame we live a few thousand kms away! haha

Hope all goes well, keep those pics coming!
 
So I have a dilemma with the gas tank. The gsxr forks hit fairly early in the turning radius imo. Blue tape shows where the forks hit. Looking for some advice on what to do. Either leave it and deal with the lack of uturns when done, dent the tank in for some relief of the forks or find a different tank that will gain some turning radius? Any thoughts/advice?

20190223 123840
20190223 124150
20190223 124156
20190223 124202
 
The V7 (new and old repro) has a lot narrower front to help alleviate this issue.
 
If ya like the look/feel of the gsrx forks and that tank, & don't mind the reduced minimum turning radius, adding metal to the stops would prevent the fork/tank collisions.

This would also help prevent hand/tank impact.

Alex
 
If ya like the look/feel of the gsrx forks and that tank, & don't mind the reduced minimum turning radius, adding metal to the stops would prevent the fork/tank collisions.

This would also help prevent hand/tank impact.

Alex

Yup, exactly. I am just not sure if the reduced turn radius it has right now would be ok to ride or not. I'd hate to get this tank all painted and fitted right, just to not be happy with the steering, you know?
 
Back
Top