CAFÉ RACER 76

KASPER’S CB350

Riding or building a bike can seem a lonely game, deserted in the shed or solo in the saddle. But it doesn’t have to be, as with everything, it is better when done with mates. Meet Kasper Andersen and his lovely CB, the fourth bike to feature on the Bikeshed from the third pair of hands that share the same workshop. Kasper used to tinker with old Porsches and Volkswagens with Jesper, boyfriend of Bikeshed Heroine Helle. Jesper was the first of the space sharing trio to roll two wheels instead of four through the door with his Cb400, this was hotly followed by Helle and herGN 250 and gorgeous Creme Diamond. Now Kasper has kept up the quality of the output, loosing his first build onto the streets of Copenhagen, a city boasting the Wrenchmonkees and a complete grasp of the custom ride vibe.

The 1973 CB350 rolled into the workshop in a sorry state, the pervious owner had attempted to implement a cafe racer conversion, the extent of which involved messing up the Keihins, a bar swap, ill conceived knee indents and a coat of rattle can black. Nothing met Kasper’s standards so he started from scratch. “I wanted something that stood out but still retained a somewhat original old school look”.

He started by cutting the rear of the frame and adding a kicked loop fabricated from flat iron. A new custom seat was manufactured by friend Helle under her new seat building venture Bang Seats, the ribbed brown unit sits snugly within the revised parameters. We can only hope that in this case she did not tear the leather from Kasper’s sofa as she did with her own XS250!

The botched tank needed replacing but alas the replacement found had also been treated to a self spray. After dipping the new tank in acetone Kasper discovered the lovely 70′s avocado green scheme that had been scrubbed back to accept the boring black overcoat. A fruitless search for the original colour codes led to a different approach, “I carefully sanded the tank down all over still keeping the original colour, then I painted the original decals right on the tank and coated it with 5 coats of clear..”

CB450 forks with period shrouds and upgraded springs improved the suspension and lend the front the old school look Kasper craved. The style defining Firestone Deluxe tyres in 4.00-18 and 4.50-18 were picked up new and cheap but created a dilemma after fitting.

“I used a couple of days staring at the bike and found out that it looked like it was hit from behind.. I then knew i had to extend the rear swingarm 2.5″.” Kasper undertook the alteration and achieved perfectly the proportions and dynamics he was looking for.

The original CB350 headlight was deemed too cumbersome so was replaced with the smaller and cleaner unit from a familial CL175 and given a European yellow tint. Tommaselli vintage grips and bars take care of the bike/rider interface.

With the fruits of his labour meeting his visual approval Kasper took the machine out for a well earned spin, “I drove it for 2 days.. And then what.. I found out the engine was shit.. Instead of rebuilding the engine completely I found a factory rebuilt unit 25years old, this engine had the sharper K0 cams.” Kasper then treated the new engine to a set of Mikuni VM30 roundslide carbs and an optical ignition. The bike reportedly now runs sweetly and has lots of punch.

The CB350 is a proven donor for the vintage modified look with bikes from the likes of Untitled, Analog, the film version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and now Kasper’s incarnation showing how fine the classic silhouette can appear when de-cluttered and tended.

After putting 1500km on the bike in 2 months Kasper decided to put the bike up for sale through the Bikeshed classifieds, it sold within 2 days to a lucky Austrian. Now the shared workshop hosts a 71′ XLCH Harley Sportster that is receiving Kasper’s daily attentions. We look forward to seeing which is the first of the trio to get their next build out the door, into the world and onto the Bikeshed. Any thoughts on a name above the door?

via The Bike Shed

A visit to Meertz World of Time in Munich

Watch collectors around the world rely on the knowledge of Ralf Meertz and his team. Many use their holiday or business trip for a visit to Prannerstrasse 13 in Munich, where Meertz World of Time can be found, since there are always some intriguing rarities in the skilled watchmaker’s collection…

A journey through time via the history of the clock

The world of classic watches, Rolex in particular, has evolved in recent years to become big business. Many are now seeking a slice of this profitable cake, with some entrepreneurs seeing classic watches as simply a means to make money. With some of them, you get the feeling they’d sell their grandmothers if they could make a quick buck. But not Ralf Meertz and his crew: the cozy showroom in the heart of Munich is exactly as you’d imagine a watchmaker’s to be. Priceless clocks tick softly, and bookcases are packed with literature demonstrating a genuine interest in the history of time. Working in concentrated silence, a watchmaker focuses intently on the intimate workings under his magnifying glass and, as soon as the door clicks shut behind you, you find yourself on a horological journey through time.

Ticking rarities in the heart of Munich

On closer inspection, it becomes clear that Meertz World of Time is not an everyday watch shop. At the core of the business are a young team of experts and watches of such rarity that they’d normally be found only in private collections. “My love for antique timepieces was aroused during my time at 'Antike Uhren Schley', which specialises in ancient and complicated watches,” explains the trained watchmaker Ralf Meertz. In his years there he acquired the knowledge necessary to establish his own business in 2003 – a time when collectors were increasingly focusing on rare and historic watches from IWC, Rolex, Panerai or Heuer. Meertz shares this passion, and decided to specialise only in the rarest items. In time, Ralf Meertz and his team built a reputation as a reliable partner in buying and selling high-value antique timepieces – often over the 50,000-euro threshold. Meanwhile, customers from all over the world buy from the Munich business via the Internet. “Confidence is the key to a good relationship with a customer,” says Meertz. This is not mere rhetoric, but a matter of attitude. “If you decide you don’t like the watch, for whatever reason – maybe your wife would prefer to spend the money on a holiday instead – we’ll refund the purchase price for up to four weeks after selling.”

Originality is everything

Ralf Meertz measures the value of a watch by its originality and condition. Prices for vintage watches, straight from brands such as Patek Philippe and Rolex, are known to reach dizzying heights but, for Meertz, their condition plays a central role. “It’s similar to the market for classic cars – it’s originality that counts. Unfortunately, comparable barn finds are discovered only very, very rarely...” But the watch specialist does remember one very special piece: “I was once offered a historic Panerai Kampfschwimmer watch from the Second World War by an elderly gentlemen. The fact that he had owned this watch during his time in the military made it historically fascinating.” It’s stories like this that repeatedly send Ralf Meertz and his team in search of unique timepieces. In this small ‘watch universe’, you feel the passion emanating from the small mechanical marvels that fill the showroom. And as Ralf Meertz puts it, “You can look at a watch, and even inspect it under the microscope but, at the end of the day, it still has to feel right.”

Photos: Jan Baedeker

Guess who just bought 543 classic cars in one go?

Imagine if your love of classic cars – especially Jaguars – was so overwhelming that you acquired not 10 or even 20 of them… but 543. That’s the number of mainly British classics amassed over the years by private enthusiast James Hull – and guess what? Jaguar Land Rover has just bought the lot.

From the SS100 to the D-type

It is, says Jaguar, “the largest-known privately owned collection of British classic cars in the world” and most of them are Jaguars: from an SS100, a rare alloy XK120, through to early E-types and a MK X once owned by Sir William Lyons himself. Plus there are early Swallow Sidecars and Swallow coachbuilt Austin Sevens, C- and D-types, 19 XJS models and more than 20 XJ saloons with “interesting and famous” previous owners. We’re told that the majority are in truly outstanding condition.

History is everything

So why does the great British marque want to buy so many of its old classics? Well, heritage is big business these days, with many top manufacturers keen to remind young buyers of the glorious past. The cars will be maintained at JLR’s newly created Special Operations division in Coventry (which incorporates the Jaguar Heritage business) and actively used to support the Jaguar brand around the world.

Hull's life's work

According to James Hull, the British car enthusiast, entrepreneur and philanthropist who painstakingly assembled the collection, “Travelling all over the world to build the collection over the years has been a labour of love and a life’s work, so my primary motivation was not to get the maximum price but rather to secure the future of the collection in this country with the right custodian.”

Photo: Jaguar

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