CB550 Custom Build by S&G builder Brady Young

CB550 Custom Build by S&G builder Brady Young

May 2013 Black and Tan
Custom build by Seaweed and Gravel in southern california built by Brady Young. The inspiration for this build was spawned from a previous personal bike of Brady's, made from spare parts and a few weekends. The bike was rough, full of character, and frequently saw the dirt. Nonetheless, it caught the eye of the client that commissioned this build, but with new shoes and a classy attire. 

Our goal for this build was to create a simple, clean, minimalistic bike with an aggressive, low stance; pulling elements from both the cafe racer and brat style palettes, whilst preserving the classic lines that were buried in stock form. Once the form and stance of the bike was set, we moved forward with making it function.

The top end was rebuilt with new internals and tuned by a retired racer and mechanic of the time, making it a true one kick cold started. The client wanted a kick and electric start, so we called upon the guys at Antigravity Batteries. Their compact, powerful battery powers the new from scratch harness with an updated rec/reg combo. With this setup we were able to retain our goal of a clean and minimal design.

Our theory on the finish of our bikes is overall modesty with bold features.  With an all black bike we incorporated matte, satin, and gloss finishes to add some contrast. We here at Seaweed And Gravel feel we've produced a bike that we can be proud of, and have welcomed a new member into our family of weirdos. --Brady

Back to blog

43 comments

i own a Suzuki GS650G and have it rebuilt into cafe/brat… I just really want to make the classic X on my headlight, how do I do that at home??

Charlie

hey,

wanted to know what size tires and rim you have on this beauty. also, where did you pick up these fork.
i have a cb550 77’ which i am also working on.

thanks in advance.

Vency

I love this bike!!! I’m looking to purchase my first bike and would love to have one like this. I’m having some trouble finding one in the Toronto area. Is this because most of the cafe racers like this are custom built?

DeMar

FELLAS, I love this bike, I have a cb500 that i would like to do similar to this one. Can you guys tell me what you did to the front forks to lower to get the stance. I cant seem to find any progressive springs for a 72 CB500. Also what length shocks did you use on the rear? Any help and advice on this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Joseph

JOSEPH

I am a 1st time bike builder. How did you get the forks to go that low?
Thanks
Dave

David Smith

Leave a comment

Please note, comments need to be approved before they are published.