Jesse's CX500
By Anthony van Someren - 20 Dec 13
Yet another Honda CX500 graces the pages of the Bike Shed, but what can we do if shed-builders like Jesse keep building them for us to enjoy, and they look this good? Originally from Southern California, Jesse moved to San Fransisco in 1999 to go to art school and is now a graphic designer.
Jesse's father brought him up working on old cars and he still owns a 1962 Ford Falcon he bought back in 1997. Shortly after moving to San Fransisco he got into vintage Vespas and that led him down the path of righteousness and into proper motorcycles, but a bad accident five years ago slowed him down considerably and he rode very little, but then he came across Dave Mucci's CX500 - probably the first cool-looking CX anyone had ever seen. A week later Jesse had found one on Craiglist and pulled it out of the garage it had been sitting in for five years.
As well as taking inspiration from the Moto-Mucci machine, Jesse wanted a bike that could be a daily ride and a little rough around the edges, but he also added a couple of posh upgrades, including the front-end from a Honda CBR600RR with radial brakes and the CBR front wheel - leaving the OEM Comstar at the rear. Other mod-cons include a Ballistic LiFePo battery and ZX1000 clutch lever, as well as a Mac exhaust and re-purposed Harley end-can. In the spirit of minimalism the bike runs without an gauges, leaving things visually clean at the front end.
Half the bike was built in friend Joe Venter's shed in Alameda which is around 45 mins train ride away from where Jesse lives, and the other half was built in his office at work, but he still managed to get the job done in three months, which is pretty good going considering the front-end conversion.
For the finish Jesse decided to remove the tank badges & logos from the CX and left the paintwork to Matt Pitta of 510 Colorwerks. The seat was sorted by Truong in Texas, but apart from these two elements Jesse was entirely responsible for the rest of the build.
Last month Jesse got to visit Dave Muccis' garage in Chicago. "We hung out all night and talked design and motorcycles. Really good guy."
We asked Jesse how the bike has turned out, and how it is to ride. "Fantastic! With the front end has awesome feel and great brakes. I see no reason at all to keep the terrible stock front end. It is my daily rider and never skips a beat. Starts right up and runs beautifully."
As a follow-up Jesse is now working on a 1982 CB900F which is already fitted with a CB650 tank and forks from an 06 GXSR1000.We can't wait to see it.