tpelle
04-22-2022, 10:19 AM
For some perverse reason I like the DF250RTD version of the Dongfang DF250. This is the one with the long narrow tank and the "classic" road racer seat with the bumstop hump. It looks very much like the road racers and the cafe racers, such as the Triton and the Norvin bikes, etc. from the 1950s and early 1960s.
Triton (Triumph Engine in a Norton "Featherbed" Frame):
https://i.imgur.com/vUVm9gE.jpg
DF250RTD:
https://i.imgur.com/1QFIfA8.jpg
I notice that this bike (along with the DF250RTG) uses a mechanically-actuated rear drum brake. I am thinking that the two bikes, the DF250RTD and the DF250RTG, are actually the same bike with the exception of the bodywork and a few other parts. Is this likely the case?
For reference, here is a DF250RTG:
https://i.imgur.com/Of7eTLv.jpg
Personally, I think that the DF250RTD is more of a "Standard" motorcycle than it is a Cafe Racer. But that's just my opinion. A lot of the bikes from the Cafe Racer era were simply modified "Standards", tweaked with clubman bars and maybe a different seat, but who am I to pontificate.
Along with the small single disc brake at the front, is the rear drum brake adequate for the performance of these bikes?
Google searches, as well as searches on the web sites of the distributors who sell these bikes, do not show rear brake shoes as an available part. Anyone know what brake shoes will be adaptable to these bikes?
I think that a black DF250RTD with a gold pinstripe job, and maybe a similar logo to the pictured Triton (maybe "Chiton"?) would be pretty cool.
Triton (Triumph Engine in a Norton "Featherbed" Frame):
https://i.imgur.com/vUVm9gE.jpg
DF250RTD:
https://i.imgur.com/1QFIfA8.jpg
I notice that this bike (along with the DF250RTG) uses a mechanically-actuated rear drum brake. I am thinking that the two bikes, the DF250RTD and the DF250RTG, are actually the same bike with the exception of the bodywork and a few other parts. Is this likely the case?
For reference, here is a DF250RTG:
https://i.imgur.com/Of7eTLv.jpg
Personally, I think that the DF250RTD is more of a "Standard" motorcycle than it is a Cafe Racer. But that's just my opinion. A lot of the bikes from the Cafe Racer era were simply modified "Standards", tweaked with clubman bars and maybe a different seat, but who am I to pontificate.
Along with the small single disc brake at the front, is the rear drum brake adequate for the performance of these bikes?
Google searches, as well as searches on the web sites of the distributors who sell these bikes, do not show rear brake shoes as an available part. Anyone know what brake shoes will be adaptable to these bikes?
I think that a black DF250RTD with a gold pinstripe job, and maybe a similar logo to the pictured Triton (maybe "Chiton"?) would be pretty cool.