Custom Motorcycle Builds

[DaveM]

Oil In The Blood is out, so we’re giving away $3,700 of gear

Some of you may have caught a glimpse of Oil In The Blood at a handful of moto shows earlier this year: it’s a documentary feature film about contemporary custom culture.

Director Gareth Maxwell Roberts and his crew spent three years travelling the world and interviewing nearly three hundred builders, riders, journalists, artists and racers. The focus is on modifying, customizing, and personalizing bikes—the very heart of the motorcycling experience.

We get to meet illustrious builders like Max Hazan, Craig Rodsmith, DeBolex, Revival Cycles, Tony Prust and Tim Harney. And the film is backed by companies you’ll know—including long-time EXIF supporters ICON Motosports, REV’IT!, Rizoma and Royal Enfield.

But Oil In The Blood is not just a film about motorcycles—it’s about motorcycle people. And soon, everyone will be able to watch it, because it’s released worldwide on Monday October 14 on Amazon, iTunes and Google. You can also order a DVD or Blu-ray from Amazon.

To celebrate, we’re joining forces with the film crew and several leading moto apparel companies to give you the chance to win prizes worth $3,700. There will be seven winners, with each one collecting a premium prize.

From Velomacchi, there’s a Speedway Hybrid Duffle Travel Backpack (above), a Giro Backpack and a Speedway Tool Roll up for grabs.

From REV’IT! comes a pair of Brentwood riding jeans, and from Revival Cycles a Palo Duro Pannier Briefcase. You could also win a Hedon full face Heroine Racer helmet and visor of your choice, or a TW Steel TW999 Chronograph watch.

For your chance to win, just head over to the giveaway page. Entry is open to anyone over the age of 18 ((excluding Quebec, Canada, for local legal reasons), and you’ve got until Monday 21 October to get your entry in.

Winners will be contacted via email the next day, and will have 72 hours to claim their prize. Good luck!

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[DaveM]

Basic Instinct: A Ducati Monster 797 from Hong Kong

The Ducati Monster is one of motorcycling’s greatest success stories. Miguel Galluzzi’s brainchild first rolled out of the factory in 1993, and has remained part of the Bologna line-up ever since.

Even 26 years on, the DNA of the original M900 is still very visible in the Monster range—and it’s especially clear in the entry level Monster 797, the most basic yet traditional Monster in the set.

Instead of using the liquid-cooled Testastretta motor employed by its bigger siblings, it has the simpler 803 cc air-cooled mill used in the Ducati Scrambler. And its stripped-back design makes it ripe for customization.

When an almost new Monster 797 rolled through Angry Lane’s Hong Kong workshop, French brothers Ben and Guillaume Barras immediately saw the connection to the Monster’s legacy. They’d worked on a 94-model M900 a few months prior, and fell in love with its simplicity.

“In 2017 Ducati went to basics with the Monster 797,” the guys tell us. “803 cc L-twin motor, 72 hp, 67 Nm, no traction control, no riding modes, air-cooled, just ABS, making it accessible to basically any rider. The spirit of the original Monster was back: easy to ride and not a sports bike.”

Angry Lane’s client wanted a more aggressive vibe, and to retain the Monster’s pillion accommodations … but left the Barras bros. to figure the rest out themselves. So they decided to build a “tribute to the original Ducati Monster, and the millions of smiles it puts on riders’ faces.”

Angry Lane wanted to slim the Monster 797 down even further, so they started by reworking the rear. They called in their friend Tom, a local go-to welder, to fabricate a single aluminum unit to cover the bottom of the subframe and cap off the tail.

It’s a trick design that incorporates the original tail light while simultaneously tightening up the lines.

Tom also made a new battery box, which now houses both the original components and a Lithium-ion battery. The seat was shortened, and reupholstered in two different Pittards leathers by Ben. The top has an especially unique finish—it’s the same anti-slip ‘digital’ leather that’s used on the palm of most MotoGP race gloves.

The 797’s a pretty decent performer out the box, so Angry Lane left the suspension alone. But they swapped the alloy wheels out for for a stunning set of spoked tubeless items from Alpina, to give the modern Monster an extra classic hit. And Brembo Italy sent over some new brakes and master cylinders.

Ben and Guillaume also fitted a slew of upgrades that would make any Ducatista jealous. They started with a transparent oil-in-bath clutch cover from Ducabike—visually similar to an open dry clutch, but without the rattle. That meant upgrading the clutch to a hydraulic system, which they did with a CNC Racing slave cylinder.

CNC Racing also supplied a set of see-through belt covers, adjustable rear sets and new wheel axle nuts. The air filter was upgraded to a high performance one from DNA Filters, and the air box removed.

Angry Lane chromed the original exhaust headers, then capped them off with a titanium muffler from Spark. There’s also a gas cap and swing-arm mounted license plate bracket from Rizoma.

Up in the cockpit, Ben and Guillaume had OTR Performance in Germany machine up a new top triple clamp, so they could fit a set of LSL clip-ons. They specifically picked a set that was raised, for a more aggressive stance without too much discomfort. Other updates include Motogadget bar-end turn signals and mirrors, and a KOSO LED headlight.

There are also a bunch of parts you can’t order from a catalog—namely the carbon fiber fenders, side panels, exhaust shield, and a couple of smaller trim bits. “You can find a lot of aftermarket carbon parts,” Guillaume explains, “but we wanted similar carbon as some supercars: twill full carbon glossy weave, like you can find on some Aston Martins and McLarens.”

They designed the parts in-house, then sent the designs to a firm abroad to produce. Given the complicated request, it took a full three months to get the parts back—but it was certainly worth it.

For the final finishes, Angry Lane’s client originally requested a lot of black. But he also trusted the brothers to throw their own ideas in—which they did, with spectacular results.

The frame was treated to a burnt bronze Cerakote coating, and the swing arm sand blasted, then vapor blasted for a smooth aluminum finish. The tank was done in Porsche colors from 1996—a combo of black and dark grey, with bronze highlights to match the frame.

The Monster looks a whole lot tighter and more aggressive now, and it’s reportedly more precise on the road now too. But Guillaume tells us that the cherry on the cake was the message they received after the client’s first ride:

“Il Monstro just had its first ride to Shek-O and back. Rides like a katana blade and makes a noise like a belly full of lions roars. I was laughing most of the ride.”

“Thank you guys. Love it.”

Angry Lane | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Maxime Champigneulle

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[DaveM]

The 30: A caffeinated Continental GT 650 from Java

Last weekend, the center of the custom universe was the bustling, sweltering city of Jogjakarta, on the island of Java. It’s the Indonesian home of Kustomfest, which is now firmly established as one of the world’s top custom shows.

Kustomfest has proved that Indonesian builders have world-class skills. And this this, our eyes were caught by this lithe and elegant Royal Enfield Continental GT 650—from Andika Pratama of Krom Works.

Andika has inherited his bike building skills from his father, and plies his trade in South Jakarta. That’s a nine-hour drive from Kustomfest, but we’re glad he made the trip.

The show theme this year was ‘Back to The Roots,’ so Andika has crafted a classic café racer with a mix of 1960s and modern-day styling cues. He’s called the GT 650 ‘The 30’—a reference to his own age and a marker for his personal journey over the years in the workshop.

Honda dominates the booming Indonesian motorcycle market, so it’s rare for a builder to work on a Royal Enfield—especially one of the new twins. Not surprisingly, Andika is smitten with the GT 650.

“From my perspective, the engine is one of the most special parts,” he says. “The sound and ‘beat’ are extremely nice… and with 650cc, it’s very comfortable to ride, whether in the city or long-distance.”

The new bodywork is visually much lighter than stock, highlighting the engine, which has been given a coat of glossy black powder powder to match the frame.

The new exhaust system frames it too, with simple two-into-two swoops echoing the lines of the engine cases and crafted from stainless steel. At the intake end, classic velocity stacks sit atop the EFI system.

The wheels drop down a size both front and back to 17 inches, and Andika has selected wider-than-standard Akront rims—which meant designing and fabricating custom sprockets with extra offset for the new DID chain.

He’s fitted sticky Michelin Power RS sportbike rubber to make the most of a pretty serious suspension. At the front end, a set of 43mm KYB upside-down forks have been grafted on, and at the back, the stock twin Gabriel shocks have been ditched in favor of a Sachs adjustable nitrogen monoshock.

This called for extensive work on the back frame of the bike, which is now slimmed down and sitting higher up, and the standard tubular swingarm has been heavily modified to suit the new monoshock setup.

In keeping with the sporty theme, Andika has installed a complete new brake system. The front wheel gets a 310mm Brembo dual disc setup, with Tokico six-piston caliper. (There’s a Tokico four-piston caliper at the back.) The brake and clutch masters are from Nissin.

The all-new bodywork is hand-beaten galvanized steel, which weighs more than aluminum but is stronger and more dent-resistant.

Andika has shaped a new tank, fairing and front fender, plus side panels under the new seat unit and air scoops above the engine. It all flows together beautifully, helped by copper pearl paint with silver leaf striping.

With new clip-ons slotted in, and foot pegs fabricated from aluminum, ‘The 30’ was ready to roll—and hit the road to Jogjakarta for Kustomfest.

We love it because it treads a very fine line, with an equal balance of retro and modern cues. And it’s one of those rare bikes that looks even better with a rider on board. Nice work, Andika!

Krom Works Facebook | Instagram

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[DaveM]

Custom Bikes Of The Week: 13 October, 2019

It’s an eclectic pick this week—from a Honda Monkey chopper to a one-off Triumph prototype from the 80s. We’ve also got a subtly tweaked Yamaha XSR, a hopped-up BMW, and a classy XS650 scrambler.

Honda Monkey by Zeus Custom There’s a little bike revival happening, and it’s spilling over into the custom scene, spawning all manner of tiny creations for us to gawk over. This one’s as cute as they come; a Honda Monkey 125, that’s been transformed into some sort of miniature bobber-chopper hybrid.

It’s the work of Zeus Custom in Thailand, and despite its size, it’s packing a lot of custom touches. Zeus altered the stance drastically, by slamming the rear so much that the forks look stretched. Then they remounted the fuel tank to sit higher too.

Everything’s on point—from the Biltwell Inc. handlebars and custom solo seat, to the cheeky lettering on the fuel tank. There’s even a stubby little fender out back, and that single curved header creates a delightfully clean line. An all-black paint scheme drives the point home (Zeus even powder coated the fork legs to match).

It’s all kind of ridiculous, but in the best way possible, and it’s also something we’d love to ride. It might not be practical (or handle well), but it sure is adorable—and guaranteed to pull stares. [More]

Yamaha XSR900 by Bunker Custom Cycles Not everyone has the time or money to produce a high-end custom motorcycle. Some riders just want to start out with a rad bike, then make it even radder with simple, easy mods. Istanbul’s Bunker Custom Cycles show us one way how, with this subtly tweaked, but very sweet, XSR900.

The XSR was customized as part of Yamaha’s Yard Built program. The mandate is usually to not modify the frame in any way—but Bunker’s Uzer brothers took it one step further, taking a complete plug-and-play approach.

The biggest visual hit comes from the new fuel tank covers. They’ve been painstakingly designed and manufactured using carbon fiber, and bolt on in a matter of minutes to give the XSR a completely fresh look. Naturally, Bunker are offering them as a kit.

The rest of the Yamaha wears subtle changes and upgrades. Up front, the brothers added a stubby high-fender, new headlight brackets, and LED light internals.

Out back they ditched the bulky rear fender and light, and installed their own tail tidy, which includes an aluminum blank-off plate and an LED taillight.

An SC Project muffler, EBC floating brake rotors and Capra RD tires from (local Turkish brand) Anlas round out the package. Oh, and as we’ve come to expect from Bunker, the livery is one hundred percent on point. [More]

Yamaha XS650 by Andy Megerle Sometimes, the brief for a custom build can be delightfully simple. Andy Mergle had a couple of Hondas on the bench, when his girlfriend decided she wanted an XS650-based scrambler with old school tires and side-mounted exhausts. Simple.

Andy and his better half scoured the internet and found a 1974 XS650 with an overhauled motor. A few hours later it was on the back of Andy’s Volkswagen T3, and the next day they started stripping it down.

The subframe was cut and looped, and topped off with a slim seat. Andy tweaked the angle of the rear shocks, then shortened the front forks internally to perfect the stance. The stock fuel tank looked a bit chunky for the look he was after, so he sourced and fitted a smaller aftermarket unit.

The twin exhaust system looks as if it might have come off another bike from that period—which is exactly the look Andy was after. It is, in fact, a completely hand-made setup, from the headers to the mufflers. Other bits include a Suzuki RV50 headlight that Andy flush-mounted a Motogadget speedo into, and a Hella taillight.

Somewhere during the project, Andy and his girlfriend broke up. He kept the bike though. [More]

1981 Triumph TS8-1 Prototype Want to own an obscure slice of motorcycle history for not too much money? This one-of-a-kind Triumph prototype’s about to go on the block at Bonhams, and is expected to fetch between £8,000 and £14,000. Pocket change, given its rarity—and the fact that it only has one ‘push’ mile on the clock.

Called the TS8-1, it’s a prototype that debuted in 1981 at the Motorcycle Show in London. The prevailing sentiment is that Triumph designed it to go head-to-head with the popular tourers of the time, like the BMW R100RT.

The TS8-1 featured Triumph’s parallel-twin motor of the time, upgraded with an eight valve racing head. Ian Dyson designed the ultra-modem fairing, complete with a sharply angled Perspex windscreen, and twin rectangular headlights. The rest of the bodywork appears to be a monocoque design.

Triumph needed 50 orders to justify a limited production run of the TS8-1, but they never hit their target. Thankfully, the prototype wasn’t scrapped. Bill Crosby bought it and stuck it in the London Motorcycle Museum, where it’s been to this day… and now it could be yours. [More]

BMW R nineT Scrambler by SE Concept Bikes When Hein Gericke (yes, that Hein Gericke) bought an R nineT Scrambler and didn’t quite gel with it, he eventually handed it to his son, Björn. Björn wasn’t quite into it either—but he knew what he didn’t like, and he knew how to fix it.

It also helped that Björn was friends with Dietmar Franzen of SE Concept Bikes. (Björn’s clothing company, g-lab, had a race team that won the 2008 German Championship, and Dietmar was the team director.) The two had collaborated on custom builds before, so they decided to turn the BMW into a livelier performer.

Dietmar reworked the cylinder heads, and installed a set of one-off camshafts to improve responsiveness. The R nineT motor was remapped too, thanks to a RapidBike race module. It now pushes out 125 hp, and it does so with a silky smooth throttle response. And it has a quick-shifter, too.

Handling’s been improved as well, thanks to a new cartridge kit for the front forks, and a modified Öhlins shock at the rear.

This Scrambler’s also sporting Sato Racing rear sets, a JvB-Moto headlight, and a pair of K&N filters. There’s a smaller battery too, and the guys ditched the passenger subframe and trimmed the seat.

Final touches include Akrapovič headers, Spark mufflers and Pirelli rubber. And the new paint job (with a touch of Ferrari red) is as sharp as the boxer’s revised stance. [SE Concept]

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[DaveM]

Gorilla Racer: A Honda Monkey 125 with attitude

K-Speed is one of the busiest shops in the business, turning out customs at a head-spinning rate. That’s because they’re also one of Thailand’s largest aftermarket parts suppliers, so they know a thing or two about production.

That being said, we’ve never seen K-Speed build the same type of bike twice. Until now, that is. This Honda Monkey-based mini-cafe racer is a twist on a minimoto we’ve featured previously…but with a few tasty enhancements.

K-Speed boss Eak has a soft spot for the Monkey; he grew up riding them. We asked if he gets a lot of orders for Monkey-based customs, but he tells us it’s mostly just his friends that order them. And his company makes a range of custom Monkey parts, too.

“The new Monkey inspires my imagination to customize them into many styles,” he says. “It’s like making a new toy.”

The ironically named ‘Gorilla Racer’ is not a customer bike though. It’s an in-house project for K-Speed themselves, and based on a 2019-model Monkey 125 (yours from $3,999). The shop wanted to showcase some of their own catalog parts, and use the project as a test bed to try out some new concepts.

Just like their previous Monkey cafe racer, Gorilla’s had its stance tweaked with a pair of 14” wheels. According to the guys it’s a fairly easy mod—they use aftermarket wheels made for the Honda Grom, which fit without much fuss. A set of alloy wheel covers adds a little brawn to the design.

K-Speed lowered the front forks, and fitted a set of YSS shocks at the back. They went a bit overboard on this Monkey though. It’s also sporting a lightweight aluminum swing arm, and a set of Brembo brakes that it probably doesn’t need.

Up top the subframe’s been shortened and looped, and capped off with a custom cafe racer-style perch. The rear end’s finished off with a classically styled rear fender and LED taillight. There’s a neat little fender up front too, and a new set of side panels to tie everything together.

Even though most of K-Speed’s changes have trimmed the already small Monkey down further, they went in the opposite direction with the fuel tank. It’s been given a super-sized look, thanks to an ABS plastic cover that sits on top of the existing unit.

With no need to increase the bike’s fuel capacity, it’s a quick and easy way to switch up the look. The cover’s also designed to interface with the existing fuel cap, so K-Speed simply swapped the actual cap out for a swankier one from RZM racing.

The last piece of the bodywork puzzle is an aggressive belly spoiler, also formed from hardwearing ABS plastic. And as if to drive the ‘small but belligerent’ point home, there’s a custom street fighter-style exhaust poking out from the back of it.

On their previous Monkey cafe, K-Speed went retro by ditching the LED headlight and fitting an analog speedo. Here, they kept the Honda’s surprisingly slick digital dial, and installed an even bigger (6.5”) LED headlight. It’s mounted on custom brackets, and capped off with an aftermarket grill.

The rest of the cockpit consists of clip-ons, simplified mini-switches and new grips. K-Speed also added a pair of plugs to close up the old handlebar riser holes, and relocated the key ignition to one of the side panels.

The velocity stack and rear-sets were CNC-machined for the project, and the latter are finished off with carbon fiber heel plates. The Monkey also has LED turn signals at both ends, and a new chain and sprocket set.

Gorilla Racer’s final color scheme hits the mark too: Lambo grey, with a whole lot of components blacked out.

K-Speed have managed to surpass themselves, and it wouldn’t surprise us if this little machine sparks a whole flood of Monkey-based customs. And honestly, if they started producing these en masse, we’d be totally down with that.

K-Speed website | Instagram | Images by Hipmotography

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[DaveM]

Better than new: A TÜV approved CB550 cafe racer

If there’s a style of bike resistant to trends, it’s the classic Honda CB café racer. If you keep it simple, avoid the checkered stripes and the temptation to chrome everything, you can’t go wrong.

The flipside is that it’s also hard to make an impression with a build in this style—unless you get all the details absolutely perfect, with spot-on stance and not a nut or bolt out of place. Just like Thomas Lambert has done with this pristine CB550 F.

Thomas runs Elemental Custom Cycles from his workshop in the ancient Bavarian town of Neustadt an der Aisch. It’s one of those small towns in the middle of nowhere, with both Frankfurt and Stuttgart more than two hours away. But Thomas’ reputation transcends distance.

The client for this CB café racer had a specific brief. “He was bored by the mass of BMW builds around, and wanted something classic and reliable,” Thomas says.

After a little digging around, Thomas found a 1977 Honda CB550 F. In its day, it was probably the best balanced of all the CBs, but this one had fallen on hard times. It was in “pretty poor condition,” but it didn’t matter—a ground-up rebuild was on the cards.

Thomas’ goal was to make the CB550 look “like Honda could have built it this way in the 70s.” So he stripped the Honda down, took the SOHC transverse four engine apart, and started returning everything to factory spec—or beyond.

The motor was rebored, equipped with new pistons and bearings, and given a head job to increase compression. To squeeze out even more power, Thomas has also installed rebuilt PD51 carbs taken from a CB650 and open air intakes.

The 4-in-1 exhaust system on old CB550s tends to rust, so Thomas hand built a new one. He’s kept reasonably close to the stock look, but used stainless steel—and topped off the pipes with a black Leo Vince muffler.

Before returning the engine to its rightful place, Thomas cleaned up the frame, installed new triple clamps, and got most of the chassis parts and wheels powdercoated black. He also changed all the old screws, bolts and spokes to stainless steel parts.

The stance needed work too. “The rear end on the CB550 is too low,” he points out. “There are two ways to get the lines right: lower the front end, or lift the rear end.”

“Most CB builds are too close to the ground, which makes them ‘show and shine’ bikes. But we wanted to keep the CB550 comfortable for longer rides, and decided to lift the rear end with new YSS shocks.”

The front fork tubes were rusted, and like many other parts, Thomas couldn’t find OEM replacements in Europe—so he had to order new ones directly from Japan. While overhauling the suspension, he also switched out the stock fork springs for upgraded units from Wilbers.

Thomas has replaced the front brake master (and caliper) with aftermarket OEM-spec parts, and plumbed in stainless steel brake hoses to keep the stoppers nice and tight.

He’s also added clip-ons to ramp up the café vibe, but removed the electric starter and made it a kick-start only—to save weight. Other new parts include the classic round headlamp, rearsets, LED indicators and a tiny (but bright) LED taillight.

A ‘brat style’ seat suits the lines of the old CB550 F well. “We built it from scratch, with an aluminum base plate and a classic brown leather cover,” says Thomas. “And the classic deep blue tank has four layers of clear coat.”

In keeping with the spirit of Minimalismus, Thomas has reduced the wiring loom to a minimum with a new harness and discreet pushbutton switchgear. Motogadget supplied the turn signals and the compact analog MST Speedster gauge, which weighs less than 100 grams (3.4 ounces).

Anyone who knows the 1970s CBs will instantly spot that this is a custom, despite the factory level of fit and finish. But Thomas has made sure his build is street legal in Germany, and passes the strict TÜV approval process.

With a number plate attached to a slender bracket extending beyond the rear wheel, the Honda can be ridden straight out of the photo studio and onto the street. And that is an achievement in itself.

Elemental Custom Cycles | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Images by Christian Motzek

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[DaveM]

Ode to Japan: A Yamaha SR400 bobber Made in England

We’re huge fans of the Japanese custom scene. But it’s not just the motorcycles that captivate us: we’re also conscious of how Japanese creativity influences the custom scene around the globe.

Many elements of the universal flat-seated cafe racer genre originate in Japan—whether builders realize it or not. But this tasty Yamaha SR400 takes more than just a few cues. From top to bottom, it’s a deliberate homage to Japanese custom style.

The project started as a collaboration between the small but feisty British apparel brand Two Gun Salute and custom shop Smith and Son Motorcycles. Two Gun Salute brothers Nathan and Sam Burton had long wanted to do a custom build to promote their label, but being a small brand, budgets were always tight.

Then Jamie Smith—a self-professed ‘shed builder’ who operates as Smith and Son Motorcycles near Peterborough—reached out to them via Instagram. The guys met up at the Hot Rod Drags at Santa Pod, and hit it off.

“We jumped at the chance, having seen the quality of Jamie’s previous builds,” says Sam.

“I loved Jamie’s goal for the build: a low, super clean, simple looking bobber, influenced by Japanese builders such as Heiwa. A plan was made, and the target was to have the bike ready and on show at the Bike Shed London 2019.”

A 1992-model Yamaha SR400 was sourced directly from Japan, and landed in the UK 13 weeks before the show. So Jamie (who also has a family and a nine-to-five) kicked into high gear.

He grabbed his grinder, de-tabbed the frame, and lopped off everything behind the shock mounts. Then he welded in neat pair of rear fender lugs, and built a battery box to sit below the seat. The tail’s finished off with a trimmed Motone fender, with a clever mounting system that can be adjusted to match the wheel’s position when you tweak the chain tension.

Up top is a neat solo bobber seat, upholstered in black leather with a classic tuck and roll pattern, by Nostalgia Upholstery. There’s a Motone taillight further down, attached to a custom-built plate bracket that’s mounted to the swing arm.

Jamie tweaked the SR400’s stance too, by swapping out the rear shocks for a set of Harley-Davidson units that are 100 mm shorter than stock. The front forks were stripped, rebuilt and lowered by 80 mm.

Jamie decided to keep the SR’s stock wheels, but they were stripped, powder-coated and re-laced with stainless steel spokes, with help from SFX Wheels. Two Gun Salute’s aesthetic is very much steeped in hot rod culture, so they threw on a set of whitewalls from Shinko.

The Yamaha’s new fuel tank was lifted from a Harley Sportster, but it was far from a straight swap. It needed a new tunnel, and had to be reworked to clear the SR’s oil-in-frame filler. It’s topped off with its own one-off gas cap.

Just in front of the tank, Jamie machined the ignition and speedo mounts off the top yoke, and ditched the rubber riser mounts for solid mounts. The ignition now lives on the side of the battery box, and there’s a generic aftermarket speedo tucked into a hand-made basket on the side of the forks.

The bars are from Norman Hyde, and the grips are from Biltwell Inc. The standard switches were kept and cleaned up, and all the wiring rerouted to run through the bars. The new headlight is classic bobber fare, right down to the yellow glass.

Jamie didn’t need to do too much to the motor, so it simply went off to Motoedit for vapor blasting. It also got a new Mikuni VM34 carb with a custom stainless steel velocity stack, and a braided camshaft oil line.

The exhaust was welded up from a collection of pre-bent sections, then capped off with a slightly modified Danmoto silencer. All the welds were smoothed off, and the entire system was given a brushed finish.

Ian at Bulldog Bodyshop laid down the tank and fender paint—a combo of Ford Focus RS grey and Old English white. And Classic Coatings handled the powder coating, leaving the SR400 looking out-the-box fresh.

There’s not a hair out of place here, and we love the cheeky little details like the cloth spark plug cable and dice valve caps. It’s a killer build, and one of the best examples of a Jap-style bobber that we’ve seen.

Smith & Son | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Jonny Wilson

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[DaveM]

A Scrambler Ducati 800 upgraded by a Honda designer

We’re always intrigued when design professionals customize a bike — and even more so when when they’re automotive specialists.

This long, low and heavily-upgraded Ducati comes from Nattapat Janyapanich, who lives in Thailand and has designed bikes for Honda R&D Southeast Asia.

“I’ve been following Bike EXIF since I started work in 2010,” he tells us. “It’s my inspiration for designing motorcycles at Honda.” But next year, Nattapat is going to pursue his dream of running a custom workshop: he’ll be leaving Honda and focusing 100% on his new company Slayer House.

This Scrambler Ducati 800 is Nattapat’s latest build, and a joint project with Ducati Thailand—who helped out on the production side.

It’s also something of a test bed. “I wanted to try building a compact cafe racer, but with low and long proportions—drag racer style,” he says.

Nattapat started by upgrading the dynamics, replacing the stock Kayaba forks with Öhlins forks from a Ducati 999R (and installing an Öhlins shock to match).

The triple trees are from a 999R too, but Nattapat has modified them slightly via laser cutting and adding a mount to hold the speedo on the visual centerline.

Clip-on bars replace the rather upright conventional bars fitted by the factory, and the headlight has been repositioned to sit snugly against the fork tubes.

Nattapat has also fitted a single-sided swingarm, which is a Monster 796 item. (We’re especially taken with the tiny MotoGP-style taillight mounted on it.) And the wheels are now lightweight 17-inch forged five-spoke rims from OZ, with sticky Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa rubber spooned on.

The Scrambler 800 has generally appealing bodywork and proportions, so Nattapat has kept his changes relatively subtle. He’s replaced the tank with the simpler Scrambler Sixty2 item, which loses the fussy side panel detailing but retains the overall shape.

The tank is painted in the colors of the Italian flag, with the mid-70s version of the Ducati logo in white.

Nattapat then trimmed down the rear frame after working out the best shape in clay, and created a minimal new seat and tail unit. This section is now made from carbon fiber for a useful weight reduction.

Carbon is liberally sprinkled throughout with a collection of smaller parts, but you have to look closely. Nattapat has made a compact funnel to swoosh air away from the space between the cylinder head and fuel tank, and a similar funnels to help cool the BMW S1000RR brake calipers.

These parts are produced in-house, too: as well as doing his own sketching and clay modeling, Nattapat has an autoclave in his Bangkok workshop so that he can produce small runs of carbon fiber parts.

The effect is both slick and raw in equal measure, and you can bet this Scrambler is a huge step up dynamically from the stock bike. Fully fueled weight is likely to be just under 400 pounds (181 kilos), making ‘Rose Runner’ ideal for slaying switchbacks and tight urban streets.

We’ll end by wishing Nattapat the best of luck for his new startup. He’s nailed the style and nailed the performance upgrades, making this a very promising start indeed.

Slayer House Facebook | Images by KAATO

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[DaveM]

Custom Bikes Of The Week: 20 October, 2019

Not one but two incredible BMW builds, plus a wild Honda dual sport scooter, a rare Egli-Triumph track bike, and a muscular Honda CBX from Tokyo. Buckle up!

Honda X-ADV by Officine GP Design If you don’t know what the X-ADV is, get ready to have your mind blown: It’s an adventure scooter that Honda released in 2016. Yes, this neo-futuristic cafe racer started out as a scooter (and a dual-sport one at that).

Our compadres over at Return of the Cafe Racers don’t go into too much detail on how Officine GP Design got around the X-ADV’s frame and suspension to transform it into this, but it’s not entirely inconceivable. The X-ADV has long(ish) travel suspension, and the same parallel twin motor as the wildly popular NC700. So it has good bones.

Those bones are now wrapped in a full complement of hand-beaten aluminum body parts. The steering area’s been reworked to take a set of clip-ons, and the front headlight represents the squared-off ‘O’ in the builder’s logo. The upgrade list includes a custom-built set of 17” wheels from OZ, an SC Project exhaust and a few trim parts from LightTech.

The final color scheme is a delightfully muted grey with black and red highlights, and the seat’s wrapped in exquisite Foglizzo leather. An adventure scooter-based cafe racer shouldn’t work, but we’re into it. [More]

BMW R65 LS by K-Speed Do the guys over at K-Speed in Thailand ever sleep? Judging by the frequency they push out new work, probably not. Hot on the heels of their Honda Monkey cafe racer, they’ve just unveiled something completely different: this perfectly balanced BMW R65.

It’s not as extreme as the K-Speed builds we usually feature, but it’s a good indication that the crew can do neat and tidy just as well as they do OTT. The starting point was a 1981 BMW R65 LS—weird triangular fairing and all. K-Speed stripped off all the non-essentials, and gave the Beemer a dose of high-impact style.

The BMW’s been slammed, and treated to YSS rear shocks and an all-new subframe. It wears a new tank and seat, slim fenders at both ends, and a pair of peanut-style valve covers for a more vintage feel. K-Speed also made up new exhaust headers, and capped them off with mufflers from their own Diablo range of aftermarket goods.

We’re loving the subtle bobber touches—like the 5” front light and low-slung handlebars. And even the classic sawtooth tires look right at home though. And if you’re tired of seeing Firestones on custom motorcycles, this’ll really tickle you: these are actually Taiwanese knock-offs, from a company called ‘F*ckstone.’ [Facebook Gallery]

Prototype Egli-Triumph OHC Triple Ben at Silodrome has a nose for sniffing out rare and exotic machines—and he keeps a keen eye on top auction sites too. He’s just dug up a real banger: an Egli-framed Triumph with a prototype overhead cam motor.

BSA/Triumph were experimenting with overhead cam engine designs in the 70s, and the story goes that at least two prototypes were built. They were based on the 750 cc BSA/Triumph ‘unit’ triple of the time, with a four-speed transmission. One prototype used a chain, the other a belt.

The design never went further than a prototype, but luckily a chap called Bill Crosby bought the belt-driven motor in 1983, and built it into a fully functioning Rocket III ten years later. But that’s not all he did…

Inspired to pursue the idea of a race-specific version of the OHC triple, Crosby used bits of the ‘spare’ motor to build a one-off version of the design. Then he wedged it into a Fritz Egli frame that he’d bought for endurance racing, but never used. The rest of the bike was completed with traditional telescopic forks, twin rear shocks and drum brakes at both ends.

This extremely rare and completely unique track bike is expected to fetch between £6,000 and £10,000 at Bonhams. It’s reportedly running, but the ignition timing needs attention. We’re praying someone buys it, perfects it, and runs it. [More]

Honda CBX by Remotion Although it was first released in 1978, the six-cylinder 1,047 cc Honda CBX is a great example of the excess on display in the sport bikes of the 80s. It would ultimately be outsold and overshadowed by the CB900F, but we (and many others) are still in awe of this inline-six monster.

In the right hands, it makes for a pretty epic custom build too. This muscular CBX cafe racer was built by Remotion in Tokyo, and it hits all the right notes. It’s been pared down beautifully, thanks to a new tail section and seat…but it’s the suspension overhaul that’s really grabbing our attention.

The front forks and single-sided swing arm are all from a Ducati 1098. Remotion made up custom triples to hold the forks, and custom shock mounts out back. Then they mounted up a set of compatible Kineo spoked wheels, wrapped in Pirelli Diablo Corsa II tires.

Remotion also overhauled the carbs, and fabricated a one-off six-into-six exhaust system. The CBX now wears clip-ons, a new dial, an LED headlight, and a custom-built license plate bracket behind the rear wheel. We’re not sure what would be most fun: riding it, or just hearing it scream as it flies past. [Via Custom People]

BMW K100 by Ruby Cafe The BMW K-Series is slowly gaining ground as a viable donor for custom projects, but it’s hard to make it look really good. Ardy Attaporn of Ruby Cafe in Thailand has knocked this K100 ‘flying brick‘ out the park though, thanks to a combination of sleek bodywork and clever engineering.

The K’s fuel tank, tail section and headlight nacelle are all one-offs, shaped out of steel. But there are a few really slick tweaks lurking lower down. This Beemer’s sporting a set of Honda CBR1000 front forks, matched to the wide 16” front wheel from a Harley Road King. Out back, Ardy’s wedged a Moto Guzzi V10 shock into a custom four bar linkage system that he designed in SolidWorks.

The rear wheel’s from a BMW R1150GS, and the brakes are a combination of Brembo and Kawasaki Z800 components. There’s also a set of Suzuki GSX-R clip-ons, an Öhlins steering dampener and an Acewell speedo.

Ardy also added CNC-machined triple clamps, and rebuilt the entire rear section of the frame. The exhaust is his handiwork too, and he even went so far as to design a new air box. We reckon it’s one of the sharpest K100s on the road—especially with that M-inspired livery. [Ardy Attaporn Instagram]

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[DaveM]

50 not out: A Thruxton to celebrate Tamarit’s 50th build

Building a custom motorcycle isn’t exactly a walk in the park. But turning customization into a viable full-time business is even harder. So it’s uplifting to see custom shops enjoying big measures of success.

Spain’s Tamarit Motorcycles are in a good space right now. They opened four years ago as a two-man operation, and built just five custom motorcycles and created five bolt-on Triumph parts in their first year. Now the team is 14-strong, there are 179 parts in their catalog, and over 50 bikes in their portfolio—25 of which were built this year alone. That’s some smart business acumen.

This fantastic cafe-stroke-bobber is the 50th motorcycle to roll out of the workshop just outside Alicante. Called ‘Stalker,’ this semicentennial celebration is based on a 2006 carb-model Triumph Thruxton 900. It was built for a client in Mallorca who had recently spent time in Thailand, and discovered its blossoming cafe racer scene.

A visit to Zeus Customs helped him make up his mind, and he soon dialed Tamarit’s number to put in an order.

Being new to the ‘alt.moto’ world, Tamarit’s client wasn’t a hundred percent sure what he wanted. But after some thoughtful renders, and referencing another project on the Tamarit bench, the final design started to materialize.

Tamarit exclusively works on Triumphs, so they picked the older Thruxton 900 as a donor—for its old school carbureted feel.

With all their parts being Triumph-specific too, there’s the temptation to just slap on a bunch of bits and call it a day. But Tamarit strive to make each bike unique, so they’ve blended in a number of one-off touches.

“We want to build better motorcycles than when we began, when we simply used to install certain parts,” the guys tell us. “There are parts here that we don’t offer in our open catalog. We want to keep a distinction between customers who buy parts from us and those who commission a whole bike.”

Part of the mission here was to perfect the stance of the Thruxton—so they slammed it as much as they could without making it uncomfortable for their tall client. They shaved an inch and a half off the forks, and fitted a shorter set of Hagon Nitro shocks out back.

Then they fitted chunky Victory Classic tires, capturing some of that fat wheel style spotted at Zeus. (And since the roads are well-made and it hardly rains in Mallorca aside from winter, the sawtooth-tread rubber will do just fine.)

The frame’s rear end was cut and shut, with a neat, up-kicked loop to round it off. It holds a bobbed rear fender, and has a skinny LED taillight integrated into it. The new custom-made saddle is especially nice; it takes style cues from both bobbers and cafe racers, and has just enough space to accommodate two… at a squeeze.

This reworking left the Thruxton’s license plate homeless, though. So Tamarit built a one-off bracket to hold it further down, behind the rear wheel. It also houses a pair of Motogadget turn signals.

Up in the cockpit, the crew machined a custom triple clamp to hold a Motogadget speedo and a row of warning LEDs. They also installed clip-ons, Biltwell Inc. grips, KustomTech levers, and Motogadget switches, bar-end mirrors and turn signals.

The LED headlight is from their catalog, as are the spring-like covers on the upper fork legs.

Other catalog bolt-ons include the stubby front fender and bracket, sump guard, foot controls and an ignition relocation kit (it’s on the right side of the bike now).

The Thruxton has been rewired around a Motogadget m.Unit control box too, and the cutaway side panels are Tamarit items—designed to show off the K&N air filters. A set of the shop’s own ‘Speedster’ exhausts rounds out the spec sheet perfectly.

For color, Tamarit have opted for a classy crimson red, with a luxurious satin metal finish on the engine parts.

It’s a stylish and timeless build, and looks right at home on the hilly roads of the largest Balearic island. It’s also a reminder that perseverance pays off—so here’s to the next 50 machines to roll out of the Tamarit workshop. ¡Felicidades, chicos!

Tamarit Motorcycles | Facebook | Instagram

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[CarlS]

Very nice!

 

[DaveM]

Speciale ultimo: A most unusual custom Ducati

You could call it a mongrel, or a parts bin special—but we reckon this unusual Ducati is one of the cleverest and most original builds we’ve seen for a long time.

It uses parts from several very different Ducatis, and comes from an Englishman called Chris Dedman. He lives in the ancient market town of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, and despite the quality of the work, he’s not a pro builder.

“This bike’s taken years to build,” says Chris. “It’s been completely modified from the ground up, and down to every last nut and bolt being replaced or re-plated.”

Chris works in the IT industry but has loved motorcycles for 25 years. “The Ducati was built as a hobby, although I’m ‘in talks’ about starting a business to build custom bikes and sell parts,” he says. “I’m currently working on a 1993 Honda CBR900 Fireblade as my second bike.”

To kick off this build, Chris bought two complete Ducatis: a 1997 ST2 and a 2003 Monster S4R. “I stripped them both down and sold all the unwanted bits,” he says. “I only kept the frame from the ST2.”

Then he bought a 900SS, so he could get his hands on its renowned air-cooled engine. “I wanted to use as many OEM Ducati parts as possible.” To sweeten the deal, the 904cc desmo motor had just had a full rebuild.

With the help of local specialists V-Moto, the ST2 subframe was detabbed and a new rear loop was welded in.

They also had to weld on new mounting spots at the front for the tank, which came from a 999—along with the heavily truncated seat unit.

“I bought a standard 999 seat section and cut it down with a Dremel,” says Chris. “It took a while to get that look!”

The minimalistic look was the hardest part—despite the engine transplant and the multitude of Monster bits being grafted on. “It meant building a battery and electrics box, and new mounts for the ignition, speedo and headlight.”

“There are a lot of components to fit onto the front of a bike, and you need to consider the steering lock too. It took some clever engineering to get the packaging right while using as many OEM parts as possible.”

Chris ended up getting a bespoke loom, built by a former Royal Air Force electronics technician who spent 14 years working on missile systems. Not surprisingly, everything works—right down to the idiot lights. The loom is connected to a lightweight Speedcell battery.

The engine is now hooked up to a custom exhaust system built by V-Moto, but that took time to get right too. The headers are stainless steel and were purged to keep the welds smooth on the inside.

“It’s difficult to package these: you need a scavenger/link to make it run correctly, and make sure the header lengths are as equal as possible. Then you need to factor in clearance around the footrests and rear wheel,” says Chris.

“I tried titanium cans with a MotoGP setup. But because there was no scavenger or baffling, the bike didn’t run correctly and spat flames. It was too anti-social!” An Arrow muffler has helped to fix the issue.

The bling—and the top-shelf handling—comes from the Monster S4R parts. Chris has grafted on the 43mm adjustable Showa USD forks, the Öhlins remote reservoir shock, the 17-inch Marchesini wheels and the Brembo braking system, which sports twin 320 mm discs and four-piston calipers at the front.

He’s also installed the S4R’s single-sided swingarm and carbon hugger, and swiped a carbon front fender from a Monster 1200.

“The bike now only weighs 169 kilos [372 pounds] with fuel. The weight distribution is F51/R49 and all the weight is between the axles,” says Chris. “We paid a lot of attention to the brief: a bike that is rideable and reliable, and keeping the mass central.”

Chris’ Duc weighs a whopping 24 kilos less than an S4R, and we’re betting it’s incredible to ride.

And we’re pleased to hear that despite the effort and man-hours involved, Chris doesn’t pamper his baby. “It has a full MOT [the UK roadworthiness certificate], and my first ride was a 500-mile trip through the Welsh valleys.”

The Welsh might be famous for their beautiful choirs, but the sound of this incredible machine echoing around the mountains of South Wales must be even more heavenly.

Chris Dedman Instagram | Images by Jack Beasley

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[DaveM]

Lead sled: A BMW K1100 LT cafe from Spain

There’s a reason we don’t see many BMW K-series customs, and it’s because they’re tough to work with. The K is physically big and has an awkward silhouette—neither of which are ideal ingredients for a good custom.

Some builders find success by embracing the K’s inherent design, and producing something angular and modern. But Pablo Pérez González has gone in the opposite direction. He’s wrestled the mighty K’s gawky form to the ground, and produced a classy cafe racer with hella clean lines.

What’s even more impressive is that the Spanish builder started with one of the newer, bigger K-series models: a K1100 LT tourer from the 90s. And he picked a K because he wanted to customize a BMW, but wasn’t interested in the ubiquitous R-series boxer.

It was a huge undertaking, but Pablo (who calls his workshop D’S Motorcycles) wasn’t in a rush. He has a full-time job as an electromechanical engineer, so building bikes is simply how he unwinds—and losing track of time is par for the course.

Step one was to strip the chunky tourer’s numerous body panels off, so that Pablo could get to the chassis. By fabricating an all-new subframe, and repositioning the rear shock mount to lift the rear, he’s managed to give the K1100 a perfectly straight fly line.

A set of KTM RC8 forks went on up front, along with their twin Brembo brakes. The K’s new wheels are from a BMW R80 RT; stripped, cleaned, powder coated black and re-laced.

Pablo had to machine a new axle for the front, and adapt a BMW R1150 GS brake caliper at the back, since the existing brake wouldn’t clear the spokes.

As an added touch, he machined up a hubcap for the open side of the rear wheel, complete with a BMW roundel.

With the stance sorted, focus turned to kitting out the K1100 with complementary bodywork. There’s a new fuel tank up top, showing hints of the iconic Norton Manx, right down to the tank strap. It’s matched up to a brown leather seat, and a neat tail hump.

Pablo worked some magic under the bodywork too. Some of the coolant system plumbing is now hiding under the tank, and the tail houses the reworked electronics—including the touch point for a Motogadget keyless ignition.

The K’s four cylinder motor wasn’t neglected either. It was rebuilt with new pistons, rings and seals, and gas-flowed and ported heads. It was also sand blasted and clear powder coated, so that it would stand out more and become a feature of the build.

The transmission and swingarm got the same treatment, and the air box was ditched for a set of pod filters. The stock exhaust system has been ditched, and replaced by new four-into-one headers and a muffler from the Italian brand Mivv.

Up in the K’s cockpit, you’ll find an Accossato radial master cylinder for the front brake, Yamaha R6 switches and a Motogadget speedo. The clip-ons are from the KTM RC8, and the grips are Rizoma units now wrapped in the same leather as the seat.

Pablo also added new Hel brake lines, and built a Honda fuel gauge into the top of the fuel cap.

Other add-ons include Kawasaki rear sets, a Rizoma license plate holder, combo LED tail lights and turn signals, and a set of custom fenders. Pablo’s left no stone unturned, and even most of the washers and bushings you see have been machined from scratch.

The K’s new livery was done in-house too: it’s a simple silver finish, with stripes that hint at BMW’s M scheme without straight-up copying it.

It’s still a big bike with a blocky motor, except now that motor’s packaged in a sleek and stylish cafe racer. How’s that for a fresh take on the Flying Brick?

D’S Motorcycles Facebook | Instagram | Photos by Pablo Pérez González and Gonzalo Jara

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[DaveM]

Please Yamaha, build a scrambler as cool as this SR250

We’ve got used to heavy motorcycles. These days, anything around 450 pounds or 200 kilos is regarded as light. And most of the bestselling bikes in the USA weight 600 pounds or more.

In the days before emissions controls, fuel injection systems and electronic aids, bikes were smaller and lighter. And in Europe especially, compact commuters sold by the shipload—bikes like the Yamaha SR250. Known as the Yamaha Exciter in the US, this feisty little single weighed around 287 pounds (130 kilos) wet.

Efraón Triana loves small bikes. The Madrid-based builder runs UFO Garage, although he made his name as one of the duo behind Cafe Racer Dreams.

Triana wanted to build “the perfect motorcycle for everyday use in the city, or for a Sunday ride in the countryside.” He chose an SR250 as his starting point, because they are plentiful in Spain: even after production of the first series finished in Japan and the USA, Spain carried on building the little SR from 1982 to 2000.

Triana located a 1986 SR250 in his home city, with just over 11,000 km on the clock. It didn’t cost much, because this build is all about maximum bang for the buck.

“From the beginning, I was clear that this would be a ‘cheap’ project—but with a very careful aesthetic,” he says.

So he’s reconfigured the Yamaha as “a pure scrambler. A small, incredibly light motorcycle that weighs only 75 kilos [165 pounds] now. It is powerful enough, and very simple and practical.”

For the design, Triana was inspired by the enduro bikes of the 70s. He cites movies like Rambo, and “the sensation of freedom that these films transmit.” Whenever possible, Triana has also used old parts that have been hiding on his workshop shelves or in drawers.

Like most commuter bikes, the stock SR250 looks rather ungainly. But not any more. Key to the new look is a fuel tank lifted from a tiny 50cc Peugeot from the 1960s, and tweaked to fit.

Triana has custom-made a comfortable new seat with plush upholstery, and new looped rear frame tubing that closely follows its lines. He’s also bucked the current custom trend by avoiding an ‘open triangle’ under the seat, preferring to make new side covers that hide the battery and air intake.

To amp up the vintage vibe, there’s an old rectangular Marchal headlight in a custom-made nacelle, with a small wind deflector on top. The bars are from a previous UFO Garage project, but Triana has transferred over the original switchgear.

What appear to be chunky indicators are actually long-range driving lights, but most of the rest of the bar area is standard fare. The ‘real’ turn signals are tiny LEDs plumbed into the existing loom.

“I didn’t want to modify the electrics,” Triana notes. “This bike is for my cousin, who needs reliability.”

The suspension has been upgraded though, in keeping with the SR250’s new dual sport identity. The forks are from a GasGas 400 motocrosser, with the yokes modified to fit. And Triana has modified the GasGas brake system to take a 280mm disc for modern stopping power.

The heavy old SR250 wheels are gone, replaced by lightweight aluminum Excel Excell Tagasako MX rims—19 inches at the front and 18 at the back. Wisely, Triana has used Continental’s popular TKC80 tires: “they give a light motorcycle good behavior, and look very good.”

Ample fenders cover the new rubber: an old recycled one at the front, and a new piece fashioned from aluminum at the back. Extra protection comes from the engine bashguard, which is adapted from a Honda NX650 Dominator part, and there’s a hand-made heat guard over the exhaust piping too.

The exhaust itself is brilliantly discreet and sits well out of the way of damage. It’s yet another hand-made part and well muffled: “I didn’t want this motorcycle to make a lot of noise. It is for everyday use,” says Triana.

Another everyday, practical touch is a mounting system for a backpack, which can be attached to the SR250 by the rear wheel. It uses modified Fender guitar straps, and can be unhooked when the rider dismounts.

Given the amount of exotic machinery that drops into our inboxes at EXIF, it’s easy to become blasé about the more functional builds. But this simple and classy Yamaha has given us a serious attack of envy.

“I think scrambler bikes are coming back because they’re comfortable, practical and simple,” says Triana.

We’re inclined to agree. And we reckon this is the kind of bike Yamaha could make tomorrow and sell by the thousands if priced right.

UFO Garage | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Rafa Dieguez Foto

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[DaveM]

Dutch courage: Moto Adonis tackles the Ducati S4R

The S4R has got to be one of Ducati’s greatest hits. The water-cooled Monster used a retuned DOHC 996 engine with eight valves and a stout 113 hp, weighed just 425 pounds (193 kilos) dry, and sported a single-sided swingarm. And it was good for over 145 mph (235 kph).

The S4R can still hold its own against many modern roadsters, but it was launched 16 years ago—and tired examples are now popping up on the secondhand scene. Which makes it an ideal base for a custom build, as the Dutch shop Moto Adonis has just discovered.

Shop founder Daan Borsje has delivered a most unusual custom, with radical styling that doesn’t slot into any obvious genre. It’s in-your-face and unapologetic, much like the S4R itself.

“My loyal customer and friend Stijn came to me with the desire to own a one-off, futuristic cafe racer,” says Daan. “I also had a desire: to build a custom based on one of the most brutal and best steering motorcycles I have ever ridden, the Ducati S4R.”

“We started with a wish list as big as a Harry Potter book, and narrowed it down—still a way too long list of stuff we wanted on the bike.”

Stijn recalls the brief: “It needed to be brutal, slick, and with a nice ‘flow.’ A unique bike. I’ve always liked Ducati, and it was cool that Daan had the same idea. It was the first Ducati that Moto Adonis would build.”

In the Roosendaal workshop, Daan and Stijn started drawing. They took inspiration from not only bikes, but also cars and even whales (yes, that gas tank). The sketches went into Photoshop, and with the concept locked down, the mechanical work was ready to begin.

After stripping the S4R down to the essentials, Daan called in a little help from his friends and reconfigured the upper frame to hold the tank-and-seat combination.

“Somehow, it was still missing something,” says Daan. “So we gave the front end extra room for electrical parts and lights.” That includes fork covers as well as the striking louvered nacelle.

“The top [circular] lights are for long dark roads, and the bottom [strip] lights are for the streets of Antwerp—where this bike lives,” says Daan.

Underneath the swooping tank is a new air box, a battery holder, and a mounting point for a Motogadget m.unit blue control box.

The 43mm USD Showa forks on the S4R are superb, so Daan has wisely left them alone—aside from refinishing and shortening them slightly. At the rear, he’s upgraded the Showa monoshock to a new Wilbers unit with a black and gold finish.

The brakes have been upgraded too, with wave disks from the Dutch company Moto-Master. And the 17-inch wheels have been swapped out for sweet Kineo rims.

The radiator was tricky. “It had to be removed because it was way too big,” says Daan. “So we redesigned and re-engineered the radiator to be as small as possible.”

Daan has treated the bars to new Nissin brake and clutch pumps, and Motone push-button switches send signals to the Motogadget m.unit. At the bar ends are Motogadget m.Blaze Cone turn signals, and there’s a Motogadget Motoscope Pro digital gauge flushed into the modified top yoke.

In the end it just needed one more tweak: a monstrous exhaust system. Daan has a sub-brand called MAD Exhaust, focusing on Harley, BMW and Yamaha systems, and he whipped up custom pipework to add a little extra power and style to the S4R.

The paint is Audi’s iconic Nardo Grey, one of the most famous colors of modern automotive times. At Stijn’s behest, there’s gold leaf on the fork covers spelling out DUC92.

“I give my cars and bikes names,” says Stijn. “This bike needed the name DUC92—because 1992 was the year the Monster was introduced.”

It’s a polarizing build, but whether or not you like the styling, Daan and Stijn have to be applauded for pushing the aesthetic envelope—and tackling the challenges along the way.

“It was hell to build this bike,” Daan admits. “But on the first ride, when I hit the throttle…there was nothing better than that feeling. Except perhaps the look on Stijn’s face when he did the same thing!”

Moto Adonis | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Lenn is More

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[DaveM]

Mental Morini: A wild Corsaro 1200 Veloce from XTR Pepo

Pepo Rosell’s work is easy to spot, and we mean that as a compliment. If it looks fast, has a killer livery and just a hint of classic endurance racing, it’s most likely an XTR Pepo build.

Pepo’s sharp eye and deft hand come from his vast experience. He’s the guy that originally founded the powerhouse custom shop, Radical Ducati. Then, after a thirteen-year stint at Radical, he went into a hiatus, before realizing that building custom motorcycles was all he wanted to do.

So for the past four years, Pepo’s been producing the same style of high-end customs he built his reputation on, but now as XTR Pepo. He maintains a frenetic pace too, making it hard to keep track of what he’s up to.

Luckily, our good friend and ace photographer Marc Holstein pinged us about this exotic number. It’s a Moto Morini Corsaro 1200 Veloce, and it’s got all the elements of a classic XTR Pepo masterpiece.

Marc tells us how the project came about: “Oliver Thiel from Thiel Motorsport met Pepo at the Glemseck 101, and after a lot of talking, he expressed his wish for a custom Moto Morini with clip-ons… which is not available stock.”

“They agreed that Pepo would build a custom bike, and that Oliver would leave him a lot of creative freedom. The Corsaro 1200 Veloce was chosen because it’s the most powerful bike in the line-up.”

With 140 hp and 123 Nm on tap, 50 mm Marzocchi USD forks, strong brakes and a dry weight of under 200 kilos, the Corsaro is already pretty rad in stock trim. So Pepo’s changes largely focused on ergonomics and cosmetics—but the results are off the chain.

The Moto Morini cuts a far more aggressive line now. To achieve this, Pepo lowered the front end, and fabricated a completely new subframe out back.

Sitting up top is a monocoque body unit, built completely from scratch. The lines are perfect—from the angular fuel tank right through to the boxy tail piece.

It features some astounding details too. The filler is a twin-cap setup from Fuchs Workshop, and Pepo’s built a holder for the LiPo battery into the tailpiece. And even though the barely-there seat pad sure doesn’t look comfy, it suits the overall vibe.

You might recognize the front fairing; it’s from a Suzuki RGV250. Pepo modified it, built a custom mounting system to hold it, and added an endurance-style twin light setup up front.

Just behind it is the OEM dash, mounted on a new bracket to tuck it in close.

Pepo honored Oliver’s request for clip-ons with a set of FG Racing bars, and a stunning CNC machined aluminum top yoke. The switches are stock, but the levers are adjustable numbers from the XTR Pepo catalog.

It’s a real tidy setup overall, right down to the small bracket that holds the remote Brembo reservoirs.

Dig deeper, and you’ll find a hand-built RC Racing radiator, and a re-worked electrical system. The exhaust is a neat setup too: Pepo’s added a Wolfman two-into-one connector to the stock headers, and capped it off with a Spark muffler with a custom hangar.

Pintumoto handled the Moto Morini’s new paint, while Dante hooked Pepo up with all the decals he needed. Between the spot-on graphics and the Corsaro’s aggressive new silhouette, there’s a lot to love here.

Marc tells us that Oliver and Pepo might produce a small run of Morinis if the interest is there. Any takers?

XTR Pepo | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Marc Holstein

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[DaveM]

Knockout Krauser: A four-valve R100 from Ironwood

Ironwood Custom Motorcycles get frequent requests for their signature R-Series BMW bobbers. But when a regular client rolled in with a unique donor, shop boss Arjan van den Boom knew he had to up the ante.

The bike in question was a 1982 BMW R100—but with a very special motor. It was packing a full Krauser upgrade, complete with four-valve heads, Nikasil barrels and an electronic ignition.

The client was a BMW and Porsche fanatic with very discerning taste. So whatever the Dutch shop built would need to be special.

Arjan and co. answered with a sharp, low-slung bobber that follows the typical Ironwood aesthetic, but with a slew of trick upgrades.

First, the boxer shed all of its 80s bodywork in favor of a more minimalist setup. Ironwood swapped the /7 fuel tank for a /5 unit, and added a solo seat with upholstery by Marcel from Miller Kustom Upholstery. They built a new pair of fenders too, with hand-made struts supporting them.

Out back, the crew ditched the subframe and fabricated a new seat support and shock mounts. The BMW now sits on a pair of new rear shocks from TFX.

The front forks are Öhlins, lifted from an Aprilia Tuono. Ironwood kept the stock wheels, but wrapped them in modern, street-biased Continental Classic Attack tires. The front brakes were upgraded to Brembo units, with 320 mm discs for extra bite.

The highly tuned motor didn’t need any internal work, but on the outside it was cleaned up and re-done in black, with gold for the valve covers.

Ironwood installed a pair of Mikuni TM40 flat side carbs, and DNA Filters supplied a set of pod filters with gold tops that feature Ironwood’s logo. There’s an extra hit of gold in the form of a custom crankcase breather tube.

The exhaust system’s a pretty special touch too. Marcel van der Stelt from The Custom Factory was pulled in to build a stainless steel two-into-one system, which terminates in an aggressive-looking Ixil muffler (originally designed for the Yamaha XSR700).

Ironwood also rewired the bike from top to bottom, with a Motogadget m.unit control box at the heart of the system. All the lights are LED, with a Koso ‘Thunderbolt’ headlight, Kellermann taillight/turn signal combos out back, and extra running lights on the frame.

There’s a whole lot of Motogadget stuff in the cockpit too—including the speedo, switches, grips, bar-end turn signals and mirrors. The grips have been wrapped in the same leather as the seat, and sit on a set of CNC-machined clip-ons. And the speedo’s integrated into a custom-machined top yoke.

We were lucky enough to see this bobber in the metal at BMW’s Pure&Crafted event in Amsterdam, and spotted a lot of details that you’d only notice if you were close. The leather battery box is one nice touch, but the small leather cable holders are even more thoughtful.

Ironwood opted for a simple an elegant paint job: a coat of Porsche Pasha Red, laid down by Jacco from Royal Kustom Works. If you’re a Porsche enthusiast, you’ll know that this particular hue was introduced in the 1950s and often paired with tan leather back in the day.

It’s not every day that you see a pair of Krauser’s peculiar four-valve heads roaming the streets. And seeing them in such a suave modern build is an even more rare treat.

Equal parts aggressive and elegant, this Beemer is a solid entry into Ironwood’s ever-growing portfolio.

Ironwood Custom Motorcycles | Facebook | Arjan van den Boom Instagram | Images by Paul van Mondfrans Lindén

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[DaveM]

Hasty Flaming Buffalo! An Indian Scout from Luuc Muis

When Indian delivered a new Scout Bobber to young Dutch designer Luuc Muis, there was a catch: he had just 20 weeks to turn his ideas into metal. And to complicate matters, it would have to be an after-hours job. Because Luuc works full-time for the Harley parts specialist Motorcycle Storehouse and the helmet brand Roeg.

But Luuc delivered, turning his sketches into an incredible Scout Bobber called Hasty Flaming Buffalo, and built with a little help from his friend Bert Jan of Outsiders Motorcycles.

Luuc is 27 years old and has been building bikes for seven years now, as Luuc Muis Creations.

“The project started before I actually knew about it,” says Luuc. “Indian launched a contest in the Benelux countries, and anyone could enter. The deal was to design a custom based on the Indian Scout Bobber—with the winner getting a 2019 Scout to build their design.”

“I was eager to enter, and being an industrial product designer meant this was straight up my alley,” Luuc says. “But in the first few days, I struggled to find a foundation on which to start my design. I eventually made four digital designs, each based on a different era of Indian history.”

Luuc enthusiastically revealed these concepts on his website, and a 1910 boardtracker-inspired design prevailed.

Luuc says his Scout design answers a hypothetical question: “What if the visual design of motorcycles never developed in a hundred years, but technique did?”

On 14 June, Indian told him that he’d won. “I had to make a hell of a schedule for the next 20 weeks—the reveal was due on the first of November!”

Luuc started by reverse engineering the Bobber. He digitalized the engine with a scanner to get the exact geometry and dimensions to design around. With the 2D design as reference, the frame started to take shape 3D, via Autodesk Fusion 360 CAD software.

Straight away, Luuc generated 16 parts that needed to be milled from solid aluminum. These went to Scheffers Engineering in Norway, and were combined with tubing to create a new three-piece aluminum frame.

The 69ci (1,133cc) V-twin engine was the only part of the original Scout that Luuc kept—aside from the axles. Everything else was designed and built from scratch.

“At this point, half the available time had already passed,” says Luuc. “Time became my enemy. Working my day job 40 hours a week, and building this bike as well, started to take its toll. My only choice was to work late during the nights.”

The handmade gas tank was an even bigger challenge than the frame, because Luuc needed to fit several components inside.

The tank literally forms part of the frame—there is no backbone under it—and hides the engine air intake, the air filter and the electronic brains of the Scout. They’re split into two boxes: a Motogadget m.unit control unit and a MaxxECU engine management system.

The tank is entirely handmade out of sheet metal. The left and middle sections hold the fuel and air intake, and the right side (where you can see the body gap) is a cover that hides the electronics, throttle body, air filter and fuel pump.

Fortunately for Luuc, a helpful selection of partners jumped into the fray. There’s a full carbon fork from CeraCarbon Racing, with diamond-cut ceramic-coated carbon fork tubes to add a modern race feel. The rear suspension is a one-off system inspired by modern MTB bike design.

A set of one-off rims from JSR Service are fitted with a custom Moto-Master brake system and Brembo calipers. Old Dutch Leatherworks made the seat and DNA Performance Filters produced a one-off air filter to fit the space underneath the gas tank.

Finally, Kellermann supplied the ridiculously small turn signals, which also act as braking lights.

Sending off all the parts for paint, powder coat and anodizing gave Luuc a few days to catch up on sleep and focus on planning a trip to Akrapovič.

With the help of Bert from Outsiders, Luuc put the semi-assembled Scout Bobber into a rented van and drove over 1,200 kilometers across Europe to the titanium foundry at Akrapovič’s headquarters in Slovenia.

“We were overwhelmed with what we saw, and the way Akrapovič committed themselves to the project,” says Luuc. The Slovenian experts also have form with custom Indians: they helped with the amazing Appaloosa Scout Bobber from Workhorse too.

“We put the bike up on the lift and started constructing the prototype pipes. The next day, the prototype was replicated with two tubes of titanium, making it look very clean and simplistic. Then we added the exhaust tips and laser engraving.”

The Scout is now on its way to the huge EICMA show in Milan next weekend, and time was so tight, Luuc hasn’t yet been able to set up the custom ECU properly. “But as soon as I get the bike back home, I’ll make it run,” he says. “I can’t wait to hear that exhaust and see the titanium turn blue.”

We’ll forgive that little detail, because the Indian lives up to the promise Luuc made with his digital drawing. ‘Hasty Flaming Buffalo’ is a brilliantly executed homage to Indian’s heritage—and hits the goal of melding the looks of a century-old Scout with today’s technology.

Luuc Muis Creations | Facebook | Instagram | With thanks to (and images by) Ronald Rink | Instagram

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[DaveM]

Custom Bikes Of The Week: 3 November, 2019

Details emerge of the new KRGT-1 from Keanu Reeves’ company Arch. Plus a smoking hot Yamaha RD350 board tracker, a rare BSA B50MX from the 1970s with just ten hours on the clock, and a guide to drawing motorcycles—from one of our favorite designers.

Yamaha RD350 by No Joke 2 Stroke Few two strokes are as beloved as the Yamaha RD350. So we can’t figure out if turning one into a board tracker is sacrilege, or genius. Either way, this 1974 RD350 from Mark Miller (A.K.A. No Joke 2 Stroke) sure looks like fun.

Mark builds bikes as a hobby, putting about 12 months into each project. His goal on this project was to create a board tracker, but one that had decent suspension and a two stroke motor. Besides for the RD350 motor and steering neck, this is a totally from-scratch build.

The custom frame is particularly sweet, especially the mono-shock setup that forms part of the backbone. Riding on top is a monocoque body. It’s been shaped from fiber glass, and designed to snap into place on the frame rather than be held in place by fasteners.

Other parts include 21” wheels with older Yamaha drum brakes, and exhaust headers that came from an early 80s race team. Mark also installed board track style bars, complete with wrapped grips and reverse levers. And he even reshaped the RD350’s cylinder heads, to make them look they were from an earlier era. [More]

2020 Arch KRGT-1 Arch is a boutique motorcycle manufacturer, founded in LA in 2011 by Keanu Reeves and Gard Hollinger. Its specialty is high-end, made to order American performance cruisers, and the updated KRGT-1 is a total knockout.

At a glance, the $85,000 (starting price) KRGT-1 has the same weird pseudo-cafe styling as the outgoing model. But Arch is calling it an evolution, and a big one at that. There are over twenty major changes, and over 150 newly designed parts.

The KRGT-1’s heart is a monster 124 ci v-twin from performance specialists S&S Cycle. It’s a unique setup too, with a proprietary downdraught induction system and K&N filter. The exhaust is an Arch two-into-one system, terminating in a Yoshimura silencer.

There’s top-shelf stuff everywhere here. The forks are 48 mm Öhlins units, the wheels are carbon fiber hoops from BST, and the brakes are from ISR. Each Arch motorcycle is hand assembled in their LA facility, with customization options, so no two bikes are quite the same.

We’ll be swinging a leg over the new Arch KRGT-1 later this week, so stay tuned for more. [Arch Motorcycle]

1973 BSA B50MX Back in the 70s, truly focused off-road machines were still fairly rare. BSA had a horse in the race—the B50MX, a ‘motocross’ version of the 499 cc B50 single. It made a whopping 34 horsepower, but weighed only 240 pounds.

There weren’t a whole lot made though, and when BSA folded, the remaining stock was rebadged as the Triumph TR5MX. So finding a BSA B50MX is rare.

Finding one in original condition is unusual, which makes this example all the more special. It still has the tires, seat, grips, fenders, exhaust and spark plug it shipped with. And even crazier, is that it’s only seen 10 hours of use, and has never been titled!

If that sounds good to you, you can have it right now for $6,995 on Craigslist. It’s not often we gawk over bikes that are bone stock, but this one’s so cute we can’t resist. [Via]

Brough Superior x Aston Martin Two producers of vehicles we can’t afford—Brough Superior and Aston Martin—are teaming up to build a motorcycle. There’s very little info about the project out there, because the bike is not due to be revealed until the EICMA show in Milan in a few days’ time.

Luckily a few images have started leaking online, courtesy of a Japanese website. And as you’d expect from a collaboration between a luxury car brand and a boutique motorcycle brand, the results are rather ostentatious.

We’re not sure if these renders are close to the finished bike (and they might even be fake). But they do tell us a couple of things: we’re seeing what looks like a turbocharged v-twin, and the front suspension design looks to be pretty unique.

Unsurprisingly, early talk is that the bike will be produced in very limited numbers. Add details like swanky upholstery and what looks like a radical TFT display, and you can bet this collab won’t come cheap. [More]

I DRAW MOTOS sketchbook This one isn’t actually a motorcycle, but anyone with a remote interest in motorcycle design is sure to be interested in it. It’s a sketchbook, created by a company called I DRAW Creative Goods, and created with input from designer Dave Mucci, who knows a thing or two about designing gorgeous motorcycles.

I DRAW has a series of sketchbooks out, all designed to help people learn to draw things they’re passionate about. This one is their fifth, and focuses on motorcycles. I DRAW refer to it as “part premium sketchbook, part intuitive textbook, and part handy reference guide.”

So it’s basically a mix of templates, tutorials and lessons, paired with countless examples and guides. It’s packed with handy info like motorcycle anatomy, engine configurations and suspension types, and general bike physics. So it’s designed to help you sketch motorcycles, get their proportions right and make them look good.

It’s a hardcover sketchbook, bound and covered in a premium linen-textured cover, with 100 gsm paper inside. If this sounds like the sort of thing you’d like to do in your spare time, the project’s funding now on Kickstarter.

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[DaveM]

‘Twins FT’: A Royal Enfield x Harris flat tracker

Four years ago Eicher Motors, the owner of Royal Enfield, bought the famous British company Harris Performance. Since the 1970s, Harris has been building high-performance ‘specials,’ and the Hertfordshire firm had already developed the chassis for the Continental GT and Himalayan.

Harris has now gone back to its racing roots with this very intriguing prototype flat track racer based on the 650 twin engine.

It’s a collaboration with Royal Enfield’s technical center in Leicestershire, and although it’s essentially a custom project, we’re wondering if it could also herald the start of a flat track race program.

“Inside Royal Enfield, we like to have a bit of fun,” says RE’s industrial design boss Adrian Sellers. “So we’ve started working on ‘Factory’ builds, to push the limits of our motorcycles’ capabilities.”

“To date, these have included a record breaking Bonneville Salt Flats racer, two drag bikes, two retro racers and now this new ‘Twins FT’ flat tracker.”

The tracker is probably the most ambitious build yet. Harris has over 40 years of expertise in chassis development, but this is the first time they’ve built a flat track chassis.

The frame is brazed steel tube—an old-school technique applied to a thoroughly modern motorcycle. The steering stem angle can be altered two degrees each way, by using specially machined inserts that locate the stem bearings at a different angle within the headstock tube.

The yokes can be adjusted 4 mm forwards and backwards too, and the swingarm pivot height has 5 mm of adjustment both ways.

“These adjustments can be used to fine tune the chassis,” Adrian says, “altering the stability of the bike, how it turns in, and how it behaves under power.”

“As this is an exploration, Harris designed-in quite a wide scope for adjustment. As the chassis is developed with more testing, this adjustability could be decreased—to reduce costs and component size.”

All the other chassis parts have been developed specifically for this bike by Harris, including the front forks, which are 41mm right-side-ups running Öhlins 30mm valving.

They’re matched to a top-of-the-range Öhlins TTX36 shock, and the 19-inch wheels are RSD Traction race rims—CNC machined from forged billet aluminum. The tires are the ubiquitous Dunlop DTRs, and there’s obviously no front brake. The rear wheel is hooked up to a Brembo twin-piston setup.

The motor has been juiced up by S&S Cycle, who helped with development of the 650 twin. The American company has supplied the exhaust system, a 750cc big bore kit, and a custom ECU mapped to make the best of both upgrades.

It was the UK design team at Royal Enfield’s technical center who made the stylish carbon bodywork though, taking cues from existing flat track practices.

“As much as we wanted it to look good, we also wanted function to take precedence,” says Adrian. “So Harris made a working chassis first, and then our team designed a good-looking body based on that.”

The bodywork was modeled in 3D, and a negative mold was milled directly into high-density foam. The carbon has been laid up directly into that. Royal Enfield’s in-house modeler made the molds, and the carbon was laid up by Scorpion Composites and P3 Composites.

“Once you’ve designed a few motorcycles, you can visualize the final surface from the CAD,” says Adrian, “and be confident in outputting it directly—without going through a physical modeling step.”

The fuel tank is a separate aluminum vessel that sits below the body shell. “This allows us to change the volume of the tank in the future, without affecting the aesthetics.”

There’s some smart thinking going on here, and we reckon Royal Enfield have nailed the looks too. The bike has already been spotted running laps at a speedway track near RE’s British headquarters, and S&S could probably deliver a decent power output—given that they are heavily involved with Indian’s all-conquering FTR 750. But Adrian is coy about the competitive future.

“We’ve done a little testing to see if we’re in the right ball park, and we are, but not much more than that,” he tells us. “We’ll see how further testing goes, and take it from there. We wouldn’t want to go out unless we have something competitive, and racing is an all-new activity for us—so there is a lot of learning to be done.”

We’re even more excited about a potential roadgoing version, given RE’s known desire to expand the 650 line-up, but there’s no word on that.

Still, if you’re in Milan for the upcoming EICMA show, swing by the Royal Enfield stand to check out ‘Twins FT’ in the metal—it’s a must-see.

Royal Enfield | Facebook | Instagram | Harris Performance | Facebook | Instagram

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