When it comes to R-Series Boxer Twins the guys at Down & Out Cafe Racers are still on a roll. It’s not all that Shaun & Carl can build by any means, turning out some stunning bikes this year, from W650s to XVs to a GS1150 and there’s a lovely Triumph on the way, but after each new Boxer build along comes another customer wanting one “just like they’ve seen on The Bike Shed” …Sorry fellas.
This latest Street Tracker was originally built by Carl for his own daily use, so he put a lot of effort in, making the wise choice of choosing a R100 RT as the donor, as they have a stonkingly good engine. That extra 200cc over the R80 makes a significant difference – as I found out when swapping my R100RT cafe racer for the R80 Gold Top.
While each D&O build is different, they do share Shaun & Carl’s personal engineering style, with brackets, subframes and battery boxes that all have a recogniseable design, and are all build to last. I recon we could pick one of their builds out from a single exhaust hangar or speedo bracket. The subframes are also built to individual spec, where you can pick details like seat height. Carl’s was kept high and aggressive, as he’s a big lad.
After the dry build out came the engine for a full rebuild and new gear box. The differential was also reconditioned and pretty much every part of the bike was rebuilt with new parts, and with improvements made over stock items where possible.
The wiring was also replaced with a bespoke D&O loom, and also built as a one-off was the high-level, single-sided, two-into-one exhaust, which looks distinctive and purposeful. Bear trap style footrests finish off the aggressive tracker/scrambler looks of the bike (mind yer shins though) and with a lick of tasteful black & white paint from Arny at Pro Customs the bike was ready to be put back together for a shakedown.
As with all pro bikes that are built for “one of the guys in the shop”, this build is going up for sale, as demand for these D&O beemers is exceeding supply, and for good reason. Check out The Bike Shed Custom Classifieds and make sure you don’t miss it.
Meanwhile you can see more bikes from Down & Out Cafe Racers on The Bike Shed, their Website and theirFacebook Pages, and thanks as usual to Simon Krajnyak for the photos.
via The Bike Shed
