CUSTOM BIKES OF THE WEEK

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A Maserati-powered monster from Lazareth, the one and only custom BMW G 650 Xchallenge we’ve ever seen, and a rip-snortin’ Indian Scout Sixty flat tracker. We’d happily put any one of these machines in our garage.

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BMW G 650 Xchallenge by Hyde Designs Hyde Designs is small shop just starting up in Cape Town, South Africa. Owner Jens Henkel is a one-man-band and he has a mantra: “To build bikes where detail is important and craft is crucial. Judging by his work on Octavia, I’d say it’s Mission Accomplished.

Starting with a G650 Xchallenge, Henkel essentially stripped everything bare before creating his vision. The new subframe design was key in this build, and is designed to showcase both the main structural frame and the swingarm. The tank is a one-off, welded unit that gives the Beemer an incredible angular shape and proportions, leading into a compact fiberglass tail that mirrors its silhouette.

Octavia came together in just six months—which is extremely impressive for any shop’s first kick at the cat. [More]

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Lazareth LM 847 Back in 2003, Dodge rolled out a concept vehicle at the Detroit Auto Show that strangled everyone’s attention. The Tomahawk was a 4-wheeled ‘motorcycle’ built around the Dodge Viper’s 500hp V10 engine. It was bonkers, but in the best of ways.

At the Geneva Motor Show the other day, the French design firm Lazareth presented a Tomahawk of their own—and it’s the perfect mix of crazy and beautiful. Lazereth is no stranger to leaning things over with more than two wheels, but this is their most ambitious endeavor yet.

The LM 847 is a Maserati-powered ‘leaning quad’ with 470 horsepower, bar-end mirrors and a Panigale tail. Just take a peek at the work involved with the dual-Telelever suspension kits both front and back, and those snaking headers. My favorite touches are the cowl-ensconced intake, and that dinky little kickstand on the front left swingarm (see header shot). Utter madness. [More]

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Kawasaki H1 by Mhc Workshop Originally developed by Kawasaki under the elusive N100 name, the H1 was Team Green’s answer to the escalating horsepower war in America. Known also as the Mach III when it debuted in 1969, the 500cc 2-stroke triple would smash through the quarter mile in under 13 seconds.

I don’t even need to hear the angry can of bees on Mhc Workshop’s H1 to know it could best that time. Everything that the Marseille-based builders have touched is in the pursuit of performance. The custom tank is leaner, the suspension stronger, and the overall package noticeably lighter and more nimble. The color scheme is a knockout, as is the weld work on that exhaust—and the intricate milling of the rearsets and head-mounted Mhc badges. [More]

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Indian Scout Sixty by Roland Sands Design If you managed to sneak over to the Mama Tried Show in Milwaukee a few weeks ago, you’d have done well to attend the Hooligan Race at the Panther Arena. Meant to mimic a shortened flat-track, the slick concrete floor was coated with a syrupy mix of Dr. Pepper for (some) grip and a checkered flag was waved.

Sprinkled throughout the lineup of pro and amateur bikes was a team of Indian ScoutSixtys, specifically prepped for hooliganism by Roland Sands. The bikes were developed over several months, to coincide with the little Indian’s launch, and have been making the rounds at Hooligan events since. And they perform as well as they look.

The modifications lean heavily on suspension and geometry, to deliver flat-track ride-abilities. But in typical RSD fashion, there’s no skimping on the eye candy: that exhaust is a work of art. [More]

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Moto Guzzi 1100 by Moto Studio Garage Bruce McQuiston and Ryan Arends of Moto Studio are no strangers to working with iconic Italians. Bruce demands that every build starts from a bike with soul—and a 1995 Moto Guzzi 1100 has that in spades.

Christened Cafe Nero, this blacked-out and raw aluminum racer is clean enough to eat your dinner off—but wouldn’t protest to a hard ride. Nothing is out of place or haphazardly strewn. Every wire, cable and tube has been routed with intent, to accentuate the work done to slim the Guzzi’s waistline and highlight its transverse V-Twin engine.

The milled aluminum subframe is worthy of its own Instagram account, let alone the carbon fiber work at the tail and front fender. Most impressive of all? This build was turned around in a mere 45 days. [More]

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CUSTOM BIKES OF THE WEEK

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A bespoke scrambler with MV Agusta power, a stunning Honda CB550 cafe racer from France, and a track-ready Ducati Monster S4R tribute to Mike Hailwood. These are the machines that revved our engines this week.

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Honda CB550 by Bad Winners A few weeks ago we were taken aback by Lossa Engineering’s candy-apple Honda CB550. This time around the red CB we’re drooling over with comes from Bad Winners of Paris, France.

This deeply crimson hued cafe, entitled the Racing Rose, is the fifteenth creation to roll out of Walid’s shop. He’s used an English Wheel to hand roll the seat and tail unit to a faultless finish; the subtle upward sweep, transitions and lines are perfect, and the mark of a true master.

You’d be forgiven for not looking at anything else, but details abound. There’s the powder coated, snaking four-into-one exhaust, the clever internal wiring, and the 60mm chop at the front forks. Everything has been well planned and properly executed. [More]

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Viba Lara 800 There is no denying the extreme rise in popularity of scrambler styled bikes. The pitch is so fevered that even the OEMs are cashing in on the trend. Thankfully, their involvement has caused builders to up their game—and some will mass-produce their creations.

The Lara 800 is what happens when French craftsmen shoehorn an MV Agusta triple into a bespoke trellis frame, with the desire to create the ultimate 125 horsepower scrambler. Both the swingarm and one-piece tank are aluminum units, helping to keep Lara’s weight down to a mere 355 lbs. The top shelf forks are from Marzocchi—with an Öhlins upgrade available upon request—and a custom coil-over Elka unit handles the rear. The carbon fiber radiator guards are handmade, as is the three-into-one, ceramic coated, high mount exhaust.

With only 23 examples available at a starting price of €32,310 (US$35,000), exclusivity doesn’t come cheap. But we’re sure they won’t last long. [More]

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Ducati Monster S4R MH Tribute We’re no strangers to Paolo ‘Tex’ Tesio’s creative abilities. His body kits for the ferocious S4R version of the Ducati Monster turn the dial to eleven, delivering a modern take on Bologna’s classic.

Tesio has now created a clothed version of the naked archetype, and christened it the S4R MH Tribute. It goes without saying that the ‘MH’ refers to motorsport legend Mike Hailwood, and the attention to detail and level of execution is worthy of the name. The MH adopts the same rear subframe and seat design as before, but eschews the fork guards in favor of Hailwood liveried bodywork. Being specifically track prepped, those fairings are lower and more slippery works of art than anything else you’re likely to see in the paddock. [More]

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Honda CB750 by Thirteen & Company Los Angeles-based Thirteen & Company were briefed to create a post-apocalyptic, Mad Max-style ride for their client. This 1972 Honda CB750, named The Russian, is what they delivered.

The hand-formed metal fairing is flanked by two HID projector style headlamps, giving a dash of modernity to this re-imagined road warrior. The patinated finish is chemically induced, coating the cowl, tank and hand-rolled tail. American buffalo was used to upholster the seat, and its diamond stitch pattern—a Thirteen & Company hallmark—seems almost too refined for the overall package.

While many might turn up noses and fall back on ‘rat bike’ dismissals, it must be remembered that this build was brokered. Successfully delivering someone else’s actualized dream is no easy feat, especially when its aesthetic falls outside of your norm. And even more so when you consider the builder, Kyle Vara, is only twenty-three. [More]

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Moto Guzzi 1100 Sport by Eduardo Nauiack It seems obvious that this 1995 Guzzi cafe racer comes from the hands of an industrial designer. Its mechanical vibe speaks to Eduardo Nauiack’s obsession with extracting function over form.

When you learn of the trials and tribulations he faced, the rawness of the bike begins to make sense. The Brazilian-cum-Californian builder spent months correcting previously flawed modifications and hunting down electronic gremlins, before starting work on the custom rear subframe and component upgrades.

A Motogadget m-Unit defeated the gremlins, so Eduardo could install the rear seat and tail. Lifted from a Ducati 900SS, the unit looks right at home—despite its weathering, or maybe because of it. The project isn’t quite finished: Eduardo is planning to add a half-fairing of his own design, to be 3D printed as part of his Master’s Thesis. [More]

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CUSTOM BIKES OF THE WEEK

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A Triumph Bonneville that sold for over $100,000, a slick Honda CB750 tracker from Argentina, and a return to form from former Radical Ducati boss Pepo Rosell. Meet the custom bikes that have got our pulses racing over the past few days.

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The $100,00 Triumph Bonneville desert sled Utter the names Bud Ekins and Steve McQueen and you’ll immediately have a captive audience. The stuntman-and-star duo created the most iconic motorcycle stunt in Hollywood history and regularly competed for glory on two wheels.

Three days ago, this 1963 Triumph Bonneville desert sled, built by Ekins and piloted by the King of Cool himself, sold at Bonhams in Vegas for a staggering $103,500. (That’s nearly $20,000 more than a previous sale price of $84,240 in 2009.) Painted by Von Dutch, this machine captures the ethos of the King of Cool—and is something of a blueprint for what continues today. Ekins chopped the rear fender and hoop, grafted on a high-mount, zig-zag exhaust, and added a proper set of bars to keep those knobbies from getting too squirrely.

Most of us couldn’t imagine parting with that kind of cash for a vintage Bonnie. But the provenance and pedigree of this hard-ridden example speaks for itself. It’s just a shame that it won’t get dirty ever again. [More]

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Honda CB750 by Herencia Custom Garage The street tracker movement is on fire right now. Spurred by pioneers like Richard Pollock, builders are attempting to raise the bars of ingenuity with each new creation. This CB750 from Argentina’s Herencia Custom Garage is one of the finest examples to date.

If Herencia sounds familiar to you, it may be because they’re showcased weekly on the Latin American Discovery Channel. Don’t let that tidbit dissuade you, though. These guys are the furthest thing from OCC abominations.

Fully decked out in HRC livery, this CB750 is a work of art. The remote, pro-link style rear suspension is refreshing and unique—and so is the minimalist, tubular rear brake reservoir. Every component of the four-into-one exhaust system is exquisite, right down to the HCG rearset hanger. [More]

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Triumph Speed Triple by XTR Pepo Since Pepo Rosell returned to the garage after closing Radical Ducati, he’s been cranking out hit after hit. This latest build went under Pepo’s torch as a 2005 Speed Triple and emerged as the appropriately named ‘Extreme Speed.’

In typical Rosell fashion, many of the new parts on this weapons-grade build are XTR originals—including the fairing, subframe, seat and license plate bracket. The carbon fiber rear hugger and front fender are both homebuilt units as well. The clip-ons are Tommaselli and the blinkers, footrests and sprocket cover are sourced from Rizoma.

The only thing I’d change would be the gold mags, for a set of blacked out Alpina spokes. But who am I to chide a master? [More]

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Honda XLR250 by Ask Motorcycles Very little about this machine appeals to the rider in me. It’s not that I wouldn’t swing a leg over and give it a try—I just don’t know that I could without hurting myself. Or worse, without damaging a work of art.

Such is the genius of Ask Motorcycles’ Rad Yamamoto. This latest build, ‘Mother Machine,’ was prepared for the 2015 Mooneyes Motorcycle Show in Yokohama and features some of the most intricate metal work we’ve seen for a long time. Every turned piece of brass was fashioned on Rad’s lathe. The tank was shaped using hammers, dollies, and even sandbags. The result is one of the thinnest (and lowest rides) to grace these pages.

The Mooneyes show requires that all bikes entered are functional, rideable machines. Thanks to Honda XLR250 power and some ingenious linkage work by Rad, this thing runs, shifts and brakes just as it should. [More]

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Stanley Tang’s Honda XR650L Five years ago, when Stanley Tang was entrenched in the finance business, he decided to turn his hand to bike building. Five completed bikes later, the quality of his work speaks for itself. This XR650L is Stanley’s latest creation and recently grabbed the attention of master builder Roland Sands.

To streamline things, Stanley swapped the XR’s tank with a slimmer unit from a Honda CG125. The seatpan and fenders were fabricated to match, as well as to accentuate his custom work on that rear subframe. The engine was completely torn down and rebuilt to factory spec, then repainted, slotted back in, and hooked up to a gorgeous reverse-cone exhaust system. A pair of Excel rims went on, with a slightly larger rear hoop optimized for street use. And all superfluous switchgear was binned, to deliver an incredibly minimalist cockpit.

The financial world obviously lost an asset when Stanley jumped ship. But I’d say the rest of us are better off. [More]

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