We’ve been big fans of La Corona from the early days of the Bike Shed, so it’s nice to see Diego, Jonas and Roger turning their attention to the quarter-litre Yamaha SR250, a bike that was always popular for shed builders, but is now on the ascendant with the pros too, with some stunning custom city-bikes cropping up all over. This bike was commissioned to be a durable, reliable, urban ride for every day use on the streets of Barcelona, where the guys are based, along with new owner Pepe, who wanted to add another bike to his growing collection.
To get the best out of the Yamaha SR you simply need to shed unnecessary weight and clutter, focus on getting good clean lines, and upgrade any parts that are a little bit ‘budget’. The tank shape, running gear, and general stance of the bike is already on the money for a modest, practical, custom build. The tank was stripped back, polished and clear-coated, while the OEM exhaust was given a titanium finish to complement the raw metal of the tank, and the finish of the upgraded handlebar. A tasteful gold coloured La Corona metal badge has been riveted to the tank.
The engine block has been painted matte black leaving the polished sidecovers to stand out, adding even more metal to the bike’s overall finish. While there wasn’t any engine tuning the air filter has been ditched in favour of modified cone style filters, which improves airflow, sound, and cleans up the subframe nicely, especially after the battery was re-mounted in a bespoke steel battery cage.
Although the bike is an everyday ride the client wanted a real leather seat (not that it rains much in Barcelona) so a slimline brown seat was slotted into the chopped and looped rear subframe, upholstered with tasteful diamond stitching. Grips are Beston – matched in the same brown as the seat, and the bike has a simple mini-speedo placed beside the ignition key to clean up the instrumentation. The rear fender was one the guys had lying around in the shop which they guys think comes from a Kz400, and a slimline rear tail/stop lamp has been tucked under the small flare at the tip.
The OEM wire spoked wheels have been painted black and shod in a pair of infamous Firestone De Luxes, which we can’t help but love, whether they work or not, and whether they’re a cliche or not, they just look right. If you wanna turn hard, just man-up and push harder on the bars.
As we’d expect it’s another beautifully observed and built custom scrambler/brat from La Corona, building on their rep for quality work. See more from Jonas and the crew at La Corona on their website or check the La Corona pages here on the Bike Shed.
Written & Posted by Dutch@TheBikeShed
