Proportions are an interesting thing, you’ve either got it, or you haven’t. The Golden Ratio of 1.6180339 is often referred to as the scientific method of working out if someone has a perfectly pretty face, yes, some of us do actually focus that high up. This isn’t a new phenomena made up by pleb-dazzle celebrity magazines, some dude called DaVinci used to doodle multi-limbed people using this method.
VDB Moto are a builder with that uncanny ability to make things look just so. This successful attempt to reduce visual heft of 74 cubes has us in the ‘Shed office wanting ourselves some Milwaukee Muscle for this summer. In the meantime we are lucky enough to be basking in sunshine at the Bike Shed Paris so we’ll leave it to VDB’s Derick Van den Bussche to tell us the story of the build.
“The entire front end was ditched for a brand new set of Showa inverted forks attached to a set of custom aluminum triple trees made by our friend Mark at Crossroads Performance and increased stopping power given by a PM 6 pot caliper with a 13.5″ rotor, while at the rear a pair of taller Progressive shocks lifts the back end.
“The original mag wheels were swapped for a set of 18” spokes front and back for more of a classic look, and mounted to the usual Conti TKC80 that all together helped leveling the bike and adds some general height”.
“The engine breaths through a Boyle Custom air cleaner and in combination with the straight high pipes makes the V twin sound like a beast releasing the power through a chain in place of the original belt drive”.
“Given the overall new stance and height the Chainsikle rear set is now providing a great riding position sitting 4” lower than the original set up flowing perfectly with the feel of the enduro bars. We wanted to keep the front end as clean as possible so the mini switches were wired inside the handlebars, while the motogadget speedometer is mounted in the headlight bucket, and micro LED indicators are attached to the bar mounts”.
“The frame was shortened and a loop was welded with tabs for the rear indicators. Brackets were fabricated to hold the steel fenders and headlight while an aluminum mudguard in the wheel well and a skid plate under the frame were made for added protection”.
“The ignition key is now repositioned by the fuse box and a LED toggle acts as a kill switch next to it while the coil is now relocated in the battery box sporting a smaller Ballistic unit”.
“To finish the look we opted for a big old ’77 Hondamatic tank that was modified in order to fit the frame, then painted with a pastel Jaguar green that blends with the lines of the handmade brown ribbed leather seat”.
“The result is a functional and fun to drive Sportster with classic lines that can take you in every road setting”.
The Bike Shed Crew might be in Paris but VDB Moto are at the Handbuilt Show in Austin, Texas unveiling this wonderful machine. Check out his website or Facebook page for more.
via The Bike Shed
