2013 Ural Gaucho Rambler Limited Edition

With nothing more than their horse, a knife, and a poncho, the cowboys of the Americas, or gauchos as there known elsewhere, rambled through the country, living off the land, taking each day as it came, always on a journey towards the sunset. The rebel spirit of the gaucho is very much in the heart and soul of each Ural. Taking to the road, with no specific goal in mind is something every rider longs for…Introducing the 2013 American West-inspired limited edition Ural Gaucho Rambler, a motorcycle created in collaboration with Pendleton Woolen Mills.This year’s limited edition Ural is a wistful homage to a past age. The color is new, chosen by Pendleton, and we named it Pacific Blue. The bike comes with sunburned canvas upholstery and a “Journey West” blanket by Pendleton. The Gaucho Rambler is equipped with Ural’s legendary 2wd capability to overcome adverse terrains. This is a bike ready for the long road and the spiritual journey devoid of stuff. No need to pack, no need to prepare, there’s nothing to do but go.Ural and Pendleton are two companies which at different points in time ventured out to find home in the American West. Both endured, persevered and all the while managed to preserve their authenticity. This year Pendleton’s anniversary celebrates 150 years of American made textiles and Ural marks its 20th in the US. Paying homage to our beginnings and the pioneering spirit is what connects the two brands and inspired this collaboration.“For West is where we all plan to go some day. It is where you go when the land gives out and the old-field pines encroach. It is where you go when you get the letter saying: Flee, all is discovered. It is where you go when you look down at the blade in your hand and the blood on it. It is where you go when you are told that you are a bubble on the tide of empire. It is where you go when you hear that thar’s gold in them-thar hills. It is where you go to grow up with the country. It is where you go to spend your old age. Or it is just where you go.”
—Robert Penn Warren

Suzuki T500

via J§B MOTO 

BMW R100RT CUSTOM

Four years ago, Bill Costello became a big name in the classic BMW world. He’d restored a 1958 BMW R50 as a tribute to his father, and before he knew it, the bike was on the cover of three magazines. Bill was even flown to Germany to meet BMW’s top brass.

“Then people started asking me about my next project,” says Bill, faced with Second Album Syndrome. And here it is, revealed for the first time—an absolutely beautiful 1981 R100RT. It also serves as Bill’s daily ride.

“I’m not one of those people who desires a stable full of motorcycles, but there was something else I wanted. When restoring a classic bike, one has to pretty much stick with a factory spec set of options. One does not normally chop up and customize a 1958 BMW. I had a desire to build a custom bike, one that suited my personality.”

The first requirement was more power. “My R50 has only 26 hp, and riding on the highway with a 1958 bike is not something you want to do all the time. So I found a full-faired R100RT donor bike which made a great base for the project; My focus was on building a reliable daily rider, an urban style bike—which is a great excuse to not spend a lot of time cleaning and polishing all the engine parts!”

With 70 hp on tap, the R100RT has all the power Bill needs. But he’s put the bike on a diet, dropping the wet weight from around 525 lbs to 430. Handling is much improved too, thanks to fork internals by Race Tech, including adjustable gold-valve emulators. At the back, suspension duties are now handled by Works Performance shocks.

The custom spoked wheels, with sealed rims and fitted with Avon tubeless tires, were built by Woody’s Wheel Works. There’s a new triple tree from BMW specialist Toaster Tan, hooked up to Tarozzi clip-ons. The rearsets are from BoxerMetal.

Under the seat hump is a tiny li-ion battery, matched to an equally compact Acewell gauge up front. Bill also mounts his iPhone 5 to the bars for navigation, and if the worst ever came to the worst, he can call upon the full BMW toolkit hidden under the custom seat.

“The same week the bike was finished, I took it for its maiden voyage—a 1,600-mile round trip ride from New York to North Carolina,” says Bill. “The bike proved itself to me on that ride. It really is a blast on the highway: To test the stability, I took it up to 115 mph, which feels like 200 on a naked bike. The bike is everything I hoped it would be.”

Bill’s not 100% satisfied, though. He plans to lengthen and soften the rear shocks a fraction, and dial-in the adjustable front forks, so they’re a little softer too. Then his BMW will be just perfect.

Who can wait to see what Bill’s #3 build will be?

If you want to know more about Bill Costello’s 1958 BMW R50, watch the marvelous video ‘A BMW Motorcycle Story.‘ Or head over to our Google+ page for more high-resolution images.

via BIKEEXIF

YAMAHA SR250 BY MOTO-MUCCI

Two years ago, Dave Mucci scored a king hit with his Honda CX500 custom—one of our most popular bikes of all time. And now he’s back with another build, a lithe Yamaha SR250 with clean lines, thoughtful details and a natural palette. It’s Dave’s first frame-up design, where every detail, control and finish was paid its due attention.

The lucky client was Dave’s girlfriend Kara, who was ready for her own wheels after a year on the back of the CX500. “Within two days of her saying she wanted a bike I‘d tracked down the Yamaha, took it for a test ride, handed over the cash and was riding it home in the most cramped manner possible,” Dave reports. He’s 6’3”.

Dave has focused on a light and nimble theme. All extraneous parts were removed or relocated, to free up the frame as much as possible. To tighten up the core of the bike, the large stock fuel tank was switched out for the tank of a Honda CD175. “My intention was to make some new badges for the tank, but after blasting them and finding a gorgeous brass finish underneath, I decided to run with it. They were too pretty to toss aside.”

The tail of the frame was shortened and hooped to give more overhang over the rear wheel, and a custom pan and seat were made to match. Some meaty Bridgestone Spitfire tires (120/90-18F & 150/80-16R) were chosen to contrast the overall petite aesthetic. The stock fenders were trimmed down and the electronics were relocated to the battery box under the seat.

Simple POSH mini switches were installed, along with a new mini gauge, a simplified throttle, a Bates-style headlight and CNC’d bar end mirrors. One-inch tube stocks were welded to the rear of the frame to discreetly integrate the LED turn signals, and the horn was hidden behind the headlight.

A minimal amount of paint was used. The frame was brightened up with a light silver and the tank, wheels and battery box were sprayed with matte light aluminum paint. To give the bike some warmth most of the hardware was nickel plated and brushed. New knee pads were made from scratch and wrapped in the same distressed Oxblood vinyl as the seat and grips, with a light tan contrast stitching. “Rod’s Designs knocked the upholstery out of the park as always,” says Dave.

Dave’s now looking to move into sharing a larger industrial space with likeminded creative folks of different backgrounds. “For me, building custom motorcycles is the unification of my two passions, design and wrenching, and I intend to push towards making this my sole venture. With the acquisition of a new space will come the kickoff of the new company, a new build (a Honda Dream 150) and a focus on items that will reflect a bit more of my industrial design background.”

It’s worth keeping an eye on Dave Mucci’s progress, and you can do that via his website right here.

Photos by Patrick Daly.

from BIKEEXIF