Diabola V35C

 by  Venier Custom Motorcycles!

photo by : donatello.trevisiol

YAMAHA VIRAGO 535 BY OEM

Not many custom builders have been invited to display their bikes in Harrods and the Saatchi Gallery. But then again, England’s magnificently named Old Empire Motorcyclesis not your run-of-the-mill custom shop.

They’ve only been operating for a couple of years, but Alec Sharp and his crew have quickly made a name for themselves with a handful of unusual, creatively-styled builds. This is their seventh, a Yamaha Virago 535 called the ‘Bristol Bulldog’—in honor of the stocky 1920s biplane fighter used by the Royal Air Force.

“We thought the name was apt for this particular build,” says Alec. “Stockiness was a key design factor in the overall look and stance of the motorcycle.” The 535 was never going to be a sleek machine: it has a different frame to the larger versions, which are favored by US builders such as Classified Moto and Doc Chops.

To get the short, compact look, OEM fitted a set of USD forks and re-laced the wheels onto 16” rims shod with Avon SM MK2 tires. “The original riding position is feet forward with the controls mounted on what are effectively engine crash bars,” says Alec. “They look quite good so we left them alone, and heavily reworked the rear end.”

The fuel tank and miscellanea such as the pump, filters and electrics are all mounted under the seat of a Virago 535, so OEM got rid of the ugly ‘mustang’ type tank and replaced it with a retro Japanese sportbike tank of unknown origin. The detailing is equally well thought out, with velocity tanks peeking through the top of the tank, a small mesh cowling surrounding the twin headlights, and hand-tooled leather for the side panels, grips and peg inlays.

Much of the original rear frame is gone, and the rear suspension is now a pair of custom-made struts chromed and painted to match the front end. After fabricating beefy 2.5” stainless pipes (with internal baffles), OEM bundled the Virago off to Black Shuck Kustomfor paint. The finish is a subtle matt silver with gold mesh, which works beautifully with the Scotch-Brited aluminum.

“She runs like a dream and goes like the clappers,” says Alec. “The ride is ‘firm’ but she handles surprisingly well, considering the tires.”

Top marks to a young builder making waves with a unique style. Who’d have thought a humble Virago 535 could look so good?

Head over to the Old Empire Motorcycles website for more inspiring, retro-themed builds.

from BIKEEXIF

Dakar 2014 : the accent on endurance / un parcours endurant

The 2014 Dakar will feature 5,228km of competitive action between the start in Rosario, Argentina, on January 5, and the finish in Valparaiso, Chile, on January 18. It will be the longest and quite possibly the toughest edition of the event’s 35-year history.

Avec 5228 kilomètres de spéciales chronométrées à parcourir entre le départ à Rosario (Argentine) le 5 janvier et l’arrivée à Valparaiso (Chili) le 18 janvier, la 35ème édition du Dakar s’annonce être la plus longue et difficile de l’histoire du célèbre Rally-Raid.

The relatively straightforward first leg will take the 196 bikers to San Lui ahead for an initial competitive section ahead of the first true challenge of the fortnight, in the form of sand dunes, before reaching San Rafael.

That will be followed by two marathon legs (Legs 3 and 4) during which competitors will not be allowed to service their machines or change tyres for 1,228km. After ascending the Aconcagua volcano to an altitude of 4,300 metres, they will benefit from an overnight halt in San Juan. The next day, however, will call for some slick navigation en route to Chilecito, by which time an early pecking order will no doubt have been established.

Leg 5 (911km) will be the longest single leg of the rally for the bikers, including a particularly sandy and no doubt hot stage that will take them to Tucuman. Another climb and cooler conditions await them the following day but they will then get a chance to recover during the rest day in Salta.

After the break, survivors face another marathon leg through some breath-taking scenery in Bolivia where path finding skills will be required to find the evening’s bivouac at an altitude of 3,600m alongside the ‘Salar de Uyuni’. The world’s biggest salt flat will then serve as the backdrop to the second part of this marathon leg.

Leg 9 will see competitors head for the Pacific Ocean at Iquique via a giddy descent down the slopes of the Andes. The remainder of the route will take them south along the coast where they will find typical Dakar ingredients like fesh-fesh sand (Leg 10) and huge dunes in the Atacama Desert and around Copiapo (Leg 11). The latter promises to be one of the most difficult of the rally and could well prove decisive.

To earn the privilege of being able to admire the multi-coloured buildings of hilly Valparaiso, those bikers still in the competition will need to overcome their fatigue and remain vigilant during the last two legs that will take them through a landscape of dunes and cacti.

La première étape, sans difficulté majeure, mènera les 196 motards à San Lui pour une mise en bouche avant la première vraie spéciale de cette édition 2014 où ils devront franchir les premiers cordons de dunes pour rallier San Rafael.

Ils enchaîneront avec la première des deux étapes marathon (étapes 3 et 4) où ils devront prendre soin de leur machine et pneumatiques pour avaler les 1 228 kilomètres. Après avoir escaladé les 4300 m du volcan Aconcagua, ils descendront à San Juan où un bivouac dédié et sans assistance les attendra. La seconde partie nécessitera d’excellentes facultés de navigation pour atteindre Chilecito. Une première hiérarchie devrait se dessiner à l’issue de ces quatre premières étapes. 

Ensuite, les motards aborderont la plus longue étape de ce rallye avec 911 km dont 527 km de parcours chronométré où ils affronteront des pistes sablonneuses et des températures harassantes pour rejoindre Tucuman. Le lendemain, ils prendront de nouveau de la hauteur et un bol de fraicheur avant d’observer une journée de repos bien méritée à Salta.

Une nouvelle étape marathon attendra les rescapés de la première semaine qui découvriront les paysages majestueux boliviens. L’orientation sera le maître mot pour atteindre le bivouac d’Uyuni, installé au bord du Salar, le plus grand lac salé au monde perché à 3 600 m d’altitude ! Plus vaste désert de sel du monde, le Salar d’Uyuni sera le terrain de jeu de la seconde partie de l’étape marathon.

Les concurrents mettront ensuite le cap sur le Pacifique lors de la neuvième étape pour rejoindre Iquique et sa descente vertigineuse où ils seront amenés à défier la loi de la pesanteur. Puis ils poursuivront l’aventure vers le Sud du Chili en longeant les côtes du Pacifique. Ils s’attaqueront aux traditionnels passages en fesh-fesh (étape 10) et aux immenses dunes de l’Acatama et Copiapo (Etape 11). Etape reine de cette édition, elle pourrait être également décisive pour la victoire finale.

Avant d’admirer les collines colorées par les maisons de Valparaiso, les survivants devront restés vigilants, malgré la fatigue accumulée, pour parcourir les deux dernières étapes où dunes et cactus seront au menu final.

Bonhams to sell rare racing motorcycles in Las Vegas

On 9 January 2014, Bonhams will be holding a motorcycle auction at the famous Las Vegas Strip. The sale includes a collection of Ducati racers and a Harley collection, along with two exceptional racing machines: an early Isle of Man winner and a Butler & Smith BMW F750...

1972 Butler & Smith BMW F750

This is one of only two factory-supplied BMWs developed by Udo Geitl for Butler & Smith (the BMW importer for the U.S. at the time) – including a power increase for entry in the 1973 Daytona 200. The uprated R75/5 was extremely powerful and thrillingly fast, helping to change the image of BMW motorcycles in the USA from sluggish Tourers to sporting machines. The R75/5 was the forerunner of the successful BMW R90S, also styled by Geitl. The bike is expected to fetch between 60,000 and 70,000 U.S. dollars.

1947 Vincent HRD Series B Rapide – winner of the Isle of Man in 1950

Alex Phillip rode this Vincent to victory  in the 1950 Isle of Man Clubman TT. Shortly afterwards, the race bike was upgraded to Black Lightning spec and subsequently went, according to Phillip, "like a rocketship". The bike was then acquired by none other than the legendary war hero Lt. Colonel Churchill, aka 'Mad Jack'. Today, it carries an estimate of 120,000-150,000 U.S. dollars.

The Bonhams motorcycle auction will be held on 9 January 2014 at Bally's Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. You can find all lots at bonhams.com.

Photos: Mortons Archive

Classic BMW bikes can be found in the Classic Driver Market.