Wednesday 17th March, 2010
Mugen is effectively the ‘official’ Honda car and motorcycle tuner, with headquarters close to Honda’s own R&D facility north of Tokyo. So it’s no surprise that the first tweaked Honda CB1100 has a discreet Mugen logo at the back. The mods include a 70s-style bikini fairing in silver and a stubby black megaphone-style exhaust system, replacing the standard chromed item. There are also two new seat unit options, both with a more streamlined rear section, black passenger grab handles, and slightly smaller fenders front and back—also painted black. The engine should get a little extra pep from that new exhaust, but no other mechanical mods are reported. It’s probably because the motor is a new design for Honda—an air-cooled DOHC inline four—so Mugen can’t employ the go-fast parts it’s developed for other Hondas. With 87 hp on tap, the stock CB1100 is not short of power, though. And the Mugen exhaust should free up a little more: a trip to the dyno will no doubt put the engine closer to the magic 100 hp mark. The pretty CB1100 has attracted a huge amount of attention already, and that’s despite uncertainty over whether or not the bike will be released in the USA or UK. The big question is: will people buy it? These mods might just be enough to tip me over the line … [Check out the Mugen product page here, and for visual comparison purposes, the stock CB1100 is here.]
Nikon D2Xs | 1/3s | f/11 | ISO 100 | Focal length 70 mm
Triumph’s Tiger 110 was the forerunner of the Bonneville, developed for the American market. And sixty years ago, its 649 cc parallel twin OHV motor made it the fastest Triumph you could buy. This lovely 1957 model was owned by the late Bob “Snuffy” Smith, a racer from Pennsylvania, and photographed by his friend Harold Ross. “Bob purchased the bike in the mid 80s and then restored it,” says Ross. “He fitted a single saddle, had the side covers chrome plated, and inverted the racing stripe paint scheme on the fenders to fit his liking. His son Matt remembers being on vacation in Florida when his father had the chrome-plated parts shipped there, because he was so eager to see them.” The subtle mods were well-chosen: they’ve removed all vestiges of the stock Tiger’s slightly bloated looks. And if you’re wondering why the photo looks different to the usual motorcycle studio shots, it’s because Ross employs an unusual technique: light painting. This involves working in a completely dark studio, opening the camera shutter for a long time, and then ‘painting’ on the light using a modified fiber optic cable. Just the thing to show off the fine curves of a vintage Triumph twin.
The trouble with most motorcycle boots is that they’re a compromise. If you’re looking for a helmet or jacket, you’re spoilt for choice. But with boots, you normally have just two options: racing-style boots that are safe but not particularly comfortable, or street boots that won’t protect you very well. So it’s good to see a third, more stylish option, provided by a new company called Vitesse Moto. It’s the brainchild of John Mollanger, a bike nut who’s worked at the top level of both Nike and Puma and now headed out on his own. “Our boots are inspired by everyday footwear—from dress shoes to sneakers, from work boots to casual styles,” he says. And yes, they look terrific. Even better, these boots should have the performance to match their styling. Vitesse has patented a construction system it calls ‘V-Cockpit’, with a monobloc chassis that integrates the comfort and protection elements of the boot. There will be three styles to choose from, as shown above, with prices ranging from US$200 to US$260. Get more details from the Vitesse Moto website.
After Walt Siegl moved from Austria to New York in 1985, he built motorcycles as a hobby. Three years ago, he moved his workshop and his family to an old mill town in southern New Hampshire to build motorcycles full time, and he’s quickly made a name for himself as an old-school craftsman. (After all, how many builders have made it into both the Wall Street Journal and DicE magazine?) For his latest bike, Walt has mixed his retro influences with a very contemporary café racer look. The MotoBe XLX is minimal and monochromatic, built around the 60 ci motor from an ’83 Harley Sportster. The Sportster also donated the frame downtubes, motor mounts and neck—on which the VIN number is mounted—but Walt has used chromoly steel tubing for the rest of the frame, making it much lighter than stock. He’s also lowered the front forks 35 mm, hooked them up to a custom-made upper tree, and fitted Progressive springs. The bars are custom clip-ons, fitted with Magura controls and sitting behind a custom headlight assembly. And that striking bodywork—including the gas tank, oil tank, fenders and seat—was all crafted by Walt himself, to his usual superlative standards. Check out the Walt Siegl Motorcycles website for more pictures of the MotoBe XLX and a gallery of his delectable earlier creations. [Images by Eric Ahlquist Photography.]
PS: The Bike EXIF Archives are now up and running, with a complete listing of all 450+ motorcycles we’ve featured since December 2008. You can access them here, or via the tab at the very top of every page. Just make sure you have a comfortable chair, a drink to hand, and a good amount of time to spare …
Saturday 13th March, 2010
The Japanese motorcycle most commonly associated with café racer conversions is the ubiquitous Honda CB750. But we haven’t seen anything like this one before. It’s raw and different, with a rough ‘n’ ready look that strangely works. It was built by the Alabama shop Garage Company Customs—not to be confused with Yoshinobu Kosaka’s Garage Company in LA—and shop owner Larry has sent us a little background. “We built two bikes for a father and a son, and this one is the son’s bike. We started with a ’75 CB750 from a local junkyard that was pretty rough: the owner of the yard said it had been with him for at least 15 years. We either redid or replaced everything on it. The customer wanted something rigid, but wanted the café look as well. I’ve never seen a rigid café bike, so we elected to use the stock tank along with clubman bars to give it the look he wanted. The stainless 4-into-2 exhaust was a collaborative effort between us and a good friend, Walker at Morgan Performance Fabrication. The motor was completely gone through with all OEM parts and stock specs, and we used a ribbed rear fender instead of a tail section because of the rigid back half.” The result is long, low and mean-looking, the motorcycle equivalent of a rat rod auto. GCC styles itself as “Blue-collared, brash and blunt, building kick-ass bikes on a real man’s budget,” and by the looks of this CB750, they’re on the right track.
Nikon D2H | 1/250s | f/9 | ISO 200 | Focal length 55mm
When I first saw this sensational street tracker-styled Kawasaki W650, I thought it was from a Tokyo custom shop. But I was 3,000 km off the mark: this is a Taiwanese bike. It’s 2002 model customized by Qing Chen, editor of the slick Taipei-based magazine Free Biker. After tracking down Qing, more details emerged. Power is boosted from the usual 50 hp via a Peyton Place exhaust system and Keihin Roundslide CR33 Sidedraft carburetion. Qing cut the front fork down a couple of inches, and fitted Öhlins 36E emulsion shocks to the rear. A four-pot Brembo on the front wheel hauls the bike down from speed much quicker than usual. The seat comes from Logic Brand, the taillight and rear fender are from Japanese custom supplier Daytona, and the bars and headlight are generic no-brand types but fit the look perfectly. Wheels are 18” front and back from DID, shod with retro-style Firestones. And it’s all topped off by a superb custom paint job. For more pictures of the W650 and its construction, jump to this excellent Flickr set—and then check out some of the other sets, because Qing has great taste in two- and four-wheeled machinery. [Via the excellent Mulligan Machine.]
Nikon D200 | 1/80s | f/6.3 | ISO 400 | Focal length 18mm
PS: Check out the Bike EXIF Facebook page for more vintage motorcycle goodness.
Thursday 11th March, 2010
Wednesday 10th March, 2010
Every now and then, I get an email from a gentleman called Seth Dorfler, who is well known in US motorcycling circles. Dorfler presides over a seemingly inexhaustible archive of vintage motorcycle photographs, plus Ducati and Moto Guzzi memorabilia. (Much of this material was gathered from his days working for the Berliner Motor Corporation, one of the leading US motorcycle importers from the 1950s to the 1970s.) Seth invariably includes an unusual photo or two with his notes; after our recent feature on Don Castro’s Triumph, this Ducati dirt tracker landed in my inbox. The provenance of the round-case bike has been obscured by history. “I first saw the bike at a Motorcycle show in the 70s,” Dorfler recalls. “The bike was part of the Berliner/Premier Motor Corp. display at the Texas show—one of Berliner’s dealers arranged for it to be on the booth.” After a couple of days digging around, it looks like this lovely machine was built by Eddie Wilbanks—the “Wizard of Odds”—and campaigned in late 70s GNC-Dirt Track Nationals by Kenny McDonald (as #26) and then Steve Freeman (as #68). It looks just as cool today as it did then; is anyone out there inspired to make a streetable replica, perhaps using Ducati’s current 803 cc, 81 bhp Hypermotard motor?
Thirty years ago, if you were looking for a powerful motorcycle to take you from one end of continental Europe to the other, the Moto Guzzi 1000 SP would be near the top of your list. It wasn’t the best-looking bike to roll out of the Mandello del Lario factory. But it did have a bulletproof air-cooled 948 cc v-twin, shaft drive, and 60 long-legged Italian horses that would propel you to over 180 kph. The 1000 SP has always been somewhat overshadowed by the sportier Le Mans, but Filippo Barbacane of Officine RossoPuro has now given the 1000 SP the looks it always deserved. In the space of four months, he’s turned the ultimate Italian sports tourer into a stunning contemporary café racer—and in the process, upgraded the mechanicals too. The engine is now fitted with heads from the Le Mans 1000, and connected to a custom Officine RossoPuro exhaust system. The original forks have had progressive springs installed, with damping at the rear taken care of by adjustable shocks from Mandello neighbor Asatek. Custom Officine RossoPuro brake rotors are squeezed by Brembo callipers, and the bars and foot controls are from Tarozzi. The bodywork is all-new too, flaunting traditional Guzzi styling signatures such as the creased tank and the v-shaped section under the new seat. The overall effect is molto bella; the perfect marriage of classic Italian style and subtle modern updates. The lucky new owner of this bike is Mario Natale from Belgium, but Filippo has two more in the works. And wouldn’t you like one of them in your own garage? Head over to the Officine RossoPuro website if you’re interested. [See more images of this beautiful motorcycle in the photo album on our Facebook page. First spotted on Rocket Garage.]
