Minus the mid-century innovations by Yamaha, Honda, and Suzuki, one could argue that motorcycling might be a lost art today. With their small engines, low profiles, and street-rider stances, these lightweight hallmarks of design give new riders all over the world a way into the fray, and experienced riders the perfect minimal ride.
These days, Yamaha motorcycles are at the core of the custom scene. They offer the perfect platforms for stylish urban rides with cheap price tags.
Models like the Yamaha XS650, SR400, XSR700 and XSR900 are among a legendary line of Yamaha motorcycles that beg to be turned into café racers, bobbers and trackers—and they fill our galleries of great builds.
Alex Winkler wears many hats. By day he’s an industrial mechanic—but by night, he puts those skills to work in his home garage, restoring and rebuilding vintage bikes. When the weekend rolls around, Alex wheels his creations out of the garage and goes racing. While we can all appreciate a no-expense-spared showroom build, there’s something…
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Maarten Poodt is a creature of habit. Each winter he drags another Yamaha into his workshop, rebuilds it to his taste, and sells it to fund the next one. But he’s changed things up since last year, and now takes on commissioned work too. Judging by the stellar job Maarten has done on this Yamaha…
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Takashi Nihira has won awards and taken commissions from major OEMs. But the man behind Tokyo’s Wedge Motorcycle also knows how to tone it down, when the brief calls for it. And whether he’s building an all-out showpiece, or a humble commuter like this tidy Yamaha SR400, his work always shines. With factory-level finishes and…
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Today’s custom motorcycle scene is a melting pot of old and new techniques. Traditional handcrafting methods coexist with software-based design and modern additive manufacturing processes. And sometimes—like in the case of this impossibly elegant Yamaha SR400—they collide. Moscow’s Copper Chopper built this hardtail bobber almost entirely from scratch, using a tube bender, lathe and welding…
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Yamaha’s beloved SR has come in an array of sizes over the years, all closely resembling each other. Of all of them,…
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In the bicycle world, single-speed and ‘fixie’ bikes are enjoying an upsurge in popularity. Like the custom motorcycle scene, it’s an entire…
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Telescopic forks have become the de facto solution for motorcycle front suspension, but most major manufacturers have dabbled in alternative designs at…
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It takes a special cocktail of skill, knowledge and reverence to restore a classic race bike properly—especially if it’s a rare one.…
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We kick this week’s edition of Speed Read off with further proof that Yamaha SRs make great café racers. We also cover…
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The sheer diversity of Freeride Motos Racing’s stable makes it difficult to lump them into one silo. You’re just as likely to…
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Nothing screams “it’s the weekend” quite like a two-stroke street tracker. All the more if it’s a Yamaha RD400, and it’s dressed…
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The popular Wheels and Waves festival returns to sunny Biarritz next week after a two year hiatus. So it’s safe to assume…
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