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.
Like the Honda CX500, the Yamaha Virago is one of those “sow’s ear” bikes: it’s a challenge to make a silk purse out of it. Plenty of custom builders have taken the bait, and a few have succeeded. This Virago from Kerkus in Malaysia is an oddball example, but there’s a reason for it. “The…
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It’s a newsier mix than usual this week, with the Yamaha SR400 finally down for the count, and a top European motorcycle museum gone up in smoke. On the custom bike front, we’ve got two very sporty builds—one an XT600 supermoto, and the other a radically restyled BMW R nineT.
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Istanbul-based brothers Mert and Can Uzer are known for their sleek, super-clean custom builds, but their latest creation has a surprisingly practical mien. The commission came from Kerem, a customer living in the ancient city of Adana. A nine-hour ride south from Bunker’s workshop, it’s near the border with Syria and is one of the…
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If Yamaha let you choose any one of their bikes to customize, which would you pick? For David Sánchez and the wildly talented crew at Bottpower, the choice was clear. They took the highly capable XSR900, and turned it into one of the most ferocious Yard Built bikes we’ve ever featured. Yard Built is Yamaha’s…
Read more »The Japanese have a profound love for motorsport and craftsmanship. Linguistic and geographic isolation has fostered unique styles and trends over the…
Read more »Yamaha’s annual ‘Yard Built’ competition was one of the first and most highly publicized custom competitions, delivering a steady stream of killer…
Read more »News from two major OEMs this week, as BMW Motorrad update the R nineT, and Honda release a new Grom. Plus we’ve…
Read more »Like most Japanese marques, Yamaha have some truly lovely UJMs scattered throughout their back catalog. Today, we’re taking a look at two…
Read more »Communal motorcycle workshops have popped up everywhere over the last few years. They’re well-equipped spaces where people pay to use the tools…
Read more »We love subtle, understated style on custom bikes. But we also have a sneaking regard for machines that are aggressive and in…
Read more »Welcome to the second edition of Speed Read—our new weekend roundup that covers not just custom bikes, but also motorcycle news, gear,…
Read more »A sweet Yamaha SR500 bobber from Sweden, a bright orange Honda CBR600 from the Netherlands, a Kawasaki KZ750 cafe racer from Argentina,…
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