There’s something for everyone this week. We’ve got a Bonneville beach cruiser, a pair of high-performance Triumph Speed Triples, and a Ducati Panigale covered in occult symbols. Plus a trio of electric bikes—an old Enfield that traveled the entire length of Britain, and two new concepts designed by Erik Buell. (Yes, he’s back.)
Triumph Speed Triples by Associated British Motorcycles Tony Scott’s the guy behind the top tuning operation T3 Performance—so he knows how to extract maximum performance out of a machine. These two Speed Triples, the Gemini Naked and Gemini Indianapolis, are the first customs from T3’s new sister brand, Associated British Motorcycles. And they both put a colossal 160 horsepower to the rear wheel.
The Naked (above) is the more ‘cafe’ of the two, with minimal carbon fiber bodywork, and Öhlins and Maxton suspension. It also features HEL brakes, a keyless ignition, and Dymag carbon wheels.
The Indianapolis has a more upright stance, with flat track-inspired lines. Both Geminis have the same tank and belly pan, but the Indy has a number board and a different tail section. And it comes with tubeless Kineo wheels.
ABM will be producing the Gemini in limited numbers—just 50, with customization options like paint and finishing kit. Customers have a choice of ordering a complete bike, or supplying their own donor. It’s a cracking first project for the company, and we’re keen to see what they’ll get up to next. [More]
Triumph Bonneville by Tamarit At the other end of the Triumph scale is this ultra classic Bonneville, which despite the vintage looks, is actually a 2008 model. It’s the work of Spain’s Tamarit Motorcycles, who built it for a client who wanted a beach hopper for his summers on the Catalonian coast. Jealous yet?
Tamarit stripped the bike down, then had the frame and swing arm chrome plated. They built a new subframe for it, and swapped the OEM seat for a stylish two-piece arrangement. It’s wrapped in leather, and matches the custom tank pads and grips.
The side covers were shaped to make space for a pair of chunky K&N filters. Everything’s perfectly retro—like the massive fenders, and the pulled-back handlebars. There’s a lot of chrome, a classy paint job, and little brass details everywhere.
Given how old school this Bonneville looks, we’re sure no one’s going to complain about the Firestone Deluxe Champion rubber. Especially since that gorgeous twin exhaust system isn’t hidden under pipe wrap… [More]
Fuell’s electric motorcycles break cover Do you know what Erik Buell’s been up to since EBR shut down? Designing electric motorcycles, apparently. He’s now the chief technical officer at Fuell (previously VanguardSpark), who’ve just announced their first two concepts.
The ‘Flow’ (above) is a small displacement-equivalent electric motorcycle, while the ‘Fluid’ (left, below) is basically a pedal-assist bicycle. Both have dismal names, but more importantly, both will come in higher- and lower-power models. Meaning that buyers will have the option to buy versions that’ll fall under most countries’ bicycle or moped laws, and therefore not require a license.
Early numbers are 15hp (11 kW) and 47hp (35 kW) for the two Flow models. The two Fluid models are equipped with two swappable 490 W h batteries (totaling 980 W h), and a claimed output of 100 Nm.
The Fluid and Flow are currently priced at a MSRP of $3,295 and $10,995, respectively. We can’t say the Fluid excites us much, but the Flow looks like it has potential—and there’s talk of batteries, chargers and wheel motors all being upgradeable. [More]
Ducati Panigale 959 by Marc Friedman Marc is the parts guy at MotoCorsa, a Ducati dealer in Portland, Oregon. Ever heard the expression “Keep Portland weird?” Well, Marc’s Ducati Panigale 959 embodies it.
Marc started with a 959 Corse, and basically personalized everything—from the ergonomics to the livery. So the Panigale is sporting new clip-ons and Brembo master cylinders, Ducati Performance rear-sets, a Ducabike billet kill switch, and a whole bunch of under the hood changes. (It even has a prototype Akrapovič exhaust).
But it’s the otherworldly graphics that caught our eye first. Marc wasn’t feeling the stock paint, so he had Bob at Inkknife whip up a custom design. It includes sigils (from ancient occult books that Marc owns), talismans, and sword designs taken from tarot decks. The snake skeleton on the side hints at the bike’s name: ‘Garuda,’ an eastern god that’s the enemy of snakes.
The touches run deep, like the scales on the swing-arm—which were created by polishing it to a brilliant finish, then masking out the design and painting it black. New Church Moto even did a custom seat with the phases of the moon stitched into it (it wasn’t ready in time for these photos). It might not be a traditional custom—but it sure is eye-catching. [Images by Taylor Ramsauer]
Charging Bullet When Brit Fred Spaven stripped down his 1961 Royal Enfield Bullet to refresh it, he discovered that the motor and gearbox were shot. Properly shot. Being an eco-conscious lad, he did the only sensible thing—a full DIY electric conversion.
It’s one of the most endearing EVs we’ve seen. Fred used a Saiette brushed DC motor, and secondhand Nissan Leaf batteries. He also designed a custom subframe to hold it all together, so that he wouldn’t have to hack the Enfield’s stock frame. And that means that this classic can be returned to stock, if the mood strikes.
Fred built custom boxes to house the batteries, battery management system and controller. The total capacity is 6 kWh, with a range of about 40 to 50 miles. Top speed sits at around 60 mph—ideal for scooting around town.
But that’s not all Fred does with the Charging Bullet. Late last year, Fred covered Britain’s 837 mile ‘end to end’ route, from Lands End in Cornwall to John o’ Groats in the north of Scotland. We imagine he must have enjoyed quite a few pub lunches while charging the Bullet along the way—but it still sounds like an awesome trip. [More]
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