On Trend: A Ducati Scrambler street tracker from Vietnam

It’s not always pretty when the worlds of fashion and motorcycles collide, but some companies know how to do it right. Vietnamese apparel brand NUEN is a fresh face on the scene, but their first custom motorcycle build proves that they’re not playing around.

Built using a 2015-model Ducati Scrambler 800 and named ‘Nu-One,’ this street tracker’s stark and minimalistic vibe is representative of NUEN’s overall design ethos. The brand has its roots in Sweden, and founder Gia Nguyen is dead set on bringing some of those Scandinavian sensibilities across in their work. And that counts for both their apparel and their bikes.

NUEN don’t have all the skills in-house to pull off a build like this by themselves. So they opted to focus on the design, and assembled a crack team to help them bring it to life.

Local custom shop Chucha Shed Garage did most of the heavy lifting, while a handful of local craftsmen in Ho Chi Minh City machined various parts. NUEN played it smart too—some of the sweetest pieces on this build are direct bolt-ons.

For starters, the fuel tank is a plug-and-play kit from Bad Winners in France. It uses an aluminum fuel cell under a cover, and includes a neat pair of blank-off plates that sit ‘in’ the trellis frame to hide the ugly stuff. The crew modified it by adding cutouts near the seat, and color-matching the fuel cell underneath.

The fuel cap looks like a high-end off-the-shelf part, but it was actually machined specifically for this project by Moc Tu CNC Parts. We’re fans of the Bad Winners Ducati Scrambler kit, so it’s nice to see it being put to good use here with some clever personalization.

The flat track-style rear section is another fit-and-forget item, and comes from BRKT Moto in the US. NUEN had it capped off with a two-piece seat, upholstered in a striking blue. There’s a tidy LED strip mounted out back, with a one-piece blank off plate and electronics box underneath.

Kim Thanh was responsible for that bit of fabrication, and the new belly pan and oil cooler cover. There’s a lot of detail down there, with a CNC-cut mesh cover at the front end of the belly pan, and a custom box exhaust muffler tucked in at the back.

Some of the other part swaps on this Scrambler required a little more effort. Up front are the upside-down forks from a Kawasaki ZX10R, anodized to match the overall color scheme. They’re held by custom yokes from Moc Tu CNC Parts, and fitted with the fender and fork guards from a Ducati Hypermotard 821.

The Hypermotard lent its single-sided swingarm too, connected to an FG Gubellini rear shock. The 17” wheels were scalped from a Ducati Monster 1100, and are fitted with a CNC Racing rear hub flange and Pirelli Diablo Super Corsa tires. Beringer calipers with Galfer discs handle braking duties.

NUEN threw a whole bunch of performance and dress up parts at the Scrambler too, but none of it feels gaudy. There’s a new oil cooler from CC-Racing Garage, with the belt covers and oil filler cap coming from CNC Racing. The team installed a Hypermotard clutch too, along with CNC Racing clutch cover, and a Ducabike clutch slave cylinder and front sprocket cover.

Up in the cockpit are new Domino bars, dressed with Hookie Co. grips and Motogadget bar-end turn signals. Beringer controls are hooked up to a stunning set of switches from Renard Speed Shop. Other upgrades include Bonamici rear sets, a Toby steering damper, and a custom side stand from Moc Tu CNC Parts.

Going deeper, the bike’s been rewired with an Antigravity Lithium-ion battery, and a Motogadget mo.unit module and keyless ignition system. NUEN wanted to maintain the appearance of a race bike, so the speedo’s been hidden ‘inside’ the chassis (removing it totally would have caused headaches).

The only engine upgrade is a K&N Filter, but that’s okay given how nippy the Scrambler is in stock guise. Especially when you consider the diet this one’s been on—between the mods and a brisk de-tabbing of the frame, Gia puts its weight at around 353 lbs now. “The bike is very light, nimble, and fun to ride,” he reports.

It looks razor sharp too, thanks to a striking livery that plays with NUEN’s brand colors. Top marks to them for their tasteful use of blue anodized parts too—an idea that so easily could have gone overboard.

It’s a stellar first effort from this young crew. If their upcoming apparel line looks as good as this Ducati, they’ll be unstoppable.

NUEN | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Rafik Duy and Lio Nguyen at Revons Studios

from Bike EXIF https://ift.tt/uosj87Q

Speed Read, February 13, 2022

This week we’ve got a limited edition machine from the German car tuner Brabus, a delightful R nineT cafe racer from Switzerland, and a box-fresh Yamaha TZ500 from the north of England. Plus news of Triumph’s TE-1 electric sportbike.

The Brabus 1300R Most motorcyclists also have a car in the garage, but collaborations between makers of two- and four-wheeled vehicles are surprisingly rare.

That alone makes this machine newsworthy. It’s based on the wild KTM 1290 Super Duke R EVO, the 180 hp Austrian hyper-naked, and just 154 units will be made—half in red, and half in black.

Car fans will know Brabus (est. 1977) as the German tuning firm that builds heavily customized Mercedes, and also restores older Benzes. If you live in a large city, that insane-looking G-Class SUV you once spotted was probably converted by Brabus.

Money is not really a concern for most Brabus customers, which might explain why the price for the 1300R is an eye-watering €51,466 [$58,400]. That’s almost $40,000 more than the stock EVO, so what do you get—aside from exclusivity?

The drivetrain is unchanged, but you get Brabus-branded forged wheels, a different twin-muffler setup, and tweaked bodywork with carbon fiber elements. The biggest differences are new air ducts, a new belly pan, and a round headlight (that might have been lifted from the Husqvarna parts bin).

The WP semi-active suspension is a slightly higher spec too, with variable damping that adjusts itself on the fly. And there are CNC-machined triple clamps, brake and clutch levers and footpegs. Finally, in a move that’s probably more in sync with the typical Brabus customer, the seat is heated.

Understated is not a word usually associated with Brabus cars, but to our eyes the 1300R actually looks better than the stock KTM. And although it’s a helluva lot of money to pay for a moderately modified hyper-naked, we’d be very happy to put one in the EXIF garage. [Order]

BMW R nineT by Meister Engineering You can usually spot the influences when examining a custom build, but the backstory to this BMW is more obscure than most. A few years ago, Geneva-based Antoine Meister built a 1977 R100S café racer—and he’s literally replicated the design on this 2014-spec R nineT.

It was experiment to see if timeless design can be transferred to a different platform, and it worked. Another objective was to get 100% reliability; even though classic airheads are pretty simple and robust, they can’t compete with a modern boxer.

The R nineT is Antoine’s personal ride, and after road tripping around Switzerland, he got back from vacation and couldn’t resist the urge to strip it down.

He then photographed the R100S and laid the images over matching shots of the R nineT to figure out the proportions and placements. With millimeter precision, Antoine designed a new rear subframe to support the bodywork and straighten the visual top line, and then he chrome-plated the entire frame.

The new bodywork was constructed in-house using composite fiber, and finished in a glossy black to contrast with the framework.

The next step was to improve the R nineT’s already good handling dynamics, so Antoine installed new Öhlins Blackline forks and a matching monoshock, which hooks up to the stock (but chrome-plated) swingarm. Lightweight new rims are shod with Pirelli Supercorsa rubber.

The engine has been treated to DNA filters and a Mass exhaust system, and the ECU has been reflashed to take advantage of this. Rear wheel horsepower is now 115, an increase of around 15%.

The R nineT was finished off with a smattering of Roland Sands hard parts, plus LED lighting all round. We reckon it’s the perfect mix of old and new—with the reassurance of knowing that it’ll start on the button every time. [Via]

Zero-mile Yamaha TZ500 The website Collecting Cars has a reputation for big-dollar sales, but this particular auction mysteriously failed to sell.

We’re guessing the only reason could be a high reserve price, because the machine in question is stunning: an unused 1982 TZ500 GP racer in as-new condition.

The specs for Yamaha’s famed pocket rocket speak for themselves: despite a capacity of only 500 cc, the two-stroke inline four pumps out a walloping 115 hp.

The TZ500 was based on the legendary YZR500, as raced by Kenny Roberts and his contemporaries. The TZ up for sale is a ‘J’ model, with cosmetic changes compared to earlier versions, and a slightly different engine spec.

This bike has spent its life in dry-store collections, so it’s basically ready-to-race once the rubber seals have been checked and replaced. The only reported faults are a pair of very small bodywork cracks near the seat and rear fairing.

Although the auction has closed, it looks like the vendor is open to offers. The bike is currently in the Sheffield area, in the north of England, and well-endowed buyers should hit the ‘Still Interested?’ button on the sales page. [Via]

Triumph TE-1 Electric Prototype Seven months after Harley-Davidson delivered the LiveWire to showrooms, there are further signs of life in the electric space. Husqvarna is set to launch its E-Pilen later this year, and Triumph has just revealed this TE-1 electric sportbike concept.

The first thing that struck us was the styling: it looks great. Perhaps a little ‘busy,’ but also fresh and modern, and clearly related to the current sporting Triple models. No doubt there will be some detail changes before we see a production bike, but the bones are good.

The project is a collaboration with several other British companies. Williams Advanced Engineering is looking after the battery side of things, and an outfit called Integral Powertrain is developing the motor and inverter. The University of Warwick is providing simulation data to ensure the bike performs as expected when it hits the road.

Triumph has not supplied many specifications for this belt-driven machine, except to say that the continuous power maximum is 90 kW (120 hp) and the peak is up to 130 kW (177 hp). The motor itself weighs around ten kilos, and the inverter can handle an impressive 500kW.

The next stage is six months of physical testing, on rolling roads and race tracks. If that all works out, productionization is presumably the next step. Triumph sounds pretty confident about the TE-1 and the project has government funding too, so we’re banking on it hitting showrooms in 2023. If the price is right, this one could bypass the early adopters and convert the naysayers. [Via]

from Bike EXIF https://ift.tt/1ySMZdm

Hat Trick: HB-Custom refines the Honda Dominator recipe

Creating a knockout recipe takes a lot of trial and error. But once you nail it, everyone wants a taste—which is why Holger Breuer at HB-Custom keeps cooking up juicy Honda Dominator customs like this one.

Holger’s first go at the revered Honda NX650 Dominator was a stripped-down scrambler that was commissioned by a client. Next, he took his favorite ideas from the first build, refined them, and built a second Dominator as a showpiece. It was a hit, and he’s now getting more requests for builds in that style.

HB-Custom is based in the maritime town of Husum in Germany, but this order came from a client much further south, in Switzerland. Enamored with the style of the two previous Dominators, he was happy for Holger to source a donor and run with it.

Holger found a 1994-model NX650 that ticked all the right boxes, and hauled it into his workshop.

As an added bonus, it was already fitted with 17” wheels—something that he would have changed anyway to suit the scrambler-slash-supermoto vibe he does so well. So he simply added a set of Continental TKC80 tires, for the right balance of dirt and asphalt grip.

Later model Dominators came stock with Brembo brakes, so there was no need to upgrade those either. On the suspension side, Holger rebuilt the stock forks, and installed a fresh YSS shock at the back.

The engine needed love though, so Holger tore into it with a complete rebuild. It now has fresh piston rings, valves, a new timing chain and bearings, and a rebuilt clutch. The Honda was also treated to a full rewire, along with a Lithium-ion battery and a new digital ignition.

Holger upgraded the carb to a Mikuni TM40, equipped with a K&N filter. The new exhaust system follows the same style as his previous Dominator—it’s a modern twin-pipe system, pieced together from heavily tweaked Honda CRF250 and XR600 parts.

Naturally, all the original Dominator bodywork’s been binned. In its place is the fuel tank from a Yamaha XT500, modified to fit the Honda’s frame.

Holger rebuilt the subframe out back, then fabricated a set of side panels to flank it. The custom seat is ever so slightly longer and thicker than some scrambler perches we’ve seen, and there are extra foot pegs to take a passenger in a pinch. High-mounted fenders cap things off at both ends.

Up top you’ll find a full complement of Magura goodies, including the risers, handlebars, throttle, and brake and clutch controls. Holger also installed a tiny digital speedo and LED warning light strip from Motogadget, neatly mounted between the risers. There’s LED lighting all-round; a Koso headlight attached to custom brackets, turn signals on the forks, and a pair of LED taillights mounted to the license plate holder.

The paint job was a last minute decision, inspired by a car that Holger’s painter had just done in the same blue.

From the stance to the finishes, HB-Custom’s third Dominator build is dripping with style. There are clear ties to its predecessors, but here, it feels like Holger’s picked the best of each to perfect his signature take on this die hard Honda scrambler.

So will he build more of these? Almost certainly, especially since he can now piece them together with his eyes closed.

HB-Custom | Instagram | Images by Emayat Wahab

from Bike EXIF https://ift.tt/Djg8t32

A slice of nice: A custom Yamaha SR400 from Wedge

Just over a year ago, the last SR400 rolled off the production line in Yamaha’s Iwata factory, marking the end of an astonishing 43-year production run. It was always a steady rather than big seller, with most sales in the domestic market—which is why virtually every Japanese custom shop has built multiple SR400s over the years.

One of those shops is Wedge Motorcycle, run by Takashi Nihira. He’s in the upper echelon of the Japanese custom scene, and famous for his big budget builds. And when he’s not working on commissions from manufacturers such as BMW, his high-end bikes win awards at Japan’s legendary custom shows.

But it’s affordable machines like this 2007-spec SR400 that keep the cash flow going at Nihira’s Tokyo workshop. “This is a shop project bike,” he tells us. “I originally built it for a customer, but the customer was letting go of it. So I bought it back, reconsidered the style, and updated it.”

“The concept is ‘compact’,” he adds. “By using smaller exterior parts and adding ‘volume’ around the tires, it makes the bike seem visually smaller.” The stance is absolutely spot on.

Nihira has given the OHC single cylinder engine plenty of love, even though it’s just 15 years old. He’s overhauled the cylinder head and block, replaced the piston rings and valve stem seals, and installed a new Keihin FCR flat slide carburetor for smoother response and a touch of extra power.

A newly fabricated stainless steel header pipe gets the exhaust gases out of the way, and there’s a stubby SuperTrapp muffler to abate the volume a little.

The chassis received even more attention. After a strip-down and tidy-up, Nihira modified the seat support and cut back the rear section to suit a short solo seat butting up against the top of the fender. The concave upper line and tail-heavy look of the stock SR400 is gone, replaced by a classic Japanese aesthetic.

The refurbished forks have been lowered slightly, and new 280 mm rear shocks installed to keep the handling tight. “At the request of the previous owner, the suspension had been dropped significantly,” says Nihira. “So I’ve raised the ride height a bit to improve the handling. Even so, the length of the rear suspension is still over 50 mm shorter than standard.”

The gorgeous gold 18-inch wheels look like the alloys fitted to SR400s in the late 70s, but they’re modern cast replicas from a company called Y’s Gear. Compared to the factory wheels, the front is lighter by about 1.5 kg, and the rear by 2 kg. The rear hub has been improved for easier maintenance too, and Nihira has installed a Sunstar disc brake at the front.

The traditional sawtooth-style tires are Shinko Super Classic E270s, with modern construction underneath the tread pattern, in 4.00-18F/4.50-18R sizes.

Being a Wedge bike, there’s custom fabrication everywhere. The aluminum tank is the most obvious item: “I made it in the image of the slim and long style used by old Yamaha small displacement sport bikes, such as the Yamaha RD50,” says Nihira. The gas cap, complete with an unusual sliding key cover, is a vintage item of unknown provenance.

Nihira also fabricated new side covers (which now hide most of the bulkier electrical parts), the slimline leather seat pad, and a new rear fender.

The cockpit is super-sano, with new bars and grips, a simple analog speedo, and low profile switchgear. The lighting is equally discreet, with compact head and tail lights and even tinier blinkers.

Unlike most custom builders Nihira-san handles his own paint, but this is no rattle-can job. The bodywork is coated with a subtle blue-grey, leaving the gold cast wheels to draw the eye—and add a bit of an 80s vibe.

It’s not the kind of bike you’d see on a podium at Mooneyes, or the flashiest of customs. But for zooming around the outskirts of Tokyo, it’s just perfect—and will bear close inspection when parked up.

Wedge Motorcycle | Wedge Facebook | Instagram | With thanks to our man in Japan, Tadashi Kono

from Bike EXIF https://ift.tt/ISlfpVs3U