Our weekly selection of motorcycle news and customs is bookended by two Royal Enfields; a fully-faired Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 from Malaysia, and the brand’s own Shotgun 650 cruiser. Wedged between them are a pair of tasteful Suzuki GS550 restomods and a peak at the new Triumph TF 250-X motocrosser.
Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 by Rollin Machines The Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 (known as the INT650 in the States) works so well as a fully-faired café racer, that we’re surprised Enfield hasn’t made one themselves. And if you don’t believe us, this fully-faired Interceptor 650 from Bobby Fuego, founder of Rollin Machines in Malaysia, should convince you.
Bobby was in the market for a new ride, and happens to have a strong connection to Royal Enfield Malaysia—so picking the Interceptor 650 for the project was a no-brainer.
A full fairing was sourced and modified to fit the bike. Then a svelte screen was created to suit the lines of the bike, with the LED headlight from a Royal Enfield Super Meteor installed up front. Everything mounts on custom-made bracketry.
Aftermarket clip-ons sit behind the fairing, with enough space to clear the fairing. They’re capped off with Motogadget bar-end turn signals.
Moving rearwards, a tail hump was made out of fiberglass, with diamond-stitched Alcantara covering the custom seat. The subframe was trimmed and looped, with LED lighting seamlessly integrated into the back of the frame. The side covers are from K-Speed’s Diablo line of Royal Enfield parts.
The only bad thing about the fairing is that it obscures the Royal Enfield’s beautiful engine—but at least Bobby made a custom exhaust so that passersby can hear the 270-degree twin in all its glory. Besides, the fairing looks so good in its new racing livery.
The finished product is slick, perfectly proportioned, and would be fantastic to ride through city streets and mountain passes. Bobby and the crew at Rollin Machines have built an exemplary motorcycle—and we wouldn’t change a single thing about it. [Source]
Suzuki GS550 by Marfil Moto The Suzuki GS550 was a handsome machine straight off the factory floor in the late 70s. It had twin disc brakes, a peach of an inline-four engine, four carburetors, and dual overhead cams. Looking at it now, there isn’t a whole lot we would want to change.
This sentiment is shared by Maciek Nieściur, owner of Marfil Moto in Poland. He built these two lovely creations after a friend of his dropped off a pair of Suzuki GS550s and asked Maciek for some upgrades.
“He asked if I could refurbish the bikes, keeping the original lines,” says Maciek. “But at my urging, he gave the green light to make some custom changes.”
Having both bikes in the workshop at once was a blessing in disguise, as Maciek was able to improve them, but in two different ways.
Both were completely stripped down and rebuilt, with their engines receiving identical treatment, along with fresh polishing and paint. They now ride on new suspension, with progressive springs fitted to smooth out the ride.
New rims were laced to freshly rebuilt hubs with stainless steel spokes. Braided brake lines and new master cylinders vastly improve braking performance over the old rubber lines. Both bikes were completely rewired too; a necessary evil on any bike of this age.
The blue bike was chosen as the more traditional restomod, evidenced by the classic color, silver and polished engine covers, and chrome mudguards. The chrome continues with the four-into-four exhaust system, which was bent by hand. The new seat cover is reminiscent of the factory seat.
Finished in grey and black, the blue bike’s counterpart has a distinctly modern vibe. The black engine covers, rims, suspension, and front end make a huge difference to the overall look. Again, the exhaust was hand-bent—but this one sports a brushed finish.
It’s two for the price of one. If we had to choose, we’d take the grey bike—but luckily for Maciek’s friend, he doesn’t have to make that choice. [Marfil Moto]
Triumph TF 250-X Motocross isn’t our usual fare, but we’ve been following the development of Triumph’s first-ever motocross bike. After several teasers, the Triumph TF 250-X has finally broken cover, and we’d be lying if we said we weren’t intrigued.
The purely racing-focused machine was developed by a star-studded team of riders and engineers, including the motocross legend Ricky Carmichael. Ninety-nine percent of motocross bikes look the same, but a deeper dive into the TF 250-X’s spec sheet is where the real story is. Sporting top-shelf components in every area of the bike, Triumph has set its sights on the top step of the podium.
The 249.95 cc single-cylinder features a tuned exhaust resonator, titanium valves, a Brembo hydraulic clutch system, and heavy-duty clutch springs. A 44 mm Dell’Orto throttle body smashes fuel and air together through the straight-shot air intake, specifically designed for the TF 250-X. The stainless steel racing exhaust snakes through the front of the frame to exit through a hydroformed and extruded silencer.
The frame features a central spine with a twin-cradle design, tuned for strength and flexibility. It has a bolt-on subframe, ProTaper ACF bars (with a carbon fiber core) and ODI lock-on grips straight from the factory. Floating Brembo brake calipers grip Galfer discs, and are fed by stainless steel braided brake lines.
The suspension is from KYB; 48 mm upside-down AOS coil fork up front (with compression and rebound adjustment) and a hollow-mount shock out back (with two-speed compression and rebound adjustment). The TF 250-X rolls on 21F/19R wheels and weighs a paltry 104 kilos [229.3 lbs].
Racers can dial their starts with the Athena LC-GPA Launch Control Module (as an added accessory), and flick through the extensive electronics package on the fly. The left-hand switch block has buttons for launch control, traction control, engine mapping, and holeshot assist. You can even do clutchless, throttle-pinned shifts from second to fifth, which sounds like an absolute hoot.
Visually, the TF 250-X’s bodywork isn’t much different from every other MX rig out there, but it does come in a striking black, white, and yellow livery. Prices start at $9,995 in the US and £9,795.00 in the UK. If you have some change leftover, you can snag some accessories for it too—like a full Akrapovič exhaust system, replacement plastics, protective bits, a gripper seat cover (or a full race-spec seat, if you prefer), and more.
You can also buy a tuning module that lets your smartphone talk to the engine management unit, for real-time diagnostics and tuning. Nifty. [More]
Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 When we caught wind of Royal Enfield’s 2023 Motoverse celebration in India, we knew they’d have something special lined up for their fans. And we were right—take a look at the Royal Enfield Shotgun 650, the brand’s new, custom-inspired neo-retro roadster.
Sharing the underpinnings of the Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650, the Shotgun 650 is all about customization. In Royal Enfield’s words, the Shotgun 650 “pays homage to its precursor, the SG650 Concept, with its neo-dystopian design, and celebrates the possibilities offered by Royal Enfield motorcycles as a canvas for the most creative minds in motorcycling.”
Cast your mind back to when the SG650 Concept was unveiled at EICMA 2021 and you’ll see that the Shotgun 650 is the spitting image of the concept bike—an unheard-of occurrence in the automotive world. The only minor differences are the exhaust, wheels, and paint.
A roadster-style fuel tank sits in front of a single, hand-stitched saddle-style seat. The ten-spoke cast wheels are new, as are the chopped front and rear fenders. An aluminum headlight nacelle surrounds an LED headlight, blending seamlessly into the top and bottom fork yokes.
The back end of the bike is modular. If you want a little more utility, a luggage rack can be fit to the rear in minutes. And if you want to bring a friend, there’s a passenger seat that can also be clicked into place. That not only makes the Shotgun 650 configurable but also opens the door for further tweaking.
The large multi-function speedometer is offset with a smaller gauge that runs Enfield’s Tripper Navigation system. To keep the silhouette low and sleek, the Shotgun 650 wears new handlebars with bar-end mirrors. The blacked-out engine now sports gloss paint (instead of the usual flat black finish), mated to a black exhaust with pea-shooter mufflers.
This stunning blue and black livery is exclusive to the Shotgun 650 Motoverse Edition. Enfield only made 25 of these, and each one was hand-painted over a few months. They were only available to Motoverse attendees and were sold out almost instantly, but normal production bikes will be available in early 2024.
Tempted? [Royal Enfield]
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