Now that I had the project bike, it was time to put my thoughts together on what I wanted to do with it. As mentioned in my first post, I have a bunch of ideas for the bike. I like the ideas individually, but I'm not sure how (or if at all) they will work together. Some part of me actually doesn't mind if they don't work together. I'm picturing the bike turning out as some sort of bob job creation.
I'm not the best at visualising creative ideas, which doesn't help me much. So I figure I'll just put my ideas together on the bike, see how it looks and modify/undo as necessary. As you may have guessed already, I secretly have reservations about the project, but if I don't try it I will die wondering and that's a worse outcome than making something hideous, right?
What to do? I would like a few of the changes to subtly (and possibly not so subtly) make reference to the bike's British heritage. Starting with the most important real estate on a bike - the tank. I would like to get an old British comic book and stick the pages to it. I had no idea how to get this done. I envisaged issues getting the right glue for the job, getting the pages to stick flat to the angled tank surface, getting clear coat to hold it all together and not discolour, etc, etc. To be honest, this part of the project is the one I expect there to be the greatest issues getting the outcome I picture in my head. The alternative option I have is to get the comic made into decals and apply them. I will get a much better result, but I would feel like I've cheated a bit.
Going back to my early childhood, one of my first memories of automotive beauty was the first time I lay eyes on the Martini racing Porsches from the 1970s. To this day, the Martini colours are firmly at the top of my list of my favourite racing livery. I would like my project bike to have some throw back to that childhood memory - at this stage I'm thinking the light blue from the Martini colour scheme.
For some reason, I picture that my bike will look good with random bits from other bikes on it. I want to get some retro indicators and wire them into the bike. Possibly do the same with the headlights. I want to remove the front cowl above the headlights and replace it with a metal grill of some sort.
Some of the changes to the bike will be less bob job and more run of the mill. I want to get rid of the stock cans and put something fruitier on the bike and I will probably change the rear sets, levers, grips.
That's not an exhaustive list of things I want to do to the bike, but I have enough to get started...
Shav
Welcome to Road Track Dirt (RTD). RTD was created by a group of guys from Melbourne and Sydney who all love bikes, but different parts of motocycle culture. Contributors: Steve W, Joe Z, Shavarsh B, Matt P. Twitter: @roadtrackdirt Email: roadtrackdirt@gmail.com
Showing posts with label custom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label custom. Show all posts
Monday, 11 March 2013
Tuesday, 26 February 2013
Project Bike - First post
For as long as I can remember, every time I would pass a motorbike that
had obviously been modified, I would find the time to steal a moment to check
it out. Even if I was in a rush to get
somewhere. I wouldn't always love what I
saw, but I loved to see what form someone else's brainchild took, appreciating
the fact that someone managed to translate a bunch of crazy ideas from their
head into a living, breathing machine.
Just like the next guy, I have crazy ideas too, but not having the
skills or experience to bring them out on a bike always held me back. As background, I’ve spend my life working a
desk job, so I have soft hands and pale skin…ha ha
Old Bike |
Step one was to sell the Ducati. There definitely wasn't room in
the garage to keep it, the new bike and my trusty ktm dirt bike. So with the Ducati gone, I needed my project bike. I wanted my first project bike to
be newish because I'm not mechanically minded enough to deal with an aging bike. I wanted a good bike as a base with which to start and eventually settled on a 2009
triumph street triple r (yes, the last of the round headlights). After much searching, I eventually found the
right bike for the job. So after flying
down to Melbourne and riding it back to Sydney, I was good to go. Here she is…
Over the coming weeks and months (possibly years if things go really badly), I'll update the blog with what's new on the bike. Stay tuned....
Project Bike |
Over the coming weeks and months (possibly years if things go really badly), I'll update the blog with what's new on the bike. Stay tuned....
Shav
Monday, 6 August 2012
Road - Amazing Vilner Ducati Monster Evo 1100
Bulgarian tuner/customer Vilner has created this amazing Ducati Monster. Apart from a small power increase to 80kw, this special build has a smaller headlight, skimpy side panels, a shortened sub frame and customised paint/rims. VIlner plans to produce 100 kits to allow Ducati Monster Evo 1100 owners to recreate this bike. Sadly, the model in the photos does not come as standard or an option.
Friday, 3 August 2012
Road - love free stuff, especially when it's this cool.
I came across this e-mag on one of my favorite cafe racer blogs. Stay True is a free photography magazine, and i think there's a little something for everyone who enjoy Road, Track or Dirt riding. Just like what we are trying to do here, Stay True is trying to capture the The True Biker Spirit.
Labels:
cafe racer,
classic,
classic race bikes,
culture,
custom,
emag,
free,
photography
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