The New HARLEY DAVIDSON Iron 883

Continuing their new series of Dark Custom Bikes (DCB), Harley davidson has come up with the pocket friendly Iron 883, on the same rebel spirit. The highlight of the bike is that it features more blacked-out components compared to any other DCB. Essentially built on the Sportster 883 (Rubber mounted 883 'Evolution' engine) with the same lines and styling, this DCB characterizes a readiness to respond to commands from a reduced clutch lever effort to drive and a robust transmission belt with reinforced carbon fiber.

It has a low profile front fender with cast aluminum front wheel. Even the supports of the chopped rear are in black. The entire engine along with the valve covers and all are powder coated with black denim (as the name of the colour mentioned in the website) which gives the bike a really mean and business look, the dont-mess-with-me type! Equipped with electronic fuel injection system of sequential ESPFI, this one-piece solo seat bike has mid mounted foot pegs with drag style handle bars and side mounted licence plate.

The only chromed part visible are the twin pipes and they are shortened to give a more throaty roar. Besides the Black Denim colour, it also comes in Brilliant Silver where you get the silver colour in the mudguards and the tank. Both the colours are priced at $7899. Visit the official website for more images. For its full specifications, click here.

Delicious TRIUMPH Videos

TRIUMPH Daytona 675 & Bonneville T100 Videos. While the first video (1.11 min) essentially features the very essence of the pleasure of riding a bike, the second video features the beauty of the Bonneville. Both videos are in HD and are very very well photographed.

Source & Credits: Jeremy Miller

The Warbird - A Real Piece of Art

This, my dear friend, is what we call is 'the big deal'! So lets get introduced to Mr. Ian Douglas, the creator of this beauty. Okay, let me get to the basics first, this piece of art is based on cylinders and heads from a radial engine and the accessories that has gone to the engine are from a full size aircraft engine. Its a 2 cylinder engine as you can see and yes its huge with 3129cc and bore x stroke of 5.125″ x 4.625″. So if you are thinking which goddam crancase can house these mammoth, well Mr. Ian designed the crankcase himself. Surprisingly, everything was build or mated or fused by the man in-house, like the frame which was designed as such that it will hose the moster but a rider can still get both his legs on the ground. He designed and made the casting patterns and did all the required machining in house while the casting was done by OBCO foundries in Richmond B.C.

Try visualizing the bike as a whole, what I mean as i was watching it, I either keep appreciating the engine or the styling, but if you look at the total bike, it's even more impressive. Very artistically painted, it somehow emphasises the aeroplane look, maybe it's the tank or just the airport background, I dont know...

Well, unlike other concept bikes built with the same platform, you will be happy to know that the engine runs.

Ian Douglass, in his website writes "Warbird, my latest build, was born out of a combined love of vintage aircraft engines and similar period motorcycles. The engine is a scratch designed/ built power-plant that utilizes WWII radial aircraft cylinders and a one-off hand built crank case. The response to the bike has been truly amazing. I must have struck a nerve with people as we have been flooded with requests for more information."

So see the feedback from some of the enthusiasts and you can leave your own comments here. It has been 2 years in the making and I for one, would really like to hear it roar. All of the aircraft engine components were provided by Radial Engines Ltd. in Guthrie Oklahoma. The pin-up girl you see in the tank is a hand painted job of a "very talented local girl named Jennie Persak" and that too by brush. The overall painting was done one Mr. George Kanavaros, an experienced aviation painter.

Specifications:
In-house construction - Frame, Cases, Rods, Pipes, Fuel tank, Oil tank, Handlebars, Risers, Sissy bar

Engine: Special construction Douglas 191 Cubic inch

Bore x Stroke - 5.125" x 4.625"

Rake: 32 degrees
Cylinders & Pistons - Continental Aero W670

Wheel - Front: 21 X 2.15 80 spoke, Rear: 21 X 3.25 80 spoke
Tires: Avon Venom
Brakes: Brembo differential bore
Saddle: Brooks

Outsourced parts

Flywheels: Highly modified S&S stroker racing

Carbs: Twin S&S Super E'
Transmission: Roadmax 5 speed
Clutch: HD
Forks: DNA Springer
Foot controls: Yamaha R6

Visit his website by clicking on the logo or you can email him at

warbirdmotorcycle@shaw.ca

Street Trackers from Mule Motorcycles

Mr. Richard Pollock is essentially a Street Tracker man. Owner of Mule Motorcycles, he customizes requests from any part of the world as long as it is a Street Tracker or at least so far has been. From Sporster based Streettrackers to Yvonne (another customized Sportster named after the customer) to the Madonna Bike (yet another customized Sporster streettracker for a customer who is a photographer and had photographed the singer for a magazine) to doing basic chassis package, painted, powder coated, complete rolling chassis with exhaust like the bike for Simone of Italy, Richard Pollock does it all… alone. Yes, he is a one-man custom shop. And to start the post, let me tell you, he does the entire staff, not just the tank and handlebar cosmetic type.

From the site, it is evident his focus is more on HDs and Yamahas where we are slowly getting at, but he also has done a Triumph, he does lots of Race Bikes and as in the index page, he is working on the Mule Gabe.

Personally to me, his best work is seen on the HD XR1600. Its a big bike and trust me customizing bigger bikes are really difficult, but the XR looks amazing, you know if-looks-could-kill type.

Mr. Pollock actually started his passion when he got his first 'real' bike, incidentally a scrambler, the 250cc HONDA CL72. Slowly he started racing motocross on a CZ. To satiate his hunger for always cutting and chopping his bikes, he enrolled himselved for formal mechanical training at AMI and a few Honda schools. Continuing his love for race tracks especially flat tracks, he moved to Southern California and spent a decade with Yamaha after which he finally moved to aerospace manufacturing which became the beginning of "fabricating high dollar parts with strict quality and craftsmanship standards". And it shows!

And there is one thing he strongly believes "...almost anything is possible as far as design and construction of parts and materials is concerned. It may take a bit of head scratching, brainstorming and a bunch of pictures and money, but anything IS possible."

As he works alone, he takes his time in building your bike streching from 8 to 12 months, so if you are in a hurry, well... He tries everything and if you look through the galleries, you will know what I mean. When he makes a bike, he MAKES them, just doesn't copy paste type. The pictures illustarte the detailing he goes through. Some are unconventional ideas, but he does experiment and the end result is pretty impressive.
Hand building each part of a bike is really painful, but he does it for all his creations. From the exhaust systems to wheels, brakes and tanks, all are hand-built differently for each project and as he says most of the frames differ slightly from one another. And all are high quality products used.

And such the high cost is inevitable. It will probably not make sense to many customers to shell out something like USD 20k when he can jolly well purchage a HD or a Ducati, but Mr. Pollock gives you an option unlike HD or Ducati... to build the bike AS YOU WANT.
How much for a bike like those on the website?

And where does all the dough go? In building the chassis as he tells you. "The chassis doesn’t care if it’s a Sportster, Buell, Yamaha XS650, TT500, Ducati916 or a new Bonneville power plant. Also, the frame work, suspension, brakes, tank and seat costs have no dependency on the motor choice. Motor choice is simply a factor of what you want for your ride and how much power you want." Just FYI, "You can expect an XS650 Yamaha-based bike to start at approximately $18,000, and the Harley-based bikes to start in the $26,000 range. The Harleys tend to cost more due to the added complexity of the build."

As for the help he gets, beside doing most of the stuff himself, he talks help from a paint shop for the painting, another guy who does the graphics (air brush), for polishing, a polishing and anodizing shop, an aerospace company that does the powdercoating, beadblasting and CAD-plating of steel components and the fuel tanks are made by an artist. All in all, if you want a bike, more so a Street tracker that has the go along with the show, you can start with emailing him @ rocketboy@cox.net or you can call him at 858.442.9536. Visit Mule Motorcycles, I am sure you will enjoy the bikes even if you are not keen on customizing your babe.

Believe Me! This Norton is for Sale!

Although not for long. The sale is on ebay and bidding ends on Jan 17th. Surprisingly there are 0 bids, how can anyone miss this? Well, probably the price is a bit steep, but this is a 1961 NORTON Dominator 600 Super Sport. You really do get to see some nice bikes on ebay, bid or not!

This NORTON modified into the Cafe Racer mode is currently housed in Canada and ready to be shipped anywhere in the world for a sum of above USD 6500. The bike looks excellentbut the clever part is that when you look into detailing, you will find that nothing much has been done to the original really, modified seat, shorter mudguards and excellent high quality paint job, thats it and it looks fantastic.

Well beside the Dominator, this gentleman has also some other products up his sleeve, all for sale. There is a 1966 NORTON Atlas 750 purely original except for the handlebars and a 1968 BSA Spitfire Mark IV which has been restored to its original condition. And hey! there is also a 1925 Rayleigh. Happy Bidding!

In The News - HONDA FURY - New Chopper

There is just 1 day remaining before HONDA showcases the FURY, the 1st ever 'production' chopper from a Bike giant. There has been so much of speculations, but I guess we can wait for 1 more day before it is officially launched in New York International Motorcycle Show on Friday (16th Jan). The picture above is courtesy Hell For Leather Magazine. The first scoop photos came to the net through Solo Moto who got some spy pics of the bike being tested.

The Fury has a 1312cc fuel-injected liquid-cooled shaft driven V-twin engine and certainly the longest wheelbase of any production motorcycle at 1808.5mm. To support the massive frame, it has fat 200 series rear tire is supported by a hidden monoshock while the front tire is a skinny 90/90-21.

There is also an official website for the launch called Fury is Unleashed!

Wraith... In Action

I just cant get enough of the Confederates. Well, they look and sound as good as the Vincents and Nortons. So here, once again, 3 videos featuring the WRAITH. The first one is a clipping from a TV Series (US) named "Lucky Chance". (Duration 1 min)

The above video is a test ride before leaving for the Bonneville Salt Flats. (Duration 1:24)

And now... The Wraith Prototype 1 speed testing at the Salt Flats. Awesome!!!

All links courtesy of Confederate Multimedia

Moguls of Motorcycles

By 'Moguls of Motorcycles', I mean high end bikes. By high end, let me tell you, I dont mean the customized bikes (read 'only-one-of-a-kind' bike)and not the Dodge Tomahawk at least (geez! it has four tyres!), by high end I am narrowing to production bikes, maybe limited edition, but one which you can get off the shelf, you know just book and buy. So which are the Top 5 'Moghuls of Motorcycles' today? (Now we are talking above $50,000 here, okay!)

At # 5 is the Ducati Desmosedici RR. Well you all know about it, so its not worth discussing it over here. This Race Replica is worth $72,500. If you really want to know more on this limited edition, just go to Ducati Desmosedici RR

At # 4 is the Confederate Wraith. Limited to 250 only, this handbuilt Confederate B120 Wraith has a carbon fiber chassis and the limited edition bike will cost you a whopping $80,000. Yes it can beat a Busa and all that and if you are really thinking of buying this bike, you better get her to know at this link Confederate WRAITH

Up one place at #3 is the sibling of the Wraith, its the new Confederate FIGHTER . This cutting edge bike is even rarer at only 45 and according to the website, there are only 27 left. So better hurry if you have won a jackpot somewhere. Man, you will surely get noticed anywhere you go. Oh yes, this will cut your pockets by $110,000. Here is the official link Confederate FIGHTER

At #2, it the MV Agusta F4CC which Mr. Tumburine himself designed and that too hand built! This diamond will be limited to only 100 (and 1 of them was already bought by one Mr. Bruce Wayne in The dark Knight!). Sssh! It has titanium in its chassis. The price, well they happily hand you one for $120,000. Just take a look at the MV Agusta F4CC

And so at #1, is the bike which actually is not 'a bike' in the proper manner, after all it is powered by a Rolls-Royce Model 250 turboshaft engine and it runs on diesel or kerosene, but the Guinness World Records officially states the MTT Y2k as the "Most powerful production motorcycle" and the "Most expensive production motorcycle." So... anyway, this jet engined motorcycle will cost you upwards of S175,000. Why upwards, because after the first MTT Y2K was found to have a lack of power at 320hp, its brother came out last year with 400 hp named the Streetfighter. Dont believe me, okay here is their website Marine Turbine Motorcycles.

Ok, happy shopping and which ever you buy, wear a helmet, ride safe (Philosophical, eh!), I dont know about wearing the helmet bit, but with that kind of an investment, even Jay Leno and Tom Cruise must be riding them very safely, whatsay? One more thing, Confederate had 2 bikes here, had it been a Top 6, its other sibling, the Confederate Hellcat would have made it.

British Japanese blend of Café Racers

This are some fine looking Café Racer. Well although Café racers are actually meant to be pure British, you know BSA + Norton or Vincent + Triumph, etc, there can also be a Brit – Jap combination, no!
After all, the Brit engines are not bullet proof at least in comparison to the Japanese. So if simply couldn’t be better if you have a Japanese engine with the British looks of the tanks, handlebars, seat, etc.
This is a Norton – Kawasaki with a little bit of Suzuki in it and lots of self made accessories. Mr. Phil Klawsuc of the U.K is the proud owner of this beauty. He put his 1968 Kawasaki W2 engine into the Norton featherbed frame, a frame which will probably house any engine you throw at it. He uses the W2 because he wanted to make a real looking Café Racer and the W2 was very British looking. So again you get a not so modern engine in a classic British frame, but nonetheless, the engine is reliable.

Look at the second picture on top. Another beauty here is yet another Norton – Kawasaki partnership in again a Norton featherbed frame. The engine is from a Kawasaki triple which is a 2 stroke mean machine. And the third is a Norton – Yamaha affilation, named YAMATON. The Yamaton is actually a pure Yamaha 650 Special with its frame and engine. Built by Bob Vail of the AMA, the tank is a Dunstall Norton and there are lots of other bits were hand made by Bob. The last model you see is also a Norton – Yamaha combination, the engine is from a Yamaha Virago V-Twin. No more information on the bike.

The Hyde Harrier Jubilee

Well you must have heard of Mr. Norman Hyde or in case if you haven't you need to check him out. For over two decades he has been associated with Triumph and more with the Bonne. Now the Bonne has entered its 50th year of production as we all know and there has been some serious work related to it and I had also made a post on it earlier here and here. Mr. Hyde has also come up with own tribute to the legend of the Bonneville.

This also coincides with the 21st anniversary of the Hyde Harrier (I am coming to "whats the Hyde Harrier?" later in the post) and it has been aptly named the Hyde Harrier Jubilee which is in fact the result of a 15-month project by Norman Hyde in association with Harris Performance. This prototype Jubilee was launched at the NEC Bike Show in November 2008.

As such the company produces accessories for new Hinckley Triumphs, as well as spares and accessories for Triumph 650 & 750, Norton Commando and BSA A75 beside being stockists for various accessories like Toga Classic Motorcycle Exhausts, AP Lockheed Brakes, etc.

Actually, what you see in the Jubilee is 'a kit'. Yes, that's right, so you can just purchage it OTC and make your own Bonne into the special Hyde Harrier Jubilee. The Base Kit form will give you a painted frame & swinging arm, non-painted fuel tank & seat unit with upholstery, battery carrier, dummy oil tank, footrests & fixings, gear lever, rear brake pedal (both with linkage), rear mudguard, prop stand, rear wheel spindle & adjusters and adjusting spanners. Well thats about it, what more can you ask for, but wait, there is also a Top Kit where you can make up the full Jubilee as shown in the pictures. These include a handmade Harris stainless steel race exhaust, Öhlins suspension front and rear, forged Dymag wheels, Acumen instrumentation, AP Lockheed radial brakes and Keihin smooth bore carburettors.

Like the original Harrier, the Jubilee is powered by a Triumph engine, although in this case a modern Hinckley-built 865cc unit. However customers may pick and mix a variety of exotic components to add to the Base Kit, as shown on the prototype.

Hyde Harrier, the brainchild of Norman Hyde are conceived as a high-performance machine, like the factory triples of the 1970’s. These Cafe Racers are street legal though capable of 130mph . Mr. hyde started work at Triumph’s Meriden factory in 1965 and was part of the team that developed the three-cylinder 750cc BSA and Triumph racers of the early Seventies. He was also a successful drag racer and record-breaker. The Hyde harrier was first introduced to the world at the 1987 Motorcycle Show (so its the 21st year as in 2008). The Harriers were tuned Triumph engines which were aided by Harris Performance who supplied the stronger chassis, suspension and tyres. It was so tough and eduring and proved a race winner when the first Harrier race bike won its inaugural race at Scarborough in 1988, in the hands of TT legend Geoff Johnson. These chassi kits are still available and as a tribute has also been acknowledged in the National Motorcycle Museum. These modern machines are powered by the electric-start 750cc T160 Triumph Trident unit made from 1975-1977.
So if you want to personally thank him and get your stuff, you can meet him at the following address - Norman Hyde Ltd, Rigby Close, Heathcote Industrial Estate, Warwick, CV34 6TL or if you are the casual sort, why not call him at +44 (0)1926 49 73 75 or fax him at +44 (0)1926 83 23. The retail price for the Base Kit is £3995 and the Top Kit is £6643 (both exclusive VAT). For more information, visit Hyde Harrier or Norman Hyde.

The Multi Faceted XS650

I have ridden the XS650 and couple of its siblings and had owned the 400 version, yes its a good bike with no complaints, but you know, it will be difficult to highlight any particular aspect of the bike, not because there are many, but because I couldn't find it, I mean its a REALLY good street bike with no complaints whatsoever, but as I said, no highlights and that is because I always compare it to the CB750, after all they were both launched almost together.

Anyway, its not about the XS650 history, but about its reincarnation upteenth time! The CB750 (there I go again) is not often seen as it has become kind of a memory now, but this XS650! You will have to say that Yamaha is still producing it. And no bike has gone or been customized in so many different versions like the XS. Chopper, Bobber, Cruiser, Cafe Racer, Track, Street, you name it, the XS650 has 'been there, done that'. Just search for Customs Yamaha in this blog, you will see the different avataars of the XS.

The white XS650 you see here is a 1977 Yamaha XS650 (recristened Cafe XS Classic) twin featured on ebay and the last time I checked, it was still available. Now this bike is close to the original with a modified rear seat and head lamp which gives it a semi cafe racer look, dont you think?The bike has been stunningly detailed. The owner reports this bike as having sandblasted frame, refinished with automotive silver basecoat clearcoat with more or less everything replaced with new materials. The gas tank is although from a Honda CB500T.

There is a certain Mr. Richard Pollock, owner of Mule Motorcycles. He is into customization and I intend to make a post on his creations, and I will, but he has such a huge collection, that to really churn out his best work is also tedious. None the less, i will make a post on Mule Motorcycles. The red beauty above is a product of Mule Motorcycles. What a delicate looking thing, this is, I dont even feel like riding it and those upswept exhausts...ooh! I am so much in love with those.

There is something ... has to be... about the XS that people love it so much. Maybe because its simple and the frame is such that its kind of a one-size-fits-all thing, moreover its a smaller displacement engine, so its much easier to fiddle with, easier to customize, looks good and of course easy and fun to ride. Bottom line it is an inexpensive option to get you noticed and which biker wouldn't want that? Only thing now is you wont probably get a XS650 to play with as it seems all of them have been chipped, cut and modified and so most of the stuff you get on ebay are also customized like this model here from ebay(see above). Bidding has closed (for your info), but what did I tell you, this time a XS650 chopper version!

But for this particular post, this XS650 Chopper Bobber featured on ebay takes the cake definitely. This 1980 bike is still up for bidding. Its 4 feet long and some of the interesting changes include LED turn signals and brake light, customized seat and a fine dual tone colour. Wires, battery and electricals are new, it has new Maxxis Classic Tires and the forward control linkage is custom made. Well, there is still time to bid for it and in case you want a original XS650 to play around with, you cant have anything more cheaper than the two (1,2) bikes featured on ebay. And in case you have actually forgotten how an original XS650 looks like (after all you hardly see them), here is a picture to refresh your memory. The second one is the 'Special' which Yamaha launched with raised handlebars.