B-05K Turns Me On

Absolutely fantastic conversion of 1/2 pint (less than even) Yamaha.
From dorky GX400SP boulevard hopper...

into race-rep terrorist by AN-BU, Nagoya, Japan. BP

Honda RC213V-S

Marc Marquez's GP bike on the road.
Love this paintjob and the whole concept, just ditch the blue front disc carriers. G

See more photos at the excellent twwhlspls

GSX-R1000 on Dirt

Finland.
Impressive, but once you've seen Bender on his Shovel on a frozen lake (see SB18) or the Panigale at Dirt Quake USA the gloss is taken off it. G

Via Derestricted.

The Black Arrow on Bubble Visor

Lenny at Bubble Visor sent me some questions to go with some photos of my Suzuki street bike project, the Black Arrow, taken at Racefit last summer. You can see more photos and read the Q&A at Bubble Visor.
Massive thanks to Mat for these photos. They were taken a few months ago and the bike is now a runner with a custom wiring loom, chain, the whole lot! G

The Near Future?

I hope so... Off-topic*, but Suzuki's new turbo concept bike looks great to me. This is what Suzuki says.

Suzuki Recursion Concept, a compact roadster powered by a new 588cc parallel-twin engine which also features an intercooler turbo, designed to provide both high fuel economy for city riding and ample torque when ridden on open roads. 

The style and design of the Recursion is also aimed at providing all of the running performance of a bigger capacity motorcycle, while retaining the handling benefits of a middleweight machine.

**(We don't say that much any more. If you're not interested in one post, wait a day and there's another, or dip into wormholes of Sideburn blog vaults for over 4100 other posts.)

Icon 1000

American motorcycle clothing firm (and friends of Sideburn) Icon have launched a new higher end line called ICON 1000 and shot a Mad Max 1 survivalist chic campaign to promote it. I can't stop looking at the photos. The guys from Portland have some brilliant ideas and seem to execute all their marketing, from their videos to their Limiter free magazine, with panache and gusto. And a new clothes range gives them a chance to build new bikes too, in this case: Magnificent Bastard, The Roach and the revisited Operator.

NSR250 tail?

The Magnificent Bastard - a 1986 VF1000R. Icon say 'However you chose to describe her – stout, thick, big-boned – there was no denying the VF1000R was one seriously heavy motorcycle. Far too heavy for the track, which is ironically the exact use for which she was bred.' The Honda is now a mix between the Goose's MFP Z1 and the bikes of the Toecutter's gang. Rally lights, crash bars, Leo Vinci end cans and knobblies on stock Comstars. I love it. Not sure about the CB radio though. It's probably some iPhone compatible retro thing that's passed me by. G

The Operator: Redux, Icon's 1999 900SS. They say, 'Her pipes bludgeoned by numerous asphalt encounters, a frame horrifically marred by spilled battery acid, and a set of valves that have never seen the caressing hands of a trained mechanic; she was very much worse for the wear.'

The Roach - a 1986 Sportster. Icon describe it as, 'Superficially patinated with the neglect of three decades, her rusted tins belied her pristine guts. Oversized forged pistons, clearances cases, and back-cut tranny gave her both the lungs and legs of the finest thoroughbred.'

Shots from the lookbook (this is 'fashion speak' for brochure). See more at ICON 1000.

The Cockroach

I needed a winter bike. Well, I needed a bike to ride until the Black Arrow is finished. After having to get rid of one British automotive design classic a little past its best, I decided to buy another. This is a 1999 T595 Daytona in Speed Triple trim. It's rough. I've named it the Cockroach.
It has a bad rattlecan paintjob, the indicators don't work, nasty enduro front light, broken gear lever, the ugliest stick-on tank protector in the universe and uncomfortably low bars, but it has a couple of month's tax and test, it runs and starts really well, sounds great and, the clincher, it was £730. Yes, 730 quid! G

Ben Wilson

Ben Wilson is a furniture designer (among a long list of sub-genres), and when he gets bored of objects with 4 legs, he likes to experiment with things that have 2 wheels. This is his XS400 shopping bike (bigger objects can always go in his duffed up Mitsubishi pick-up). I'm in love. I think this is the direction my XS650 chop needs to take when it rises from the ashes after a 7 year slumber (probably in another 7 years time). BP

The Norton Gang

Excerpt from the Rider Files
...George Kerker, Jack Simmons and Bill Manley were better known to their fans, journalists and fellow competitors as the Norton Gang. Rather than run the conventional road racing machines of the era with clip-ons, fairings and rear-sets, the Norton Gang elected to race production Norton Commandos, high bars, low pegs and all. While in retrospect the Norton Gang were simply harking back to the traditional AMA Class C concept (production-based racing) the Norton Gang were consider rebels among the road racing traditionalists of the late 1960s.

Looks like Bill has a paper plate number board? Good man. BP

Racefit

I met Jon from Racefit to buy a bunch of used parts for my Suzuki project bike the other day. Jon is one of the good guys and it becomes even more obvious how good he is when I have to deal with some of the two-faced, back-stabbers I have the misfortune of dealing with from time to time. Jon and his business partner Phil make beautiful titanium exhausts. Racefit are completely independent. Every now and then Jon finds the time to build a bike too. This is one he built a few years ago. I've just been to feature his latest special (below with their £250.000 tube bender) for PB. And Jon's started a blog. If he can get into the swing of it, it'll be great. He loves the good things in life and has a great eye when it comes to building bikes. GI

UPDATE: As requested, more details of the black bike. Spondon Z1 alloy frame; 2005 AMA spec Spondon swingarm; GPz1100 motor; GSX-R1000 front end; 16.5in Dymags (I think); slicks: Z1B bodywork with Newton dry-break fuel fillers; Moriwaki pipe; Keihin flatslides; PFM discs; Scitsu rev counter; Ohlins shocks and steering damper. That's off the top of my head.
Racefit blog
Racefit main site

Steve's Spencer Evo at Cadwell

Found this photo on my computer today. Steve on his Spencer Evo. Great bloke, great bike builder, great style, great bike.
That's Cadwell's Mountain by the way. G

North West 200

Our man Guy Martin is not going so big today at the North West. In his first race he wound his 600 Honda up to 204mph and third position. But then disappeared - What happened Guy? Watch live NOW via the BBC website (maybe not outside of the UK?). Highlights on BBC TV Sunday night. BP
Are we going to see you back on the dirt this season Guy?

Authentic Plastic

Nabbed from the treasure trove at Poppa Wheelie. A highly unlikely scenario, but a great image none the less. BP

Guzzi art

More computer jiggery-pokery from Driver Chris. This time of Ben's Guzzler.

'I love that shot, and it was only relatively recently that I discovered it was Ben's shot (and bike) so my apologies to him for taking liberties... I put a pair of blue jeans on her and couldn't resist making the helmet a 'Captain America'.

'Keen Indian motorists will also recognise the Tamil Nadu registration plate (taken from my old Bullet it now has a place in the shed).' Chris

Mixed-Race K Series H-D™

No Harley™ fan per se, but I do like this 50s K mash-up. (robbed from our from our Italian chum Otto Nero's blog). From brake-less skinny Ceriani forks, double-barreled modernish Mikunis ready to broadside the enemy, modern PM(?) rear caliper, to cheap after-market XR style seat and tank, but then sheathed in a classic full fairing. BP

Freddie Spencer Evo

Nope, not a dirt tracker, but one of the most detailed specials I've ever seen. Remember the Lakeland Moriwaki Centre? Well this is the kind of bike that comes out of it. GIA Engineering big-tube, anodised alloy frame, 6.75in rear Dymag, Racefit Ti exhaust, Bandit engine, Yoshimura-Mikuni TMR MJN, dual-stack carbs, and, and, and... Amazing bike that wheelies for miles. In this month's PB. GI