In the event you’re nonetheless unhappy about Harley by no means bringing the Bronx streetfighter to market, California’s Whiplash Pace Firm has a customized Harley-Davidson Pan America which may simply scratch your itch. Subsequent, we function a battle-ready Honda Dominator, a Yamaha Scorpio SX225 from Bali, and a 1972 Kawasaki H2-R with a racing pedigree.
Harley-Davidson Pan America by Whiplash Pace Firm Whiplash founder Carlos Pena received into the elements and equipment sport by taking a grinder and welder to his Dyna Avenue Bob. Now specializing in slick customized elements for all types of Harley-Davidsons, the Southern Californian firm has simply constructed what Harley themselves couldn’t—a customized Pan America resembling the H-D Bronx idea from some years in the past.
When the Bronx idea was unveiled in 2019, we (and plenty of others) thought it was a step in the best route for the Bar and Defend. Its compact, fashionable avenue bike design was on observe to draw youthful patrons (one thing that H-D desperately wanted). However a brand new company technique noticed Harley all of a sudden diverge from the Bronx, a lot to actually everybody’s dismay.
We’re undecided if the Bronx was the inspiration behind Whiplash’s Pan America construct, however it definitely fills that hole. Beginning with a 2021-model Pan Am, the crew threw out a lot of the inventory bits and items.
A pair of Dymag 17” wheels with Dunlop Q5 tires set the decidedly street-biased stance. A carbon entrance fender was put in, together with a pair of Brembo brakes (with the ABS deleted). The inventory suspension was re-valved to raised swimsuit avenue using.
The entrance part is stored clear with a racing quantity plate, additionally constructed from carbon fiber. The inventory electrics are nonetheless built-in into the ECU, with the bike’s OEM TFT sprint sitting in a brand new housing, above a brand new steering damper and ProTaper bars.
The tank shroud and customized tail part are carbon fiber too, with a customized Whiplash seat nestled snugly betwixt the 2. The waspish tail, slick tire, and Akrapovič muffler spotlight how lengthy the Pan America swingarm is, however we’re critically digging the proportions. A brake gentle from the Whiplash catalog is ingeniously built-in into the again of the left-hand facet panel.
With sharp traces that ooze racing fashion, Whiplash’s Pan America is correct up there with our favourite Harley builds. [Whiplash Speed Company]
Honda Dominator by Matteucci Storage The Honda Dominator is a go-anywhere, do-anything form of bike. Whereas it may not set the world on hearth with blistering specs, it’s all however assured to get you the place it is advisable go. That is precisely why Marco from Matteucci Storage picked up this 1989 Honda Dominator—after which turned it into what he’s nicknamed the Honda ‘Raptor.’
“The Honda Raptor was born as an thought for a cost-effective motorbike for carefree enduro using,” says Marco. “Evidently, one thing went mistaken and we received carried away. The thought was to get base, throw respectable suspension on, and go have enjoyable.”
A Honda CRF entrance finish was bolted on, with a brand new 320 mm brake disc, a brand new caliper, and a Brembo grasp cylinder. A dust bike-style entrance fender was added too, together with the CRF’s decrease fork guards.
A KOSO LED headlight on a customized bracket lights up the evening, helped by a pair of fork-mounted spotlights. New bars on customized risers are adorned with Motogadget switchgear, heated grips, and Circuit brush guards. A brand new windscreen hides the Quadlock cellphone mount and the Motogadget Motoscope mini speedometer, which is embedded into the handlebar clamp.
Marco changed the inventory gas tank with an aftermarket 23-liter [6.1-gallon] Acerbis unit, good for lengthy days within the saddle. The customized facet panels, which resemble the form of a velociraptor, give the bike its title.
The inventory seat was trimmed on the rear and coated in customized vinyl to match the brand new paint scheme and the Mosko Moto saddlebags. The Moskos are protected against the exhaust with customized aluminum warmth shields, built-in into the rear rack.
A Keihin FCR41 carb was slotted in to place a bit extra pep within the Dominator’s step. The manufacturing unit airbox was left in place for max useability and reliability however the bike does exhale a bit of simpler by way of a brand new exhaust system. The complete bike was rewired from scratch and there isn’t a factor on the Raptor that hasn’t had a recent coat of paint.
We love purposeful journey builds, and the one factor we’d add to Marco’s Dominator is a number of layers of mud. [Matteucci Garage]
Yamaha Scorpio SSX225 by Deus Bali The scramblers and avenue trackers constructed by Deus ex Machina’s Canggu, Bali-based crew typically see their fair proportion of use. However the Yamaha Scorpio SX225 pictured right here has a extra colourful historical past than most.
It was initially constructed seven years in the past for a member of the Deus Bali crew and used extensively to get to and from work, simply nipping by way of the packed Southeast Asia streets. That’s till it was stolen.
“Within the final days of November 2022, a swaggering, nimble-fingered Englishman overtly rode it out of the yard compound at Deus (however that’s an entire different story),” reads Deus’ weblog. “Suffice it to say, the pommy pilferer was apprehended inside twenty-four hours and ended up behind bars, however the bike was additionally locked up.”
The police stored the bike as proof for 4 months, so when the crew lastly received it again, it was in a sorry state. A spare construct slot opened on the store final yr, so the drained Scorpio was wheeled onto a workbench for a brand new lease on life.
The bike was stripped down, with the engine (which was already bored out) receiving new rings, a rebuilt carb, new seals, and recent paint. A brand new, lowered subframe was fabricated and bolted on with a brand new leather-based seat, and a three-in-one lighting setup was built-in into the rear loop. The entrance and rear fenders had been made by hand from aluminum.
Hurricane handlebars and gum grips had been imported from Japan, and the exhaust was modified from a high-exit scrambler pipe to a low-slung avenue exhaust. Mini LED flip indicators hold off the entrance and rear of the bike, with the LED headlight mounted on customized brackets. The polished rims and chunky Shinko tires had been nonetheless in good situation, however the crew determined to switch the brakes and chrome steel brake traces.
A brand new surfboard rack (which could be a authorized requirement in Bali) was fabricated, together with new tank badges. The reversed logos had been the blissful end result of a producing error—however we expect they give the impression of being good. Deus Bali’s in-house painter took care of the British Racing Inexperienced, expertly laid over the fenders and tank.
This Scorpio has definitely had its ups and downs, however the silver lining right here is that it seems higher than ever. [More]
On the market: 1972 Kawasaki H2-R Within the early Nineteen Seventies, the American Motorcyclist Affiliation (AMA) set a 750cc restrict for racing bikes. This led to the rise of Method 750—an exciting collection that ultimately gained world championship standing.
The bike you see here’s a 1972 Kawasaki H2-R, particularly constructed for the racing collection. Method 750 bikes had to make use of engines taken from manufacturing bikes, so at its coronary heart is an air-cooled, two-stroke, three-cylinder lump from an H2 Mach IV street bike. Paired with a customized body taken from the Kawasaki H1-R Grand Prix bike, it appeared like a recipe for achievement.
Regardless of its prowess, Kawasaki struggled to clinch a Daytona win with the H2-R—or its successor, the liquid-cooled KR750. Nevertheless, the H2-R prototype, notably improved for high-speed dealing with by a customized body made by Randy Corridor, confirmed promise by profitable on the Talladega 200 and the Ontario 200 (ridden by Yvon Duhamel and Half Sensible, respectively).
This bike is believed to be one among six H2-Rs inbuilt 1972 and options one of many final wide-port engines utilized by Kawasaki. Its present proprietor bought the bike in November 2004, with the earlier proprietor having purchased the bike from Randy Corridor himself. The bike went by way of a sympathetic restoration, together with a full engine rebuild.
The bike retains its unique magnesium hubs and engine covers and even has unique paint on the tail and gas tank. The tank additionally wears a number of signatures from notable folks from the bike’s previous, together with Kenny Roberts and Giacomo Agostini. It’s been stored in a temperature-controlled setting as half of the present proprietor’s assortment and comes with an intensive historical past file.
The H2-R is being supplied on the market at Bonhams, with an eye-watering worth information of $148,000 to $198,000. Being such an necessary piece of Kawasaki’s racing historical past we’re certain the brand new proprietor will probably be proud—no matter how a lot lighter their pockets is after the sale.
