Utilizing a commuter bike as a platform for personalisation is hardly a brand new thought. However we’re nonetheless impressed each time a customized builder manages to show a humble runabout right into a bodacious customized moto. And that’s precisely what TwentyTwo Customized has finished with this Kymco flat tracker.
It’s not the primary time we’ve featured a customized Kymco from TwentyTwo. This one is type of a spin-off; the primary was referred to as the ‘City Drifter’ and this one’s the ‘City Drifter Flat Monitor Version.’
Primarily based in Taiwan, TwentyTwo Customized is the customized motorbike arm of the attire model Persist Bike Firm. Identical to earlier than, they collaborated with Robust Tracker in Taichung to transform Kymco’s plucky KTR 150 commuter.
On the danger of stating the apparent, the thought was to construct one other Kymco in roughly the identical fashion as earlier than, however with a robust flat monitor vibe. “I wished a motorbike that might be utilized in dusty races, however may also be used on the road,” says TwentyTwo’s head designer, Dong Lin. So whereas this Kymco seems to be prefer it’s a dirt-only machine, it’s only a few tweaks away from being street-legal.
The 1st step was to tweak the Kymco KTR 150’s stance. The workforce laced up a brand new set of wheels with recent Dunlop K180 rubber, measuring 19” up entrance and 18” out again. Flat tracker rear wheels often measure 19”, however TwentyTwo was aiming for a extra versatile setup.
The again finish additionally wears an extended swingarm, courtesy of one other one in every of our favourite Taiwanese customized retailers, 2LOUD Customized. 2LOUD has launched itself into the world of elements manufacturing, and the swingarm is a bolt-on half for the Kymco KTR sequence. The elegant chain guard is one other off-the-shelf 2LOUD merchandise.
A pair of latest MJP shocks props up the rear, sitting completely parallel to the bike’s foremost body due to the revised swingarm geometry. A single Brembo brake does obligation on the again.
The entrance forks are inventory, save for a set of plastic fork protectors. The fork lowers nonetheless put on their authentic brake mounts, however that’s not as a result of the builders had been lazy. The entrance brake setup is in storage, able to be put in when the bike must do obligation on the road.
For the bodywork, the crew tailored a Honda CB100 gas tank to suit the Kymco’s body. Sitting behind it’s a fiberglass tail unit from one other Taiwanese outfit, Twist Co. It’s topped off with an opulent elk leather-based seat pad, and the subframe’s been trimmed to accommodate it.
Flanking the bike are blacked-out aluminum quantity boards, fabricated to sit down completely in opposition to the flat monitor tail’s contours. A pair of drilled mounting plates maintain them in place.
TwentyTwo Customized and Robust Tracker additionally ditched the bike’s speedo and headlight, including an alloy quantity board instead of the latter. They’ve wired in a particular connector although, in order that they’ll plug a headlight in in minutes. The blacked-out handlebars are TwentyTwo’s personal design, whereas the blocky grips come from Oury.
Look intently, and also you’ll additionally spot a license plate bracket and up-cycled Honda CRF300L taillight tucked underneath the tail unit. Tiny LED flip indicators sit just under the quantity board up entrance, and simply behind the higher shock mounts out again. Ending issues off is a customized exhaust header, terminating in a good-looking Supertrapp muffler.
Though TwentyTwo Customized got down to construct one other City Drifter, they’ve taken the design a couple of steps additional. The important thing elements on this construct may need come from completely different sources, however they match up remarkably nicely. The general aesthetic is compact and playful, with simply the correct amount of paint and graphics to maintain issues fascinating.
It’s one other win for TwentyTwo, and one more reason to like small, unassuming bikes.
