Moritz Bree is solely 19 years previous, however he’s already made a dent within the customized scene. He first blipped on our radar seven years in the past, when, at age 12, he constructed a customized bike with Dirk Oehlerking from Kingston Customized. Then, when he was 16, he took up an apprenticeship at Reier Motors in Salzburg.
That’s the place the story of this cheeky Honda CityFly scrambler began. Reier Motors’ workshop was a two-hour drive from the place Moritz was residing on the time, so he discovered an residence to hire shut by, intending to separate his time between there and residential.
“I wanted a every day rider that may reliably take me to and from the Reier Motors station on the weekends,” he tells us. “In Austria, you’ll be able to solely drive a automobile on the age of 17 on the earliest. So I rode the Honda CityFly in every kind of wind and climate.”
“An previous man offered it to me for a whopping €800 [about $870], full with a windshield and high case. Solely the tassels on the handlebar ends had been lacking. It was extremely ugly, but in addition extremely dependable… a typical Honda.”
Moritz initially put in heated grips to get him by means of winter, and ultimately swapped the seat for a skateboard deck lined with a Mexican blanket. The Honda CityFly remained a partially-customized every day beater, till a fateful accident on the German novice flat monitor occasion, Krowdrace. Moritz hit the deck throughout his warmth and would have walked away unscathed, if not for one more rider that ignored the pink flags and ran over his knee.
“I had a number of time,” he tells us. “Time for concepts and time to tinker, albeit on crutches or a stool. Thank God my boss, Christian Reier, had a number of understanding.”
Moritz additionally had assist from Kai Glatt, one of many homeowners of the German motorbike gear firm Rokker. The 2 bought to speaking and got here up with the concept of turning the CityFly right into a customized scrambler that would symbolize ‘Using Tradition’—a Rokker sub-brand aimed toward youthful riders. Moritz no longer solely had time on his arms and a workshop at his disposal, however a transparent mission too.
First on the listing was perfecting the bike’s stance. The Honda CLR 125 CityFly was initially designed as a small-capacity dual-sport (a cousin to the XLR 125), so it got here with 19F/17R wheels. Moritz wished a extra balanced look, so he laced up an identical set of 18” hoops. He picked Excel rims as a nod to his love for motorcross, and Heidenau K67 tires for his or her classic trials aesthetic.
The CityFly was a bit too tall for Moritz’s liking, so his subsequent transfer was to decrease the entrance suspension. However as an alternative of merely slamming the forks by means of the yokes he shortened them internally, working in small increments till the size was excellent. An impossibly chunky Öhlins shock was added on the again, within the identify of overkill.
Moritz was now effectively on his manner down the rabbit gap, so he threw a bunch of upgrades on the Honda’s cockpit too. It now wears a set of tapered handlebars from LSL, held in place by new risers. Renthal grips, a single bar-end mirror, and a braided entrance brake hose full the bundle.
There’s no speedo, however Moritz isn’t fussed; the yellow Bates-style headlight he’s working isn’t technically authorized in Austria anyway. The bike does sport tiny LED flip indicators although, mounted discreetly on handmade brackets, plus an offset Bates-style taillight.
The CityFly’s new bodywork is a blended bag of goodies. Moritz began with a traditional Honda XLR 125 gas tank, which now wears sassy art work from the enigmatic Nig Nagel at Nagel Motors in Germany.
“It’s fairly bizarre,” Moritz quips. “The candy-painted rear fender happened after I bought the tank again from Nic. It wanted a robust distinction.”
By this time, Moritz had additionally discovered that the skateboard-based seat wasn’t going to chop it anymore. So he formed a brand new seat and had it lined in suede by Sam Saddlery. He additionally modified the subframe a number of occasions, till the rear loop appeared excellent to his eyes.
“I constructed every thing from sketches of mine,” he explains. “I did have a plan, however I saved drawing different sketches and discarding designs that I had already put into observe. Studying by doing—or designing by doing, you could possibly say.”
Different customized touches embody a stealthy aluminum battery field, and intelligent little brackets that stabilize the within of the rear fender. A TwinAir foam filter pokes out beneath the seat, with a re-purposed Professional Circuit exhaust mounted on the fitting aspect of the body. Flat track-style fork covers bear Using Tradition’s branding.
Moritz shaved off any mounting factors that he didn’t want, and welded on new ones the place obligatory. Christian Schaber lent a hand by giving the tank a transparent coat to guard the art work, and portray the body and engine covers. Lastly, Moritz cleaned up all of the Honda’s nuts and bolts and had them galvanized.
“My thought behind the motorbike,” says Moritz, “was to have the ability to rush from on-road to off-road at any time. And that’s precisely what I’m doing with it.”
“I’ve now accomplished my coaching, dwell in Tyrol once more, and have a full driver’s license—however I nonetheless love the little CityFly. Final 12 months she was on the Rokker stand on the EICMA in Milan. Let’s see the place she flies to subsequent… let’s see what I construct subsequent.”
Moritz Bree Instagram | Reier Motors | Photographs by Marc Holstein and Christine Gabler
