Build your own Bike!
By Matt Carpener
To build or not to build?
There are many things in the biking world to keep us entertained and involved and many choices when it comes to styles of machines and what we want to get out of our obsession with all things 2 wheels. Whether it be a humble but reliable commuter, a toy for dry weekends or a focused competition machine, there is a huge and varied choice of motorcycles across the ages to meet the need or criteria. But what happens when you just can’t find the machine that exactly suits your requirements? A project is born!
I have dabbled with motorcycles for the last 26 years and during that time I have had the pleasure of owning 30 bikes from 125 to 1200cc, off road and on road styles from the “big 4” Japanese manufacturers to diverse marques like Gilera, Morini and Benelli but the bikes I have altered or built have been some of the most memorable.
Budget has dictated many of the ideas and so modifications were the starting point until I gained mechanical experience (through learning the hard way or desperately trying to follow a workshop manual).
My first dedicated project was a humble 1982 XJ550 Yamaha which was tired cosmetically so ended up with a RD350LC body kit to freshen it up. A few years later came a Yamaha FZ750 and this was more of a challenge. I inserted an FZR1000 engine into the frame and grafted a Honda single sided swinging arm, adding rose joints to adjust ride height and made spacers to ensure chain alignment. The front end also received a 6 pot brake upgrade which introduced
me to the world of making brackets from scratch. This was a more “engineering” approach and I learned a great deal but relied heavily on friends to advise and assist.