Yamaha R1 from Hell

Check out http://bellcustomcycles.com/ for more bike builds.

So this bike is very special to me and by the end of this story you will understand why. You see I actually met the owner of this bike long before either of us decided to put it together. I was at the beginning of my relationship with his sister and he was someplace in Iraq. So it started not that I would talk directly to him but, his sister would send him pictures of the projects I was working on at the time and he would send us pictures of things he was blowing up.

Fast forward a few years and my now basically brother is helping me unload a 98 Yamaha R1 out of the back of my truck. Yeah it was rough but it ran and the paint on the rims and tank was incredible. The work had the signature of JAWZ and after some research we found out that this bike had a complete street fighter kit installed on it. We also found out this bike came over from Europe because the parts were nightmare when we went through putting this bike back together. Another give away was the speedo (it only reads in kilos).

From the start he decided to keep the tank and rims intact and it would be my job to continue the theme that was already there but, convert the bike back to a full street bike with full fairings. After inspection there was a short list of mechanical problems but a large list of missing parts. Since every fairing was missing we went with a set of race fairings. We didnt have a headlight figured out either so we figured we would mold our own out of lexan during the build. I picked up a brand new tail and under tail in blue and it matched the blue in the tank and rims perfectly! It was a calculated risk since I knew the base paint on the tank was the factory blue. We rounded up new and used parts from around the world and installed them as they showed up. The whole bike came together in about four weeks and the last two things left to do were the headlight and paint.

During mock up we had already decided on the shape the headlights would be and cut the needed holes in the upper. The trick would be to get the lexan to fit snug to the holes. After what seems like years of melting pieces of lexan that never quite fit well we scrapped that plan and glassed the upper to fit a factory R1 headlight bucket. Since the bucket sat back from the fairing about ¾ it gave it a frenched look.

A trip to the paint store with a sample for color matching we were ready for paint. I decided the best way to get the lines flowing was to put the bike together and use the tank as a guide for the multiple colors I had to lay down. Using the natural lines of the bike and the existing lines the graphics dictated I came up with what the bike is today. When I took it for the shake down ride somebody said it looked like a Captain America bike. Well the red, white, and blue sure makes it patriotic and the fact that a Veteran owns it puts another great twist to the overall story of this bike. It just makes me proud to have been a part of such a special project.

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• yamaha
• r1
• suzuki
• honda
• kawasaki
• motorcycle
• hot
• custom
• streetbike
• project
• motor
• sport
• auto
• boat
• airplane

[webassasin]

clown bike,fucked up video.

if you cant make it on a video,dont post slideshows.

[TOPWATER187]

@webassasin If it is such a clown bike then it should be perfect for you, and you shouldn't be talking about slide shows or videos when all you do is post other peoples work.

[4gclipseGT]

does it run?

[TOPWATER187]

@4gclipseGT Like a raped ape starving for a banana :)

[weeeezzll]

Nice work, the head lights setup is super clean looking! How did you recess the fairing around the headlight lens?

[TOPWATER187]

@weeeezzll When I mounted the headlight it sat back about a 1/2 inch from the race fairing so we made up the gap with fiberglass mat and resin. After 2 years it is back in my shop today for a new battery other than that its as perfect as this video.

Thanks for the kind comments, T187

[3king70]

240p we meet again

[DriveMyselfSane]

Very nice.

[yodiracer]

It's a beautiful work of art! Thank You for sharing!

[cyclopse50]

epic

[AFOMCOLOMBIA]

reconstructed very good congratulations! I have two questions friend 1. ram air system has 2. sprockets kit drag that big are they? modify somewhat the performance of the bike? thanks and congratulations again thanks for replying

[lifeshort]

Looks shit, there's a million other R1's out there just like it

[rocknrollcat57]

Must say you have made a beautiful job of your bike and also a bloody good video. Really enjoyed watching it and all the best for the future.

Steve/UK

[sniperdude911]

@MyAvatarboy On the seat.