Sportbike News and Info
I saw this over at Autoblog and thought it worthy of posting- especially in light of the Harley Davidson/Buell divorce/death. It has been a crazy day for the motorcycle industry, for sure. As recently as last year, Piëch – himself a Ducati rider even at age 72 – commented that Read more…
This FZ1 and SV650 were in my shop for the past couple of months so I got to ride them both side by side. It is kind of a strange comparison, but I saw a guy on the FZ6 forum asking about which bike would better for him and so Read more…
Saturday was a dismal looking day with a low overcast sky and occasional light rain. Th clouds were so low and thick that the Aero Shell Aerobatics team only did 2 low passes because of terrible visibility. But in some ways, it was a blessing in disguise because the temp Read more…
Thursday nights are bike night at the world famous Vortex in Atlanta. There are always some cool and not so cool bikes that show up. But the atmosphere is always good. Guys hanging out and talking bikes. I didn’t get a picture of it, but one guy showed up on Read more…
Wow, this really sneaked up on me and I almost forgot to post about it- If you are at all into the Vintage and classic bike scene- or think you might want to be, don’t miss this event. It is 3 days of exhibits, swap meets, races and tons of Read more…
Well, here are a few pictures of the finished product. As you can see, it totally transforms the bike. Apparently, Yamaha does have a kit similar to this in other parts of the world but I’ve never seen one in the US. Tapeworks.com will have the graphics available as a Read more…
Well, all that is left is to do the final assembly. After letting the clear dry for a couple of days, we can reassemble the bike. One thing I noticed on the FZ1 is how heavy and complex the tail section is. It has to weigh 20 lbs all by Read more…
Very cool… From Ducati During the upcoming World Superbike weekend, to be held at the Italian circuit of Imola from 25th to 27th of September, the Ducati Xerox Team, in collaboration with Ducati.com, will allow fans from around the world the chance to see right to the heart of the Read more…
After installing the graphics, we need to clear coat everything. Clearing in the graphics gives the bike an almost unbelievably richer, more finished look. Since the graphics are actually printed on the vinyl, after clearing, it looks like it was painted. Much nicer than even factory style decals.
In today’s installment of the FZ1 project, we install the graphics on top of the yellow base coat. After I did the templates for the the graphics I wanted, I scanned them and sent them to Tapeworks for printing and production. Very nice stuff. The black is printed on the Read more…
BMW’s stunt rider, Christian Pfeiffer, takes his show up the elevator to the top of BMW’s tower and performs for the cameras. He is amazing… Enjoy. Oh, yeah, don’t try this where you work.
Here is part 2 of the transformation of a stock FZ1 into something totally cool and custom… In this installment, we disassemble the bike and sand/clean every part. By clean, I mean surgically clean. Then we prime everything with PPG white epoxy primer. White is pretty much a requirement for Read more…
In this series, we repaint a Yamaha FZ1 in a classic 80’s racing scheme.
If you want perfect integration for your Nav system on your BMW, you better be ready to pay…Why it is $900.17 instead of $900.00 I have no idea. Woodcliff Lake, NJ – August 24, 2009…Take the long route on your next motorcycle adventure with confidence and ease. BMW Navigator IV Read more…
The Monterey Historic races and show happened over the weekend and while there were plenty of cool cars to look at, there were also some really nice bikes. Autoblog was there and snapped a few pictures of 2 1098’s that Ducati did as a tribute to former race teams. The Read more…
“0 HP, 0 Torque, 360 lbs.” It can also be used as a coffee table. Pretty dang funny advertising. The real story is that my Friend Wayne, who used to be Buell’s stunt rider, called me and said “check out Buell’s website for the new 2010 Blast”. I could have Read more…
With the pricing on Japanese 1000cc Sportbikes in the 13K range, BMW is being quite aggressive with their new S 1000 RR price. At 13,800.00, it is right in the mix and will put a lot of pressure on the Japanese big 4 to cut prices. But the other big Read more…
Two of the best ever at what they do… and it is pure fun to see this kind of skill. Enjoy.
Very cool… as technology continues to improve and manufacturing becomes cheaper, the ability to ride more safely will increase significantly. Honda already has an airbag system for the Goldwing, but that of course wouldn’t help sportbikes or naked/streetfighter style bikes. I do have to say that the test rider is Read more…
I saw this over at Autoblog and thought you guys might be as offended as I am. Wow, apparently there is no accounting for taste- especially from a high end clothing designer. Tacky doesn’t do this justice. In fact, there is no justice for something like this. Maybe someone will Read more…
With the push to make everything green and efficient, it should be expected that an electric powered bike racing series would happen- and it has. Autoblog has the details of the FIM series to launch in 2010. While some of it is really cool, I just wonder if people will Read more…
It came out far better than I had envisioned. Most people are raving about it, so I guess they like it too. Painting the rear hugger and headlight really gives it a retro-custom look. Anyways, here are a few pictures of the finished product.
For those of you who like standard style naked bikes, you might be interested in my latest project- a FZ6 converted to naked bike and painted in the classic RZ350 yellow and black with strobe stripes. I worked with Rob at Tapeworks to develop the graphics and he will be Read more…
There are already a plethora of boutique bike companies and some of them make some very nice stuff. But the new kids on the block are a British company called Mac and they seem aimed at a very, very limited audience. Since they will be using the 500cc Buell Blast Read more…
Check out these specs from the BMW press release- Introducing the new BMW S 1000 RR on the legendary Monza Racing Circuit, BMW Motorrad is for the first time launching an absolutely innovative supersports with a straight-four power unit. With this world debut, BMW Motorrad is indeed establishing a true Read more…
I guess dominant is not too strong a word for AMA Superbike star Matt Mladin. In fact in might not be strong enough. At Barber Motorsports Park yesterday, he totally dominated the race and would have won by 5 or 6 seconds if it hadn’t been for a caution due Read more…
Zero has introduced their new street legal electric motorcycle and it looks promising as an around town alternative to a scooter. At 228 lbs, with 62 lb-ft of torque, it should have really excellent (and entertaining) acceleration. With a 60 mile range and a 60 mph top speed, it will Read more…
Well, that bike lasted all of 1 day after I finished it. I was hoping to keep it and ride it for a couple of months, but the first customer who saw it, bought it. He has a very sweet looking bike now! At any rate, here are a few Read more…
The quick conversion is 143 mph… I remember hitting a giant dragonfly on my bike at about 100 mph one time and I thought I had been shot. It really is a miracle that he didn’t crash. The progress continues as the first race gets closer. Munich. BMW Motorrad Motorsport’s Read more…
Ducati Seattle has been nice enough to post 48 pictures of the new Streetfighter. Lots of detail shots and different angles. So if you aren’t likely to get a chance to see one in person anytime soon, this is the next best alternative. Happy viewing! This is motorcycle prOn, so Read more…
One of the most popular bikes on the road today is the Suzuki SV650. They are comfortable, handle well, get great gas mileage and retail for about $6000.00 in the US. Used SV’s are really great deals. It comes in 2 variations- a Sport model with a quarter fairing and Read more…
BMW has announced a new Boxer for their 2008 line-up called the HP2 Sport. It has some very nice specs and looks to be the most sport oriented in the line. Here is the press release- The dream of many Boxer fans has come true: With the new BMW HP2 Read more…
Check out the latest Lambo in this Fifth Gear video. They pit a new 1098 against the Gallardo in a trio of tests including a 2 lap road race. I won’t spoil it for you, but suffice it to say that it was very close and lots of fun to Read more…
I finally have some pictures of a Ducati 916 that I painted last winter. The owner had crashed the bike pretty good and it needed a whole set of bodywork. I recommended that he order a set of carbon fiber panels from QB Carbon in England. They make some very Read more…
[youtube]i3_Z96lxyUo[/youtube] This is a good video that shows the first steps in learning to do wheelies. Good to see these guys are off-road and wearing good protective gear. The road in front of your house is not a good place to try this stuff even if your girlfriend is watching. Read more…
… … … … A few years ago, I had some VFR’s that had been wrecked and all the bodywork was destroyed. Honda stuff is expensive to begin with, but VFR stuff is crazy. Since the VFR was basically a street version of the RC45 racebike, I decided to see Read more…
I have to admit, that in my business, I get to ride a lot of different bikes and most of them are pretty forgettable like the EX500 I rode Sunday. But one of my all time favorite bikes is the 90-97 VFR750. It is a little heavy by today’s standards, Read more…
Speed is reporting that Motorcyclist has selected Dunlop’s Qualifier “Q” Sportbike tires as their product of the year. This is a really big deal since that award usually goes to a bike of some sort. I talked with my friend at Dunlop who does most of their testing after he Read more…