Two-strokes, transverse Vs, delicate reworks and full reinventions, our listing of the highest 5 {custom} bikes of March has (actually) a little bit of every part. Whereas there aren’t any tendencies to hint or commonalities of any kind between the next 5 bike builds, one factor just isn’t up for debate—our readers completely beloved them.
Every of those {custom} motorbike builds may stand by itself benefit, however collectively, they fashioned the most effective months in current Bike EXIF historical past, and we’re floored. So be a part of us, if you’ll, for a victory lap for final month’s most viral {custom} bikes.
1999 Harley-Davidson Softail by MF Customs
Hailing from MF Customs in Poland, the ‘Caddy’ began with a bizarrely good 1999 Harley-Davidson Softail donor. Earlier than the bike was mothballed for twenty years, the earlier proprietor swapped in a brand-new 80-cubic-inch Evolution engine and a recent five-speed transmission. Maciek Fludziński basically inherited a factory-fresh drivetrain, which allowed him to skip the mechanical triage and focus fully on the high-end aesthetic transformation.
The stance was slammed utilizing a Progressive Suspension package up entrance and a reducing package within the rear. It rolls on traditional 60-spoke wheels—21” entrance and 16” rear—shod in vintage-style Shinko 270 Tremendous Traditional rubber. To present the crate-fresh Evo some enamel, Maciek added a Mikuni HSR42 carb, a high-flow air cleaner and custom-fabricated shorty pipes to “wake all the neighborhood.”
For the bodywork, Maciek began with a Lowbrow Customs ribbed tank, flowing right into a bespoke sissy bar and a towering king and queen seat to anchor the silhouette. The cockpit is equally lean, that includes {custom} stainless seashore bars, TC Bros levers and a tiny speedometer to maintain issues in test.
The end is a nod to Nineteen Fifties GM luxurious, pairing Cadillac Blue with intentionally patina’d metallic accents. That diamond-stitched leather-based on the {custom} seat completes the Cadillac vibe whereas Efficiency Machine calipers present trendy chew. It’s a flawless piece of Polish craftsmanship that proves the American Dream could be reimagined wherever—supplied you’ve acquired the correct eye for element. [More]
1980 Moto Guzzi 850 T3 by 24 Bikes
After 4 many years in banking, Jochen Heinrich didn’t ease into retirement—he pivoted laborious. Again to grease, metallic and muscle reminiscence from his youth in his father’s Honda dealership, he’s launched 24 Bikes with a easy premise: one construct per yr till he hits 80.
The donor is traditional Guzzi—an 844 cc air-cooled transverse V-twin with pushrod-operated valves, a longitudinal crank and shaft ultimate drive. In inventory kind, the T3’s linked braking system and touring geometry prioritized stability over urgency. Heinrich retains the structure intact however removes the surplus—discarding manufacturing unit bodywork, simplifying the subframe and tightening the general package deal to shift the bike’s visible and dynamic middle ahead.
The engine has been gone via with intent. The highest finish is refreshed, respiration via Dell’Orto carburetors and a freer-flowing consumption path, then exhaling via a hand-built titanium exhaust system that reduces weight and backpressure. The inventory electrical programs have been modernized for reliability with a Motogadget mo.unit blue and an Elektronik-Sachse digital ignition. The result’s a cleaner-running massive block with improved throttle pickup and lowered rotational drag.
Cycle components deliver it into line. The chassis is shortened and cleaned, completed with a pair of 18-inch Borrani high-shoulder rims. Suspension is up to date to higher handle the Guzzi’s shaft-drive squat traits whereas braking is modernized past the unique linked setup for improved really feel and modulation. It lands at round 200 kilos—lighter, stiffer and extra responsive with out compromising the inherent sturdiness of the platform. [More]
Yamaha RD350LC by Patrick Lyall
The Yamaha RD350LC has at all times been much less about refinement and extra about timing—ports, pipes and a powerband that rewards dedication. This construct leans into that DNA, remodeling the LC as a hybrid relatively than a restoration. It retains the compact aggression of the unique however trades interval limitations for contemporary chassis logic and sharper mechanical intent.
Builder Patrick Lyall began with a naked Yamaha LC body, however the operating gear is something however inventory. A Honda NC29 swingarm replaces the unique unit to protect the bike’s proportions, paired with Kawasaki ZX-6R forks up entrance. Aprilia RS125 wheels full the package deal, with custom-machined elements and rearsets tying all of it collectively. The result’s tighter geometry, improved rigidity and a chassis that corrects the LC’s obscure twin-shock-era dealing with with out stretching the wheelbase.
The engine follows the identical hybrid logic. Sourced individually and rebuilt, the parallel twin is enlarged to 375 cc through resleeved and ported cylinders with recent pistons to match. Induction comes from 32 mm Mikuni flatslide carburetors feeding a prime finish tuned for high-rpm effectivity, whereas Jim Lomas enlargement chambers deal with exhaust duties—prioritizing scavenging and peak output. It’s a traditional two-stroke recipe however executed with trendy precision and element high quality.
Last numbers inform the story. In race trim, the engine pushes near 80 horsepower, although it’s been dialed again to round 64 bhp for the street, buying and selling peak output for midrange stability. It nonetheless revs to 13,000 rpm, and future plans embody an upgraded ignition and a TZ-spec crankshaft. With a bespoke wiring loom, hydraulic clutch conversion and modernized braking, the results of Patrick’s construct is an LC that punches above its unique weight class, however with a chassis and management package deal that may truly use it. [More]
1975 Honda Tremendous Cub by Brian Ricketts
The Honda Super Cub was by no means meant to be quick. Pressed-steel chassis, horizontal engine, mass mobility baked into each choice. That development is strictly what makes it troublesome to switch—and precisely why builders maintain attempting. This 1975 C70 doesn’t simply push previous these limits, it deletes them fully.
Builder Brian Ricketts retains simply sufficient of the Cub to anchor the silhouette—forks, headstock, tank and mudguard. The whole lot else is changed. A brand new chassis is fabricated from cold-drawn seamless tube, TIG-welded on a do-it-yourself jig with an extended prime tube and elevated rake. The construction ties again into the unique pressed-steel physique however finishes in a hardtail rear, buying and selling compliance for rigidity and stance.
The engine swap units the tone. Instead of the inventory 72 cc four-stroke sits a 1975 Yamaha DT250MX single—air-cooled, five-speed, and good for roughly 24 horsepower. It’s a threefold improve in output, packaged right into a body that was by no means designed to hold it. Fitment is tight sufficient that set up is a one-way operation, with the instances forcing asymmetry into the bodywork. Induction and exhaust are purpose-built, together with a {custom} enlargement chamber system with a entrance exit to handle house and circulation.
Cycle components are introduced as much as match. The entrance finish is widened and reworked with modified yokes, whereas Racing Boy rims are laced to Y125Z hubs and paired with outsized disc brakes. A {custom} lever system is added to counter front-end carry underneath braking. Out again, an identical setup with a rose-jointed torque arm and bespoke chain drive handles load switch. The consequence retains the Cub’s define intact however fully rewrites its operate—much less commuter, extra mechanical provocation. [More]
1973 Honda CB750 Café Racer by Minami Bike
The Honda CB750 didn’t simply set a benchmark in 1969—it scattered it. Inline 4, overhead cam, entrance disc brake, electrical begin. It was engineering made accessible, and it reshaped the market virtually in a single day. This specific ’73 instance provides one other layer—it spent years overseas earlier than being imported again to Japan, returning to the nation that initially engineered it.
At Minami Bike, the transient was restraint. Not a reinvention, not a components catalog train—only a cautious edit. The body is trimmed the place it usually will get awkward, with the rear loop cleaned up and extra mounts eliminated. Up entrance, the forks are dropped two inches to stage the stance, paired with a minimalist CNC-machined prime clamp that reduces visible muddle with out altering the bike’s core geometry.
The 736 cc SOHC engine stays largely intact, and that’s the purpose. Unique 28 mm Keihin carburetors and the manufacturing unit consumption system are retained, preserving the CB’s baseline fueling and response. Modifications are peripheral however deliberate—a simplified exhaust system with a four-into-one header and reverse-cone silencer sharpens the be aware with out chasing peak output. A full rewire introduces a Motogadget management unit, trendy regulator and lithium battery, updating reliability with out disturbing the engine’s character.
What lands is balanced relatively than reworked. Unique bodywork stays, all the way down to the Sweet Bacchus Olive tank and facet covers, whereas refinished wheels and up to date electrics sit simply beneath the floor. It reads like a interval café construct executed with trendy tolerances—much less about outright efficiency features, extra about eradicating friction from the unique design with out erasing it. [More]
Trending Merchandise
