Kengo Kimura commemorates Heiwa MC’s twentieth 12 months with an award-winning 1965 Triumph TR6 café racer.
Even when you’re a one-man military, working a {custom} motorbike workshop is a workforce sport. Each {custom} builder has their go-to suppliers, mates that drop by to supply ethical help, and, most significantly, clients that assist hold the lights on.
Kengo Kimura opened his store, Heiwa Motorcycle, twenty years in the past in Hiroshima, Japan. He met Kenji Fujii not lengthy after, and the 2 turned quick mates. So when Kimura-san needed to commemorate Heiwa’s twentieth anniversary with a particular undertaking, the fee got here from Fujii-san.
Kengo’s machines by no means miss, however this specific construct referred to as for a brand new degree of creativity. Not solely was he producing a motorbike for a pricey pal, however the annual Yokohama Sizzling Rod Customized Present was developing, and Kengo was decided to stroll away with an award.
He responded by delivering an achingly stunning café racer with flawless proportions and countless charming particulars.
A 1965 Triumph was chosen as a donor, however little or no of the unique bike was retained. Most of what you are right here was constructed from scratch—beginning with the Triumph’s impossibly elegant twin-down-tube body.
Polished and lowered Paioli forks have been put in up entrance, with a bespoke swingarm and mono-shock association propping up the rear. For the wheels, Kengo laced classic drum brake hubs to 19-inch entrance and 16-inch rear rims, wrapping them in Metzeler ME888 tires.
Subsequent, Kengo fabricated all-new aluminum bodywork for the classic Triumph; a slim gas tank with an identical tailpiece, and a tidy oil tank that sits on the left-hand aspect of the bike. The silhouette is typical Heiwa fare—slim, tapered, and pitch-perfect. An LED taillight sits neatly behind the tail bump, with leatherwork by Taste Leatherwork including to the luxe really feel.
The small print on this TR6 are out of this world. The oil tank incorporates a knurled filler cap and is plumbed with a tube quite than a hose, whereas the rear brake torque arm and license plate bracket are one-off elements.
Then there’s the cockpit, which incorporates a set of handmade bars that bolt on to the highest yoke. They’re fitted with Amal grips, with a Motogadget Motoscope speedo positioned useless heart. Out entrance, a home made headlight housing hangs off {custom} brackets, whereas a neat fork brace does responsibility decrease down.
The Triumph’s greatest spotlight is its reversed consumption and exhaust system. Kengo rebuilt the motor with Harris pistons and an digital ignition, flipping the heads round within the course of. Just a few hefty modifications later, and the Triumph’s single Amal carb now factors ahead, whereas its twin exhausts exit straight out of the again of the motor.
The carb is wrapped in a handcrafted spoiler that shrouds the air consumption, whereas sporting fins on the aspect that create visible coherence with the engine. Out again, twin headers snake their manner from the custom-made exhaust ports by the chassis earlier than exiting adjoining to the tail. Different key touches embody a {custom} factors cowl and warmth shields that seem to soften into one another.
In true Heiwa vogue, the Triumph TR6 is completed in a sublime livery, masterfully executed by N2Auto. Gunmetal Inexperienced adorns the bodywork, body, swingarm, and rear shock spring, complemented by orange striping and gold leaf logos with immersive textures. The bike additionally bears a suitably quirky nickname: ‘Wild Pigeon.’
A tasteful cocktail of artwork and engineering, Wild Pigeon is a commemorative {custom} construct like no different. Not solely are Kengo and Kenji comfortable, however the bike walked away from the Mooneyes present with the Finest European Bike trophy and the Tough Crafts decide—proving why Heiwa has managed to remain on prime of their sport for 20 years.
Heiwa MC | Facebook | Instagram | Photographs by Kazuo Matsumoto
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