Each {custom} bike builder has a horror story (or many) about having to repair another person’s errors. Sergio Almeida is not any exception. When he received his palms on this Yamaha XT600, it was a far cry from the slick street tracker you’re taking a look at right here.
“The bike was already removed from inventory,” says Sergio, who operates as WKND Customs out of Porto, Portugal. “It had an upside-down fork swap, a set of supermoto wheels, and a mixture of random components, together with a sportbike mudguard and a dual-headlight entrance fairing. It had already gone via a second engine, after blowing the primary—clear indicators of a tough previous that confirmed all through the bike.”
Sergio had two mammoth duties in entrance of him. First, he needed to undo the work already finished. Then, he needed to remodel the beloved Yamaha dual-sport right into a neo-retro road tracker that will fulfill his consumer’s wants.
“I made the ‘mistake’ of claiming that something’s attainable with sufficient money and time,” he quips.
As soon as the consumer had signed off on a digital render of the proposed design, the 1996-model Yamaha XT600E was dragged onto the bench and stripped down. “Then got here the inspiration—getting the stance proper,” he says.
The 17” supermoto rims that the Yamaha had include had been ditched in favor of 19F/18R aluminum hoops from Morad, laced to the OEM hubs. Sergio opted for a black end, earlier than wrapping the wheels in Shinko E270 tires for a classic grime tracker look.
“The origin of the entrance suspension was a thriller at first,” Sergio continues, “however after some digging, it turned out to be from a Gilera Nordwest. It was already mounted, however the job had been finished poorly. The steering stem had been lower in half and prolonged with a smaller diameter tube, welded in and left uncovered, like an apple core, and much from straight.”
The Frankensteined stem was changed with a custom-made unit, and the forks had been lowered internally. A stubby fender hovers over the entrance wheel, mounted on elegant handmade brackets.
In inventory type, the XT600 contains a single rear shock with a unusual offset placement—however this mission known as for a standard twin-shock association. Sergio liberated the bike of its subframe and shock mount and fabricated a brand new rear part with a shorter, kicked-up design. The brand new subframe downtubes had been designed to imitate the originals, and gussets had been added in key spots.
Sergio additionally added shock mounts to the Yamaha’s swingarm, earlier than putting in a pair of YSS shocks. “The format took some inspiration from the Yamaha XT500,” he says, “with the shocks mounted extra ahead and at a steeper angle than traditional.”
Getting the bodywork proper was key to nailing the temporary, so Sergio sourced a Yamaha XS400 gasoline tank and set about matching it to the XT600’s chassis. “Its measurement and angles suited the bike completely—however making it match was one other story,” he explains. “The XT600 makes use of an oil-in-frame system, and I didn’t need to intervene with that.”
The underside of the tank was modified to clear the oil traces, and new mounting factors had been added to each the tank and body to mount it in the appropriate spot. Sergio additionally lower out the unique filler neck, welded in a clear sheet of steel, and added a {custom} mount for a flush-mount pop-up cap.
Perched behind the tank is a slim solo saddle, upholstered in luxe Alcantara. An aluminum fender hangs behind it, adorned with a tiny LED taillight. Modern LED flip alerts are mounted to the gussets surrounding the rear shock mounts.
A discreet electronics tray sits below the seat, internet hosting a Lithium-ion battery and all of the very important electronics—together with a custom-made management unit that manages the lighting. Sergio simplified the Yamaha’s wiring too, with an emphasis on preserving issues neatly tucked away. The precise-hand aspect of the field holds the ignition and starter button, whereas the left sports activities mesh-covered air flow holes.
Additionally lurking below the seat is the XT’s bespoke airbox, which was designed to echo the traces of the gasoline tank. It hides a foam filter, wedged between two aluminum plates and surrounded by aluminum mesh. And though there aren’t any seen fasteners, the entire thing can simply be disassembled for upkeep.
Sergio additionally handled the XT600 to a full stainless-steel exhaust system. The dual slash-cut pipes exit on the identical aspect in a stacked formation, with detachable dB killers. (A hidden bracket holds them in place whereas sharing mounting factors with every pipe’s dB killer.)
The distinctive headlight began because the fog gentle of a Yamaha XJ750 Seca. Sergio stored the lens and encompass, flipped them sideways, and fabricated an aluminum housing. Then he upgraded its internals with LEDs, including high- and low-beam performance in order that it might function as a fully-fledged headlight.
LED flip alerts flank it, whereas a set of low-rise bars are mounted additional again. The cockpit options new Renthal grips, micro switches, and a small Daytona speedo.
Sergio’s sharp eye shines via within the Yamaha XT600’s pitch excellent finishes. The aluminum components had been micro-blasted and clear-coated, with a refined shiny stripe added to the gasoline tank. The exhausting components had been all painted, powder-coated, or anodized black.
This bike isn’t only a showpiece although. Sergio additionally refreshed the engine and carbs, changed issues like seals, gaskets, brake pads, and extra, changed a bunch of fasteners with stainless-steel objects, and zinc-plated the remaining. Subtler particulars embody a quick-release button for the saddle and custom-made foot pegs.
“There’s a lot work finished on this bike that it’s exhausting to recollect every thing,” Sergio provides. “It took a very long time to finish—in all probability three or 4 years from begin to end. It was a stop-and-start mission, interrupted by different builds like a Suzuki GS1100 for a similar consumer.”
“However, being probably the most difficult tasks I’ve tackled to this point, it gave me the possibility to strategy issues with a recent perspective after stepping away from it a couple of instances.”
WKND Customs Facebook | Instagram | Pictures by Craig Stuart
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