Minus the mid-century innovations by Yamaha, Honda, and Suzuki, one could argue that motorcycling might be a lost art today. With their small engines, low profiles, and street-rider stances, these lightweight hallmarks of design give new riders all over the world a way into the fray, and experienced riders the perfect minimal ride.
These days, Yamaha motorcycles are at the core of the custom scene. They offer the perfect platforms for stylish urban rides with cheap price tags.
Models like the Yamaha XS650, SR400, XSR700 and XSR900 are among a legendary line of Yamaha motorcycles that beg to be turned into café racers, bobbers and trackers—and they fill our galleries of great builds.
The smell of two-stroke oil lingers in the air, courtesy of Roland Sands Design’s razor-sharp custom Yamaha RD400. We also profile a Triumph Bonneville T100 café racer, the new Triumph Rocket 3 Evel Knievel Limited Edition, and a collection of nine Kawasaki Z1R-TC turbos.
Read more »
Motorcyclists form a broad church, made up of countless factions, subsets, and niches within niches. From road to dirt, from cruisers to abusers, via more variations than any of us has the hours to map, we’re an eclectic crew above all else. Few know more about, or have done more to celebrate, the subcultures within…
Read more »
Remember the Yamaha RXZ Twinboss twin-cylinder two-stroke? Neither do we, because it never existed—except in the mind of Irwann Cheng. The Malaysian custom builder, who operates as FNG Works, has masterfully combined two Yamaha RXZ 135 engines with such panache, that you’d be forgiven for mistaking this for a factory unit. But what impresses us…
Read more »
The Yamaha RD56 cemented itself in the annals of motorcycle racing history when it carried Phil Read to Yamaha’s first-ever Grand Prix championship title in 1964. But that wasn’t the RD56’s only accolade that year; it was also the bike that Canadian racer Michelle ‘Mike’ Duff claimed their first Grand Prix race win on. Duff…
Read more »
In the world of classic thumpers, the Yamaha XT500 reigns supreme. It pioneered the concept of four-stroke dual-sport bikes, won the first…
Read more »
We all have our inclinations, preferences, and particular predilections. In custom motorcycle circles, a BMW boxer or Triumph Bonneville are considered mainstream…
Read more »
We’re expanding our horizons this week, starting with a World Superbike-spec Yamaha R1 and finishing with a stunning Métisse Steve McQueen Desert…
Read more »
The weekend is just about here, so what better way to celebrate than with a spicy two-stroke street tracker? This wild Yamaha…
Read more »
The Yamaha TRX850 is one of our favorite motorcycling anomalies. It was built in the mid-90s, when Japanese marques tried to corner…
Read more »
A surfboard rack on a motorcycle might seem like a gimmick to some, but if you live in Bali and love surfing,…
Read more »
Inheriting a project bike from another workshop is a huge gamble. There could be parts missing, the engine could be shot, or…
Read more »
Some motorcycles beg to be ridden in anger. Others drip with nostalgia. If you draw a Venn diagram of those two paradigms,…
Read more »