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Harley Street 750: Battle Of The Kings

Custom Harley Street 750 built for the Battle Of The Kings competition.
Harley-Davidson took a punt when it launched its Street models last year—and it’s paid off. The Street 750 and 500 are doing especially well in international markets, where there’s less emphasis on cubic inches.

In Europe, Harley is stoking the fires with its Battle of The Kings competition, pitching dealers against each other in a custom bike build-off. This is one of our favorites—built by Austrians Fabian Weber and Gregor Malleier of H-D Innsbruck.

Custom Harley Street 750 built for the Battle Of The Kings competition.
The Harley Street 750 is what you might call an ‘accessible’ bike—in both financial and riding terms. So the builders have to get maximum bang for the buck, spending no more than €4,000 on parts and keeping the workshop hours down to 50 or less.

Despite those restrictions, Fabian and Gregor have built a very stylish machine indeed. Workshop manager Gregor used to be a racebike mechanic, and can also build his own frames—so he knows how to work quickly.

Custom Harley Street 750 built for the Battle Of The Kings competition.
His protégé Fabian brings enthusiasm as well as automotive skills, and is a convert to the new wave custom scene: “Before we started the project, I was on holiday in Cape Town, South Africa. I came back inspired by the cafe racer scene,” he says. “I was even more pleased when Gregor assigned the main part of the project to me, such as design and selection of parts!”

The modifications are well chosen for maximum impact. Fitting a Free Spirits triple tree up front has increased the visual weight of the forks, which lose the stock rubber gaiters. Fabian has also lowered the forks and fitted a 19-inch Dyna front wheel, two inches larger than stock.

Custom Harley Street 750 built for the Battle Of The Kings competition.
The new triples have also allowed the speedo to be hidden better and the fairing repositioned for better lines. Free Spirits clip-ons increase the café racer vibe.

The rear wheel has gone up two inches in size too: it’s a 17-inch item from the Softail Cross Bones model. After a little drilling and re-arrangement, the Street 750 pulley was able to fit. The rear fender was widened and shortened to match, and a discreet LED strip fitted for lighting.

Custom Harley Street 750 built for the Battle Of The Kings competition.
There’s a custom saddle on top of the standard seat pan, and the ignition lock and horn have been moved to clean up the overall look. The wiring harness, traditionally a bugbear of lower-cost bikes, has been partially hidden. The mid controls have been drilled and powder coated, and drilled H-D ‘Silencer’ footpegs installed.

The exhaust headers are standard, but the look of the system has been transformed by fitting a stubby, screw-mountable muffler—which can be returned easily to stock.

Custom Harley Street 750 built for the Battle Of The Kings competition.
It shows what can be done with a little ingenuity, and not too much cash. And if this is the future of Harley-Davidson customizing, we’re all for it.

You can examine the other Harley Street 750 builds in the Battle Of The Kings competition here—we’ve already covered the XRTT Racer from Belgium. The finale of the competition will be next month at the Wheels & Waves Festival in Biarritz, France, where a panel of judges will pick a winner.

I’m betting this one has a very good chance indeed.

Battle Of The Kings | H-D Benelux Facebook | Harley-Davidson Innsbruck | Images by Christoph Villgrattner

Custom Harley Street 750 built for the Battle Of The Kings competition.

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Austria BikeExif Custom Motorcycles KTM Other Motorcycle Blogs USA

Two-wheel drive beast: The REV’IT! #95

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.
I’ve often thought that the true customizers in the motorcycle world are the dirt riders. They’re always tweaking and tuning, bolting on upgrades in search of a performance edge.

Ironically, the biggest improvement you can make to a dirt bike is one you’ll hardly ever see: a 2-wheel drive conversion kit. And that’s the secret of the beast we’re looking at here.

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.
The KTM 950 Super Enduro is a hefty machine—at ease on the road and hard-pack, but liable to become a handful on sandy or muddy terrain. The perfect candidate for a 2-wheel drive system.

REV’IT! creative director Gerbrandt Aarts was thinking along the same lines. So he briefed a team to turn the KTM into an ultra-capable custom: engineer Chris Cosentino, racebike builder and salt flat specialist Scott Kolb, and Brooklyn-based photographer and custom bike enthusiast Gregor Halenda.

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.
The idea was to create a completely new style of custom—by converting the rugged ADV into a truly go-anywhere machine. It’s called ‘#95’ as a nod to the year that REV’IT! started making motorcycle apparel.

Technically speaking, the KTM is using an all-wheel-drive rather than 2WD system. It comes from Philadelphia-based Christini Technologies, whose bikes send reviewers into raptures and have been pressed into service by the US military.

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.
It’s an interesting system. Via gears and shafts, power goes from the countershaft sprocket to the headstock, where it’s converted again via a pair of counter-rotating drive shafts.

The front wheel is driven at 80% of the speed of the rear wheel: this prevents undue torque from affecting the steering. When the rear wheel outpaces the front—via wheelspin in slippery situations—the front starts to dig in, bring the bike back into line. Wasted power becomes extra forward motion.

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.
The Christini setup is not the only mod. The frame has been reshaped to accommodate custom aluminum bodywork, including a monstrous 12-gallon fuel tank.

The engine is now fueled by a Keihin 41mm FCR carb kit, sucking in air via Cosentino Engineering billet velocity stacks. On the outlet side we’re looking at a hand-made stainless steel exhaust, with Cone Engineering stainless megaphones. It doesn’t take much imagination to figure out how deep it rumbles.

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.
The brakes have been upgraded too, with discs, calipers and a master cylinder from Moto-Master. Power hits the ground via DID x-ring chains and an Ironman rear sprocket; the wheels are Woody’s billet hub rims with Excel hoops and stainless steel spokes. That’s 19 inches at the front, and 17 inches out back.

The tires are Continental’s familiar Twinduro TKC80 dual sports, but the rims were chosen to accommodate more exotic rubber too—like Jeff Fredette’s custom studded ice tires, and Skat-Trak paddle sand tires.

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.
More conventional touches include a lightweight Anti-Gravity battery, a seven-inch LED headlight from Kuryakyn, and Chrome Glow LED taillights and turn signals.

It’s a bike that can walk the talk, with capabilities to match its no-nonsense looks.

Any dirt riders out there willing to take it on?

REV’IT! #95 build site | Christini Technologies | Cosentino Engineering | Scott Kolb | Gregor Halenda Photography

Is it possible to make the KTM 950 SE even more awesome? Yes, by adding a 2-wheel drive system.

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Austria BikeExif BMW motorcycles Custom Motorcycles Germany Other Motorcycle Blogs

What if T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS?

If T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS, it'd look something like this.
The last Das Traumwerk build we featured was controversial to say the least: a boardtracker with a bright yellow engine. Now Alex Ahrer and Herwig Prammer are at it again, with their mischievous Austrian sense of humour.

This time, they’ve taken inspiration from the 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia. They asked themselves the question: What if T.E. Lawrence roamed the desert on a motorcycle instead of a camel? They reckon it’d be something like this sandy BMW R100GS.

If T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS, it'd look something like this.
“We wanted to revitalize the atmosphere of the legendary and mystic Orient,” explains Herwig. “The appearance should suggest sand, desert, pyramids, nomad tents and bonfires under an endless sky. With the smell of incense and the taste of dates.”

Okay. Riiight. The illustrious history of the GS in the Paris-Dakar rally is perhaps a better connection to the desert, and prompted the duo to leave most of the R100GS chassis intact. The stock 21F/18R wheels were also retained, but wrapped in new Mitas offroad rubber. The suspension has been upgraded with Wilbers springs.

If T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS, it'd look something like this.
We love the period-correct accessories. Up on the handlebars is an early forerunner of today’s ubiquitous GoPro: a fully functioning screw-mount Leica camera. (“For historic action-shots,” according to Herwig.) Out back, there’s a Swiss army satchel and a NATO-style jerry can for longer rides.

The 1998-model engine was left untouched—save for the airbox, which was ditched in favour of cone filters. Das Traumwerk have also stripped the GS’ banana-shaped exhaust down, and rebuilt it into a simpler unit. As Herwig puts it, “All other folderol [triviality] was eliminated.”

If T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS, it'd look something like this.
The R100GS might be functional, but it doesn’t have the lines of a klassische motorräder. So the guys replaced the fuel tank with one from a late ’60s BMW /5, tweaking it to fit.

Then they shortened the subframe by almost eight inches, and installed a custom-made solo seat. It’s been upholstered in marble leather from an old chair.

If T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS, it'd look something like this.
The original rear fender was trimmed; the front fender’s from a 70s-model Japanese bike. The yellow headlight and speedo are from a BMW R65, and the turn signals and rear light were taken off a 1974 Honda CB450.

The matte sand finish dominating the BMW is offset by ‘Black Red’ powdercoat on the frame and assorted hard parts. Leather highlights soften the effect, and can be found on the tank and grips—and even a nifty cover over the shaft drive seal.

If T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS, it'd look something like this.
As much as we’re looking forward to the inevitable comments, we have to admit Das Traumwerk’s “Lawrence” made us smile.

It’s both practical and fun. What more could you want?

Das Traumwerk website | Facebook

If T.E. Lawrence rode a BMW R100GS, it'd look something like this.