Category: Italy

Max Hazan has a motto tattooed on his hand: “Ever forward in creation.” And he’s a man of his word, building intricate, unusual machines that willfully ignore the fickle winds of fashion.

It’s an intensely individual approach, and one that has positioned LA-based Hazan at the top of the ‘motorcycle as art’ genre. He has entered the rarified atmosphere occupied by top-flight builders like Shinya Kimura, Chicara Nagata and Ian Barry of Falcon Motorcycles.

This is the second Ducati M900 that’s been through the Hazan Motorworks weight-loss program. The commission came from an enthusiast in England, and Max was understandably reluctant about building a similar bike. But the appeal of the classic Ducati Monster platform was hard to resist.

“I’ve always gravitated toward carbureted bikes, particularly air-cooled singles and twins,” says Max. “There’s much more creative freedom when you don’t have to factor in the peripheral parts that injected, liquid-cooled four-cylinder engines require. And they also sound the way a motorcycle should.”

As always with Hazan Motorworks builds, Max began with a full-scale mockup. “I started with the engine, welded up the frame, glued a huge block of foam to it, and let the lines of the bike dictate what shape to make.”

The foam technique allows Max to work in ‘real’ 3D, so he can analyze the proportions of every part. “I then transfer these parts directly to aluminum,” he says. “I’m often asked if I draw bikes first—and although I do enjoy the idea of drawing bikes and design them ‘in my head,’ it doesn’t translate to the finished product in the way that 3D shaping does.”

On this build, Max has kept the MH900 head tube and front engine mount, but remade the rest of the frame. The swingarm is a beefy Ducati 1098 item, which meant removing about an inch of aluminum from the back of the engine case and machining new pivot bushings. “Not an easy bolt-on modification, but it was worth all the work,” he comments. “The swingarm transformed the bike and gives it the stance that it needed.”

The next focus was the sound. The full stainless steel TIG welded system may take you a few minutes to process: It looks like a snake wrapped around a tree branch. And it sounds more like a drag-racer Harley than anything else.

Weight is just 360 pounds—around 165 kilos in metric terms—and the rebuilt engine puts out between 90-95 hp. Wheels are Carrozzeria forged items, with the front taken from a Ducati 916 and the rear from a 1098. They’re running 17-inch hand-cut slicks.

The tachometer was based on images from the client showing an antique diver’s watch. So Max commissioned Buz Ras of Seattle Speedometer to machine a custom instrument, which is now recessed cleanly into the top of the tank. The rest of the electronics are hidden in a recess under the fuel tank, keeping the clean look around the engine.

So how does it ride? I can say that it was unlike any Ducati Monster I have ridden before. The bike feels unbelievably light, and the front wheel lifts off effortlessly. The ergonomics are great for everyday riding and canyon carving: Not too low or hard on the wrists, but not too high and clumsy either.

It was hard to get off this one.

Hazan Motorworks | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Shaik Ridzwan

If Bryan Fuller’s name doesn’t immediately ring a bell, his face should. He’s the co-host of Naked Speed—Velocity’s popular, café-racer-centric show.

Bryan’s been getting his hands dirty far longer than he’s been in show business though. His shop—Fuller Moto—has built up an impressive portfolio of hotrods and motorcycles. And he’s written some handy DIY books along the way.

This off-the-wall scrambler is Bryan’s latest project. And unlike most custom scramblers we see, it’s been built to favour dirt over tarmac.

Look past the radical bodywork, and you’ll spot its most notable feature—the 250cc, bevel-driven engine. That’s right, Bryan’s ‘Dirty Duc’ is based on a 60s-model Ducati Scrambler.

“The concept for the Dirty Duc came to me when I began looking for a dirt bike to ride on trails in Atlanta,” explains Bryan. “I could have bought a cheap new or vintage bike, but at the time there really weren’t many custom dirt bikes out there. Besides, not building it myself just seemed like cheating.”

Bryan knew what he was after, but had to find it. Then, while scouring the swap isles at the Barber Vintage Festival, he came across a tired, worn-out Ducati Scrambler. It was way past needing a simple cleanup, but Bryan wasn’t fazed.

“I called the number listed on the sticker and waited for the owner to meet me at the bike. He said it ran, which was total BS since there were no fuel lines or wires attached. I didn’t care though—this bike was going to be mine. I happened to have $1,200 cash in my pocket from selling t-shirts that day, so I struck the deal.”

Deciding that trail riding is no fun alone, Bryan decided to build a matching second Scrambler. He approached Rich Lambrechts at DesmoPro, who had enough parts in his personal stash for a doppelgänger.

“Rich is one of the top bevel drive Ducati builders, with lots of experience and spare parts—a true master of his craft,” says Bryan. “Together, over the Christmas holiday, we rebuilt both 250cc singles and my round case 750cc twin ‘Full-Sport’.”

Rich overhauled each engine with painstaking precision—using an array of shims gathered over the years to assemble each component with near zero tolerances. “My role,” says Bryan, “was general excitement and help with polishing. Plus ARP fastener replacement duties, coffee infusion, food procurement, and alarm clock.”

Six days later, the engines were finished. Unfortunately an avalanche of customer projects then took priority: it would be a full year before the Dirty Ducs were back on the bench.

First on the agenda was increasing suspension travel. To get the most out of the rear, the swingarms were lengthened and modified to accept a side-by-side dual shock setup. Fox supplied a pair of custom-valved shocks for each, with a whopping eight inches of plushness.

Taking cues from modern dirt bikes, Bryan custom-made chain guides and added a runner near the swingarm pivot to keep chain slack to a minimum. He also used some old BMX pegs to cover up the original shock mounts: handy for loading, unloading and wheelies, or as makeshift passenger pegs.

“The vision was to get modern stance and suspension travel, with vintage Italian parts that would’ve set an extremely high standard back in the day,” Bryan explains.

Each bike also got a set of magnesium Marzocchi forks, held in place by Ceriani triple trees. New wheels were built around Borrani rims and fitted with Dunlop D606s. Dunlop totes the D606 as a street-legal knobby—perfect for getting Bryan to and from the trails.

The exhaust systems are stainless steel Cone Engineering mufflers terminated with custom-made headers. The kooky tail unit and headlight shroud are hand-made aluminum pieces, and the fenders are original.

The bodywork is identical on both bikes, right down to the original 70s-model Penton tanks—items that took Bryan two years to find. Levers and Super Pratic throttles (both from Tommaselli) round out the cockpits.

The Dirty Duc’s unfinished look isn’t a clever attempt at ‘patina’—it literally is unfinished. Bryan’s hoping to add a snorkel and get some paint, powder coating and upholstery done when time allows.

Once that’s done, he’s going to put one of the Dirty Ducs up for sale. Just one—because he’ll be riding the pants off the other.

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