Big-Bore Yamaha XS650 “Steeplechase Champion” by Will Bastas…   From April 12-14, our friends at Revival Cycles hosted the 2024 edition of the Handbuilt Motorcycle Show in Austin, Texas, paired as always with MotoGP weekend at Circuit of the Americas (COTA). From the show’s inception, Revival Cycles used the event to encourage a real revival of physical craftsmanship — a culture increasingly lost in the shift toward “digital abstraction.” “We at the Handbuilt Motorcycle Show believe something has been lost and it is time to revive the culture of physical craftsmanship. Although in ..read more

If You Build it, They Will Come: “Knievel” from Freeland Motorcycles…  The Honda CJ360T appeared in 1976 as a stripped-down bare-bones version of the CB/CL360 twins. It had a five-speed transmission instead of six, no electric starter / center stand / pinstriping, scarce chrome, and only came in candy Antares red paint. These minimalist details brought both the price and weight down for a whole new generation of young adventure-seekers. “The 53” wheelbase and 3.6” of trail makes the bike nimble and quick to change direction. That makes it a real gas to sling around corners on…blacktoppe ..read more

From Handbuilt 2024: Scramblers, Trackers, Dirt Bikes, ADVs, and More…   During MotoGP weekend at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, Revival Cycles hosted the 10th annual edition of the Handbuilt Motorcycle Show — one of the world’s most prestigious showcases of custom motorcycles. From the beginning, the show has encouraged a revival of hand-built ingenuity and craftsmanship. “As our collective existence slips further into digital abstraction, we at the Handbuilt Motorcycle Show believe something has been lost and it is time to revive the culture of physical craft ..read more

Upon its introduction in 1991, the Suzuki DR800S Big — aka “Doctor Big” — was the largest single-cylinder mass production bike ever produced, displacing 779cc with a cylinder bore of 10.5 centimeters…talk about THUMP! The DR Big was inspired by Suzuki’s DR-Z800 Paris-Dakar rally bike, which gave up ~10 horsepower to its twin-cylinder rivals but was some 60 pounds lighter and more aerodynamic. Says Stefan Hessler of Hessler Rallye Team, who campaigned the DR-Z rally bike with the legendary Gaston Rahier: “Rahier was able to use the beak so skillfully that the DR ZETA cut aerodynamically like ..read more

All Photos: Drew Perlmutter Wildsville is a private “moto-fun-camp” in rural Georgia born from the moto-loving mind of our incredibly talented friend Chastin Brand, one of the country’s most highly esteemed hand-painters and pinstripers. Chastin and the Brand family have created one of the sweetest places on earth for people who love two wheels. Wildsville is an atmosphere and attitude as much as a place — a laid-back, vintage-forward Neverland where good times, family, and friendly competition go hand in hand. If you want the closest thing to On Any Sunday in 21st century America, this is the ..read more

Yamaha XSR155 Scrambler from Garage Esquinita…   The Yamaha XSR series is the company’s family of “neo-retro” motorcycles that combine modern engines and running gear with more classic design language. The XSR700 and XSR900 are the best known models in the range, based on the MT-07 and MT-09 modern nakeds, respectively. In recent years, Yamaha has also rolled out a pair of smaller siblings, the XSR125 and XSR155, for markets where 125cc and 155cc machines are popular. They feature Deltabox frames, 37mm inverted forks, and liquid-cooled 4-valve single cylinder engines. Our friends at Mot ..read more

Hand-painted Honda ready for La Ruta Del Nabab…   The Honda CRF450RX is Big Red’s big-bore competition off-road racer designed for closed-course GNCC, NGPC, and WORCS events. Unlike the green-sticker trail-legal CRF450X, the RX looks much closer to a full-on motocrosser, only with an 18-inch rear wheel, larger fuel tank, and kickstand. It’s a highly aggressive machine that comes with a hydro clutch, multiple map modes, traction control, and an engine that puts down nearly 53 horsepower at the rear wheel: “Plain and simple, the 450RX motor is a beast. It has gobs of power at all ti ..read more

Indonesia has become a hotbed of custom motorcycle culture in recent years. The country consists of more than 17,000 islands — Java, Sumatra, and Bali to name a few — and motorcycles are a way of life. While a vast array of customs come out of the nation’s workshops, the country’s builders seem to have an affinity for scrambler and “vinduro” (vintage enduro) style machines particularly well-suited to the mountainous jungle trails, sandy beaches, and windy roads of their native islands. Back in 2022, we featured a Yamaha WR155 scrambler built by Maulana Sandi of West Java’s Barokah Djaya Suka ..read more

Yamaha WR155 “Furai-Bou” from Katros Garage…   The Yamaha WR155R is one of those bikes we wish was sold in more markets. The small displacement dual-sport has a liquid-cooled 4-valve engine with fuel injection and variable valve actuation (VVA) — trick for the size! While Yamaha makes some of the better looking dual-purpose bikes on the market, we have a soft spot for the enduros, scramblers, and trackers of yesteryear. It’s no easy feat to transform a modern dual-sport into a retro-style scrambler / tracker, but Atenx Katros of Indonesia’s Katros Garage is no ordinary builder. His ..read more

A “Bonnie Desert Sled” from Old Tops Garage x Atlantic Custom Studio…   For many of us, the golden days of 1960s California desert racing remain one of the most romantic and defining periods of motorcycling culture. We’re talking about the days of 500-rider mass starts when riders like Malcolm Smith and Steve McQueen went racing across the sand and scrub on modified Triumph, Norton, and BSA desert sleds with high pipes, bash plates, and cross-country saddles — machines that really did “sled” their way through sandy washes and bound over dunes and arroyos. 1954 Triumph Desert Sled: M ..read more