1/4/2023 0 Comments E xs dirt rallyI wanted a donor bike that had good looks to start with and wanted a small to midsize twin, as this is classic cafe racer, and as I have to some extent moved beyond the horsepower wars, and look and feel and lightness is as important to me as performance. What was the design concept and what influenced the build?.etc., and just to ride, enjoy, and share with other enthusiasts. It was built for a fun project, and for personal use as largely an “in-town” bike - literally to go to the coffee shop, but also health club etc. What’s the make, model, and year of the bike?ġ977 Yamaha XS400 - found the original bike locally, inexpensive as it was not running but had only 7k miles and tank was in perfect condition.I’ve already bought another bike for my next project. I have a home garage workshop, which has a car lift, but I have space in it enough for working on bikes too. Mostly in recent years I’ve concentrated on sports cars - I modified and raced a wheel to wheel car, but I also raced motocross many years back and re-fell in love with motorcycles after attending AMA Vintage Days at Mid-Ohio with my best friend from those old dirt biking days. I live in the Detroit area and have been into design and building, whether it’s buildings or vehicles, for many years. Please tell us a bit about yourself, your history with motorcycles, and your workshop. #E XS DIRT RALLY FULL#“Little Chromer” setup.īelow, we get the full story on these XS400 Twin(s). What’s more, the bike can quickly transform into its flashier alter-ego, “Little Chromer,” with a set of chrome custom fenders and other bling. “It’s the sum of all that detail work that makes the bike in my view.” Meanwhile, the front-end and cockpit were streamlined and minimized, as were all of the lights and fenders, which gave the bike its nickname: “No XS.” The result is a bike that makes you do a double-take, as you try to put your finger on why it looks so much better than the original: We especially like how he retained the factory tail, but shortened the seat pan, subframe, and seat itself for a more compact profile, with a new seat cover from Scott Lynch at. “The build concept was to leverage the good OE looks, but change the not-so-good like the super long seat and the usual large lights, mirrors etc.” As you can see from the photos, Aaron took a different tack than many of the bikes we see, preferring to salvage as much of the original styling as possible: It wasn’t running, but it was local, low mileage, and the tank was pristine. He found the perfect donor in this 1977 XS400. “I have to some extent moved beyond the horsepower wars, and look and feel and lightness is as important to me as performance.” Soon thereafter, Aaron started looking for a project bike, preferably a midsize twin - a bike for in-town riding, with decent factory styling.
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