Creating a custom in just four hours....my 550 is going under the knife!

First topic message reminder :

Not to do with my Thundercat, but rather my 1995 Kawasaki ZR550 Zephyr. I am having it converted into a cafe racer over just four hours live one the web on March 19th.

Be great if you guys could join the fun, like the FB link, watch the live stream or even come to event in person on March 19th in Oxfordshire...

Details here...

From the Twisted Iron Facebook Group:

Today we took a drive out to the extremely picturesque wilds of Essex to visit our old friend String Thompson of ‘Raw Steel Choppers’, and his partner in crime Mark Williams of ‘Naked Speed Custom Motorcycles’. With us was Tony Donnelly, a friend who is about to embark on a joint project between these two builders and Twisted Iron to turn his Kawasaki 550 Zephyr winter hack into a custom build… in just 4 hours! ‘This will take place at the ‘Twisted Turnout’ on the morning of Sunday 19th March 2017 and this challenge will be something not to be missed! The guys talked details, budget and concept ideas, they’ll now go shopping and line up some suppliers. Tony has a modest but realistic budget for this project and although he has been riding all his life collecting a varied selection of bikes they are all (in his own words) painfully standard. This will be his first custom bike. String specialises mainly in fabrication and you’ll have seen quite a few of his builds at ‘The Happening’ over the last few years including his ‘Moonshine Rat Rod’ and the ‘Cub Chop’ built for Luke Sackett. We have to say Mark’s workshop was one of the cleanest and tidiest spaces we’ve ever seen, an inspiration to any shed or garage owner! And it was full of some rather beautiful Honda builds such as a CB250N Superdream Brat and a Honda CBR600 Café Fighter along with a freshly blacked up CB250 RS frame. String and Mark make quite a dream team. Early in Mark’s career after qualifying as a mechanical engineer, he went to Spain, “I couldn’t speak a word of Spanish but having been offered a job with one of Spain’s most respected experts in motorcycle racing, how could I say no? Sign language was our only communication, but it’s surprising how quickly you learn a language when you need to eat…" Having started working for them based in Madrid, he soon moved to work in their Superbike racing team! He later moved to another team where he had the privilege of working with Juan Lopez Mella (RIP), racing the Honda RC30 in Superbikes. If you can’t get down to the March ‘Twisted Turnout’ on the 19th, we’ll be covering it on the day on the Twisted Iron page, along with photos, a time-lapse video and a live stream. But it’s definitely going to be worth the trip to see what these talented builders can come up with in 4 hours for Tony. If you can only make one Twisted Turnout this year... make it this one!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The lads who will be doing the build, Mark of Naked Speed and String of Raw Steel Choppers

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
In the words of Blue Peter..here is one they did earlier. My 550 wont be quite as radical as this, but it really shows what these lads are capable of!

Pictures courtesy of Twisted Iron and R&B Images

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Radar wrote:. . .  Ben the painter will have to use his fertile imagination to work all the dings and dents into his work, unless anybody out there has a perfect 550 tank kicking about for peanuts!? . . .  

Perhaps not peanuts but . . .

0ldcat wrote:

Radar wrote:. . .  Ben the painter will have to use his fertile imagination to work all the dings and dents into his work, unless anybody out there has a perfect 550 tank kicking about for peanuts!? . . .  

Perhaps not peanuts but . . .

Unfortunately the tank of an LTD wont go with the seat, but thanks for looking OC!

The theme for the build is revealed

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Only a couple of weeks to the Speed build now, so I thought it was a good moment to reveal the theme for the bike: Kawasaki Heavy Industries, the parent company of the motorcycle manufacturer, is a huge corporation making everything from ships to construction equipment and aircraft. At is that last one here that is relevant, because they don't just make any old aircraft. They build military aircraft. In recent years they have build jet trainers and transports, but in the dark days of World War Two they built fighter aircraft. It is one of these that is to be the inspiration for the build: The Kawasaki Ki-61 was a single engine monoplane fighter similar in appearance to the Spitfire or more specifically the German Bf109. The allies gave all Japanese aircraft a code name, and the for the Kawasaki K-61? Tony...what could be more perfect? The bike is a Kawasaki, a distant cousin of the fighter (go with me here). I am a WW2 aircraft nut and my name is Tony. It simply had to be!
The Kawasaki-Ki61 was pitched into battle defending the Japanese mainland against the massed formations of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress. Pilots of the tiny fighter had even been known to ram the mighty raiders in a desperate bid to bring them down. The 244th Sentai was one of the most famous users of the type and painted their aircraft with bold markings and symbols, an ancient Japanese warrior tradition that dates back centuries .
So the bike will have WW2 fighter theme and am I sure Ben at Bareknuckle Custom Paint will do the theme proud, while Mark and String do the engineering. Can't wait for the big day!

Some background on the Ki-61 here:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Learn more about the event here:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Ben the painter..now has a FB page...https://www.facebook.com/bearknuckle.customs?fref=nf

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

This is looking good!

I've actually made sure that I'm off on that Sunday, and also going to see if the woman is coming along for the day (If I put her off of work that is).

Hopefully the weather holds up and I won't get soaked on the way there from Banbury xD

Raymond

Ondurin wrote:This is looking good!

I've actually made sure that I'm off on that Sunday, and also going to see if the woman is coming along for the day (If I put her off of work that is).

Hopefully the weather holds up and I won't get soaked on the way there from Banbury xD

Raymond

Be great to see you there, make sure you say hello! Spread the word!

Hard to believe that one week from now I will be the proud owner of my first customised bike....right now my unsuspecting 550 is sitting the garage, looking largely unchanged from the day it rolled off the production line in Japan 22 years ago! In just just four hours next Sunday that will change...Mark of Naked Speed will attack my little Zephyr with his air gun and sockets and reduce it to a pile of parts, then String of Raw Steel Choppers will be let loose with the angle grinder and bits will be sliced off the bike in hail of red hot sparks! Then the transformation will begin. The big clumpy clocks will go, a neat compact little unit from Digital Speedos taking their place. Where once a big comfy dual seat was, will be a pert single racing seat thanks to skills of 'Bert' at Vontezi . The Muted factory pipe will be sliced and diced, as String will top it off with something a little more....vocal. Finally it will all be topped off with a cool paint job as Ben of Bear Knuckle Customs reveals his tribute to the Kawasaki Ki-61 of the 244th Sentai. All this in just four hours! I can hardly wait!!!

Please make sure you come along] or follow us on the web here with Russ and Bev of Twisted Iron who have pulled all this together..whatever happens...it will be emotional!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Ben the painter..now has a FB page...https://www.facebook.com/bearknuckle.customs?fref=nf

Some background on the Ki-61 here:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Good luck with the transformation Tony - must be exciting. I hope you enjoy the day, and the result.

You make it sound as if he's going in for a sex change.

Yeah, never occurred to me when I posted it but now you point it out.....

Are you really sure you want to go through with it Tony? What will Mandy say?

Just to confirm its the bike under the knife, not me...

Are you sure?

Radar wrote:

Ondurin wrote:This is looking good!

I've actually made sure that I'm off on that Sunday, and also going to see if the woman is coming along for the day (If I put her off of work that is).

Hopefully the weather holds up and I won't get soaked on the way there from Banbury xD

Raymond

Be great to see you there, make sure you say hello! Spread the word!

Oh you will know when I turn up that's for sure!

Missus won't be attending unfortunately as she is having to work :(

Raymond.

Be great to see you there!

Another quick update on this weekends Speed Build Challenge:

Twisted Iron had a call from the guys behind 'On Yer Bike' The Online TV Chanel dedicated to The Motorcycle Lifestyle and they will be filming an episode of their show and interviewing a few of the 'Stars of The Show' and looking out for interesting bikes to feature.

Bring Out Your Rides!

See you there!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Radar wrote:Another quick update on this weekends Speed Build Challenge:

Twisted Iron had a call from the guys behind 'On Yer Bike' The Online TV Chanel dedicated to The Motorcycle Lifestyle and they will be filming an episode of their show and interviewing a few of the 'Stars of The Show' and looking out for interesting bikes to feature.

Bring Out Your Rides!

See you there!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Guess I'd best wash the T'cat...... and unbind my rear caliper....

Best had!

Hope everything goe's to paln for you Tony, and you have a nice stressless day ...

Davie...

Well the day went perfectly

this is the finished bike

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

From Twisted Iron's FB Page

We overran on the build by 15 minutes due to a last minute unforeseen electrical problem, but that was still good going and the crowd cheered and clapped when it fired up!
We don't expect every custom build to take 4 hours, but it does show what's achievable when some very dedicated people put their minds to it.
The purpose of the day, was to inspire new custom builds, Tony had only ever had standard bikes and now he as this little beauty to ride around on. Great day had by all.
Particular thanks to:
Anthony Donnelly - for allowing his bike to be the donor and putting it in our hands
String Thompson - Raw Steel Choppers (fabrication)
Mark Williams - Naked Speed Customs (build & electrics)
Ben Attwood - Bearknuckle Customs (paint)
Tony Groom - Build helper
John Pullara - Digital Speedos for help with supplying electrical parts
Bert - 'VonZeti' for making the seat as a special and donating it to the build
This is Your Garage - for the great venue and loan of anything extra we needed
Everyone who turned up to support us...

Good to a member from here rock up too, cheers Ray!

Wow Tony.

Looks the business.
Glad it went well.

Cheers
Rosco

fwiw....I like that.
Nice job

It has a bit of a Gamer/Manga thing going on...

It was really cool watching them take the Kawa apart and then start the rebuild.
Unfortunately I had to leave before it was fished but had a good time.

That looks really cool tony, how does it sound with the gp style megaphone exhaust?

Paul.

Wow, just wow. I am not going to mess you about and keep you in too much suspense: The speed build was brilliant and a massive success. I rocked up to the meeting at YOUR Garage in deepest, darkest Oxfordshire for the monthly Twisted Iron meet and rolled my bog-standard 550 into the waiting workshop bay. One had been roped off so the lads from Naked Speed, Raw Steel Choppers and Bearknuckle Customs could do their worst to my little Kawasaki...once they had enjoyed their breakfast at the superb diner of course!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The operating room....

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The unsuspecting and bog-standard 550 awaits it's fate

Russ and Bev of Twisted Iron set up their gear for the live streaming to the internet and camera crew from on-line TV Channel 'On Yer Bike' were there too filming the events of the day. The wait was over the 4 hour speed build was underway! Before I knew what was happening I found myself doing a piece to camera to introduce my bike, the aims and themes of the build and of the folks who would be doing the spanner twirling.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The camera crew from On Yer Bike

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Mark and String doing a piece to camera...

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Russ politely reminds Mark to stop rattling and get building!

The crowd was building up by now and the shear variety of bikes was fantastic. A custom show in its own right. Three of the bikes that naked Speed and Raw Steel had built before sat proudly at the head of the workshop, under a Twisted Iron banner...this was going to be quite a morning.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The lad's CV is pretty impressive...

As the build progressed quickly more and more kept turning up and I was really please to see a good contingent from bikemeet come along to support the day...Andy Thumper), Matt (Ses310), Karl (Katana), Neville (R6my) and his Son, Pete (247), Steve (Ellisemo), plus my old mates Mike and Stu. Even a lad from JLR came along on his HD...Hi Nick!
Back in the build bay the petrol had already off and the exhaust removed almost immediately. The lads were really cracking on and the pile of removed parts was growing rapidly!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Off with the tank and standard exhaust

Meanwhile Ben of Bearknuckle had set himself on the other side of the workshop and was demonstrating his exceptional painting skills. He had done a stunning job on my bike's tank, side panels and other bits and bobs. He was doing air brush demos live and made some stunning 'Twisted-Iron' themed memorabilia. The lad is a massive talent and I couldn't wait to see his handiwork on the bike.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Ben the painter, was getting plenty of interest in his work and even some potential commissions, like this Harley of a friend of mine

The clock was ticking towards the half way point and suddenly it was out with the angle grinders and air saw. Sparks flew and the Kwak's sub frame was toast! No going back now!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Sparks flying...

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Looking rather naked now thanks to Naked Speed!

The powder coated wheels went in and the straight bars were soon on the bike too, and immediately seemed to give the 550 more 'attitude'...it was really coming together in front of the appreciative crowd. The clean simple Rev-Counter/Speedometer replaced the bulky twin chrome clocks.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The build up stage was gathering pace, Ben mucking in with Mark, String and Tony as the shortened sub-frame and wheels were now in place

Then came the topping on the cake..the tank and seat. VonZeti had produced a beautifully made and elegantly simple seat. The tank still wore it's dents & dings with pride...the bikes history intact. Ben had woven them cleverly into the theme of the bike..the Kawasaki Ki-61 WW2 fighter and worked them in as battle damage. He absolutely nailed the theme. The camouflaged tank, the 244th Senati symbol on the tail, the kill markings on the shortened mudguard...brilliant. Beyond what I had I asked for.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The new tank goes on, the bike is beginning to take shape!

The new hand-fabricated exhaust was in place as the third hour rolled by and it was nothing less than a piece of art created by String of Raw Steel. It really looked perfect on the bike. Mark of Naked was really displaying his race mechanic background as I was stunned at how quickly and calmly he took my standard old winter hack and metamorphosed before my very eyes. Ably assisted by Tony and String of course!

Only 20 minutes to go now and the bile looked superb..all that remained to do was fire it up and listen to the bark of that magnificent exhaust. Mark hit the tit and the little air-cooled lump span over sweetly, but it resolutely refused to fire...panic...the time was ticking down would they make it. Quick checks revealed no spark and feverish checking through the loom revealed the bike's hard life as a hack...somebody in the past had mucked about with the wiring and things were not looking good. The 4th hour clocked up, by the crowd was anxious as the lads continuing to battle with the recalcitrant Kwak. Russ picked up the Mike to announce we had been beaten, but then just as he spoke the bike roared into life..man it sounded good!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
She lives again!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Race mechanic mark, who normally has a touch of OCD in the workshop was not working in his usual neat and tidy way...

They did it!! They only bloody did it! Ok, it was 15 minutes over time. But a bog standard bike HAD been transformed in essentially four hours. The bike looks stunning, a proper custom..I am Mr. Standard no more...I had joined the custom community! The bike had turned out beyond my wildest dreams, I actually felt choked. I can't say thank you enough to Russ, Bev, Mark, String, Ben an Tony who turned my silly idea into stunning reality! Here it is, man it looks good...

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

This how Russ and Bev of Twisted Iron summed things up...
The purpose of the day, was to inspire new custom builds, Tony had only ever had standard bikes and now he as this little beauty to ride around on. Great day had by all.
Particular thanks to:
Tony (aka 'Radar') - for allowing his bike to be the donor and putting it in our hands
String Thompson - Raw Steel Choppers (fabrication)
Mark Williams - Naked Speed Customs (build & electrics)
Ben Attwood - Bear Knuckle Customs(paint)
Tony Groom - Build helper
John Pullara - Digital Speedos for help with supplying electrical parts
Bert - Vontezi for making the seat as a special and donating it to the build
This is Your Garage - for the great venue and loan of anything extra we needed

Everyone who turned up to support us...

I couldn't of put it better myself, I was totally blown away about how a quick chat between Russ and I in the office had developed into this. I have always had bog standard bikes, but this whole exercise has shown me there is another way, and it is brilliant.

Amazing what you can do in four hours isn't it!?

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Hello!

Radar wrote:Amazing what you can do in four hours isn't it!?

Damn right.

I wonder how many people have gone to make a cup of tea after Picture 12 and there it remained until it was parted off on E-bay.