The post The Tricolore – Ducati 851-inspired extreme custom by XTR PEPO appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]>“Tricolore” is the latest creation of XTR PEPO, which is short for extreme and Pepo Rosell…
Pepo is the owner and creator of XTR PEPO and ‘extreme’ sums up the philosophy behind his workshop – “Less business and more fun!! Because you must live the life…. Be Extreme!!!”
After creating radically customized Ducatis for more than a decade under the aptly named “Radical Ducati” brand, Pepo took some time off to rethink his life. The conclusion was however that bikes are his life, so he started again in 2015 with XTR PEPO – with the explicit goal to have more fun!
XTR PEPO has created quite a few beautifully customized bikes since then (have a look at https://www.pepoxtr.com/copia-de-pepo-s-legacy), mostly Ducatis still with the odd Bultaco or BMW thrown in for (more) fun…
Pepo’s latest creation is the Tricolore, yes a Ducati-based bike and yes clad in the three colors of the Italian flag – green, white, red, as a tribute to the first Ducati 851 Tricolore.
This is a ‘from the ground up’ build, starting with the frame from an early Ducati Monster 600, reinforced to withstand the increased forces it would have to deal with. The rear subframe was replaced by an aluminum Ducati 851 piece, and YSS delivered an adjustable rear shock made specifically for the bike!
The engine is a heavily modified Ducati Monster S4RS motor (999 Coppa Bassa engine), with for instance an aluminum TSS light flywheel, and XTR’s own high volume airbox adding horsepowers to the already impressive power of the original engine. The exhaust features spaghetti pipes topped off with Sil Motor Roche replica carbon fiber silencers.
The bodywork is inspired by and partly sourced from the Ducati 851, with an 851 fairing, modified to house a Cagiva Mito 125 Lawson replica front light, and a homemade Ducati 851 glass fiber gas tank, with a transparent stripe on the side so you can always check the fuel level…
The list of high performance components Pepo sourced for the Tricolore bike is quite long, with quite a few parts made in-house, such as all the aluminum fairing brackets, the CNC-machined clip ons, carbon fiber mudguard, or the hand-made seat and upholstery…
All in all, Tricolore, XTR PEPO’s latest extreme custom bike, is a really lightweight – 165 kg – and powerful bike, which should be a real joy to steer around the racetrack – while it’s also fully street-legal…
pictures – Sergio Cardeña
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]]>The post Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 “Black Fury” by XTR appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]> XTR Pepo
Then there is Pepo Rosell. If you don’t know who that is, make sure to check out some of the articles we have written before. The Frenchman who has been living in Spain for a long time now, is known for his radical designs; a craftsman of the first-degree. Pepo maintains an almost scientific approach to building motorcycles. And when we say build, we mean BUILD, as in, from the ground up. Pepo has a passion for racing too, so it comes as no surprise that most of his builds are race inspired, often replicas of real racing machines.
Performance mods – Body
Let’s get down to business. Everything about this Continental GT breathes RACING. To begin with the most rigorous mod that Pepo performed on this build, it has to be the modified frame. Harris Performance did an outstanding job designing the original frame. Pepo must have thought differently and reduced weight and added stiffness to the already pretty-good frame. The rear swing arm is a modified unit from a Ducati Pantah(!). The front and rear wheels come off a Triumph Daytona 675R and is a lot lighter than the original wire-spoke wheels that come stock on the GT 650. The brakes are BREMBO – Kevlar brake lines anyone?
The front and rear suspension are OHLINS fully adjustable units. It goes without saying that all brackets have been custom CNC’d from billet aluminium by Pepo, including the triple clamp. A set of clip-ons and DOMINO controls & grips ensure the right kind of control. There are various carbon fiber bits and pieces used such as the custom fuel tank with endurance style filler cap, carbon fiber front fairing, rear mudguard, and the one-off seat. Carbon fiber is great for weight saving. The FULBAT Lithium battery helps with that too, weighing less than 700 grams it’s literally a lightweight.
Performance mods – Engine
XTR went all out with the engine mods, without sacrificing reliability. The parts that have been used are tried and tested. There are the obligatory DNA pod filters, custom exhaust system curtesy of Wolfman and Spark, and high-performance HT leads. What’s more interesting are the S&S performance cams and the high compression pistons. Combined with a custom fuel map with the help of a Power Commander, we wouldn’t be surprised if this Royal Enfield produced more than 60hp at the rear wheel. Combine that with the ridiculous weight savings on the body and unsprung weight, and sticky Continental SPORT ATTACK rubbers, we are convinced that Pepo turned this easy-going Continental GT into a fire-breathing, hell-raising, racing machine!
Finishing touches
What we love the most about XTR machines is the level of detail each build is delivered with. Whether it’s the machines rear set, double headlight with external brackets, LED indicators, machined levers or unique paint-scheme (by ARTENRUTA Painting), each bike looks like it’s doing a 100 mph at standstill. There is no doubt that Pepo has racing fuel going through his veins and for that we salute him.
PICTURES by SERGIO CARDEÑA
Builder details:
XTR Pepo
Website
Instagram
Facebook
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]]>The post TOP 5 Cafe Racers 2021 by BikeBrewers appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]>We have seen some incredible builds the last 12 months, and we have to say that despite the world pandemic, we are very pleased to see that so many people still take time work on that what we love most: motorcycles. For 2021 we have created a TOP 5 of some of the most interesting, esthetically pleasing cafe racers we wrote about here on BikeBrewers. We looked at the number of views and shares on our website and social media channels, but also at originality. After all, the list is subjective.
So without further ado, and in complete random order, here are the BikeBrewers TOP 5 Cafe Racer builds of 2021
1. Moto Guzzi 1100 Cafe Racer by Robin Mehnert
When Robin Mehnert, the woodwind instrument maker from Germany, messaged us that he and his father had built a cafe racer based on a Moto Guzzi 1100 California, we got very excited. When you see the pictures of the Guzzi, it’s not hard to see why. Make sure to read the full article to find out more about this clean looking example of Italo-Germanic craftsmanship
2. Icon Motorcycle Triumph Bonneville Triton
Okay, so this Triumph Bonneville was actually built a couple of years ago. However, we only really heard of Icon Motorcycles last year. We didn’t know much about the outfit, and sadly their website has gone offline since. All we know is that the 2 Triumph Tritons they’ve build are unlike anything we have seen in a very long time. It’s almost like a spiritual experience. Luckily, we spent some time writing an article about the work of these fine people, that are based in the Netherlands.
3. Harley-Davidson LiveWire “Rule Breaker” by Moto Adonis
Moto Adonis has been working hard in 2021, with a number of unique projects and builds, we are impressed by the work the 2-man team from the Netherlands has been delivering. When they presented their Harley-Davidson LiveWire project our jaws literally dropped to the ground. This must be the most menacing looking electric motorcycle we have ever see. Period! It looks like a great white shark. In black. On 2 wheels. We dare anybody to show us a custom electric motorcycle that looks better than this.
4. Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 “Lilith” by XTRPepo
There is such a thing as a match made in heaven. In this case, it would be Pepo Rosell, founder and owner of XTRPepo, and Royal Enfield. Let us explain. Pepo has been building race bikes since before we could remember. He has been doing that passionately for the past 25 years. The last 6 years or so, he decided to take step back from building radical custom racing machines for high end customers, and to focus on the more “fun” side of business. Which brings us to Royal Enfield. The people’s champion as far as we’re concerned. Royal Enfield has rapidly gained popularity outside of its domestic market in India. No frills, simple, classy, and affordable. Heck, 2 of our editors bought a Royal Enfield 650 for personal use! That says something! Pepo built a period-correct racer around the Continental GT, and it looks the part.
5. Triumph Bonneville “Gotham” by Tamarit x MotoShare
Tamarit has been building bikes for a long time now, and this heavily modified Triumph Bonneville was their 81st build to be precise. The Alicante, Spain based builders were commissioned by MotoShare to build a cafe racer that provokes people. A bike that gets people talking. José Antonio of Tamarit says: “We took a 2007 Triumph Bonneville and turned it into this ominous looking machine. It was during a video call that one of the guys from MotoShare mentioned it looked like it was made for Batman. It was ‘The Gotham’ from there on.”
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]]>The post Madrid calling – Ducati ‘La Guapísima’ by XTR appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]>When Ducati’s 350 cc and 500 cc parallel twins could hardly be called a marketing success, their fabulous engineer Fabio Taglioni set tout to develop a replacement.
The Pantah 500 originates from the last of the GP500 racers of 1973. The Pantah and many bikes afterwards, have shown that, a twin-cylinder motorcycle can compete successfully against bikes with a four cylinder engine. This is contrary to all expectations and that’s where the greatness of Taglioni lies.
The Panthah was first introduced during the Milan Bike Show (now EICMA) in December 1979. It was quite revolutionary as it had a trellis frame, contrary to earlier Ducati motorcycles. The engine is suspended in the frame acting as a stressed member of the whole. It was the first Ducati not fitted the old bevel-gear OHC design. Instead it had belt-driven cams. That, and the trellis frame, would turn the bike into the spearhead for the brand for generations of V-twins for years to come.
Although the 500cc engine was already endowed with impressive power, Ducati decided to amp it up a bit in 1981 by introducing 600cc engines, later to be increased to 650cc and even 750cc. The single overhead camshaft was driven by toothed rubber belt and primary transmission was via Morse chain. The Pantah’s performance gloriously surpassed that of the ill-conceived 1976 parallel twins.
Madrid Calling
Enough history for today.
Whenever we get a phone call from Madrid our hearts skip a beat. More often than not Pepo Rosell manages to get us excited straight from the starting line when new build roll through the doors of his workshop.
This time was no exception. The ‘La Guapísima’ (‘The Beautiful One’) is in your face from the moment you feast your eyes on her.
There is so much beauty and excitement going on with this machine, you just want to get on it and twist the throttle South!
Irons Café Racer
We are quite familiar with this shop in Madrid, even though we are yet to set foot in the door ourselves in person.
As BikeBrewers are involved with the innovative European rental platform MotoShare also, we used this location to launch Tamarit built ‘The Gotham’ earlier this year.
This shop, which sells motorcycle clothing and accessories, is obviously run by oil-blooded motorcycle afficionados. It is clear why they commissioned their next door neighbour to come up with this magnificent machine.
Upping the ante
The donor bike used is a 1986 Ducati 600TL Pantah. A nice machine already but Pepo would not be XTR Pepo if he did not do some magic on the engine before mounting it back in the frame.
He installed a Cagiva Elefant 900 Marathon motor with high compression pistons added. The heart of the beast has ported heads a ‘SLIENT HETKIT’ ignition kit with 16 maps and a lightened fly wheel for more immediate responsiveness.
While we are on the subject of technicalities; breathing in arranged by adding two Keihin FCR 39 carburettors with DNA filters, while the exhaling is done via a two-in-one Wolfman exhaust.
A Ducabike antihooping clutch is mounted to keep the horses at the rear wheel under control, but riders may skip that part as a quickshifter is also part of the package.
And that on a 1986 machine!
More technical stuff
There is much that meets the eye when you look at this apparatus. But the list of (sometimes invisible) modifications just never stops!
As we are more about the bike and what it does to your hormone levels when riding it, we will just sum it up below. But before moving over to that, we point out the front fairing.
This is a particular piece of the bike that makes it stand out we think. It is nice and streamlined with a feel of those 70’s and 80’s dragracers we grew up with. This element is produced inhouse by XTR, while the cool paintjob is done by their friend Pintumoto.
Modifications:
(inhale deeply)
PANTAH modified frame
Engine : CAGIVA ELEFANT 900 Maraton , high comp , ported heads, SILENT HETKIT ignition kit with 16 maps , lightened flywheel,
DUCABIKE antihooping clutch , quickshift , KEIHIN FCR 39 carburators , DNA air filters.
RC racing oil radiator
Exhaust : 2 in 1 WOLFMAN.
Swingarm : CAGIVA ELEFANT 350
Rear suspension : OHLINS
REGINA gold chain
HYOSUNG GT 650 Front fork, lightened yokes, wheel ,NG rotor and brake caliper with BREMBO pads
BREMBO front brake pump with XTR regulable and foldable lever
BREMBO rear brake pump
FRENTUBO front and rear brake line
BREMBO Clutch pump with XTR regulable and foldable lever
FRENTUBO clutch line
XTR front mudguard
XTR clip-ons
RIZOMA Nex brake fluid reservoir
RAV footrests
AVIACOMPOSITI Dashboard (rev counter)
DOMINO quick open gas throttle and grips
DOMINO starter commando
FULBAT LIPO battery
4,5 x 17 inches alluminium rear rim
OSADO lenticular covers
CONTINENTAL Conti Sport Attack 4 front and rear tires.
XTR front fairing and bracket
XTR fuel tank
CNC racing fuel cap
XTR MK2 solo seat
XTR upholstery
XTR carbon fiber bellypan
PINTUMOTO painting
(…aaand exhale!)
Finish line
As usual we wish we lived in Madrid to be close to the man and his work. Searchin online we noticed a video with a very lucky lady rider hitting the throttle on this Duc!
As we understand the bike was supposed to be at the starting line of the Sultans of Sprint in Glemseck this past season. Unfortunately COVID came in between and we can only imagine what this ‘Guapísima’ would smell and sound like in real life.
We hope to meet her in the flesh one day.
Builder details:
Builder: XTR Pepo
Instagram
Photography: Ruben del Valle Producciones
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]]>The post Bombastic Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 “Lilith” by XTRPepo appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]>Smiles-per-mile
When Royal Enfield unleashed their 650 twins into the world, nobody had expected that they would take over the world by storm. It was and still is the bike Royal Enfield owners were craving for. Not only that, the classic design of the twins has stolen the hearts of many new and old motorcyclists, including myself! Royal Enfield has proven that more horsepower, and a higher price tag don’t automatically mean more smiles-per-mile. Many motorcycle magazines have awarded the Interceptor 650 the “Motorcycle of the Year” award for that particular reason.
Builders choice
The simplicity of the Royal Enfield 650 speaks to many, especially in an age where more and more motorcycles are drenched with technology and computers. Don’t get me wrong, we aren’t against hi-tech bikes, but the no frills no non-sense experience out-trumps tech any day, especially if you love working on your motorcycle.
Racing pedigree
Then there is Pepo Rosell. If you don’t know who that is, make sure to check out some of the articles we have written before. The Frenchman who has been living in Spain for a long time now, is known for his radical designs; a craftsman of the first-degree. Pepo maintains an almost scientific approach to building motorcycles. And when we say build, we mean BUILD, as in, from the ground up. Pepo has a passion for racing too, so it comes as no surprise that most of his builds are race inspired, often replicas of real racing machines.
Replica
Everybody agrees that the Continental GT 650 isn’t the fastest or the sportiest bike out there. The handling is good, and the power is more than adequate. What we see here today looks completely different than that. The “Lilith” as Pepo has dubbed this build, looks like it just came off a race track in the 1970/80s. Probably a street track too! When you take a look at the extensive list of modifications below, it is clear that an incredible amount of work has been put into this. This isn’t a café racer; this IS a RACER!
Manual labour
Some of the mods that immediately stand out have to be the front fairing with the twin protruding headlights, just like the old racing bikes. The fuel tank with the quick-fueling system doesn’t only look mean, it has a function too. It is made out of fiberglass and is, obviously, hand-made. Neat feat is the fuel gauge “window” on the side, that allows for a quick visual on the fuel levels. There are loads of details that pop up the longer you look at the GT. Another example of Pepo’s skills is the unique racing solo/dual seat. Then there is that beautiful red paint finish. Nothing screams speed more than that bright red colour.
We really like the way this Continental GT has turned out, and would love to hear and see this one in real life. In the meantime, we will have to make do with the stunning pictures that were sent to us from Spain. Salud!
PICTURES by Belen Piqueras
Mods list:
Builder details:
XTR Pepo
Website
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]]>The post Ducati Monster 1200R by XTR Pepo appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]>When you think the Ducati Monster 1200R is extreme, then take a look at the latest creation by our friend XTR Pepo. He took brand new 1200R and created a distinctive XTR-version out of it. Nice! This one is, by a good tradition of XTR, named “Il Padrino”.
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]]>The post Triumph Cafe Racer Top 10 appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]>Today, Triumph still has strong ties to custom bikes and cafe racers. In fact, they produce a variety of modern cafe racers; new bikes with the looks of the old days. Triumph is one of the major brands that really set a trend for other motorcycle brands to offer turn-key, retro machines.
This Triumph Cafe Racer Top 10 is a purely subjective selection of what I found to be the best cafe racers with the English label on it. If you have any suggestions, remarks or just want to drop a line; use the comment section.
If you take a Triumph Thruxton R as a base bike for a Triumph cafe racer, you’re almost there of course. The stock bike has it all: from beautiful laced wheels to a big fat adjustable gold USD fork. Together with a long list of bolt-on parts, everyone can create his own “unique” Thruxton R cafe racer. But the guys from Analog Motorcycles like a challenge, or two. So instead of taking a Thruxton R, they’ve used a Bonneville for their own cafe racer version called “El Matador 2.0”. Creativity and shopping around for parts let them build a truly unique and one-of-a-kind cafe racer that really deserves a spot in this listing.
Of course, it’s tempting to take a retro Triumph as a base bike for a Triumph cafe racer, but luckily we didn’t only found Thruxton’s or Bonneville’s for our top 10. This bike right here is based on the Street Triple 675. Whoever rode one knows that this is a serious cornering-weapon. The handling simply is unbeatable. I had one and I made the life (on the road) of a lot of super sporters and +1000cc bikes very difficult. Same goes for the Daytona 675, the racy brother of the Street Triple. The incredible 3 cylinder engine has the same power band as a V2 rocket and helps you accelerate very fast at all RPM zones. French Triumph dealer GB Motors thought it was time to turn the Street Triple into a classic cafe racer. Pretty awesome!
Down & Out Motorcycles is a familiar name when it comes to building custom Triumphs. They’ve created quite the number of machines which are all pretty awesome so it was a logical choice to put one of their creations in this top 10. This custom Triumph Thruxton R is a collaboration between Triumph Motorcycles, Down & Out, and Barbour International. Three British icons that put their minds and hands together to build this very good looking, classic cafe racer. A noob will simply compare this with the stock Thruxton R, but those who are a bit more inside the British brand quickly see that this bike is really one of a kind.
Probably one of the most affordable and rebuildable bikes in this list; a beautiful and stylish Triumph Bonneville T100 cafe racer by Turkish builder Bunker Customs. For this build, they’ve used parts from the catalog of “British Customs”, together with some fine craftsmanship of their own. Their idea behind this bike was that the stock bikes of Triumph are cool, but miss the personal connection to its rider; in the end: they’re all the same. So with a set of bolt-on parts and different colors, everyone can create their own version of the cool modern classics without the need to have an in-depth skillset. And of course, if you sell the bike, it’s easy to get it back in its original shape.
With Blacktrack Motors we have a special thing. One of the founding fathers of Blacktrack, Sach Lakic, was the designer of the most beautiful Honda CX500 cafe racer of all times (considering to me and a lot of others). This exact bike was the reason for me to start blogging about custom motorcycles. Lakic’s CX500 literally melted down the interwebs, giving the custom motorcycle scene a boost like a V2 rocket. The CX500 was such a big hit that they’ve started the label Blacktrack Motors to build the CX500 in a small series.
After the big hit machine, they’ve been working on something else called the “Thruxman”; a big fat wink to the Norton Manx. Lakic: “the idea was simple: blending the Manx’s classic and unmistakable looks with modern performance”. Totally different than the CX500, still a very unique and distinguished machine that really deserves a top spot in this Triumph Cafe Racer Top 10.
A special project built by Cohn Racers for another icon in the custom bike scene; The Suited Racer. His appearance will undoubtedly be familiar to many bike fans, as pictures of him riding bikes with full face mask and sunglasses appear regularly all of the internet, especially on Instagram. For a man that’s dressed up in chique suits, his very own bike needed to be as stylish as his apparel. Despite the fact that this is a “regular” Thruxton from 2012, it has the same level of quality parts like the modern Thruxton R like adjustable Öhlins suspension and Brembo brakes. We fell in love with the beautiful half-fairing. Read more about the project here.
Dustin Kott from Kott Motorcycles got the opportunity to build a Triumph cafe racer for actor Ryan Reynolds. Reynolds isn’t just another actor who want’s to be cool: Reynolds is an enthusiastic bike and he held a variety of Triumphs in the past. At the time of this build, he already has a ’04 Bonneville. We have three words for this bike: clean, classic and distinguished.
Macco Motors is known for the magic they perform on the entire collection of Triumph. Especially the retro machines are a solid choice for the guys from Spain. They usually product beautiful-looking cruisers. But sometimes they have a special order from a client that looks for something more “racy”. This machine right here, “Macco Nº37” or “Panther” is based on a 2008 Triumph Thruxton 900 and definitely is one fine-looking bike [more…]
XTR Pepo is one of the most featured builders here on BikeBrewers.com and unlike many other builders, Pepo Rosell, a.k.a. XTR Pepo, doesn’t focus on on particular brand. He can turn any machine into something “XTR”. Unless the fact he has a long history with the brand Ducati, he literally works on all kind of brands. He likes it different. So it was no surprise for XTR to pick a rather odd base bike. Most builder pick a Thruxton or Bonneville, simply because these bikes already have the cafe racer inside them. Not for this Triumph Legend TT… Worth his spot here.
Maybe this is not quite the place for a computer rendered motorcycle, but this cool concept by Ziggo Moto definitely is one of the coolest interpretations out there. Ziggo Moto spreads their designs across Instagram and in a short amount of time, they’ve gathered a large fanbase. All of the renders we’ve seen get lots and lots of engagement and they even plan to actually bring some of their designs to life.
In terms of cafe racer style, this bike is the most original of all machines here. In fact, it only has bolt-on parts straight from the Thruxton catalog. But there is one part less original: it has a SUPERCHARGER! The guys from Roké Motors in Holland managed to get the perfect engine setup with the Rotrex C-15-60 supercharger. The result is a beastly 171hp and 175Nm of torque. By far the most powerful Triumph Cafe Racer on the planet! Read more about the bike in our special feature: Triumph Thruxton Supercharger.
Other cool lists:
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]]>A lot of parts come from other Italian brands: the front end comes from a Ducati Monster, including the wheel. The clutch lever comes from a Yamaha R1 and the radial brake pump and lever from a CBR1000. The clip ons are from Tomaselli and the calipers from Brembo. The front mudguard comes from Germany; from a BMW R nineT to be precise. The gas tank is from a Honda CB550 with a Laverda fuel cap. To upgrade the suspension on the rear they fitted an Öhlins rear shock.
Custom parts from XTR include the subframe, mudguards, LED blinkers, custom seat, side plates, license plate holder and a number of brackets. And a number of XTR standards like: Frentubo brake lights, Montese rear light, NG brake rotors, DNA filters, LIPO battery, DID gold chain and a Supermario exhaust system.
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]]>The post Ducati 848 Racer by XTR Pepo appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.
]]>Custom works by XTR Pepo:
Other mods & parts:
Follow XTR Pepo
Website | Facebook | Instagram
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