Written by Martin Hodgson

From Lennon and McCartney to Ben and Jerry, famous collaborations have brought us amazing music and made life that little sweeter. But while we enjoy the finished product, behind the scenes can be anything from blissful creative charm to all-out chaos. Thankfully when the founder of Ugly Motors Jakub Beker teamed up with a friend for his latest build they clicked from the get go and used their differences to create a masterpiece. From a tank like 2002 BMW K1200RS they’ve carved out a fast flying fighter in tribute to the legendary Mustang P51.

Written by Tim Huber.

Hogan Jeffs has completed other Honda Dax builds in the past, but none like this. The New Zealand-based builder and member of New Zealand’s Quake City Rumblers, had picked up one of the little Honda runners and was planning on lightly modifying it just as he’d done several times prior, though when the wheel of a small car was haphazardly rolled up alongside the Dax, Hogan couldn’t stop the cogs in his head from starting to turn.

Written by Martin Hodgson

We’re not the first to say it, but Erik Buell is a genius and over 100,000 examples of the sports bikes wearing his name have been sold around the world. But that didn’t stop the company from failing, twice, and now turning his attention to electric, it is unlikely his very American twins will ever return. But the company’s demise means prices are low and boy do you get a lot of bang for your buck. More used to seeing European machinery in his native Rotterdam, Sergei Papyan of Ruthless Customz decided it was time to bring a Buell to the city’s streets. So he picked up an XB9R and transformed it into this wicked weekend warrior fit for an urban assault.

Nothing goes better with the image of Harley-Davidsons than hard liquor and tattoos. So when one of Gasoline Motor Co.’s best clients for commissioned bike builds – William Grant and Sons for the famous Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum – they couldn’t wait to get their hands dirty again. The ‘SJ2’ is the second collaboration build between the two companies. After building a Triumph Scrambler to chew up the dirt in 2018, this year’s collaboration holds the legacy of old-school sailors and hula girls in paradise.

Written by Martin Hodgson

Written by Tim Huber.

MV Agusta has a rich and lengthy race history as one of the winningest motorcycle marques of all time with the Varese firm having nabbed more than 75 world titles between ’52 and ’74. The company’s also had the honor of seeing a slew of motorcycling legends pass through its ranks and pilot its bikes with racers like Phil Read and Giacomo Agostini famously at the helm. So, it’s frankly unsurprising that when looking to build an MV Agusta-based cafe racer, that Switzerland’s Tricana Motorcycle’s would draw inspiration from the Italian brand’s illustrious race machines from around half-a-century-ago. 

Written by Martin Hodgson

They say the devil is in the detail, and it is this aspect that separates the best from the rest amongst the thousands of custom bikes built every year. The ability to incorporate form and function into every aspect of a bike and yet still stay true to a cohesive design is rare. It’s here that Tom Gilroy shines and combined with his customer friendly approach has lifted him to the upper echelons of Australian bike building. Now the Purpose Built Moto head honcho is leaving 2019 the way he started, with a flurry of exceptional builds rolling out of his workshop, and his latest is this stunning Yamaha XV750.

When building a new project, inspiration can come from many places. For Wayne Buys of Fabman Creations in South Africa, his main form of inspiration came from the aesthetically pleasing RSD’s KTM 450 Desert Sled from a few years ago. That RSD KTM was built to celebrate the movie On Any Sunday, The Next Chapter. As a fan of Steve McQueen and the original movie “On Any Sunday” Wayne wanted to pay tribute to his love of off-road motorcycling by building his take on a modern KTM and aptly naming it ‘Bullet’.

Written by Martin Hodgson

Written by Tim Huber.

Though the Monster is a fairly close second, the 750/900 SS platform has become Ducati’s most commonly customized model in recent years. While its bodywork is admittedly on the dated side, once stripped from the SS, what you’re left with is a strapping L-Twin engine, the Bologna firm’s signature tubular trellis frame, and, with a little creativity; gobs of potential for customization.