DAILY INSPIRATION: deus' cafe scorpio.

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The Deus Bali outfit has been churning out some pretty impressive looking variations on the Yamaha 225 Scorpio. Their previous iteration was a bit more of a flat tracker style. This time around, the guys gave her the cafe treatment. I'd love to have one of these in my arsenal. Compact. Light. Nimble.



The only thing that bothers me is how poorly the tank fits into it's surroundings. Beautiful tank, but it lines up with nothing. It's the one detail that often seems to get over looked on Deus customs.












SHORT FILM: professional

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This video nearly brought a tear to my eye. The steady decline of the craftsman is always a depressing storyline for me to swallow. I sit here behind my desk every day, sketching on a Cintique or creating things in CAD, but a part of me is always back at the garage. Sadly that part of me is constantly neglected, yet it's just as much a passion of mine as being an industrial designer. I often feel guilty for not spending more time educating myself in hand crafted arts. It's something I know I'd be good at...there's just only so much time in a day.




I'm going to repost a write up of this video I found on Knucklebuster, because I thought a very valid point was made:
"I saw this video and like many of you, was inspired. My visceral reaction was “teach me, I want to do that”. Then I went over to the vimeo page and started reading through the comments, and the majority of folks are talking about how well shot it is (which is very true) and how good the lighting is, what camera or lenses were used and what a great “story” it is (again, true), etc. etc. More talk about the filming than the actual subject matter - made me think of Mike Rowe’s testimony. How this new medium is elevated (nothing wrong with that) while disregarding the past in some sort of antiquated way. There is no celebration of the metal working, the craftsman, the guy who makes physical things using his hands and skills. Dozens of posts regarding the film making, and very little in regards to being inspired to go pick up a torch and make something. No surprise of course, but it makes me angry and disappointed every time."

DAILY INSPIRATION: blitz "stealth"

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The newest thing on 2 wheels to roll out the doors at Blitz Motorcycles is their "Stealth" Yamaha TW125.


 Upon first glance you wouldn't guess the foundation bike for this build was only 10 years old. The tail section of the frame was rebuilt, and then powdercoated military green, along with the swingarm, wheels, forks, and pegs. An AutoMoto tank from the 50's was mounted, and the tail light was sourced from a bicycle of the 40's.
  

 
The mono-shock swing arm is a dead give away to newer technology, however the guys went to great lengths to reduce all the modern wiring and electronics. All the controls up front have been minimalized, and a box was fabricated to hold the battery and wiring.



The asymmetrical headlight with blue trim ring has that bit of Blitz flare often seen on their builds. 

The 125 also got the smallest, stubbiest, Supertrapp muffler I've ever seen. It looks more like a microphone then an exhaust, but it works nicely with the bikes overall compact/nimble aesthetic. She looks like you could really toss her around.





For more pictures and info on the build, pay the Blitz Motorcycles site a visit.

NEWS WORTHY: polaris recieves an essay on humiliation - signed jt nesbitt

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JT Nesbitt (designer of everything awesome that came out of Confederate Motorcycles - above) has issued a SERIOUSLY pungent throw down to Scott Wine - Polaris' CEO - on them revitalizing the Indian Motorcycle brand.

Polaris owns the god-awful, Wal-Mart-Harley, Victory Motorcycle brand. JT has no qualms with issuing a lengthy and humiliating throw-down style essay on how terrible the Victory brand is.

Read-on to see where it leads:

Hell For Leather: An open challenge to make Indian good.

PROJECT CX: mmmm carbs

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This weekend I spent more time in the shop, hacking up and modifying what will be the rear fender. However, most of my time was spent dissembling, cleaning, and re-jetting the carbs. They sat in carb dip overnight, then soaked in CLR for a bit. Everything rubber or plastic got replaced, and anything metal that wasn't up to spec. They also got some new 90/120 jets to run with the very open MAC exhaust that will be going on the bike.

Unfortunately it looks like I deleted the "before" photos of how dirty these things were - so all you get are the "after" photos. Calling them grimy would be an understatement.





Now it's time to get them back on the bike, turn the key, and cross those fingers. Hopefully she'll be up and rideable again in the next few weeks.