Following on from the Bike Shed show in Paris a month ago, Yamaha was back last weekend for the Bike Shed show at the Tobacco Dock in London to reveal two new Yard Built creations.

Joining the growing line up of Yard Built machines is the café racer concept XJR1300 ‘Dissident’ by Portuguese builders it roCkS!bikes and the retro modern Matt Black Custom Designs XV950 ‘Playa del Rey’.

Based in a small workshop just outside Porto in Portugal since 2013, the roCkS!bikes team is made up of Osvaldo Coutinho and Alexandre Santos, both of whom are civil engineers by day. Their engineering skills are also evident in their builds with attention to detail focused on creating their signature ‘monocoque’ one piece tank, seat and tail units in all their creations.

So it comes as no surprise that the ‘CS-06 Dissident’ features a single handcrafted metal flowing unit stretching from just behind the triple clamps all the way back to the end of the tail.

The riding experience has also been given some extra attention with a complete ISR braking system, including master cylinders for front brake and clutch, front and rear calipers, and 340 mm front discs and 267 mm rear discs. 6 piston calipers apply braking power at the front and Hell Performance steel mesh brake and clutch hoses connect everything together.

YZF-R1 upside down forks take the pressure at the front, modified to fit the XJR1300 steering column. A host of Motogadget pieces make an appearance on the LSL clip-on café racer bars, including aluminium grips, M-Blaze turn signals and a Motoscope pro dashboard mounted on a custom CNC machined aluminium bracket designed in-house.

The stock engine covers have been replaced on both sides of the block by lighter aluminium pieces with glass windows, revealing the engine. A handmade 4-2 stainless steel exhaust also wraps the bike’s underbelly.

The bike rides on 17” tubeless Kineo spoke rims with Pirelli angel GT rubber.

Paying tribute to the XJR’s anniversary is the paint scheme, a reinterpretation of the classic colours of the 70s and 80s with pearl white, black and gold and of course the famous speed blocks.

Matt Black Custom Designs, meanwhile, working out of a workshop just outside Malaga in Spain, have used a number of custom machined billet bolt on parts for their board tracker design.

These include the front and rear 21-inch rims, the rear pulley with cush drive system, the plexi-glass see through cam gear cover, left side crankcase cover and right side generator cover. The small right side cover and front pulley cover were also machined and an air filter adapter plate was created to go with a Crime Scene Choppers air filter cover.

As a one-off Yard Built project there are also some bespoke parts created just for the build. These include the handmade fuel tank, both the electrical and battery side panels and the rear fender, all built in-house. The standard Yamaha XV950 headers flow into a one-off custom collector before making noise at the end with a modified MIVV Ghibli Silencer. A custom battery box is hidden internally and the XV handlebars were modified to deliver a board tracker look. The custom work continues with bespoke foot peg adapters, a front bash guard and a modified wiring loom.

The build is completed with a selection of custom aftermarket parts. The springer front fork comes courtesy of Rebufini with some minor modification by Matt Black Custom whilst the rear gets a set of Ohlins shocks to settle the ride. The fuel cap was custom made by Crafty B in the USA and the rocker cover was hand engraved locally. A Vitys headlight and grips add to the look at the front. Rizoma make an appearance with Bullet indicators and foot pegs and a Motogadget speedo and housing take centre stage. Stopping power gets an upgrade up front with PM calipers and a set of risers by LA Choppers adds to the west coast vibe.

Source: Yamaha

Tags: Bike Shed London, café racer, Matt Black Custom Designs, motorcycle design, roCkS!bikes, XJR1300 Dissident, XV950 Playa del Rey, Yamaha, Yard Built