The SINISTER Suzuki Katana Restomod is complete and ready to be delivered to the customer. This build is finished in black and white with red highlights (all paint, no vinyl – by Sketchs Ink). Tank was modified to fit a Newton fuel cap. It has a braced frame, OHLINS suspension, a braced Bandit 1200 swingarm, Dymag UP7X wheels w/ Avon Spirit ST tires, fully equipped Brembo brakes, Sato Racing rearsets, and modern switch gear with a KOSO gauge cluster.

The engine is a 1216cc Wiseco piston powerhouse with Ray Mancini (Xtreme Motorsports) worked head with oversized stainless valves, Webcams .370″ camshafts, Hayabusa rods (with 2mm spacer plate), Yoshimura TMR-MJN carbs breathing through a Racefit titanium exhaust system.

Sketchs InkÖhlins USAÖhlins Racing – MotorcycleDymag Performance WheelsXtreme MotorsportsYoshimura Research & Development of America, Inc.Yoshimura Japan Co.,Ltd.SuzukiBremboKoso North AmericaRacefit

#suzuki#restomod#katana#dBCustoms#yoshimura#brembo#dymag

#wiseco#black#racefit#titanium#custom#superbike#hayabusa#horsepower#custom

This is the second (#2) of ten to be built Suzuki XR69 tributes. This one is off to our customer in California. The engine is a GSXR 1216cc with JE pistons, Webcams (.370″/.370″), Hayabusa connecting rods (with 2mm spacer plate), 26/30 Ferrea Valves, with port and bore work by Ray Mancini of Xtreme Motorsports in Tennessee. OHLINS fors and rear shock provides the suspension, while Brembo radial mount billet front calipers and RSC master provides the braking power. Wheels are carbon fiber Dymag CA5 with Michelin 2CT RS tires. Frame is a bespoke Cr-Mo 4130 piece by CMR Racing. The bodywork is custom carbon fiber with paint work by Sketchs Ink of Ottawa. Enjoy the pics and check out the video!

The 1982 superbike season was the pinnacle of naked superbikes. There’s no argument, that the Honda CB750-F superbike, was one of the best looking race bikes of that era. Ridden by names like Freddie Spencer, Mike Baldwin, Roberto Pietri, (MEON), Steve Wise, Ron Pierce, Mike Spencer, and Steven McLaughlin. It is certainly one of my all time favorites, and one of the main reasons I became so passionate about these bikes. These bikes continue to have a cult following, and even past riders, mechanics (such as Dennis Zickrick), and other key support personnel (like Brian Uchida) contribute to a Facebook page dedicated to these superbikes (CB750F AMA SUPERBIKE 1980/81/82 >>>>> https://www.facebook.com/groups/1379346182099802.

dB Customs was commissioned to build a race bike for their customer, to resemble the 1982 CB-F Superbike, purpose built for the track. Although it would be cost prohibitive to throw a bunch of rare unicorn dropping RSC parts at this build, we did our best to use parts that pay tribute to the original, but at a more cost effective approach, while maintaining that race pedigree. The bike started off as a 1982 CB900F frame, that was de-raked, changing the steering head angle to 26.5 degrees, and back 25mm (1inch). A Cr-Mo steering neck from Vince & Hyde Racing was used, and welded in place by CMR Racing Products Inc.. The rear subframe was removed, and we built a Cr-Mo 4130 unit similar to the original geometry of the superbike, adding replica shock mounts (via JES BUILT Motorcycles). To mimic the original AHM swingarm, we adopted a TL1000R unit. To fit, the swingarm was moved to the right at the pivot by 4mm (such that the large bearing pocket cleared the engine cases), fabricating wheel spacers to re-center the wheel.

Öhlins USA rear shocks were used on the rear, and VTR1000F forks were used upfront, modified by suspension guru John Sharrard of Accelerated Technologies Motorcycle Page. AHM replica triple clamps were used up front, at 197mm fork spacing and 50mm offset. The wheels are the newest addition to Dymag Performance Wheels, a modern billet aluminum take on the classic CH3 series. These wheels were the very first off of Dymag’s line, and are equipped with Metzeler Racetec RR tires. Superbike handlebars are from Flanders.

AP Racing calipers were used front and rear, with Brembo 310mm rotors up front, AP Racing classic front brake master, PTFE lined braided lines, and forged #Aeroquip fittings.

The engine is 1187cc with lightweight billet aluminum pistons from V&H Racing, CP-Carrillo rods, a CB1000C/900F crank (balanced and lightened to 18lbs), a CB1000C transmission (close ratio), and head work by Ray Mancini of Xtreme Motorsports. Ray also did the boring and crank work, and cc’ing of the combustion chambers to acheieve 12.5:1 CR. The head contains pulse plasma nitrided stainless valves from @G&S Valves (UK), with Kibblewhite Precision Machining, Inc. springs. Cams are Web Camshafts, grind #118, degree’d to 101.5/106.5 IN/EX. Morse racing cam and primary chains, as well as A-chain guide and A/B chain manual tensioners from V&H Racing. Carbs are Keihin 33mm CR-S round slides, as limited by class rules in NZ. The exhaust is a JayGui 4-2-1 piece that has been treated to glacier black air cure Cerakote. The AHM replica silencer was hand fabricated by our talented mate, Dirk Langkamp. Ignition is from Ignitech with Nology Profire coils and Champion plugs.

The paint work was applied by Sketchs Ink, with killer graphics from our mate Mark Olan over at AFE Graphics. Can’t wait to hear some sound clips of this bike on the track, and get some feedback on it’s performance. It is surely one of my favorite builds so far, I could easily spend the rest of my career building these, and only these. CB-F’s rule!

Well, here we are, the long awaited Suzuki XR69 TRIBUTE, Bike #1, which is headed off to New Zealand. This has certainly been a long process, with many complications, but we worked through them all and now this is the result. It’s not a traditional GS1000 8V engine XR69, but if you haven’t noticed, I’m not much of a traditionalist, and so this is my interpretation of this historic racer. The chassis is 4130 aircraft grade tubular Cr-Mo steel, designed and fabricated by Denis Curtis (RIP) and Byron Cox, of former @CMR Racing. The fuel tank and swingarm was also fabricated by CMR. All suspension components are by Öhlins USA, with the front forks (FGRT 202) designed initially for a BMW 1000RR, but with an increase of 10mm to the length and stroke. The brakes all around are by Brembo, with 320mm discs upfront, billet radial mount front calipers, RCS brake and clutch masters / levers, and plumbed with Spiegler Performance Parts braided lines. Wheels are super light weight carbon fiber CA5’s by Dymag Performance Wheels, along with Michelin Pilot Power CT2’s. Rear sets are from @Harris Performance.The engine is a freshened Bandit 1200 unit topped off with an early GSXR750 “DOT” head, that has more of a down draft design with smaller combustion chambers for added compression. Cams are from an oil cooled GSXR-1100 along with Kibblewhite springs. Ignition is a Dyna 2000 unit with 2.2Ohm grey coils, and the engine breathes though a set of Yoshimura TMR-MJN carbs. The exhaust is an incredibly light weight 4-1 titanium unit from Racefit. The bodywork is carbon fiber that is equipped with headlights from a Honda NC35 VFR400. The paint work is by our partners over at Sketchs Ink (all paint – no vinyl), who worked incredibly hard to make my ideas into reality.Bike #2 is almost completely assembled so watch out for this beast ….. and some sound clips. It will be 1216cc with a number of engine upgrades.

1983 Kawasaki GPZ1100F (ZX1100-A1) Restomod with forged Wiseco pistons (1170cc), APE KA410 cams (0.410″ lift 266 deg. duration), JB-Power Keihin 35mm FCR’s and 4-1 hand bent Titanium exhaust, Cerakote engine coatings, billet rearsets, swingarm conversion with OHLINS rear shock, OHLINS front forks, Brembo brakes with RCS masters, Spiegler brake and clutch lines, hydraulic clutch conversion, OZ Racing Gass RS-A forged aluminum wheels with Avon Spirit ST tires. Paint work by Sketchs Ink. Photography by Darren Begg (dB Customs).

This 1979 Honda CBX was transformed into a killer restomod, with a final weight of 465lbs wet. The bike features all the performance upgrades including 1147cc JE forged piston engine with hot cams, Carrillo rods, Vince and Hyde Racing (cam chains, guide, and tensioners), and a Ray Mancini (Xtreme Motorsports) flowed head. Fuel is delivered by a rack of FCRs and the sweet note of this CBX is delivered through an exotic light weight hand bent titanium exhaust, both from our friends at JB Power in Japan. The forks and twin shocks are none other than OHLINS, along with an OVER Racing swingarm. The wheels are super light weight CA5 carbon fiber from DYMAG, rolling on Avon Spirit ST rubber. Stopping power is provided by Brembo, including billet calipers, RCS master cylinder and levers, and 320mm rotors. No need for new paint on this beauty, as it’s an original owner and paint was flawless. The side covers were updated with carbon fiber patterned hydrograhics, to match the carbon fiver front fender. The gauge and signals are from KOSO, and the switch gear was updated to modern GSXR pieces. The headlight is a cool feature, from JW Speaker, and it is BRIGHT! Enjoy the gallery!

The long awaited Flyin Fred Merkel #VFR750 #Superbike is NOW complete and the customer traveled from the USA today to pick it up. This is as close to the actual representation of the original 86 superbike that Fred rode, with a slew of HRC components, including: #HRC front magnesium wheel, HRC left exit exhaust with HRC springs (front downtubes Cerakoted), HRC fairing inserts and air ducts, HRC fender mount and fender, HRC rear fender, HRC swingarm, HRC rotors, HRC tach and temp gauge, HRC style rearsets, HRC steering damper, HRC oil cooler line mod, HRC wiring harness, and HRC tripe clamp and bar risers. The engine is an ex Dr David Kieffer HRC kitted NF1 180 degree firing order with digital ignition and NF1 mechanical round slide carbs. The forks are RC30 pieces with RC30 calipers. The rear shock is an original Fox. The rear wheel is a custom ordered 3 spoke Marvic, just like that used on Fred’s bike! The amazing paint work and livery (all paint no vinyl), was painstakingly recreated by our partners over at @sketchs_ink. Amazing work and can’t thank them enough for having the patience to make sure the decal colors and placement and size and configuration were accurate! Thanks so much! Many historical images were referenced to try and produce a correct representation of the original superbike that Fred rode. dB Customs is so privileged to help create this masterpiece for our customer!

This was a build that has plenty of meaning behind it, as it is a tribute to the very first bike I built that ultimately lead to my company, dB Customs. The customer loved the look of the original and wanted to use the same paint scheme. But of course, since there is always room for improvements, we made some enhancements but stayed true to the original.

The bike is equipped with OHLINS suspension all around, with a modified GSXR600 SRAD swingarm, adapted to fit the CB-F frame, and custom shock mounts welded on to accommodate the twin shocks. The triple clamps were made for dB Customs by our friends over at Zanzani in Italy. The wheels are Oz Racing’s Gass series in a gold anodized finish, with rear sprocket from Driven Racing. Tires are the newest generation of Michelin RS, using the latest in multi-compound technology in sizes 12/70-17 and 18/55-17.

The engine was massaged with a Wiseco 985cc forged piston kit, with ported head, degreed cams, and components (curved guide, rear AHM manual tensioner, and race cam chains) from Vince and Hyde Racing. The fuel is delivered by 36mm Yoshimura TMR-MJN carbs, and breathes through a 4-2-1 racing exhaust by JayGUI. Ignition is a Dyna 2000 with 2.2 ohm coils.

Braking is Brembo brakes all around, including 320mm full floating rotors, and RCS master cylinder and levers, with braided lines from Spiegler.

The paintwork was laid down by our guys over at Sketches Ink, using a Nero Carbonio base color from a Masserati Grand Turismo (only paint used, no vinyl decals applied).

The weight of the bike is a modest 443lbs, shaving close to 82lbs off the original dry weight, with a weight bias of 51% front to 49% rear.

It was certainly a pleasure to build this bike for our customer.

Enjoy the gallery of pics!

This is one killer Katana, that started out as a 1982 GSX1000S, for our customer in Arizona. The engine has been punched out to 1260cc by Ray Mancini of Xtreme Motorsports, putting out 173hp at the countershaft. The body work has carbon fiber accents, including a custom fuel tank cover, with paint by Sketches Ink. The build includes many of our standard components including Brembo brakes, Oz Racing wheels, OHLINS suspension, and JayGUI Racing exhaust. Enjoy!