Is there a person to say "Whoa!", who is seeing this photo?? Yes, this is the YZR500 roden by the legendary rider "King" Kenny Roberts...... it is not...... It's the Yamaha YZF-R25 that has changed its exterior. The retro custom machine, which is installed cowling set of the custom builder "GG Retrofiz" in Southern California and completely different, has excellent design and accuracy. This machine was exhibited in the Young Machine (internal and external publisher) booth at the Tokyo Motorcycle Show, which was held from 3/22 to 24. I will introduce the whole story.
The model for adult inspired by a high-quality cowl
It has an inter-color of yellow × black strobe line in a round and flowing cowl. Its appearance is exactly like the legendary YZR500, which won three consecutive the World 500GP champion of 1978 - 1980 by the riding of "King" Kenny Roberts. It comes into eyes as a yearning to the rider who sent youth age in the 80's and as a fresh neo-retro to the younger generation who does not know the time.
[The motif of coloring is 1978 YZR 500] The motif is Works YZR 500, which won the title for three consecutive years with WGP 500 from 1978. With Kenny's run, the Inter-Color of the yellow × black block pattern still leaves a striking impression. The photo is 1980.
This YZF-R25 custom was requested by the owner of a generation who knows the enthusiasm of that time. It was produced by the"9-GATE"which has a store in Higashi Kurume City, Tokyo.
It started with the owner's discovery of a retro exterior kit for YZF-R25 / R3 sold by US builders, and the concept was "Adult customs for adult riders."
The serious custom of the big motorcycle is full of the world, but he dare to choose the 250cc, which is easy to ride and enjoy city riding. It is lavishly obsessed with parts of Brembo, Ohlins and other details, and makes adults feel like they love models.
YZF-R25 GG Retrofiz Rocket Street Body Kit installed model http://ggretrofitz.com
The quality of the actual vehicle is overwhelming, and it just overlooks with a commercial vehicle. The handlebar has been changed to an external product with a 10-degree hanging angle for up-type STD. It is also equipped with a rearsets, and there is more room than STD of the compact riding position. A moderate forward lean makes you comfortable and racy feeling even to the old man. In addition, the Ohlin's F spring and the rear shock make it my foot a little hard, and it is fun to shed the winding. The appearance and the riding sense is exactly Kenny's sense of feeling.
The perfecr ambiance of the retro racer
So, let's have a look at the details of the YZF-R25 "King" specification.
This Full Cowling KIt is made of FRP and includes a cowl + screen, a tank cover, a seat cowl and various brackets.
(Left) Round shape is cool. The Handlebar End mirror is made by Daytona. The owner said "I really wanted to have the same Goodyear tires as at that time,". (Right) The tail lamp is STD. The Fender Eliminator Kit is made by Posh Face. Instead of four silencer type, It uses Akrapovic slip-on silencer.
It is a Rocket Cowl that a Screen covers up to the cockpit. A Screen Support Bracket is also included with the kit. The Master Cylinder and Calipers have been replaced by Brembo.
The cowl can be equipped with 7-inches round light. In this work, it was LED by custom parts for Harley. Since the valve was set to H7 → H4, the wiring also changed. The left is high and the right is low.
The tank cover is good fit. You can see that the line is thicker than others. This yellow is also a color that paint manufacturers do not have. The brinkers are made of CHAFT and seems to be considered by the shape and position.
Seat cowl is single specification. The seat and base are STD parts, and the seat cover has been changed to Alcantara. The lines and logos are not stickers but "painting" and the texture is outstanding.
STD handlebar (right) is slightly cramped because it is close from body. The customized specification (left) has been changed the handlebar by increasing the fork protrusion.
The custom specification (left) is in a slightly forward position. It has a rear sets and a sporty riding position (Rider height 177cm, Rider weight 67kg).
Cowls can be mounted by bolt-on. It can be installed for about 350,000 yen!
The Full Cowling Kit "Rocket Street", which is an homage to retro racers, can be mounted almost bolt-on, surprisingly. Originally, the kit's accuracy was high, and edge alignment was easy. The hardest part was the fit of the Strobe Line. Naturally, the size was different from that of the actual YZR 500, and the tank has a curved surface, so when viewed from the side, the vertical width of each line was different. So they were measuring from photo and actual motorcycle, and repeated the adjustment many times, and solved it by thickening the tank line.
To customize exactly the same as the picture, it is about ¥ 130,000 without the price of the vehicle. If you only wear the Full Cowling Kit, it costs only about 350,000 yen, including transportation costs and labor fee from the local area (except for painting costs, etc.). Even so, it is a wonderful work. If the response is large, there is possibility that Yamaha move towards commercialization.
It is an overwhelming completion, is Yamaha still on the market!?
This is something we can believe of as "newly released R25 based neo-classical specification".
YZF-R25 by 9-GATE
Mr. Keisuke Hosoi, who was in charge of design at the aftermarket parts manufacturer, became independent and opened in '17 years. It also responds to unreasonable demands such as one-off production.
4-2-8 Minamicho, Higashi Kurume-shi, Tokyo TEL: 424-455-6985 https://9gate.shopinfo.jp
• Statement by: Hiroaki Numao • Photo by: Junya Yamauchi
* It is reconfigured based on Young Machine 2019 March publication article
See all motorcycle photo.
See YAMAHA Moto Index Page
See Accessories for YAMAHA YZF-R25 (R25)
See Accessories for YAMAHA YZF-R3 (R3)
