When I was 18 (back then the legal driving age) I got my motorcycle driving license and started on a '82 Honda XL500R, drove that bike for a few years all year round even with snow and ice.
Next was a Suzuki GS550 Katana, this was the first bike I started altering. I put on Marzzochi shocks, Laser 4-1 exhaust, had it repainted, I re-upholstered the seat and put in a 610cc Wiseco kit.
When I started working in '91 I bought my first (and only) new bike, a Suzuki Savage. I drove all my bikes all year round so also this one. I loved the low end power but along the way I started to realize that a chopper doesn't suit my driving style..... how I knew? The controls and exhaust were all grinded away from flat cornering...
I sold the Savage to my mother (she still has it, my stepdad restored it for her, made a custom exhaust from scratch, reinforced the swingarm, added Hagon shocks, made drain plugs on the forks, added an oil pressure light and some more stuff)
At that time I got my car license so from then on bikes were only for nice weather.
The next bike was a Kawasaki Z550, got it cheap from a relative, fixed it, ran it for a while and sold it at a profit (that's me on the back)
My brother had a '78 Suzuki GS750 with a polyester tank/seat unit, it wasn't much but it was fun and loud...
I bought it from him and started building my first street fighter. I put on an original tank and body panels, a GSX1100 swing arm, rebuild the motor with a Wiseco 844 kit and put on a Harris exhaust (they are awesome!)
I started drag racing it in the Ultimate Street Bike series and that made me want to go faster
I started off my next project with a '93 Suzuki GSX1100F (Katana) which was practically brand new....except for some accident damage. I didn't need the fairing anyways and those motors are almost the same as the GSX-R but with a cam for a bit more low end torque which is perfect, 1127cc oil cooled. The front came of a GSX600F, the rear wheel and brake of a GSX-R, modified a Devil GSX-R exhaust, GSX-R footrests/controls and gauges and had a custom top yoke made for moto-x handlebars. This bike was a monster, had so much fun with it!
Latest build was a '93 Suzuki GSX-R1100W, the water cooled type, also bought with accident damage. Didn't do much but a small Kawasaki KLE fairing/headlight, polish all aluminum and repaint it. Of course a Laser 4-2-1 exhaust and some tuning to get the most out of it.
I had always like American Muscle Cars and in '98 I finally made the decision to buy one...this meant the bikes was sold to fund the newfound hobby.
I still have the car I bought then, a '71 Chevrolet Camaro RS which I also modified and rebuild (twice) and I am currently working on my next project which is a '62 Chevrolet Nova 4 door. If you are interested you can see/follow those builds on my website
www.pro-touring.nl .
Since then I had a Honda CB450S for a short while as a commuter bike and at one point I bought a '87 Suzuki GSX-R1100 project in boxes. I built that one up and started driving it but after a week realized that my driving style hadn't changed....but my personal circumstances had. With this bike chances are I would have injured myself badly and that's not a good thing when you have a family. So I sold it after 2 weeks (no pics).
Fast forward to October 2013.....
When you like bikes....it never goes away. The Cafe Racer TV show didn't help either
For the last year I was looking at stuff, project bikes but didn't make the step yet to buy one and start. All the bikes I used to own were dirt cheap now...also the really fast ones, but I quit riding them just because of that. I needed something that was fun and not too fast. Then I started looking at a Savage again.... I remembered how fun it was to ride, but also the poor handling, but that's something I can fix.
Early October I found one local and cheap which was enough reason to pick it up. It wasn't pretty but it was a running and driving bike which is a great start, I only needed the frame and motor anyways. In my head the plans already formed, I started taking it apart and gathering parts. My plan was to use as much Suzuki parts as possible and keep it low budget. (since I am also building a car). Just for the record: the quality of my pictures won't allways be up to par, I know....I use my phone and sometimes there isn't much light or they are out of focus....it's just to document my build and I always have it with me.
It's a '86 model with the 4 speed gearbox (I had the '91 before so at first I thought I was missing a gear). After searching a lot and seeing pictures I think the bike in my head would classify best as a Street Tracker. I do not care too much how it's called, I just build it the way I see it and I like it.
Just days after I got the bike I found the front end I was looking for: Suzuki GSX600F (known as Katana in the US).
The seller also had the rear wheel and brakes which I didn't know at first so I was lucky to get the complete set.
The front end just slipped in so that was easy, the rear wheel took some mix and matching but with the rear sprocket mounted backwards it lined up perfectly.
Even though it already started to look cool it was not the look I was going for.
I bought longer shocks to get some ride height and stance I was looking for.
The rear drum brake is held in place by a metal strip inside the swingarm (don't know how it's called) which interfered with the brake disk so I cut it off.
I don't have power in the garage so I had to do it the old fashioned way...by hand with a hacksaw.
I had been looking at gas tanks and after hours and hours googling on Suzuki tank I decided I wanted a GT550 tank.
I really like the shape, the raised strip on top, the chrome gas cap and the raised letters (emblem) on the sides.
It wasn't cheap but I found one
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