Cristian Sosa is a master of metal. His builds are like free-form jazz, each piece complementing the others yet completely unique, a sculpture sitting with other sculptures to create the final motorcycle. “Kamala,” Sosa Metal Works build based on the Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 Twin, is no different. Presented in bare metal, it lets the materials speak for themselves - steel, aluminum, brass - each reflects the light differently, glowing in the countless hours that led to their final forms.
Royal Enfield makes the most custom friendly motorcycles in the world. After that, its up to you to take them to the next level. These are your dreams in metal - imagination and craft from around the world. The best of the best, hand-picked for your enjoyment. Welcome to the home of the wild and creative, the wonderful and the weird. Welcome to the Royal Enfield Custom World.
Kaichiroh Kurosu-san from the legendary, Tokyo-based Cherry’s Company built this incredible custom Super-Meteor 650 cruiser and handmade sidecar, aptly nicknamed the ‘Challenger,’ for the Yokohama Hot Rod and Custom Show in 2024.
The 50s inspired forks reduce the trail and make the sidecar steering easier, with KONI shocks and hand picked coils that ensure the right spring rate whilst keeping the front end compact. The majority of the chassis remains stock for its super slammed look, with a sloped design. The stock neck has been customized and the engine has been moved to the left by changing the backbone and rear suspension pivot point, also accommodating for a wider rear wheel.
Hand built alloy bodywork flows throughout the build, with a unique custom made steel fuel tank, aluminum seat pan and headlight and a bespoke resin headlight lens all polished off with pinstriping and gold leaf artworking. The sidecar is a work of art, inspired by vintage sidecar design and the traditional dutch wooden clog. It sits on a 19-inch, 60- spoke wheel with its own disk brake, which is shadowed by the 21-inch brakeless front Challenger wheel.
In partnership with Top Gear Magazine, Royal Enfield’s in-house custom team transformed the stock Continental GT 650 into a custom cafe racer endurance motorcycle with a retro racer livery all inspired by Alexander Calder’s BMW 1975 3.0 CSL Le Mans car and full pannier set up from Malle London, a BAAK exhaust, Tom Hurley custom seat, fatter hand made spoke wheels from Central Wheel Components, a custom fairing, aluminum yokes, clip ons and rear sets from Harris Performance, adjustable shocks from Nitron and HEL braided brake upgrades being installed by Max Vanoni and Urban Rider.
Enter the Royal Enfield x RSD Super Meteor build, where bringing authentic chopper vibes to the project was crucial for Roland Sands, “the bike needed to exude an OG chopper attitude with parts to match.” RSD started by chopping the frame and installing a peanut tank whilst the engineering crew sketched, modeled and 3D printed new primary,c am and counter-shaft covers for the 650 Twin. The stock wheels were replaced with RSD Morris wheels - a 16 x 3.0 rear and a narrow 21 x 1.850 front, with tires to match. Gold nitride forks were used to slim up the front end, whilst the rear end of the bike got cleaned up in line with the neck. The standard rear fender, seat, and shocks were all removed and the stock shock mounts were chopped. Taller Ohlins shocks were installed, and the rear fender dropped right on top of the tire. RSD wanted to keep the front wheel clean with no brake, so a rear racing brake caliper was installed on the rear.
'Izi's Ride:' A Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 built for a dystopian netflix movie
Base Model - Shotgun 650
Now streaming on Netflix, the Kitchen is a dystopian film co-directed, co-written, and co-produced by award-winning actor Daniel Kaluuya, starring actor and rapper Kano as the film’s main protagonist, Izi.
Based on the Shotgun 650, Enfield’s in-house custom team built “Izi’s Ride,” working closely with London-based artist and musician Gaika Tavares and the film’s production team. Leveraging Royal Enfields talented Industrial Design teams in both India and the UK, a plethora of designs were generated, drawing inspiration from sci-fi references, brutalist design, street fashion and cyber-punk film culture. After much deliberation and refinement, the best ideas were blended to create the final design.
Kano’s character uses this bike throughout the film, the bike itself becoming a character. The concept is that an original 2024 stock Shotgun 650 would have been modified and tricked out over time with all manner of futuristic tech. The grime that adorns the bike is all showbiz trickery, deliberately applied on set. “The ‘dirt’ is actually a series of aerosol sprays that are specially designed to replicate different looks of dirt,” says Adrian Sellers, who heads up Royal Enfield’s custom program. “So this is exactly how the bike appeared in the movie—loved but used daily by the main character.”
Koichi Fujita from AN-BU Custom Motors is notorious for his traditional sportbike design and raw mechanical builds after being taught by his father in the art of shaping and painting sheet metal. He designed the AN-BU GT 650 to look good being ridden on the road, as well as exhibited at the motorcycle shows. The build is named ‘Kai,’ short for ‘Kaizo’, a nod to Koichi’s heritage. It’s a word he used when customizing bikes as a kid, and it means ‘modification.’
All-new bodywork was fabricated for the Conti GT, with a new aluminum fuel tank & tail hump, carbon fiber front fairing and a modified upper frame to match the tank, tweaking the sub frame to get that 80s look - further helped out by the off set headlight surrounded by more aluminum goodness. Koichi then threw together a custom exhaust, leather seat, hand made clip ons, Kayaba forks, YSS shocks, custom yokes, a motogadget speedo, an enduro style petrol cap and 18 inch alloy wheels for good measure. The paint job is an AN-BU trademark where Koichi painted the fairing black with the carbon weave remaining visible.
Thrive Motorcycles is all about family. Founded by a group of friends who couldn't find the bikes that they wanted and decided to go their own way, quitting careers along the way and committing everything to build one of the most creative builder companies in the world. Their builds reflect this, with a deeply personal vibe that is reflected in every detail and in a personality to each build that stands out from the crowd. For the Thrive T_XX (named for their 20th build), they took the stock Interceptor and remade it, adding both performance parts and some incredible craftsmanship to present the bike at Kustomfest 2018. Cerianni forks are both retro and tech at the same time, while a modern swingarm tips the bike forward in a distinctly sporty stance. Modern 17" rims wrapped in racing rubber make sure there is no doubt about the intention. The hand-formed aluminum tank is beautifully finished in green and gold - and such is Thrive's attention to detail that when they weren't happy with the paint job as it was, they re-painted it to make it perfect.
Cristian Sosa is a master of metal. His builds are like free-form jazz, each piece complementing the others yet completely unique, a sculpture sitting with other sculptures to create the final motorcycle. “Kamala,” Sosa Metal Works build based on the Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 Twin, is no different. Presented in bare metal, it lets the materials speak for themselves - steel, aluminum, brass - each reflects the light differently, glowing in the countless hours that led to their final forms.
“Kamala” is inspired by vintage board track racers - its lean form and large thin wheels perfectly proportioned to frame the 650 Twin motor at its core. While inspired by this most dangerous of vintage motorsports, it is also a completely original creation, with Cristian letting the materials guide him to the final form. Often, a project like this will go through a phase of sketches and proposals - with Cristian, however, there is an agreement about the basic direction and that’s it - the rest is left up to the hours, days and months that follow as the form gradually emerges from the tools in his studio. He employs an arsenal of machines and techniques to create each build, ranging from hand hammering and flame to power hammers he has built himself - but is careful to point out that it’s not the tools that matter - it's the will and inspiration to make the thing that is most important.
In “Kamala” this takes the form of a beautifully narrow swept tank, perfectly formed around a completely bespoke rigid frame made of chromoly steel. Inspired by early Royal Enfields, a sinuous girder fork connects the wheel to the frame at the front, and a beautifully detailed springer seat arrangement holds the rider perched behind the motor on an almost impossibly narrow spring. All these parts perfectly complement the pure metal construction and simple retro forms of the 650 Twin motor, working together in a composition that is both tough and delicate at the same time..
Premiered at The One Moto Show in Portland, Oregon in February 2020, the bike almost didn’t make it - the time it takes to painstakingly make each part takes its toll, but a final week long push - and very little sleep plus a 16 hr drive - later, the build arrived in time for the show. Cristian spent much of that drive in the back of the van, still assembling the final parts together. The build instantly stood out at the show, and won one of the top awards presented the next day, even though it still wasn’t 100% finished!
Cristian formed Sosa Metalworks with his brother, Roberto, in 2012. Already an experienced metal worker from years as lead fabricator at Count’s Kustoms, Sosa has quickly become one of the most respected names in metal fabrication for cars and motorcycles worldwide - his builds have been featured in shows from his hometown of Las Vegas to Yokohama, Japan, and everywhere in between. Not content to just create, Cristian is also committed to raising the next generation of metal workers, and regularly runs classes at his shop and abroad to pass on the skills he has acquired over the last few decades of practice.
London-based artist, designer and engraver Johnny Dowell, otherwise known as King Nerd, has gained a cult following by combining old and new aesthetics with his distinctive style. He may have been trained to the highest standards by a centuries old luxury institution, but his own sensibilities lean towards streetwear, ‘90s hip-hop and the city that made him who he is - London.
Whether it’s creating bespoke watches with Daniel Arsham, designing limited edition footwear with Dr. Martens or engraving bespoke pieces for Jaguar, Johnny’s work is instantly recognisable and coveted by hypebeasts and celebrities alike.
As a lifelong motorcycle fan, there was one Royal Enfield that spoke to him more than any other. The urban HNTR350 mirrors the King Nerd ethos of classic-meets-contemporary, and was designed for the very streets he grew up in.
Dialing up the HNTR350’s city-focussed design even further, the HNTR x King Nerd project pulls all Johnny’s inspirations into five unique machines united by a common theme. Manufactured in-house by Royal Enfield’s Custom World division, these King Nerd x HNTR350 bikes have been redesigned with numerous special touches from the mind of King Nerd.
Modifications to the bike:
- Custom paintwork with ornate scroll design and King Nerd 350 logo
- Bespoke nacelle
- Bespoke tail section
- Solid milled aluminum wheels
- Custom front mudguard
- Custom seat with contrast design and stitch
- Custom side panels with pockets for everyday essentials
- Hand engraved plaque by King Nerd
- Custom keys with King Nerd logo
- Custom King Nerd graphic headlight
Baggers were first introduced in the 1980s and were intended to be motorcycles capable of gobbling up serious touring miles with panniers/bags attached on either side to carry necessary luggage for the journey. The custom baggers scene exploded only in the last decade when custom bike builders realized the huge potential in this genre of the motorcycle.
Hand built by TNT Motorcycles, “Neelkantha” is the world's first custom bagger based on the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650. Inspired by traditional bagger styling and stance, it features front and rear air ride suspensions. Operated with the push buttons mounted on ape handlebars, the ground clearance can be adjusted and can range between 2.5 - 7.5 inches. It sports a massive 23” front tyre mounted on a CNC machined billet wheel.
The hand-crafted fuel tank replicates the original Interceptor tank but is slightly bigger in proportion to match the bagger theme. Saddle bags and fuel tank both feature buffed and bead rolled aluminium panels in order to break the monotony of solid colour theme. A handmade tail light with the Royal Enfield insignia along with machined aluminum exhaust tips finish of the tail end in style. A total of 18 parts have been CAD designed and CNC machined from 6081 aluminium blocks, which include a girder set up, front foot-boards, rear foot-pegs, handle risers, exhaust tips, tail light mount, rear fender bow, fuel tank cap and TNT logos.
This build celebrates the engineering prowess of TNT Motorcycles and their ingenuity to bring about a unique custom expression of the Royal Enfield Interceptor as the Neelkantha.
'Arthur' by Bandit 9
Base Model - Continental GT 535
A GT 535 fit for a king
Bandit9 took our Continental GT into the realm of royal legend with their ground uptake on the Continental GT 530. Arthur is a truly handmade piece of art machine, a road-worthy stainless-steel sculpture. Bandit9’s flexes its imaginative engineering through Arthur’s horizontal suspension, carved footpegs, integrated speedometer, disconnected tank and cowl, bow-like handlebar, custom front brake. Each individual piece is a work of art. All the corners of the frame have been replaced with gentle curves to have the bike’s lines uninterrupted. Each piece “flows” into the next.
Building on the legendary Bullet
Taking its inspiration from the mechanical beauty of luxury timepieces, Bandit9 went to work on the concept with a jeweler' eye for detail. The output was simple, yet complex. Beautiful and functional. But most importantly, it had to feel like a piece you could pass down generations. In an effort to make the build as elemental as possible a hardtail replaces the standard swingarm and suspension. It was also important to alter the proportions to give Merlin an elegant look - a distinct triangular profile with a low clearance. The visual weight of the bike positioned in the center. As with Arthur, Merlin also sustains the flowing lines of the frame.
To finish the build-off, Bandit 9 utilized old-school saddles with springs on the underside of the leather that softens the ride. The speedometer was completed redesigned with engraved Roman numerals and the case is a polished aluminum capped with a bronze bezel. Other details include bronze brackets, custom foot pegs, sculpted hand levers, bar end mirrors, flush gas cap, custom handlebars, and suspensions. And of course, Bandit9’s signature chrome finish.
The future is something that many people talk about. At Smoked Garage, they try to make it real. Unlike any other Himalayan build before or since, the SG_411 strips the Himalayan down to its core and rebuilds it looking towards a Himalayan 20 years in the future. The build exemplifies the core characteristics of the Himalayan, projecting a military spec toughness that makes the SG_411 equally at home on the tarmac and off-road. The paint scheme takes its inspiration from military style street fashion, blending matt green with pop accents in gloss black and orange. The body over which that paint is applied is a work of art. While most makers would have molded it from fiber glass - by far easier - Smoked decided to build their bike of the future around a core of old school craft, forming the complex body forms from hammered aluminum. Not content to stop there, cut and etched polycarbonate blades are back lit to create both head and tail lamps, while an integrated MotoGadget system allows the user to turn the bike on before even leaving the house.
Unveiled in 2018 and christened the 'Hooligan 650' this Custom Interceptor built by Bulleteer Customs Bangalore inculcates a split personality.
The motorcycle features a dual-tone black & white paint scheme, which depicts the two different sides of the bike - The INTERCEPTOR & the Hooligan. The black side is the law keeper with a " Serve and Protect" theme and on the other hand, the white side is the brash Hooligan version of the motorcycle bearing a "Trouble Maker " theme complete with a knuckle duster fashioned front brake lever. While there is a chrome-finish on the right side of the engine the left is blacked out with the engine fins meticulously brushed and ceramic coated, a fitting tribute to the nature of the twin-engine. Smooth and Civilised at times yet wild and untamed when required.
The HOOLIGAN 650 features an upside-down fork set up in the front, with custom triple tees adding stability to the 15in Custom vintage tyres with massive sidewalls embellished with HOOLIGAN and INTERCEPTOR branding on either side.
To bring in a sense of Nostalgia to build Ricardo Pereira head Designer at BULLETEER CUSTOMS had the handlebar placed ahead of the custom-made triple tees and this flows through the fully-digital instrument console, which was machined out of a piston from the legendary Lightning 535. The motorcycle features chopped fenders at the front and the taillight is placed inside a two-stroke engine's 350 cc piston on the rear fender.
The side panels are wrapped with leather straps while the Interceptor 650 gets a custom leather-upholstered seat that sits on a shortened chassis to accentuate the brutish stance of the bike. A scrambler-style side-mounted set of exhaust pipes curves around the engine cases and gives this beast a distinct "Growl" and the heat shields and wraps take inspiration from the barrel shrouds of a WW1 machine gun.
To sum it all up, this is BULLETEER CUSTOMS simple and yet powerful example of what can be done to an Interceptor 650 without compromising the ride and handling characteristics of this amazing machine.
Old Empire has stripped an Interceptor 650 to its core - getting rid of everything that wasn't completely necessary and hiding the rest. A deep metallic red paint job matched to an Oxblood leather and Alcantara seat elegantly introduces you to a motorcycle that balances refined luxury with irreverent character. The lowered stance and blacked motor hint at an aggression hiding under the refined exterior while cleverly integrated bars exemplify the old school customization ethos of removing anything that's not strictly necessary, hiding all of the wires and cables with internalized controls. Similarly hidden, in a nod to modern technology, is the key - no longer the stock lock barrel type, but a keyless ignition integrated into matching riding gloves. Another example of timeless style blending seamlessly with the modern world.
Premiered at EICMA 2018, the Midas Royale build from Rough Crafts of Taiwan is a ride built for a king. Top-spec Ohlins components and attention to detail that is second to none set this build apart from the crowd. Winston Yeh - the man behind Rough Crafts - knows a thing or two about craftsmanship, working with some of the finest artists and fabricators in Taiwan to make sure that each part is of the best quality in both function and finish. Gold and carbon define the bike, with an all-carbon body replacing the GT 650 Twin's stock parts and gold pinstriping highlighting the contours of the bike. Not content to stop there, Winston had the rims replaced with full carbon BST units taking several kilos off the stock weight. A sweeping two into one exhaust perfectly frames the motor, terminating in integrated SC-Project silencers. And last but not least, the seat - beautifully crafted from hand tanned leather and aged perfectly to contrast with the technical perfection of the carbon forms.
When Royal Enfield commissioned us to work on an official custom build, it was a matter of great pride & a sense of 'acceptance at last'. This was the first time we had a chance to build for an Indian manufacturer & it couldn't have been more exciting finding out that we were being given the new GT-650 which hadn't been released to the public at the time. The very fact that the company had kept this beautiful 650 twin a secret for years was unbelievable & then to see it live & ride it for the first time was an absolute privilege.
Given the frame & geometry of the stock bike, we thought it apt to build a cafe racer. We simply rebuilt the sub-frame along with a funky single-sided swingarm and slightly dropped the trail numbers upfront with Showa forks to give the bike an aggressive stance coupled with more agility & better front end feel. Next came a home-made exhaust, custom mild steel fairings, slick tyres, a dash of paint, & a little bit of brass detailing.
The bike looked good & we were glad to hear that Royal Enfield was happy with the end result so much so that they let us have a crack at the Buddha International Circuit aboard our custom 650 'Vigilante'. This was the best part of the build as we were really able to put the bike through its paces on a state of the art F1 track. The slicks coupled with a mid-ranged SBK suspension setup proved to be unbelievably planted with tones of grip on offer when on the brakes entering a corner, carrying mid-corner speed, or barreling out on the gas. We only got 3 hot laps of the track & even though this was a not a thoroughbred race setup, it proved to be insanely good fun. Being a partly aesthetic build it took some getting used to the narrow seat but we managed to scrape the heat wraps off our exhausts when leaning her into the corners.
It would be 'absolutely ridiculous' (in a good way) if we could get some 650 owners to a track with decent track tyres & let them rip.
Following are the highlights of this build:
1. Single-Sided Trellis Swing arm
2. Fully adjustable Suspension (Showa Front off a Ducati 848 EVO & Ohlins TTX GP rear shocker)
3. Custom front fairing
4. Custom Gp style exhaust with brass tips
5. Widened Subframe
6. Pop up gas cap
7. In tube taillight
8. Brass detailing (Bar ends, Frame caps etc)
9. Marchesini Rims
10. Pirelli Race slicks
11. Brembo brakes with radial master cylinders
12. Custom rear sets
14. Asymmetric side panels/ engine covers
15. Custom cafe leather seat
16. K & N pods
Royal Enfields are designed & built for today's motorcyclists who see their machines as an extension of themselves, making them perfect canvases for personalisation.
The Chai Shop Racer built by Paul Smith (Jugaad Goa), is his take on the famous Cafe Racer style. With a unique style of building his motorcycles devoid of any paint, this motorcycle captures the essence of a raw metal finishes perfectly. Working with raw metal gives him much more freedom to create a different look and feel by working with surface finishes to achieve the desired result you will see this evidently showcased in all of his work. Built on a Continental GT 650 he calls it the "Chai Shop Racer" as an ode to the tea stalls that people of our country so fondly frequent. He has used almost all the commonly found metals and alloys to put this work of art together, from mild steel to make the frame, aluminium sheet to make the body panels, solid aluminum blocks machined out to make the large retro style hubs mated to the stock wheels shod with old school rubber and of course, the brass accents without which none of Paul's builds leave his garage. Look closer and you will find that it is the detailing that really sets this motorcycle apart.
Flat track is the fastest growing type of motorcycle racing in the world, with its combination of entertainment and accessible racing drawing in motorcyclists and non-motorcyclists alike. Royal Enfield makes accessible motorcycles with a focus on pure, simple riding fun, and so it’s a logical step to explore the synergies between the two.
Inspired by this, Harris Performance decided to try their hand at building a flat track style motorcycle based on the 650 Twins platform. While Harris’ have over 40 years of expertise in chassis development, this is the first time that they have tried a flat track chassis, and it is a testament to their skill that on its first outings, the response was incredibly positive.
The frame is brazed steel tube - an old school technique applied to a thoroughly modern motorcycle. All other chassis parts have been developed specifically for this bike by Harris, including the front forks, and are connected to the track by RSD rims and Dunlop flat track tires. S&S silencers and big bore kit complement the bespoke chassis with proven performance in the flat track arena.
The design team at Royal Enfield’s technical center in the UK helped with getting the all carbon bodywork designed and made, taking inputs from flat track racers to make a bodywork that looks as good as it works.
The all new Continental GT 650 is designed for today's motorcyclists who see their machines as an extensions of themselves, and ride throughout the adventure of life, reminiscent of the Café Racer style that started as standard factory-made motorcycles, before being stripped down, tuned up, and modified to mimic racing bikes.
Inspired by its legendary past, bringing back the nuance of the golden era of café-to-café racing style from the 60’s, Krom Works Jakarta ( @kromworks ) gives the Continental GT 650 a new custom avatar with the name - 'The 30' - a motorcycle that perfectly resonates with the energy of this year’s Kustomfest theme of 'Back to The Roots,' while, in taking its name from the age of its builder, looking firmly towards the future.
BAAK introduces Gallinella, the result of a collaboration with Royal Enfield Motorcycles around the Interceptor 650 model highlighting the work of our craftsmen team.
Almost one year passed since the first paper sketches of this project and the moment when it was completed. GALLINELLA is the first BAAK build based in the new Royal Enfield 650 Interceptor, it was showcased during the Wheels & Waves Festival 2019 in Biarritz (France).
The inspiration for this build came from the «bathtub» fairings, very trendy on Triumph’s, Norton’s or BSA’s during the 50’s / 60’s. The rear fairing is THE masterpiece of the project, going the opposite way to the current trend of stripping-down motorcycles and boldly adding a curvacious work of aluminum art.
The visitors of the Wheels & Waves Festival discovered this machine during the ArtRide exhibition, an event bringing together unique motorcycles and art pieces in one place, with a live performance painting by Jamie Bennett (Pistache Artist Collective) highlighting the build during the ArtRide before it went back to the W&W village. This machine also represents a preview of the range of plug & play parts BAAK are designing for the Royal Enfield Interceptor and Continental GT 650. It’s fitted with many prototypes and BAAK’s classics such as wide handlebars, flat leather seat, classic headlight with integrated speedometer, aluminum handlebar controls, custom levers. Some parts designed and manufactured by our team in order to get a harmonious finish result, and not a simple assembly of parts collected from manufacturers.
Two Smoking Barrels picks up where its predecessor, Lock Stock, left off. Where Lock Stock established the new 650 Twin as competitive against the best other manufacturers have to offer, Two Smoking Barrels comes to the track ready to win. Built to compete in the Sultans of Sprint "Manufacturers Class," it retains more parts of the base 650 GT than Lock Stock, while also stripping away absolutely everything that could add unnecessary weight. A fixed rear end removes the need for a heavy shock - unnecessary on the smooth straight 1/8th sprint tracks of Europe - and every other frame element has been paired down to the bare essentials. A small fuel cell, carrying just enough race fuel for a few sprints, is tucked beneath a formed aluminum shell, easily removed with a few twists of cleverly designed knurled bolts.
Once every extra ounce was removed, Sinroja turned to the motor, taking the stock motor and adding the proven S&S Cycle 750cc big bore kit, billet pistons, larger injectors, and a performance ECU to put the power to weight ration right where it needed to be to take on the wildly powered competition. Extensive tuning on the Dyno later, Two Smoking Barrels was ready to hit the pavement. During its first outing at the Wheels and Waves "Punks Peak" competition, it blew away the competition in the most hotly contested "Modern" class. A week later at Montlhery, it stunned the crowd by either winning or losing by centimeters against 200+ horsepower Goliaths, proving that this David was ready for the fight - its lightweight and the excellent throttle control of our rider, Curtis Wright (from Royal Enfield's very own Genuine Accessories Team), giving the crowds a show to remember.
A factory retro racer straight from the team that designed the GT 650 Twin.
The initial concept behind the Nought Tea was to take a Continental GT 650 Twin and make it the best cafe racer it could be… and then to take it vintage racing.
Royal Enfield purchased the Harris Performance company some years ago, and to date, they have been using their expertise in chassis development to help bring our production models to life. They have also been instrumental in our drag bike and Bonneville projects, among others, so we wanted to highlight what Harris Performance could really do. With this in mind, we decided to collaborate on a retro-style race bike, using all Harris Performance parts. Harris, while part of Royal Enfield, still makes and sells their own brand of performance accessories, and so it was a logical fit. They are real experts at chassis development, with over 40 years of experience to their credit. They can quickly feedback on whether what we are thinking is ok or not, and suggest better alternatives as well.
While performance is at its core, the Nought Tea has been made extreme to shine at the Bike Shed event in London, where it was revealed to celebrities and custom bike lovers from all over Europe. It was built to play with some ideas, not necessarily all practical, that we're kicking around. The major modification on the Nought Tea GT is, of course, the fairing. We designed this specifically for the Continental GT 650, so it’s not just a modified off the shelf item. Same goes for all the mounts that secure it in place. For the sake of a bit of custom fun, we also removed the airbox, replacing it with two intake pipes that match stylistically to the custom exhaust we also fabricated for it. The subframe loop was chopped and moved in, to more closely align with the seat cowl, and a tail lamp was integrated into it. .A hand-stitched seat and custom three-tone paint job complete the look. Just to make the bikes sporting potential clear. The Ohlins suspension, tailored to fit the bike by Harris, have been added front and rear, with Brembo brakes to make sure it stops as well as it goes. Custom Harris yokes have also been integrated to remove weight, and the tank has been modified to accept a recessed Harris filler cap. Finally, the engine has been bored out and a 750cc S&S big bore kit installed. The lighting is all new with the factory indicators being replaced with Rizoma LEDs. Upfront are bar end units while in the back are the same indicators fitted to the rear shocks. Recessed into the modified rear cowl is an LED brake light and the new headlight unit also features an LED. The instrument cluster has also been reduced to a single Daytona tacho for a race-focused cockpit.
The concept for the wild three-tone paint came from one of our young designers, who had proposed the idea last year for our Lock Stock drag bike. We ended up going a different direction for that, but when it came time to come up with the graphic for Nought Tea, we remembered it and thought it would look perfect. Figuring out how to get all the triangles in place with three different colors was a project in and of itself! Fortunately, we have an excellent painter in house and one of our designers had the patience to spend hours masking everything off.
Our test rider has said that the bike is a dream to ride. The extra power from the big bore kit helps on the straights and the Harris chassis adjustments make it handle precisely around the track.
A RE Factory Custom designed for all roads, no roads....and whatever roads your imagination throw at it
Based on the Himalayan, the Roach shows what owners could do with a little imagination - it was built out of spare parts and stock the team had lying around the studio, and pulled together all sorts of different influences, culminating in a video game-inspired build that channels Mad Max, Grand Theft Auto, and Fortnite all in one go. It has a stretched single-sided swingarm, building on the toughness the Himalayan is known for - with a bit of craziness added into the mix with its insect-like "quad" of lights at the front. And speaking of crazy...there's a turbocharger added. Why? Because why not.
Two special Interceptor 650 Twins highlight just how much fun a Rally can be.
In the words of Malle London, whose epic ride and exceptional luggage inspired these builds :
In 2017 we had the pleasure of meeting the Royal Enfield team, we’d been subtly pitching them the idea of custom-built rally spec. support vehicles for ‘The Great Malle Rally’ ever since and suddenly they said ‘let’s do this’! The brief was set to create 2 rally machines to support 100 very inappropriate custom/classic motorcycles on our 1250 mile 5 day/stage rally across all of the most wild landscapes in mainland Britain. We wanted to create a very specific tool for a very specific job.
The 2019 Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 Twin was the perfect start for the heart of the build; lightweight, fast, fun, easy to modify and with a beautiful engine at its core. The Malle founders borrowed a stock Royal Enfield Interceptor for a field-test in Portugal, so we could really get a feel for the machine. After thrashing the bike over 1000 miles in 3 days (200 of those miles off-road – on basic road tires), we had a pretty good grasp of what the stock bike could do and what it needed modified for the rally and for our engineers.
For the builds we worked closely with the Industrial Design team at Royal Enfield in the UK and on monthly trips North from Malle HQ we’d share ideas and sketches – the first of which had military aerials and helium balloons to be used as rally checkpoint beacons, as well as a full un-zippable seat that housed a full tool set – it would be have been horribly uncomfortable riding 2000 miles sitting on a full sprocket set!
Once we had developed the first Malle pencil sketches into a fully formed concept we started stripping the bikes down with the Royal Enfield team convinced friends and collaborators to loan/fabricate us some very specific parts. Our friends over at British Customs were on board immediately and although they’ve typically made parts for custom Triumphs in the past, they set up a jig and made 2 sets of custom exhausts that just slipped right on to the 650 Twin. We also used British Customs heavy-duty Grabber footpegs and Mule Tracker handlebars.
Rally tools, kit, supplies, and usability were at the center of this design, we needed a motorcycle that could carry full Malle Moto Panniers of tools (20KG on each side), one side with metric, one side imperial, with Rally checkpoint kit in the large Malle Moto duffel, amongst spare fuel tanks, cables, consumables (zip ties, duck tape etc.) and the personal effects of the engineer. So each set of tools is packed into Malle dry bags on the inside of the panniers, making all kit full waterproof and airtight against dust and dirt.
For a support vehicle, lighting and safety are crucial. In the Malle tank/tail pack, you’ll find 5 USB charging ports for phone, GPS and torches, for the lead engineer and to support riders he may be supporting, as well as a full first-aid kit, water, and food. PIAA was the lighting partner of choice and supplied us with extra large twin front lights, dual oversize fog-lights and large modified tail-lights (we added the transparent red lens on the inside). Each of the side/rear lights can be rotated to act as a spotlight for the engineer to direct light onto the motorcycle they are working on in the rally.
Most of the terrain we’re crossing in The Great Malle Rally is tiny single track B-Roads, so it is technically road, but also loose gravel mountain tracks and often small rivers burst their banks and spread deep mud across many of the lanes in the South West, the unpaved roads up in the North of Scotland are also more fun with a little more grip. So we lifted the entire bike by a few inches with modified upside-down WP forks, extended the rear shocks and used Heidenau K60 Enduro Tyres. The new forks meant new yokes, so Harris Performance fabricated a pair of beautiful yokes and a really heavy-duty aluminum bash guard. We also added more engine guards, to protect the engine and house additional fog-lights. All the rally kit is fully protected, organized, water-proof and ready for the task in the 4 piece luggage set.
All of the Malle luggage is made from British waxed canvas (made by the oldest waxed canvas mill in the UK since 1776), we selected our standard matt black for one bike and then a new Red 10oz for the lead engineers bike, for greater visibility. Within each piece is a fully waterproof membrane and quilted padding, which was replicated on the custom waxed canvas seats. The tanks and oil boxes have been hand-painted with the contoured relief map of our two favorite roads/passes in the Rally. On the Red ‘Malle Rally Royale’ #02 we hand-painted the relief map for the Applecross Pass in Scotland and on the Black #01 it has the relief map of the Hard-Knot Pass from The Lake District in England. The Royal Enfield team went to town with the paint job, several post 2 AM nights in the spray booth to get those perfect.
Built for the 2019 Bangkok International Motor Show Thailand’s Zeus Customs to built The Prime Project on an incredibly tight deadline - with only 45 days until the bike had to be delivered.
Each individual metal piece needed to be handcrafted to match the ambitious concept of a monocoque body. And crafted it was, with the tank, seat and tale blending seamlessly into each other - topped off with the black and gold paint scheme that Royal Enfield's have been wearing for the past 50 years.
The front forks were stripped down and rebuilt with lowered springs and re-painted in black. It was important that the bodywork be perfectly parallel to the ground, and so the rear shocks were custom built with 340mm units. A pair of Firestone rubber hammers home the old school vibe and fully blacked-out wheels make sure you notice them. A small headlight blacked out shell is fitted with a brass colored bezel and a vintage style Motogadget speedo carries through the classy finish. Not content to stop with the surface, Zeus removed the stock airbox, dramatically lightening the look of the bike, replacing the battery with a smaller, lighter unit in the process. And no custom bike is complete without a pair of bespoke silencers to make it sing - in this case some beautifully swept high mount silencers, matching beautifully to the other details on the bike with turned brass caps.
There is a beautiful simplicity to Vayu - named after the Hindu god of the wind. Its smooth, sharp surfaces and finned details speak of a motorcycle designed to go quick. The base GT 650 Twin was a good starting point for this, but K-Speed added their special touch, honed from years of making bikes look and feel faster, to take it to the next level. To help this, the chassis was dropped with the forks rebuilt with a lowering kit - with YSS shocks added to the rear to make sure the stance was perfectly balanced. Wheels were also dropped a size, running 18" front and 17" rear, both wrapped in chunky retro rubber. Clip-ons, a small bikini fairing and rear sets complete the racer look, while a hydraulic clutch conversion kit adds a bit of extra function in the quest for speed.
The Grasshopper was the first build ever made on the Continental GT 650 Twin, and to celebrate this, Analog looked forward rather than back for their inspiration. While the cafe racer was the perfect bike for "doing the ton" around the streets of London, Analog realized the modern equivalent was the super motard - both sporty and casual, its the perfect style for getting around the city. And so the Grasshopper was born, taking the hard-edged forms of the GT and moving them perfectly into the modern world with complementing fenders and a stark modern paint job that makes the sporty intention clear. Twin tail exit silencers are not exactly silent, and add a motocross flavor, while the all-new performance rims and tires scrape away kilos and make the bike both light and agile.
'A pure pursuit of speed' Royal Enfield at Bonneville Salt Flats, 2018
Base Model - 650 Twin
Royal Enfield is about the joy of pure riding - the sensation of going beyond the daily grind - engaging with and challenging the world around you through new and exciting experiences. We try to live that ethos at RE, and this year, to highlight the game changing capability of our all new 650 Twin motor teamed up with S&S Cycle, Harris Performance and rider Cayla Rivas to see what exciting and new things we could really do with the motor. And find out we did, as we went chasing after the FIM record for twin cylinder, naturally aspirated motorcycles from 600-750cc at the iconic Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA.
Our goal was seemingly simple : take the record, last held by Alan Cathcart at a speed of 100.984mph over the measured mile with a successful return run in excess of that - something that previous record attempts by Royal Enfields had failed to achieve. (For an FIM record, two runs are necessary - the first to post a time beating the standing record and a second return run to confirm it. This must be accomplished within 2hrs and the average time of the two runs is used to cement the record).
This was a completely new experience for us at RE, having never put together a Bonneville effort, so to really understand how we could get the most out of our 650 Twin we decided to partner with the best experts we could find, The first port of call, for the motor, was S&S Cycle in the US, whose previous work with us on the Lock Stock drag bike in Europe - and their extensive experience in both tuning motors and racing them at the Salt Flats - prepared them for getting the most out of the motor. Next came Harris Performance, a subsidiary of our parent company Eicher Motors and our go to for all things chassis related. Harris are masters in the art of chassis design, having built GP and superbike chassis for some of the best riders in the game, but had never built a speed trials bike before. Not to be deterred, and having also worked with S&S on the Lock Stock drag bike, they jumped right in. The last component came in the form of the young but formidable Cayla Rivas, the daughter of experienced Salt Flats record holder Chris Rivas and holder of several records in her own right. She has speed in her blood and her goal was simple - go as faster than she ever had before.
The team, held together by a brief and design direction from our in-house design team, set to work and a few short months later our Bonneville Racer was ready to taste the salt. Many things could have gone wrong - the motor is all new and untested on the salt - and as a pre-production unit, parts were in scarce supply. While most teams choose a motor that has a good history and a healthy ecosystem of knowledge behind it, our RE Twin is all new...we are creating the knowledge for others. Harris had never designed a speed trials chassis before - would the knowledge from road racing translate onto the harsh and unpredictable environment of the Salt Flats? And finally Cayla...experienced but still young - would she be able to take this all new machine to the top of the record books, having never ridden - or even seen it - before arriving at the Salt Flats on day one? And of course there was our past history at the Salt Flats, and the curse of not yet achieving the return run.
Any fears we had were immediately put to rest, as Cayla’s confidence and the extraordinary professionalism of the team coalesced into a tireless machine, burning through the week with 22 runs and racing until the very last moment. On her first return run, on day one, (and with only one slow speed trial on the bike before), the record was shattered at over 132mph without nitrous. Sensing there was still more to get from the motor, we went on the hunt for more speed, ending the first day at 139mph. On the second day we started playing with the nitrous system and never looked back - continuing to break our own record several times over the rest of the week. Progressive gear ratio changes, wheelbase adjustment and other nips and tucks brought our final top speed to over 159mph on the measured mile, with a record return run average at 157.053 (pending FIM certification). This is over 20mph more than we had planned on being able to achieve or had even designed for - a testament to an amazingly flexible base motor and an extraordinary team whose passion and expertise and willingness to go for it made this all possible.
The Desert Runner was built for one purpose: to take on the famous LA - LV - Barstow rally. A grueling two-day survival experience, the build had to survive the brutal Californian desert, with stones, sand and more often than not, no trail. To accomplish this, the craftsmen and famed Austin build house Revival set about making the perfect off-road bike. First thing was to lift the ride height, ensuring that no matter what the terrain, the Runner would clear it. This was followed by one of the toughest bash plates ever made, fully knobby tires, and beefy forks. Super wide handlebars make the build supremely controllable, and the plush padded leather seat makes sure that the rider is as comfortable as can be while riding some of the more uncomfortable trails around. The paint is a study in tasteful simplicity, with classy green, cream and gold adding back a bit of "Royal" into this extreme Enfield.
Purpose-built to participate in the Malle Mile moto polo competition, these 5 Classic 500s are ready to do battle. Stripped of all unnecessary parts - but keeping those that make the Classic identifiable - the polo builds to make sure that the first thing to hit is a tire. Fenders are trimmed in and folding foot-pegs added, ensuring that the rider can easily re-join the game after a tip over. The silencer has also been shortened to make sure it is not in the way, and military-inspired paint job calls back to Roya Enfields martial history. Ridden by a volunteer group of talented riders from the RE's UK Technical Center, these bikes have brought victory more than once and put the fear into their opponents with their steadfast and shockingly nimble gameplay.
Young Guns has developed a concept based on their view of Royal Enfield - studying the brands existing image and using that as a jumping off point for boosting it to the next level. They are strongly focused on making a build that would add a youthful sexiness to the British nostalgia that is already strong in the base model. It was important to maintain as much of the stock machine as possible - even to reference the stock paint job - and then add a super slim and curvaceous fairing and monocoque seat/tail unit. While the concept is pure cafe racer - referencing them iconic Rickman's fairings - the build hides a surprise: at night, a layer of reflective paint transforms the classic lines into a riot of Razzle Dazzle light, blurring the lines between the beautifully retro and the wildly modern.
Royal Enfield is celebrating the re-introduction of its Twin motorcycles with a factory built speed machine showcasing the potential and capability of the all new 650 Twin motor - set up for sprint racing in the European custom sprint events. Named "Lock Stock" - the first Royal Enfield in many years to genuinely have "two smoking barrels" - it has been designed as a fun side project by our in house team of designers and engineers - a "what if...?" exploration into the extreme possibilities of the new platform.
The bespoke brazed steel drag racing frame has been made in partnership with legendary chassis masters Harris Performance, blending old school beauty with performance capability and applying Harris' skills to a completely new form of racing for them. To understand what was really possible with the 650 motor, we went to the renowned experts in this area - S&S Cycles in the US, who have applied their years of engine building experience to take the base motor to the next level...with nitrous injection added just because. A "Dazzle Camo" paint job pokes fun at the tradition of motorcycle manufacturers camouflaging their prototypes and this and the physical design has all been done in house, with the minimalist carbon fiber body work and leather all being handled by the passionate volunteers on the Royal Enfield team - leveraging their individual passions to create a whole different level of what a Royal Enfield can be.
'The Surf Racer' by Sinroja Motorcycles
Base Model - Continental GT 535
The Surf Racer strips down the Royal Enfield Continental GT to create a super light retro café racer. At the heart of the Surf Rider lies the original 535cc single motor. The stylish and bold graphics exude an artistic touch to the motorcycle, celebrating racing heritage, all backed with premium materials and high level of attention to detail.
Royal Enfield motorcycles are about fun as much as they are about performance. And why should customized motorcycles be any different? The Gentleman Brat is a stripped down and tight albeit powerful machine that is a treat to ride. The Gentleman Brat’s upgraded suspension provides added possibilities of fun while riding.
Don’t go by the playful name, Mo’ Powa’ is a rendition of the Royal Enfield Classic 500 & is a take on a dragster-meets-Mad Max motorcycle. Without losing much of traditional form, this motorcycle features a lowered stance and a mean disposition.
We stretched the wheel base and lowered the stance using a stretched Continental GT swing arm and lowered forks with a stiffer spring. The standard handlebars had to only be flattened to give a more committed drag-race ready stance to the motorcycle. Other key modifications include K-Tech rear shocks, mounted outboard as the originals, but longer with lower mounts that dropped below the swingarm. This allowed us to have more travel keeping in mind true dragster ethos.
The most exciting part, of course, was to add the ruthless touch of a Mad Max with a turbo charger. We switched the EFI out for a carburetor, removed the air-box, fuel gauge gave way to a boost gauge, replaced the traditional key with an impressive, military-styled switch and added a Air-Fuel meter for some crazyness in the instrument cluster.
The front wheel has been retained as is while the rear is a new Excel Rim considerably larger than stock and fitting for the drag strip. Stock tires were replaced by Continental TKC70 knobbies to add more off-road capability to the build. The seat pan is a modified stock steal base that has been re-shaped and covered in deer skin with racing foam accents. This is a motorcycle that can be pushed to the limits on the track but will be equally appreciated for its elegance off it.
The stunnig, custom-built exhaust has been fabricated by hand at Harris Performance. The radii of the exhaust were too tight to bend as a whole so the pipe had to be constructed out of many small sections of tubing. The end result? Something commonly seen only on a professional MotoGP motorcycle.
'Dirty Duck' by the Royal Enfield Factory Custom
Base Model - Continental GT 535
To be perfectly clear about out off-road capabilities of the motorcycle, Continental TKC80 tires - the biggest and blockiest we could find – replaced the stock tires on the original rims. We added an aluminum sump-guard to protect the motor and frame from any damage and increase the overall durability. The frame has been shortened at the rear to accommodate a luggage rack to carry the stuff you need to survive.
The custom, hand made seat has been wrapped in oiled leather which will only get more attractive as it ages. The fuel tank has been naturally rusted to tell a tale of its long life of surviving adventures and at the same time, make it obvious that one should not feel bad about dropping or hesitate from pushing the Dirty Duck to its absolute limits.
The snorkel is without a doubt the highlight of this motorcycle which has been hand crafted by the extraordinary craftsmen at Harris Performance. Additionally, the air box has been modified to allow the passage of the straight-through exhaust. And by straight-through, we mean no baffles of any kind resulting in a motorcycle that sounds several times more than its capacity.
At the front end, the headlamp and instrument cluster were redesigned to be more durable and purposeful. Hand crafted to house two stacked projector lamps, number plate and a small, digital meter to replace the bulkier stock units, the new design also adds a GoPro camera to record all the fun you will have on the motorcycle.
