If you remember the superb Kwikasfaki custom we wrote up recently, a GSX-R framed special powered by a Kawasaki 750 triple, you know the combo makes for a really sweet bike and that particular custom showed what it looks like when it’s done right. Santiago Chopper, tried to do one of these a little while back and it didn’t come out so well. Maybe they saw the Kwikasfaki, too, or maybe they just learned from their first attempt, but this one looks a whole lot better.
This time the GSX-R frame mounts Ducati 1098 forks and a Ducati 1100S swing arm. The Kawasaki triple is a 140 horsepower special built in the Fast by Gast shop and the whole package seems to fit together very well.
Has this combination been popular for a long time? It sure seems like we’re seeing a lot more of these all of a sudden, but if you have a tired H2 beyond restoration or repair, the GSX-R swap might be something to consider.
B50 Jim says
I’d love to hear it run!
mikesundrop says
Reminds me of Buford T Justice: “Dat’s an attention getter”
Love two stroke custom bikes. It’s not going to be a daily rider anyway, so you might as well put an animal of an engine in it.
Not that it matters, but how many gallons per mile does a 140 HP 750 two stroke burn?
Rob says
Twice as much as a 140 HP 750 four stroke (I guess).
mikesundrop says
Maybe more than that. It does fire twice as often with the same displacement, but you also have pressurized air/fuel vapor rushing into the combustion chamber while the exhaust port is wide open. Chambers help to force some of it back in through the exhaust port, but only over a certain rev range.
My RD350 gets a solid 25 mpg. Totally impractical and terrible for the planet, but man is it mean.
John S says
A stock H2 got about 18 mpg if I remember correctly. So this bike probably makes a H1 Hummer seem like a Prius. But I can’t imagine an H2 two stroke that has had it horsepower nearly tripled will hold together long enough to empty the tank.
B50 Jim says
If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.
SimonK says
The sound of these 2-stroke triples, when fitted with race expansion chambers is beyond description. My first bike was a GT380 triple, not too fast, but a wonderful way to get started.
B50 Jim says
I first heard the wail when race boats with 3-cylinder 2-strokes started running chambers. When they practiced on the Illinois River at Stratton Park, we could hear them all over town. The only better-sounding 3-cylinder I’ve heard is a Triumph/BSA 750 Hurricane and Rocket 3.
Dano says
Beautiful execution of past, present & future via creativity. Real clean & simple but still full of technology & techniques that make for a fun bike.
Fretka says
I had Mr. Gast do my H-2 to a similar state of tune some 30 years ago (!). He was and apparently still is the #1 source for all things 2 stroke. When I received the barrels and pistons back I was astounded to see that there was more porting than there was metal left in both!
Here is the downside to such a radical state of tune: you must burn race gas……… or suffer the consequences. Also, those of us old dinosaurs remember what sort of powerband results from such radical tuning, pretty much unrideable unless you like an engine that 8-strokes then 4 strokes then clears itself and delivers a dyno trace that looks more like a vertical line than a normal power band!
The real benefit of these builds are that they appear to be the last dying gasp of 2 stroke interest and that may be enough to kindle a renewed interest in this very promising technology.
Honda Inc. pretty much killed 2 strokes by their bloody minded will to make 4 strokes competitive. Shame…..
Fretka
BigHank53 says
It wasn’t just Honda. There were a lot of things that pushed two-strokes into a shallow grave. Emissions legislation. The fact that a Kawasaki Z1 got the same mpg as a Yamaha RD350. Noise regulations. And the North American market’s desire for larger bikes.
Direct gasoline injection will be the technology that resurrects two-strokes, if anything does.
Joe Bar says
Seen the new Ossas yet? ALMOST direct injection. Very close to green enough for US emissions, and good MPG.
OMMAG says
Plugging the Kawasaki tripple into a good handling chassis is a great idea … this looks pretty good too.
The irony is that the Gixer that used to run that bike outperformed the two stroke in every way.
Scott D says
Just my opinion here….
That engine looks a tad small, like its wearing clown pants or something.
Also, Im not a fan of the green, but then again its not my bike.
todd says
at least he’ll be able to pull the cylinders up over the studs without removing the engine. He’ll probably have to do that a bit often putting out that much power.
-todd
Thure says
As nice as this is, it is a valid point that the original gixxer motor in that chassis was a better performer. Also it looks like those chambers are gonna scrape at anything over walking speed going around a corner.
My favorite combination is a Cagiva Mito with a RZ350 or banshee motor, look it up on youtube.
Nick56334 says
If by better performer you mean more horsepower then you are mistaken.
Giolli Joker says
Cool… but Kwikasfaki exhaust looks way better, this still seems to be too stock
Zippy says
someone gave me an H2 that sat outside in Florida for 30 years. You can imagine what kind of shape it was in. I stil got $1500 for it. People want these motors bad!
metalartcycles says
I love the smell of pre-mix in the morning. If you are an older guy like myself, remember the smell of the old castrol castor based two stoke oil. That sweet pungent odor. Working on a couple of two stoke projects now for myself. I am building a supermoto for the street using an aluminum frame CR250 chassis and putting a CR500 engine in it. Also building a custom frame cafe using a Suzuki GT750 engine. Gonna be fun.