As I wandered through the bikes at Vintage Motorcycle Days I came across something a little peculiar . As I looked it over, another fellow asked me, “What are we looking at here?” The longitudinal V4 narrows it down pretty quickly and what we were looking at is actually a 2004 Honda ST1300 that had an unfortunate encounter with a deer. Instead of replacing all of the plastic, owner Butch Demerle thought the all exposed streetfighter look might work better. John Cain helped him out with some CNC machine work to create the extra pieces needed to pull it all together and this is the result.
Some may quibble over design details but I like the idea of just stripping everything away and working with the basic bike underneath. The bike is unusual because most Honda STs are seen fully clothed and when you see what’s under the plastic, there’s something a person could work with. It’s certainly one solution to the high cost of replacement pieces. Interesting.
dawk says
Looks cool…very post-apocalyptic industrial look.
Clive M Sanders says
I did the same thing with an 88 katana 1100, but mine had a gas tank.
Duke says
The thing you didn’t mention in the article is that this thing is “lighter by 200 lbs.” Now that’s cool.
buzzer says
Totally cool but where do you put the gas? is this an under seat fuel tank model?
Matt in NC says
OK, it’s unique, but how’s it ride? Does it scream, at least compared to the heavier stock one? It needs clubmans.
Sean says
Wow, that looks awesome. It needs a fuel tank though.
chris says
i like the look of it right up until the big slabs of aluminum the foot-pegs are attached to. what’s up with those? is that really part of the original frame? other than that, i think it’s a brilliant idea that’s been well executed. and a gas tank would help it look a bit more cohesive.
OTTOMAN says
I LOVE IT, MAD MAX EAT YOUR HEART OUT.
todd says
It looks fun. I’m surprised they were able to retain and hide all of the electronics and it still runs.
-todd
Earl says
Great piece of work! I dig the tank-free look, too.
Micky says
Its a nice and tidy looking and a I like the 2 stoke style cans but longitudinal engines always reminds of a CX, which reminds me of a cement mixer.
According to the spec sheet the ST’s got 2 tanks:
Dual-section fuel tank places 5.5 gallons of fuel in the conventional tank location with an additional 2.2 gallons located in a sub-tank located low in the chassis. This results in an increase in fuel capacity and an even weight distribution for fuel.
Sasha says
I think it’s f’ing badass, that’s what I think.
Good point about that rear fender though, looks like you’d be a mess riding in the rain.
Something makes me think this bike doesn’t see the rain very often…
RobC says
As nekkid a nekkid bike I have ever seen… I actually think it looks brilliant. Shaving 200Lbs off in the process is also cool but I think hanging on for dear life at top end would be a tad gnarly.
Lazlo says
Wow that looks cool, in a BladeRunner kind of way. I just got myself a 05 ST1300 this fall, (I love it!) it is nice to see what Honda is doing under all the nice bodywork.