The Kneeslider

Doers Builders and Positive People

Roland Sands 450 SuperSingle

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Roland Sands 450 SuperSingle road racer - LA Times photo

We first mentioned Roland Sands’ dirt bike based road racer last year and after several months of work it looks like they’re almost ready for prime time. There are 3 versions, a Yamaha, Honda and Kawasaki, each based on a 450cc dirt bike and then reskinned and reequipped for road racing.

Sands will be offering the Yamaha as a complete ready to race motorcycle, the Honda and Kawasaki will be available as kits. Price of the Yamaha is $14,999. He’s planning to build about 30 and the first one should be ready within days.

The 60 horsepower racers weigh only 250 pounds and have a top speed around 130 mph. They are aimed at an entry level road racing class where the power is manageable and the handling is excellent. If the class takes off and there is a lot of interest, there could be a possibility of a street legal version in the future.

I also found a very interesting line in this LA Times article:

For Sands, it’s an opportunity to distinguish himself from the mobs of custom builders that have surfaced in recent years and re-brand himself as the designer of high-concept, high-performance motorcycles.

It’s one more indication of the shakeout in the custom builder business and the moves back toward motorcycles that really perform as motorcycles. Roland Sands is probably better positioned than most to move in this direction and from the looks of these racers, he may have a real winner here.

Thanks for the tip, Mathieu!

UPDATE: Video added below:

Link: LA Times
Link: Roland Sands
Photo: LA Times

Comments

  1. to make it a really cool class, they should draw up a set of rules defining the bike, cap the price on mass produced versions (i.e. more than 3) and encourage folks to build it themselves. the old sound of singles class was as much about the bikes as the riders, but largely because in a field of 30 bikes, there would be 20 unique frame/engine combos. add in restrictors for bikes larger than 450, and you could get david vs goliath type battles… screaming horsepower vs torque. this would also accomodate more types of riding style to add to the spectator interest.

  2. That’s so cool. I’m a big fan of singles. Too bad there isn’t a street version of this bike (with a street price to match), but I understand that that’s not what it’s built for.

  3. Great results for great effort. Naturally,it would be nice if a street version would happen. All the right stuff light and fast!

  4. Same here; I’d love to have this on the street.

    Too bad California now makes it difficult to convert a bike for “Dual Purpose”. In the past I could have bought this “off road use only bike”, added lights and mirrors and they would have given me a license plate. There’s nothing in the vehicle code that says an off-road bike needs to have knobbies and duck bill fenders. I always wish I had money back when it was legal to convert the bikes.

    In states where you can still register “Dual Purpose” motorcycles you could easily make these road legal.

    -todd

  6. I still don’t understand why we have to resort to conversions. There seems to be a pretty big market for this kind of bike (in street form). As Roland Sands has demonstrated, very little extra cost need be put forth to create a sweet little sport single with existing parts. So why aren’t the manufacturers doing this for us???

  7. One issue with making it street legal, is that a Ninja 500 costs $5000 new or so, and much cheaper used. While it doesn’t have the power of this bike, it’s not to shabby.

    That said, I want one of these!

  8. Not only does the Ninja 500 have less power, it also weighs a good deal more at 388lb (dry). I don’t care that this single is more potent, I’m more excited that it’s super light. At 250lb, it’s fairly close to the weight of an old Vespa.

  9. OK, lemme get this straight…

    We have a 450cc single in a racing chassis with slippery (for a motorcycle) aerodynamics and a 60-hp motor pushing an all-up weight of something like 450 pounds *with* a rider and fuel.

    Not only is that thing going to get 80 MPG, but it’s going to be fun as all hell to ride. I need another motorcycle like I need a hole in the head, but now I kinda want to build one of these things myself as a commuter bike. *WAY* cooler than a scooter with just as good fuel economy, and you can keep up with traffic on the highway.

    Go Roland!

    cl

  10. where is husqvarna and ktm on this. it would be so cool if ducati used one cylinder from a 900cc and ruled this class. by the way 6-7000 grand is a fair price. just buy a motard and roadrace. and no cost for crashing.

  11. This is good stuff. I just wish someone would do something like this for a street bike. RSD Street Bike, anyone? A Triumph Bonneville / Norton / BSA type bike you can just jump on and ride anywhere, anytime. BSA-Regal did an SR400/500 based bike called the BSA Gold SR.

  12. Would be interesting if Ducati finally builts the Supermono from 1993 but with half a cylinder from the 1098. In 1993 the Supermono had some 75hp, the 996 then had some 112hp…meaning a Supermono now could have between 105 and 120hp!
    So 120hp/120kg is feasible…wow; I’ll settle for the 90hp/135kg version 🙂

  13. I might be the only one being not very impressed by this quasi supermono attempt. Tigcraft in the UK was the first outfit to experiment with these engines in European supermono racing. And this is al ready years ago. Tigcrafts are smaller ,lighter, probably a lot faster and not to forget they look much better. What ‘s the fuss about….

  14. Is Roland Sands planning on selling these in kit form, or only as a unit? The reason I ask is that as a unit they’re expensive, but one could buy a frame, engine, fuel tank, seat and fairing and finish it off with cheaper wheels, suspension and brakes purchased on eBay from people upgrading their R6 or CBR600RR.

    Sure, it would be heavier than the complete Roland Sands version, but it would be cheaper, and light weight doesn’t matter if you can’t afford it.

    On second thought, I’d rather omit the fairing and build myself a little 450cc cafe racer with an aftermarket fly screen.

  18. I believe KTM are making the RC4 which is based on the idea of a cagiva mito chassis powered by one of the companie’s enduro motors. I never stop wondering why none of the major manufacturers sem to want to put one of their high tech dual sport motors into a road bike. I would certainly buy one.

  19. Dimitri, the big deal that everyone is excited about is the potential for something like this to be available in the US for road use. There is simply nothing available in the sub 600cc sport bike market unless you want cheap components and mediocre performance (i.e. Ninja 250 and Hyosung 250). Even the YZFR125 that Hugo linked to is not available in the US.

    -todd

  20. This looks like its going to be a great class to race, I can’t wait. I’ve raced MX forever, but I’m a little intimidated by going all out on a street bike not to mention all the odds and ends that have to be done to make it track worthy.

  21. Back in 1974 I had a Ducati 450 desmo enduro… bought second hand from a friend….. put street wheels and tires on it and went racing.
    Aside from the brakes being weak it was highly competitive on club tracks.

    With the availability of hardware and guys like Roland Sands to show the way this low budget hobby racing could become a big deal once again.

    Now if I could only depend on my knees and back to hold out ……

  22. This reminds me of an article in performance bike magazine about a home brewed supermono racer made using square bar mild steel, a home made hossack front end and some motocross engine i’d never heard of ( a 550 4-stroke TM engine). But in the photo’s you could see the fairing was being scraped along the sides due to lean angles. All of it on a budget. So it really does make you wonder what the big factories are on about with all these aluminum pressed perimiter frames and other mumbo jumbo when some brit can build a bike that can acheive performances i couldn hope to match out of materials you can find in your local co-op

  23. Ease of manufacture and quality control, “motoxyogi”. There’s a direct relationship between unit volume and materials and processes. If Mr. Homebrew had the money to make 100,000 copies of his garage-built creation, would he design it the same way? Or would he factor in things like repeatability and profit?

    I support what Gavin Trippe is doing, especially for the sport of motorcycling in America. And I think his idea to involve Roland Sands was smart. It certainly brought him attention. Consider though, that this is about making a new racing class in America, not about making a new form of motorcycle that may have existed for years in other countries. Plus, the Tigcraft singles are completely custom, and Gavin’s idea is about using stock frames. Also, I’m not sure it says anywhere in the new rules that you must buy one of Roland’s creations or kits. He’s just the first to offer a few designs and parts for a new American niche that may catch on. I’m pretty sure, though, the rules are such that anyone can build their own 450 super single and race it as long as it complies with their rules.
    As far as engineering, I would imagine there are a few problems with converting a moto-x suspension to a road race set up. The stock geometry of a moto-x bike is meant for highly progressive long travel, which is not what you need for a road bike. My gut “Foale” feeling tells me there would be traction problems just like the AMA flat track singles are having. Just my opinion, but I’m sure the 450moto guys are working all that out. And in that sense, I suggest buying their kits for things like suspension rather than trying to figure it out on your own.

  24. Want to build your own singles racer from scratch (and who doesn’t!) but can’t enter it in 450moto?:

    http://www.ahrma.org/rr_modern.htm

    In the UK:
    http://www.supermononewsletter.co.uk/

    Considering what a 450 dirt bike costs, I find it hard to believe that a new 450moto production racer from one or more of the factories would cost much more than that.

    Forget a street version – if they did ma one, they’d just base the roadracing version on that and we’d end up with another half assed “race” bike. NO THANKS.

  25. Yes brian i understand that welding up hundreds of frames would be completely impractical especially on a small scale basis. But the fact still remains that using such cheap common materials he had the bike down to nearly 95 kilos(209 pounds) which is the supermono weight limit. What i’m esentially trying to get across is why do bikes weigh as much as they do? If motogp dropped weight limits altogether what kind of bikes would we get(200bhp in a 50kg chassis?). Like i’ve said before how much development is left in current designs or are they starting to stagnate. Is it time to go the way of the britten v1000 and your wraith.

  26. @ MOTOXYOGI

    I totally agree with the point you make. The likes of Tigcraft and cotterell get the weight down way below the weight limit. approx 85 kg. A frame made out of some average steel. Check out the video of a Tigcraft minimono running rings around a supersport 600

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNWsqoo71Hs

  27. I agree with ROHORN, I would want a road bike based off of the race bike, not vice versa. I also would not expect it to be faster than a 600 Super Sport. Other than freeways, there aren’t enough places around where I live to get a 100HP plus bike up to speed. The lightweight 450 detuned to approx 40-50HP for durability and a license plate would be so easy to embarass the squids on their big, heavy 600cc plus bikes.

    And right, after Honda gets it into production it should cost slightly less (around 3 cylinders and 12 valves less) than a CBR600.

    -todd

  28. motoxyogi, I like lightweight bikes. Second, the wraith is nothing like the v1000 and nothing ever will be again. Also, the wraith weighs 375lbs, too heavy in my opinion. But I fail to see your point in this statement:

    “But the fact still remains that using such cheap common materials he had the bike down to nearly 95 kilos(209 pounds) which is the supermono weight limit. What i’m esentially trying to get across is why do bikes weigh as much as they do?”

    So my response to that is, of course a small homebrew outfit can make a lighter weight bike. Probably because it’s their intention to make a lighter weight bike, which may not be the intention of mass producers or the focus of this new 450 AMA/WERA class. I don’t know what bike you saw in PB, so I can’t appreciate what that particular guy did. He should be commended though, making any bike lighter is not exactly easy and compromises must be made carefully.

    Anyway, the weight of all motorcycles is not a debate I care to get into now. My point in posting above, was that anyone can build one of these 450cc super singles to fit the rules and go racing relatively cheap with this new class. The rules seem to focus on leveling the playing field, not light weight bikes.

    dimitri, thanks for the link, cool video!

  29. Sorry if you got the wrong idea brian but i wasn’t really commenting on this 450 race class. I think it’s a brilliant idea, though i would like to see 250 2-strokes.
    I guess this isn’t the right thread to be going off on one of my tangents about the tech involved in bikes and cars. What i was trying to say about the wraith and the v1000 was, the only way to progress is to try something new. Something only bmw seems to be doing and small companies such as confederate and vyrus… whoops i’m going off on a tangent again. And thanks for the heads up on the girder front end i had no idea what the difference was beforehand

  30. Todd,

    Now THAT is the scenario I’d love to see.

    What would be a riot would be a DOT kit for the race bike, if that’s legally possible.

  32. Please also do check out this Spanish atemmpt. Although it is a two stroke 125. It is pretty cheap. And it seems to handle very well.

    http://www.metrakit.es/english/default.php

    It might be because I am from the continent and that there is more available over here. The thing we have in common is that it is very difficult to these bikes road legal. I’ve just bought an old 80’s rd frame with title and putting a 450 yamaha engine in it. It solve the problem.

  33. 450 single? In a Race Bike? A dream come true. As for the possibility of a streetbike version, not only am I sorely tempted by the underwhelming Royal Enfield, I’m still waiting for the return of the Yamaha SR500…

  36. Sure do like the ‘naked’ prototypes at 450.moto.com,
    from an esthetic point of view–they’re about as minimal as a MC can get!