Garage Project Motorcycles

In late 2011 I had the honour of photographing several of Perth's own Garage Project Motorcycles' motorbikes in the studio.

The work these guys produce is exquisite on so many levels. Highly detailed and custom manufactured. If you're considering a customisation I'd highly recommend giving them a phone call.


All their info can be found on their website:
http://garageprojectmotorcycles.tumblr.com/

This post isn't just a blatant endorsement of an exceptional local business; it also serves to act as a post until I have the chance to get out and ride, as it's been a quiet couple of weeks!

And that right there is The Brat. Isn't she just beautiful?

http://garageprojectmotorcycles.tumblr.com/

- Tevilspek

Travel blog: Malaysia 2012

March 2012 found my girlfriend and I wandering the mellow, often damp and eternally humid streets of three of Malaysia's best locations; Langkawi, Penang and Malacca (Melaka).

The plan was to allot twelve nights out of our busy lives to stop and do as little as possible, enjoy good food and take in the sights of a country we hadn't spent much time in.

And stop we did.

I regularly found myself taking out my tablet in order to photograph things using the Camera Zoom FX app (which all of these photos come from). I felt like a bit of a tool wandering around with a 7" tablet held in front of my face at arm's length, but I believe the results to be worth it. [Note: the photos are in random order and don't relate directly to the text]

 

We started our journey with five nights in the sleepy Sheraton resort of Langkawi island, a great destination for anyone wanting to get away from the hustle of cities and bigger towns. The resort had a charm to it, though you'd want to book on special rates and aim to eat in the local town as much as possible. The food definitely wasn't outstanding.

We hired a car for two days and drove around the island; this option is highly recommended.
It would be worth noting that Langkawi is not a cheap place, bar the alcohol.

Langkawi was essentially safe to drive around and bikers could easily navigate its roads without having to avoid trucks and traffic jams. The most exotic bike I saw, however, was a 250cc cruiser type thing with a glued-up hole in the gas tank. Most bike-related travel is on local scooters. As seen below:

Penang is touted ad nauseum as the place for food. And it was cheap.
We spent our time in Georgetown and did find a couple of very nice restaurants and food halls and enjoyed some great local cuisine, but I left feeling like I may have missed something. Penang was an interesting place to visit but I'm glad we only had three nights there. I felt we'd experienced what we needed to by the third day.

Penang big win: prescription authentic Ray-Ban glasses with anti-glare and transition lenses for well under $100 all up.

Malacca has quite a wonderful feel to it. As one of the brochures says, "When Kuala Lumpur was still a swamp, Malacca was a bustling port town." And the decrepit old buildings scattered amongst new shiny towers remain a testament to this old world. We did a lot of walking here. Perhaps a little too much. But the food was nice and there was great shopping, particularly the clothing (t-shirts) and local artwork.
Be sure to wander the weekend market in Chinatown as there were actually a few things on display you may not have seen elsewhere.

All in all we had a pleasant experience in Malaysia. It wasn't overly challenging - which was originally the point - and the food ranged from good to superb on occasion. Take good walking shoes and a book (ebooks, yeah!) to fill in the quiet times and rained out afternoons.

I'd definitely recommend watching out for specials at the Sheraton in Langkawi for a four or five night stay. And look into car hire for the duration as the taxi rides into town quickly add up.

I kind of feel like I've 'done' Malaysia and my next trip will definitely be more challenging. But if you want to relax and eat and spend some quality time with your loved one, like we did, it could be a good place to consider.

Malaysia: For the elements we saw at least, 3.5 out of 5 satay chicken sticks

- Tevilspek

The Harlot: 1998 XL 1200 Sportster (as of 15/03/2012)

My requirements were rather specific and seemingly hard to find in one motorbike.

It had to be of a cruiser ilk; none of that plastic race bike brigade for me. But it needed to be 'sporty'.

It had to have forward controls. Not rear and certainly not mid.

It had to have a forward stance, like a cafe racer.

It needed to be highly customisable.

I'd prefer if it had a lot of grunt. Maybe 1000cc or more.

I was running out of ideas and was preparing to go the straight-up cruiser option, when this beauty presented itself:

1998 Harley-Davidson XL 1200 Sportster, already fitted with forward controls and low profile handlebars.

Rex and I headed over to the seller's house and as the garage door rolled up and I laid eyes on her for the first time, I just knew.
"Oh yes", I told her. "You are perfect."
Two days later I'd bought myself a Harley-Davidson. Yeah, I repeated that to myself several times; "I've bought a Harley..."

Of course, it took me about 34 seconds before I was researching upgrades, alterations and cosmetics.


The original paintwork, although rather cool to look at, had its problems; a bubble at the fuel inlet on the tank, some rust spots on the front fender and scuffing on the rear fender.
What a good excuse for a paint job!

Off she went to Motorcycle Panel & Paint. I was overseas for the duration of the paint work and Simon at MP&P and I talked through concepts via email. I was after a classic racer look but with a strong contemporary edge.
I'd found the colour I wanted. It was special matte blue. "Blue and white?" I suggested. Simon agreed and offered "Matte blue and gloss white?"
He found the mystical matte blue I was wanting and declared it well worthy and thus we proceeded.

Photo supplied by Simon at Motorcycle Panel & Paint, mid-paint job

The rear fender was cut shorter. The front fender had inches taken off the front and the back. A rear brake light LED unit was fitted with a new number plate bracket.


Photo supplied by Simon at Motorcycle Panel & Paint: The matting begins!


A darker blue pin stripe accent was added between the matte blue and gloss white.

Massive props go out to Simon at Motorcycle Panel & Paint for getting the whole thing done extremely fast (to allow me to attend a special ride) while presenting a profoundly professional paint job that blew me away and most people who see it.

The paint work in f1.4 glory

The new LED brake light and number plate bracket

I love this angle...

One of the hardest choices was what direction to go with the tank decal. I knew I didn't want a huge 'Harley Davidson!' scrawled down the side of the tank. It needed to be simple and low-key. "Perhaps the bar and shield?" Some more musing and I'd decided on the bar and shield minus the wording.

Simon agreed that it could look cool, so we headed in that direction. He fabricated a superb decal for me and I couldn't be happier.

The simplified 'bar and shield' tank decal we decided on


As I warned the guys and as they later agreed, the paint job looks nice in photos but looks superb in person. Indeed, since the new cut and colour, The Harlot has been getting a hell of a lot more attention.


The next steps are big ones.
The profile of the handlebar area is being drastically lowered;
* The headlight and cowl is going, being replaced by a 5 3/4" Bates with HID kit.
* The old-school speedo is being replaced with a Dakota Digital MCV-7400 unit.
Hagon 330mm rear shocks and front fork springs are being installed.
Higher quality LED indicators and a set of LED fog lights are being installed.

And then she is getting new grips, Switchblade foot pegs and a new double-tone horn (to replace the current monstrosity).
Added to that I need to get the mirrors underneath the handlebars, or resort to bar-ends of some description.

And that's where she's at for now. Big changes are abound!
More posts and photos to come.

[This bike has been nicknamed 'The Harlot' by my girlfriend as it is fast becoming "the other woman"]

- Tevilspek

Perth 5th 2012 Japanese Bike Show

[currently submitted to Sydney Cafe Racers, to be posted here later]

- Tevilspek

2012 Vintage Motorcycle Swap Meet

Saturday arvo it seemed like a good idea. But when the alarm clock crowed at 6:30am Sunday morning I was second-guessing myself. “Faaark…” I groaned as I rolled out of bed. The things we do for our passion.

Liam called past my house for a 7am departure and we were off to the Vintage Motorcycle Swap Meet. We curled through the winding streets, UK v USA, and took the onramp into the Polly Pipe. Like a swarm of hornets we took that tunnel at a leisurely pace. We’d be back. For now it was time to wake up to the soothing tones of motorcycle music.

The swap meet was a treasure trove of motorbike bric-a-brac and projects galore, but I couldn’t shake the feeling I’d seen most of it before. After a brief walk of the swap meet circuit and the devouring of a hotdog, we found ourselves inside the hall, checking out the vintage bike exhibition.

Indians and 1920s Harleys, BSAs and Triumphs, M20s and complete DIYs; it was impossible to leave that room not feeling inspired. We picked our favourites, put in our vote, thanked the organisers and headed back to our bikes.

We were saddled up and ready to rock when Liam was greeted and enveloped by a couple of ‘vintage’ UK-riding boilers, hell bent on asking 101 questions of the ex-Queenslander-ex-WAer about his beautiful Bonny. Granted, I’d just spent the previous ten minutes discussing with a fellow rider the merits of (how bloody awesome) the Harley XL 1200 97-98 Sporters (are). Seems my bike is grabbing a lot more attention since its cut-and-paint job. Big up (and shameless plug) to Osborne Park’s Motorcycle Panel & Paint!

But I digress. After brushing aside the adoring genuflections of the post-60’s biker babes, Liam gave the thumbs up and we were on the road.

We took the highway back towards Leederville for our 9am congregation with the Perth Café Racers, hit the Great Eastern and then back towards the Polly Pipe. We put on a plethora of motorcylic voices through that blessed tunnel, rich bassy tones for the enjoyment of no one but ourselves. Much to our credit (as per usual) we kept to the speed limit and upon exiting the tunnel spied a stationary motorcycle policeman from our fine Royal Australian Policing Establishment eying us off. “Great…” we thought to ourselves and started concocting excuses for the symphonic exhaust music we’d just been composing on our way through the Pipe.

But much to our surprise he indicated left and headed into the tunnel. Good times. Of course, we crept into Leederville 10kph under the speed limit.

- Tevilspek