Pinstriping Passion

There are many ways to work: from sloppily and carelessly, to meticulously and with attention to details.
I think we all agree that working with what Mr. Robert M. Pirsig called "gumption" in "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" is the best way to work.
'The gumption-filling process occurs when one is quiet long enough to see and hear and feel the real universe, not just one's own stale opinions about it.'
Gumption is enthusiasm, our psychic gasoline, a reservoir of good spirits that can be added to or subtracted from.If you haven't got Gumption you might as well gather up all the other tools and put them away.

Then there are ENTHUSIASM and CREATIVITY, that can turn a simple, soulless object into a piece of art.

In this case it's motorcycle art, or more specifically Helmet Art. From Russia comes this video of a young  artist that truly embraces this way of work. In conjunction with Elders Helmets, Anton Savickiy transforms ordinary helmets in wearable art.

Check out what he has to say in this short video called The Enthusiast. 

the enthusiast from homelessmedia on Vimeo.

Elders Goes West

Over the past year, Elders Helmets have rocked the helmet scene with their vintage styled helmets. The Xbone (aka MotoV), a copy of the famous Bell MX helmet, has been especially successful among motorcycle enthusiasts. Customers preferences have spanned from the understated aggressive look of a matte black, to more extravagant and brilliant metal flake colors, with some pinstriping thrown here and there.
Another popular helmet is the Daytona (aka Vintage), another Bell replica, that brings back the memories of the 70's racing scene.

Well, so overwhelming has the response been, that now Banky, my friend and owner @ Elders Helmets, has been invited to go to London. From the 17th to the 19th of May, he will exhibit his best helmet creations at the Bikeshed Event at the Shoreditch Studios, near Spitalfields and the bubbling Brick Lane.

If you're around town, make sure you don't miss this show. I know I wouldn't.

For more information, visit the Bikeshed website:

http://thebikeshed.cc/projects/the-event/

Xbone

Daytona

Project Telos - Mountain Mishap

Glorious sunny spring day in South Tyrol today, so what better than going out for a ride?
Perfect also, because I had to do some carburetor tuning.
I was enjoying myself on a beautiful mountain road, the bike was running well and there was very little traffic.
At one point I had to stop in front of a tunnel to let a big truck pass through. When I tried to roll back a bit, the bike suddenly stopped as if I had bumped into a stone or something. Very strange. Roll forward, back again, and again the same thing. hmmm
Now the truck almost cleared the tunnel and I was ready to ride. I tried to roll back one last time and HO HO....look at that: layed out neatly on the road in front of me was my chain! Crap.

Nothing left to do but roll back down to the mountain, where I knew there was a motorcycle shop/ garage.
Now, I don't know if it was my face or just a combination of bad omens today, but the guy at the shop must have thought I wasn't worth his time and treated me as if I were there to collect his taxes. He dismissed me after 2 minutes with a "No way, forget about it" and I was left taking the bus back home. :-(

Still, I think I was pretty lucky it didn't happen while riding at 80km/h!

Note to self (and others): avoid Moto Roland in Blumau!

Project Telos - Getting my hands dirty and first ride

Now in my hometown, halfway around the world from where I live, there are just a few things on my mind:
eating, wrenching and riding. And that's just what I did.

Yesterday saw my new Yamaha SR500 for the very first time. What a beauty! The frame looks especially nice and won't need any work done on it, which is good. My friend Thomas, who took care of everything, from getting the bike to Italy to sorting out the dreaded paperworks (THANKS Thomas!!), told me there was a problem with the carb. Apparently, one day it just started pissing out gas. So, my brother Stefan and I checked the carb and cleaned it. After mounting it back into place, 1 kick and tataaaa....running like clockwork.

Only one more "problem"....the stock exhaust. Faaaaar too quiet for my taste. So, changing the heavy and civilized exhaust with a single walled and lightweight megaphone, became first priority and the very first step into the transformation to TELOS.

And what a difference! POT_POT_POT...... :-)

This morning then my first ride. Unfortunately, the April weather wasn't the nicest, so for now, a short ride up the Ritten mountain will have to suffice. But more will follow soon.
The bike runs great, smooth but with plenty of grunt. Can't wait to get my hands dirty again!

"The Sports" Cafe Racer Seat

I'm proud to present this amazing new custom made cafe seat cowl for your treasured Yamaha SR400 or SR500.

The seat is made of robust but lightweight, 3mm thick fiberglass and is designed to lift up by unscrewing just one bolt, making maintenance work under the seat easy and fast.

It is completely customizable! You can choose between several degrees of finish, from the 'Standard' to the 'Full Option', 2 seat upholstery designs: plain and criss-cross and 2 fabric colors: black and brown.

On request the seat can be ordered with just a coat of primer. You can then paint the cowl to your desired color. 

For more pictures and information, please visit 

http://www.omegaracer.com/parts_store/prod_2576627-The-Sports-cafe-custom-seat.html

Project Telos - Getting ready for the RMV inspection

Exciting news!
Tomorrow morning Telos has an appointment at the local RMV (Registry of Motor Vehicles) for the vehicle inspection to get her finally registered in Italy.
She's been checked throughout and pampered the whole day today, so hopefully, there won't be any complaints from the authorities tomorrow.
If everything goes by plan, we will get the registration just around the time I will be arriving in Italy. I believe in the power of prayer, so please join me in this crucial time and repeat after me:

Oh Lord of the 2 wheels

you know how it feels

when all you wanna do is ride

but with burocracy you gotta fight

so please let Telos pass the test

and with rubber stamps be blessed

HALELUJA

AMEN

THANK YOU

EDIT 11/04/13

Just got the news that she PASSED!! Thank you for your prayers! ;-)

Next step: insurance.

Project Telos - Tank Stickers

I have been thinking about a tank badge for "Telos" for some time now.
At first I tried to carve a tank badge out of an acrylic sheet, but the result wasn't very impressive. Next, I moved my attention onto a sheet of aluminium. I stopped before starting.
2 weeks ago I ordered a couple of stickers from a website called cafepress, which specializes in t-shirts, posters, stickers that you can design by yourself.
It took me about 20 minutes to design the sticker and 5 minutes to go through the payment process.

They arrived yesterday and I must say I'm very happy with them. The background is transparent and the black logo is sharp and well defined.
The cost for 2x 5inches wide stickers was 7Pounds plus 3.50 to ship to Thailand.

My new Elders helmet @ Elders Helmets

I decided to pay a visit to my friend Banky @ Elders Helmets today and check on my last order: a very special Daytona with dark red metal flake color and a glossy black stripe that goes from the front to the back.
The helmet is exactly like I designed it and I'm very happy with it. Unfortunately, I couldn't take it away with me, because the writing on the back wasn't finished yet. Well well, like my granny used to say...."All good things need time".

Banky was great as usual and even gave me two cool ELDERS t-shirts! Thanks buddy! I will wear them in Italy soon. :-)

Ah, one more heads up...
If you plan on getting yourself a lid from me or Banky, please be aware that next week the celebrations for the Thai New Year will start. That's 7 to 10 days of crazy water-throwing madness. Many shops will close, as many Thais travel upcountry to celebrate with their families.
Delays in production and delivery have to be expected!