The motorcycle is definitely not an ordinary garage project but is a combined effort of few talented craftsmen
While we are still waiting for the arrival of the 650 Twins in India Royal Enfield has handed their new motorcycles to some renowned custom motorcycle builders from across the World to show their creativity. Rough Crafts is a Taiwan based Custom motorcycle builder who has worked their magic on the sportier Continental GT 650.
Winston Yeh who happens to be the face of Rough Crafts said that the Continental GT 650 had the café racer stance already and what he did was simply emphasized it. Tough Crafts built separate custom bodywork with their team of highly skilled craftsmen. The custom Bodywork covers most part of the motorcycle including some parts of the engine but they left the crankcase exposed.
Then he highlighted some of the motorcycles curves with a custom exhaust pipe. The front fairing looks absolutely brilliant with one sided twin projector lamps from KOSO and a visor on top of it. Winston and his team have also made the riding stance more aggressive by using slightly lower positioned clip-on handlebars.
The rear profile of the motorcycle too has been kept neat although it gets an LED aftermarket taillamps and a number plate holder. Air Runner has used a sublime mix of gloss carbon fiber, black, pin striping and gold leaf work on the body kit. Rough Crafts have made an elongated bodywork so they did not mess with the chassis too much.
Moreover, the Chassis of the Continental GT 650 already has a shorter wheelbase which makes the work easier for the custom builders. Winston along with his local craftsman has used layers of fiberglass and carbon fiber. They have used a 3D printed mold for both the front as well as the rear tail section.
Coming to the technical bits now the stock rear suspension of the motorcycle has been completely replaced with an Öhlins TTX GP TR469 while it also gets a custom swing arm from HPM Racing. The stock front suspension too has been upgraded with a set of blacked-out Öhlins FGRT213 upside-down forks fitted to new triples from CNC Racing.
Some other upgrades that have been made to the motorcycle include a 17-inch carbon fiber wheels from BST Racing which has been wrapped around a Pirelli Diablo Superbike slicks. Lastly, the brakes too have been upgraded with a full Beringer brake set. The motorcycle looks a stunner and runs equally well as you all can clearly watch in this video. Rough Crafts has also made some changes to the engine as well.
They have replaced the airbox with waterproof filters from Sprint Filter while they also have installed set of Banai Racing headers, mated to 70s-style cones from SC Project. Rough Crafts have also done a pretty neat job with the electrical. According to them, RE has used a very simple wiring for their motorcycle so Rough Crafts have just used what was needed and eliminated the rest. All the electronics of the motorcycle including the fuse box have been neatly tucked under the rider seat.
There has been no mention anywhere whether the motorcycle makes more power after making all those changes to the engine or not. However, we can confirm you that this is definitely more than just a garage build and a combined effort of some pure motorcycle enthusiasts who know what they are doing.