...tank was too short, slim & dropped at a disturbing angle. Stock seat was too skinny while the tail-end was plain meh. I've found the bike by accident while on a lazy stroll around Russian Market in Phnom Penh. Been in Cambodia for close to seven months now, could recall by my third month, there were moments where I desperately needed the freedom and mobility minus the corporate driver provided by my previous employer. One fine day in April, I did my usual weekend stroll around Russian Market area and my feet took an unexpected turn to an unexplored alley selling motorcycle parts and pre owned bikes and amongst several hundred bikes on display, a little orange thumper of a bike grabbed my eye, stared at it for at least half an hour, spent another hour at the bank and brought her home by nightfall.
I've had many adventures with this Suzuki... named her Tomb Raider since succeeding weekends were spent doing sojourns to nearby provinces checking out the ancient ruins and modern temples which were so plentiful... you get somewhat templed out..just too many of them all around
tthe original form
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| stop over at Tonle Bati |
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| ride to Ta Prohm |
On my sixth month, I've probably explored most of the nearby temples and tourist spots allowable by day travel via motorbike. As I reached "burn out" point in terms of riding ten weekends straight, I got hooked checking out more cafe racer designs (specifically
brats,
scramblers &
trackers). The more I dropped by
virtual garages, the more I got convinced my
TU250GB needed a make over.
I've deliberated on the existing design of the bike nightly...thinking if only the tank was a wee bit beefier and longer. If the end could be chopped off by probably 5-8 inches more. The seat could be thinner and ribbed for a more vintage minimalist look...current red signal tank color was just too loud.. personally was more into earth colors (Banana Republic/ British India shades comes to mind). After doing rough digital sketches on my phablet, I made my way to Sok Vespa (the local builder I bought Tomb Raider from).
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| chopping Tomb Raider by 8 inches, end aligned to axle |
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new tank in nougat shade
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| the color scheme guide :) |
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taking shape
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Builder Sok on Iz's BMW K100, also due for a facelift
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I never learned to speak Khmer despite being in Phnom Penh for quite some time but visual conversations was quick and easy between me and Sok (who like me cannot speak nor understand English). Its quite a delight to find a person where just by gesticulating a bit, their eyes twinkle back, affirming that they understand what you want.
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| one brick at a time |
End result was quite special from a donor bike which had more inclinations of becoming a
toy bobber rather than a refined
custom brat. The whole project just took four short days as both owner and builder had a clear understanding of where we both wanted to go.
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| are you sheeting me? |
Practical is the perfect word to describe who I am but this project was aesthetics driven and was definitely bordering to the impolitic. Chose to ignore the advice of old timers about having a thicker padded seat (for a happier ass during long journeys) and cutting the rear end by 8 inches made
Lady Croft a monogamous ride. I won't have it any other way
and I want her all to myself. Let's see where pretty
Lady Croft takes me this coming weekend...
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| Self portrait in Kandal province |
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train spotting in Kep..
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| pitstop at Ta Prohm |
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| dwarfed at Udong (OudongK) |
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2 Komentar
bike looks good! what tank did you use for the new lady? Do you still have the old grasstracker tank? I'm in usa and looking to buy one. Thanks!
Balassorry for the late late reply, i lost this page already, back in ph unfortunately, but shape is not really nice, buying a tmx aftermarket will make your grasstracker way sexier :)
Balas