Foray: A Ducati-powered {custom} with upcycled Bimota elements

Nobody upcycles fairly like Roland Groteclaes. Primarily based in Belgium, he’s a multi-talented inventive that splits his time between illustration, design, portray and sculpture. And the latter is sort of at all times performed utilizing salvaged elements.

This strategy to his artwork is mirrored within the {custom} bike he’s simply constructed. Dubbed ‘Foray,’ it’s finest described as a Bimota/Ducati hybrid. However this wasn’t a easy engine swap job—as a substitute, it was pieced collectively nearly totally with leftover elements from a number of donor bikes.

The inspiration for Foray got here from a very uncommon supply. “A good friend kind England gifted me a used Honda F1 carbon fiber warmth exchanger,” Roland tells us. “He thought I might use it in a sculpture, but it surely was greater than clear to me that I ought to give this piece a brand new id, as an upcycled motorbike gasoline tank.”

“So the creation of Foray—its mere existence—revolves round one piece: the gasoline tank.”

Roland wanted to piece a motorbike collectively to host his new gasoline tank, so he took inventory of what he had in his storage. “I journey a Bimota DB3 Mantra,” he explains. “And, like most motorbike maniacs, I’ve lots of new and used elements, all saved with the concept sooner or later I’ll make use of them.”

Roland’s stash included a Bimota DB3 swingarm, a pair of DB4 Antera wheels, and a DB2 exhaust system. Provided that these elements all got here from Italy, he determined {that a} Ducati engine can be the right match.

After some looking out, Roland discovered the right motor in Germany; an ex-Battle of the Twins 944 cc race-prepped Ducati mill, full with open Keihin FCR carbs. He instantly despatched it to good friend at a Ducati dealership within the Netherlands for a clear invoice of well being.

However there was yet another half that Roland wanted earlier than the venture might begin in earnest: an acceptable chassis. He managed to seek out what he calls “the Holy Grail”—an authentic Bimota Tesi Omega body. However even that wasn’t left inventory.

The Bimota’s body was stripped all the way down to its distinctive CNC-machined mounting plates, which have been flipped round to get the geometry good for a brand new trellis body that Roland had conceived. “The development of the trellis body, and the chopping and filling of the tubes into completely different shapes and angles was actually complicated, and an entire combination between meditation, frustration and pleasure,” he tells us.

“I’ve at all times been trustworthy with myself, and I’m conscious that I’m not a very good welder. And since all motorbike frames want good welding, I made a decision to delegate this activity. So I contacted a good friend who’s a gifted metalworker to offer me a hand.”

Roland’s connection TIG welded the entire thing collectively out of 15CDV6 tubing—a low carbon, excessive energy metal used within the aerospace and motorsports industries. True to kind, a couple of upcycled scraps of salvaged plane metal have been added to the combo too.

As soon as the body was prepared, Roland spent 18 hours on it with a silver marker—overlaying each inch in an intricate hand-drawn sample. A couple of custom-made badges have been sprinkled on it too, to personalize it much more. (Roland even added a stamped Ducati badge simply behind the steering neck, for the reason that engine is the one actually identifiable half on this construct.)

With a set of CNC-machined yokes from a store in Germany, and the Showa forks from a Ducati 916, Foray began to come back collectively. The cockpit includes a pair of CNC-machined fork preload adjusters, plus BKG clip-ons, a Keihin throttle, Renthal grips and Spiegler grasp cylinders. A custom-made headlight lights the way in which.

Foray has no speedo or tacho; as a substitute, Roland added a timepiece from his favourite horologist. “I like Sinn-Spezialuhren from Germany,” he tells us. “I wished a Sinn NaBo plane clock on the bike, in order that I might at all times be residence in dinner time.”

With assist from one other good friend, Roland ticked off the final of {the electrical} and mechanical duties. The Bimota swingarm, wheels and exhaust that he had in hand went onto the bike too—however there was one remaining element lacking, and it required a fast journey to Switzerland.

“I wished to put in eight-piston Spiegler entrance brakes on the bike,” he explains. “However the proprietor of those elements insisted that the one method he would promote them to me, was if I confirmed up and had a cup of espresso with him.”

“The Foray venture displays work that was performed with ardour and willpower, and a very good stage of lunacy and caffeine, which additionally relied tremendously on camaraderie and craftsmanship.”

Feels like an important recipe to us.

Roland Groteclaes | Instagram | Photos by Gregor Collienne