Hond – A – Go Go

May 11, 2022

We’ve done quite a few Honda Cub conversions over the years. A lot of you have probably seen them, we got known for them for a moment and yeah, we’re pretty damn good at them.

When Nicco approached us to do a complete build on a 1979 Honda C-100 he’d come across, we knew straight off the bat that we didn’t want to go back over old ground. We needed a fresh direction. Bali streets are now littered with pretty people on Honda C-70’s heading from their yoga classes to their coworking spaces.

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room up front. The donor bike. Perhaps the best thing we can say about it, other than being one of the rarer C-100’s, it had a full set of papers. Those two made it something of a unicorn to find these days.

Mechanically speaking, this was a ground up rebuild. Nothing left untouched.

In the past, we’ve put our Cub’s on a hefty visual diet. The removal of the leg shield and other optically bulky items are ditched in favour of showing off the svelte lines of the underlying frame. But everyone’s now done that. So, we went in the complete opposite direction this time.

After taking a long hard look at the leg shields of vintage Vespa’s and Lambretta’s from the 70s to 90s and seeing how they feature so prudently on them, we chose to celebrate this direction of form. Plastic wouldn’t cut it, instead we chose the less pliable plate aluminium from which to fabricate them.

Painstakingly, Dylan, Arwin & Koko went through a slew of iterations, none of which were quite right, until they hit that shape that worked. A silhouette reminiscent of an Italian heritage rather than the bikes original Asian birthright.

This beautiful bit of metal folding set the bar extremely high on the handmade parts side of the build, leading us to follow through with a slew of other details. Where to start, lighting, often left until last to conceive, was for a change, something we knew what we wanted. Tight and bright at night and shiny front and back. Small is essential, given the stature of the bike. A five and a half inch Daymaker LED headlight would light the way, that just left us to look around for a suitable housing. Sorted when we sourced one of those little stainless steel buckets you see as auxiliaries of Harley’s. We found nothing we liked for stopping lights, leading Koko to take a rod of billet ally and perfectly turned it on the lathe to create a bespoke piece. Arwin was left with the task to coax a new set of side panels out of some more ally plate.

We delved into the logo archive and came up with some handmade metal Deus badges for front and sides. Turned and knurled billet aluminium foot pegs had little acid etched logos added to their ends. It’s not exactly a triple tree on these bikes but the plate that marries the risers to the forks was another inspired piece of fabrication.

Single seater wasn’t right for a couple, but the super long original wasn’t either. A little metal rearranging and a new seat pan that we shod in a light brown suede was produced. Cherry on top, a back facing stitched Deus logo.

The engine was pulled down to the big bits, we had to refresh all the innards; the clutch, bearings, rockers, gears, nuts, bolts, washers, gaskets and such and so forth. For added good measure we did a re-bore of the cylinder before dropping a new oversized piston in. We also popped on a new slide carb to keep it well fed. On the output side of the engine, a wonderful looking straight stainless pea shooter made it sound mighty fine.

The rear brakes were new old stock and we added a disk to the front and a reservoir on the stainless bars originally meant for a Yamaha RXZ. Posh mini switches for operations. Stainless laced spoked TK Rims shod in classic tread, IRC SP1 tire’s support the whole shebang.

With everything buckled down tight, we came to the paint job. A grey hair creating exercise if ever there was one. Inspired by the British racing greens, we agonized on how dark a green we could go before black came to town. We nailed it. There’s so much Aluminium bodywork it would have been a crime to cover everything, instead we left polished accents of it across the whole build. A crystal clear over the top and a small dollop of pearlescent made everything nice and shiny for the world to see.

ENGLISH TEXT BELOW

Setiap tahun, teman-teman kita Tasix Adventure—penyelenggara petualangan ban berlumpur dan adrenalin berbahan bakar terbaik di Bali—mengadakan acara akhir pekan berkemah yang sangat dinanti-nantikan. Mereka menamakannya “ The Wild,” dan jujur saja, tidak ada kata yang lebih pas dari itu.

Ini bukan sekadar acara; ini adalah petualangan wajib bagi siapa saja yang mencintai tanah, tantangan, dan persahabatan yang hanya bisa terjalin saat tertawa melihat teman lain terjatuh.

Hal tentang The Wild adalah misterinya. Kamu tidak tahu ke mana akan pergi, bagaimana sampai di sana, atau apa yang akan kamu temui—seperti hidup, tapi dengan lebih banyak asap knalpot.

Tahun ini, The Wild yang berlangsung pada 7 Desember 2024, mengumpulkan 135 pecinta motor enduro, trail, dan cross di Desa Kopi, Tabanan. Tepat pukul 9 pagi, kami berangkat menuju Desa Gesing, Singaraja. Rute tetap dirahasiakan hingga hari acara, meningkatkan sensasi penasaran dan antusiasme. Dengan dibagi menjadi beberapa kelompok kecil, kami melengkapi diri dengan perlengkapan motocross lengkap untuk menghadapi tantangan musim hujan.

Perjalanan? Murni magis. Jalur berkelok melalui permata tersembunyi Bali, di mana setiap tikungan menawarkan pemandangan yang memukau atau hampir membuat jantung berhenti. Rute tahun ini menghadirkan medan tanah liat merah—dijuluki tanah "keramik" karena teksturnya yang licin dan keras saat basah. Untuk melintasinya, diperlukan teknik khusus yang disebut “paddling the throttle,” sebuah manuver yang mendebarkan dengan motor yang sering bergoyang liar. Dari kejauhan, mungkin terlihat lucu, tetapi saat di atas motor? Ceritanya berbeda.

Setelah menempuh 68 kilometer petualangan liar, kami tiba di perkemahan di puncak bukit yang sudah dipenuhi tenda-tenda peserta lain dan deru knalpot. Destinasi selalu mencuri perhatian, dan yang satu ini tidak terkecuali—tempat tinggi dengan pemandangan 360 derajat yang menakjubkan dari laut, gunung, hingga kota.

Saat hujan turun, tenda-tenda didirikan, dan malam itu diisi dengan berbagi cerita tentang penyelamatan heroik dan kecelakaan yang menggelikan. Dan tentu saja, ada balapan. Bayangkan sekelompok pengendara penuh semangat meluncur di perbukitan dalam kekacauan yang terkontrol. Balapan tahun ini termasuk duel 1 lawan 1 yang seru di sekitar puncak bukit, dengan peserta menyelesaikan dua putaran penuh adrenalin.

Bukan soal menang; ini tentang hadir, tertawa, dan menikmati momen. Para pemenang dan peserta tercepat yang mencapai puncak bukit dirayakan dengan hadiah, tetapi senyuman, persahabatan, dan kebersamaan membuat semua orang merasa seperti juara.

The Wild tahun ini benar-benar sesuai namanya, bahkan lebih. Petualangan, tawa, dan cukup banyak tanah di gigi untuk menyebutnya otentik—kami tidak akan menginginkannya dengan cara lain. Terima kasih yang sebesar-besarnya kepada semua peserta yang menjadikannya pengalaman tak terlupakan. Sampai jumpa di petualangan berikutnya!

Every year, our mates over at Tasix Adventure—Bali’s finest purveyors of muddy tyres and fuel-driven adrenaline—host their much-anticipated camp-out weekend. They’ve named it “Wild,” and honestly, there’s no better word for it.

It’s not just an event; it’s a pilgrimage for anyone who loves dirt, daring, and the kind of camaraderie you can only forge while laughing at someone else’s wipeout.

The thing about Wild is that it’s shrouded in mystery. You don’t know where you’re going, how you’ll get there, or what you’ll find—kind of like life, but with more exhaust fumes.

This year’s Wild, held on Saturday, December 7, 2024, brought together 135 enthusiasts of enduro, trail, and cross motorcycles at Desa Kopi, Tabanan. The route was kept a secret until the event day, heightening the thrill of the unknown. At exactly 9 am, they shared the destination, Desa Gesing, Singaraja, Divided into small groups, we geared up with full motocross kits to tackle the rainy season’s challenges.

The ride? Pure magic. Twisting trails through Bali’s hidden gems, where every turn promised either breathtaking views or breathtaking near-misses. This year’s route featured red clay terrain—nicknamed "ceramic" soil for its slick, hard texture when wet. Navigating it required a special technique called “paddling the throttle,” a nerve-wracking maneuver that had bikes swaying wildly. From a distance, it might have looked hilarious, but on the bike? It was a whole other story.

After 68 kilometres of this wild adventure, we arrived at the hilltop campsite already alive with the buzz of activity and the roar of exhausts. The destination always steals the spotlight, and this one was no exception—a high-altitude perch offering stunning 360-degree views of the sea, mountains, and city.

As the rain came down, tents went up, and the evening was all about swapping stories of heroic saves and laughable crashes. And then there were the races. Picture a pack of overexcited riders tearing up the hillside in what can only be described as controlled chaos. This year’s races included thrilling 1-on-1 duels around the hilltop, with participants pushing through two laps of sheer adrenaline.

It wasn’t just about winning; it was about showing up, laughing, and embracing the moment. The race winners and the fastest hilltop arrivals were celebrated with prizes, but the smiles, the camaraderie, and the shared triumphs made everyone feel like champions.

This year’s Wild lived up to its name and then some. Adventure, laughter, and just enough dirt in your teeth to call it authentic—we wouldn’t have it any other way. A massive thank you to all the participants who made it unforgettable. See you on the next adventure!