Purpose Built Moto cranks out another stunning vintage motocross-inspired scrambler—this time based on the venerable Honda XL500. Other highlights from the week include a Suzuki GT750 café racer, a custom Ducati Scrambler from Mexico, and the stonking new KTM 1390 Super Adventure R.
Honda XL500 by Purpose Built Moto Tom Gilroy and the Purpose Built Moto lads are back with another knockout vintage motocross-inspired build. Commissioned by one of their good friends (who is now a three-peat customer), the brief was to create a stablemate for the glorious Purpose Built Yamaha XT500 that he also owns.
The client already had an old Honda XL500 lying around, so it was sent to the PBM workshop in Burleigh Heads, Queensland for a makeover. The guys kept the original tank as they loved its narrow design. It was also the inspiration behind the red and black livery, laid down by Justin at PopBang Classics.
A Yamaha YZ front end was adapted to the Honda frame, running a 19” front wheel and a 17” rear. The owner is more of a street scrambler guy, so Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR tires were spooned onto the new rims. The alloy fork guards are custom, as is the entire headlight and front fender assembly.
The 4.5” Flashpoint headlight and Hollow-Tip LED turn signals up front are from the Purpose Built catalog, as are the Omni LED turn signals in the rear.
The front end was lowered and tuned by Costanzo Racing, and the rear shocks were supplied by YSS. The side covers are another piece of custom bodywork, as is the nicely shaped rear fender and the complete seat assembly. We love that all the bodywork is alloy—and the subtle silver pinstripe used to separate red from black.
The engine was torn down and rebuilt with a big-bore piston, bumping its displacement to 570 cc and increasing the compression ratio to 10.5:1. (Tom claims that you need your game face and sturdy footwear to start it).
Oversized valves with new seats and guides suck fuel from a Mikuni TM40 pumper carb and push it all through the custom exhaust, fitted with a modified Staintune muffler.
PBM’s goal was to take the venerable Honda XL500 and turn it up to eleven while maintaining the charm and heritage of the now-43-year-old thumper. They nailed it. [Purpose Built Moto]
1975 Suzuki GT750 by Corey Potter Corey Potter is an Australian guy who has built some wild custom bikes over the last six years. When it came time for a new project to kick off, Corey only had two things in mind—he wanted a mean flat tracker for the street, and it had to be a two-stroke.
He didn’t choose just any ol’ two-stroke, though. He chose a 1975 Suzuki GT750, the first-ever liquid-cooled Japanese motorcycle. The rough idea was to turn the GT750 into an old-school flat tracker with a pair of 19″ wheels, big rubber, and a front number plate.
The first things to go were the spindly front forks, with a set from a Yamaha R6 subbed in. They were slid through Cognito Moto fork clamps, while the GT750 front hub was machined to take the larger R6 axle. A set of YSS shocks were bolted on out back, and YSS internals were installed inside the R6 forks.
In proper flat track style, the hubs were laced to a matching set of 19” Excel rims, with a Banke Performance disc brake conversion in the rear.
Up top, a Morimoto headlight was fitted inside the custom carbon fiber front number plate. A Magura HC1 master cylinder was fitted to the ProTaper EVO bars, along with a Motogadget Motoscope speedo, switches, turn signals, and mirrors. An Autometer tacho was mounted in front of the bars, rounding out the extra clean rider cockpit. The foot pegs are custom too, mounted on machined plates.
A Saddlemen seat unit sits on top of a custom subframe, with 3D-cushioned mounts and an aluminum under-seat tray for the custom electronics. An Autometer coolant temp gauge sits in front of the fuel cap, just ahead of the Motogadget mo.lock ignition receiver.
Corey’s last few bikes were painted dark colors, so he decided to change things up and go with a crisp white paint scheme. There’s just enough black to break things up, and the yellow and orange stripes are a nice splash of color.
The bright red 38 mm SmartCarb SC2 carbs certainly stand out, with Corey mounting them on 3D-printed intake manifolds so the large float bowls would clear the engine. A brace of K&N filters completes the fueling and adds a healthy dose of induction noise to the usual two-stroke ring-a-ding-ding.
The beautiful expansion chambers are Suzuki TZ750 items that were modified to fit the GT cylinders and frame. To go with the new exhaust, Corey split the cases and rebuilt the entire thing, while also porting, boring, and honing the cylinders. Custom radiator shrouds were fitted, along with a custom overflow bottle.
From the get-go, Corey set out to design and fabricate as many components as he could in his home garage. We adore the finished product—and we can’t wait to see what he cooks up next. [Corey Potter Instagram]
Ducati Scrambler Sixty2 by Hardheads Motostudio Built for a custom bike contest, this 2018 Ducati Scrambler Sixty2 was given a racing-inspired look by Hardheads Motostudio in Mexico.
To kick off the 250-hour process, Nicolás Gómez Acuña and the Hardheads team started with the wheels and suspension. The WP Suspension front end and wheels were taken from a Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 and adapted to fit the Ducati headstock. The YSS rear shock was custom-built with extra length to raise the rear of the bike for a racy look.
Matching 17” wheels (110/80 in the front and 160/60 in the rear) are shod with proper street rubber for maximum grip. The factory headlight and dash remain, but the handlebars were swapped out for lower units to pitch the rider into a slightly more aggressive position.
The rear end is completely new, with the Hardheads team fabricating a fiberglass tail unit and a bespoke seat that combines comfort and style. The custom seat negated the use of the passenger pegs, so they were deleted altogether for the sake of lightness. The side covers are another custom touch, painted in the same wild livery as the rest of the bike.
The stainless steel exhaust system was made from scratch and snakes its way up to terminate under the seat with twin 2.5” slash-cut exhaust tips. Internal baffles tone it down just enough to pass by heavily sedated police with minimal issues. Hardhead’s take on the traditional belly pan design is a standout feature; the way it wraps around the header pipes is muy bueno.
The 399 cc Ducati Scrambler Sixty2 is the slowest member of the Ducati Scrambler family by a country mile—but Hardheads Motostudio has done a fantastic job livening it up. [Hardheads Motostudio]
2025 KTM 1390 Super Adventure R KTM has just pulled the covers off their flagship big-bore adventure bike—the 2025 KTM 1390 Super Adventure R. The off-road-focused adventure bike has some notable changes over its sibling, the KTM 1390 Super Adventure S, including more aggressive suspension and a proper 21” front wheel.
It’s proof that, as far as KTM is concerned, more really is more.
The KTM 1390 Super Adventure R wears a short rally windscreen up front, which makes the package look more cohesive compared to the Super Adventure S. The silver rear aluminum subframe and white hand guards are a nice touch—and even though the two bikes share bodywork, the new Adventure R paint makes it look completely different.
The vertical-mounted 8” TFT display is carried over from the S and features the same touchscreen—which KTM says can be used even with thick winter gloves.
The new Super Adventure R also leaves the semi-active suspension found on the Super Adventure S EVO in favor of manually adjustable 48 mm WP XPLOR forks. The manual system is more rugged and is paired with a WP XPLOR Progressive Damping System rear shock.
Traffic is scarce off the beaten path, so KTM has also done away with the radar-equipped adaptive cruise control. That’s probably a good thing, as it’s not something that’s easily protected from rocks, boulders, and other types of roost that these over-the-top adventure bikes produce.
Speaking of roost, the 1,350 cc V-twin pumps out 170 hp and uses KTM’s Camshift system, which shifts the inlet cams sideways at higher RPMs. Not only does it have more top-end power, but KTM reckons it also improves rideability in the lower rpm range thanks to the smoother throttle response. That could be the Camshift tech—or it could be the 145 Nm of peak torque.
It’s not the prettiest thing, but the blue, orange, and white color scheme makes it look a lot nicer than the Super Adventure S—especially with the bright orange crash bars. We can’t help but smile at how absurdly incredible KTM makes their big ADV bikes. [KTM | Images by Rudi Schedl]
