Photo: Oliver Young via Pipeburn
In some cases, motorcycles mean more to their respective owners than the sum of their parts, and that’s how Collas felt about this Yamaha XS650. The bike had previously been owned by a dear friend who’d passed away, and it made its way into his possession thereafter. He knew that one day it would be reborn in custom form to honor his friend’s memory, but first the right builder had to be found.
That guy turned out to be James Moir of JM Customs in Scotland, as he immediately understood what the XS650 meant to Collas and had all the necessary skills to bring his vision to life. Once the classic Yamaha had crossed JM’s doorstep, it was promptly taken apart and placed on the workbench for the custom sorcery to begin. First, James tackled a nice bit of fabrication work.
He fashioned a custom front fender in-house, making it no larger than it needs to be and securing it in place with bespoke brackets. The original XS650 fuel tank is still present, and so are the boxy side covers that came from the factory. These latter bits are now home to rectangular cut-outs covered with mesh screens, thus creating a unique look without the need to build new panels from scratch.
Up top, we see a gorgeous scrambler-style bench seat upholstered in black leather, sitting on a modded subframe and looking like a million bucks. There is a custom fender mounted underneath, with its rearmost portion carrying a minimalistic license plate bracket and a full suite of LED lights from Motone.
The saddle in placed on a handmade aluminum seat pan, and the leatherwork was carried out by Tom of Hurley Custom Seats. In the cockpit area, one may spot a Renthal handlebar wearing billet switchgear, Biltwell grips, and a premium Domino throttle. Twin Daytona Velona dials also make an appearance, placed right above a new retro-style headlamp and Motone turn signals.
All the electronics got hooked up to a fresh wiring harness and an aftermarket control unit. In terms of suspension-related upgrades, the forks were refurbished inside out and the rear shocks made room for modern substitutes. James had the brakes overhauled, as well, and he cloaked the wheels in dual-purpose Heidenau rubber on both ends. Of course, the UJM’s twin-cylinder mill hasn’t been overlooked, either.
It was completely revamped inside out, receiving youthful bearings, seals, and gaskets along with a modern electronic ignition system. The carbs are now topped with DNA air filtration hardware, but that two-into-one exhaust system was already on the bike before James Moir got his hands on it. The heat wrap on its headers is new, though, and the last piece of the puzzle is a delicious color scheme combining red and black.
He fashioned a custom front fender in-house, making it no larger than it needs to be and securing it in place with bespoke brackets. The original XS650 fuel tank is still present, and so are the boxy side covers that came from the factory. These latter bits are now home to rectangular cut-outs covered with mesh screens, thus creating a unique look without the need to build new panels from scratch.
Up top, we see a gorgeous scrambler-style bench seat upholstered in black leather, sitting on a modded subframe and looking like a million bucks. There is a custom fender mounted underneath, with its rearmost portion carrying a minimalistic license plate bracket and a full suite of LED lights from Motone.
The saddle in placed on a handmade aluminum seat pan, and the leatherwork was carried out by Tom of Hurley Custom Seats. In the cockpit area, one may spot a Renthal handlebar wearing billet switchgear, Biltwell grips, and a premium Domino throttle. Twin Daytona Velona dials also make an appearance, placed right above a new retro-style headlamp and Motone turn signals.
All the electronics got hooked up to a fresh wiring harness and an aftermarket control unit. In terms of suspension-related upgrades, the forks were refurbished inside out and the rear shocks made room for modern substitutes. James had the brakes overhauled, as well, and he cloaked the wheels in dual-purpose Heidenau rubber on both ends. Of course, the UJM’s twin-cylinder mill hasn’t been overlooked, either.
It was completely revamped inside out, receiving youthful bearings, seals, and gaskets along with a modern electronic ignition system. The carbs are now topped with DNA air filtration hardware, but that two-into-one exhaust system was already on the bike before James Moir got his hands on it. The heat wrap on its headers is new, though, and the last piece of the puzzle is a delicious color scheme combining red and black.
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