11-12-17 Update: I try not to feature the same bike over and over again but I’m in love with just about everything Rob Phillips builds, and this has got to be one of the best. If you haven’t seen this before, it’s back up for sale and bidding is currently at $8,278 with the reserve not yet met
Post Listing Update: This HB1 replica did not meet reserve despite 23 bids up to $22,100.
5-23-17 Update: The builder of this beautiful bike has let me know that is back up for sale, which is convenient as reader Peter S just shared with me that it’s the cover story of the most recent issue of Motorcycle Classics. Find it for sale in Staatsburg, New York with bidding up to $6,600 and the reserve not yet met
I’ve featured some great builds by Rob Phillips of Husky Restorations in the past (like this XT custom), but this replica of Bimota’s iconic HB1 takes the cake. Dedicated readers of Bike-urious may remember this bike from Vipin’s account of his time at the New York Motorcycle Show, but this bike is now up for sale. Bimota purists might look down on it, but who cares? As someone who can’t afford a real HB1, this makes me very happy.
The HB1 was Bimota’s first bike, and just 10 frame kits were built. Rob’s replication about two years, and he chronicled the end of it here on a thread on Cafe Racer.net (thread originally discovered by commenter Tirefriar). Going through the thread you’ll see that Rob had to do this without much help from Bimota owners – in fact, he was blacklisted by the unofficial Bimota registry! Despite that, he’s built something to be proud of – and there’s no pretensions of trying to pass it off as anything but a replica. Plus, unlike the originals you don’t have to be terrified of riding this beauty.
Find this replica HB1 for sale in Staatsburg, New York for $37,000 here on Cycle Trader.