Post Sale Update: This custom Yamaha sold for $13,556 after 14 bids on eBay.
Last time I featured a custom Yamaha by Greg Hageman, it was a XSR700 inspired by the XT500. This time around, it’s a XS650 that was created as a partner to another XSR700. Yamaha’s slogan for their line of retro bikes is “Faster Sons” – the idea is that the modern bikes are faster sons than the classics. In this case, the XS650 is called the “Fast Father”, and now it’s available for purchase after having gone through the US motorcycle show circuit.
New and Old
I first saw this bike at the Handbuilt show in Austin, Texas, and I remember thinking that I wanted it a lot more than I wanted the custom XSR700 that was next to it. The bike supposedly started as a XS2 (1972 XS650) in good shape before Hageman restomodded it. The engine was rebuilt and some modern pieces were added – Mikuni VM34 carbs, Pamco electronic ignition, XSCharge alternator, lithium battery, LED lighting, and more. The front end is from a 2000-ish Yamaha R6, the swingarm is a custom aluminum SR500 unit built by MotoLanna, and the rear shocks are from Hagon. For more details on the work, check out this story from Yamaha.
This bike (VIN: S650131785) has 80 miles on it since the work was completed, most of which are presumably from commercials and promotional videos like the one above. Greg Hageman notes that the “bike is show quality, and built to ride. The only flaws are in a couple parts that I chose to keep original and untouched, a few small blemishes in the fenders, and a couple small nicks in the side covers. They were close to excellent, and wanted to keep them original to the bike for its character.”
Find this custom Yamaha for sale in Bettendorf, Iowa with bidding up to $8,399