When the term V-Twin comes up, just about everyone’s mind goes to Harley-Davidson, and the Milwaukee maker has done plenty to earn that instant recognition. But too often, you’d be forgiven for thinking they’re the only company that has made or makes the popular configuration. And I’m not just talking about their fellow Americans in Indian, but Ducati, Moto Guzzi, vintage legends like Vincent and Brough Superior, and all of the Japanese manufacturers have produced a V-Twin at some point too. For Honda, their first entry into the V-Twin market came in 1978 with the introduction of the CX500, and while the plastic maggot was once derided, it now has more than cult status. On the London streets, they were popular among motorcycle couriers, but now, decades on over in Norwich, Kustom Choppers has built this wicked white example, with plenty of custom touches.
Established in 2012, Kustom Choppers sits among a small group of trade-focused businesses, nestled in the farming fields about thirty minutes outside of the city of Norwich. It’s the perfect place to make a bunch of noise, rev engines, run grinders, and then have instant access to the back roads to hoon around on. It’s here that Daniel Howden plies his trade, and if it has anything at all to do with bikes, he’s your man. “I’ve owned motorbikes ever since my parents told me I couldn’t have one!” From specialist fabrication jobs to full restorations of vintage and classic machinery, right up to one-off custom builds, you’ll find it all rolling out of the Kustom Choppers garage.
As the clock ticked towards the 2024 Bike Shed Show at Tobacco Dock in London, Daniel decided to base his crowd-pleasing cafe racer on the old Honda courier motorcycle. But of the 1982 Honda CX500 donor bike that he chose as the foundation, the only parts that remain standard are the oddly shaped V-Twin engine and part of the mainframe. “Kustom Choppers aspires to carve a path that is very different from the competition, allowing us to stand out as a one-of-a-kind bike builder,” Daniel explains. And with this in mind, he sought to use only the highest-end parts and pieces on the build, and let his fabrication skills do plenty of talking.
Starting with the stock chassis, the CX range has a large-diameter tube for a backbone that bends down toward the swingarm point. Everything behind this, Daniel has cut off or removed, from the subframe and the rails that run up to support it, to the unusually shaped swingarm that protects the drive shaft. To produce an infinitely cleaner result, an all-new floating subframe has been fabricated, with the seat rails running rearward and a stunning lower support, featuring uber-neat cutouts to give it some style. This piece also serves as one side of the upper shock mount, with the other side welded to the aforementioned large chassis tube. All of this was done in preparation for a swingarm conversion.
It’s not something you see on many CX builds, as it’s no easy task with the driveshaft to deal with, but Daniel has pulled it off in remarkable style by engineering a BMW R1150RT swingarm to fit. The lower shock mount is perfectly aligned, and the BMW wheel looks a hell of a lot nicer than the original Honda item. You also get the benefit of a quality rear disc brake setup, so clearly, the front end couldn’t stay ’80s stock. To bring it into the 21st century, another V-Twin offers up its forks, those of a Cagiva Raptor, with Ducati Monster triple clamps used to make it all fit. A second BMW wheel is made to fit the front end, and then all the braking is handled by Brembo, with the Italian firm’s quality master cylinder and lever combo used as well.
Now with the perfect rolling chassis, Daniel could begin the process of transforming the look of the big-kilometer commuter into a classic cafe racer. The stock tank was discarded, and the ‘Eurosport’ style CX500 tank was adopted instead. But even this doesn’t stay standard, as it’s been customized in-house and fitted with a race filler for good measure. The tailpiece is another Kustom Choppers-built piece, giving the bike some seriously aggressive lines before being topped off with a gorgeous seat by The Trim Shed. A Ducati front fender takes care of the last of the bodywork, and then it’s on with the glorious white paint, which is neatly contrasted by a black graphics package and large Honda logo.
The V-Twin engine, with its 80° angle and heads twisted another 22°, is internally stock, but you can tell Daniel has spent a lot of time ensuring it looks a million dollars. To drastically improve cooling and also give the bike a better look, a modern aluminium radiator has been fitted, with custom pipework to make it all fit. Speaking of which, how about that exhaust, built by Daniel to show off just what he can do at Kustom Choppers. The headers flow beautifully under the engine into a shared collector box, before spitting out of a pair of out-turned tips. The carbs are obviously jetted to suit, and they breathe easier too, thanks to a gorgeous set of machined velocity stacks.
Having gone to all this trouble to build such a beautiful bike, the last thing Daniel wanted to do was ruin the lines with a chunky wiring loom. So, he’s wisely deployed the X21 control system from NWT Cycletronic. This doesn’t just make wiring your lighting easier; it handles the whole lot, from the ignition system and starting circuit to neatly interfacing with the NWT controls.
The bars are classics, but the rearsets are more of Daniel’s fabrication in all of its functional glory. And if you like the gauge surround, battery box, and neat number plate hanger, you can buy the CAD files from Kustom Choppers for a bargain price. After giving the CX500 one final polish, Daniel headed off to the Bike Shed Show, and it comes as no surprise that the crowds loved what they saw, a cult classic, now a killer cafe’d custom from one hell of a talented builder.
[ Kustom Choppers | Photography by Susan Lansdell ]