It’s as close to being the Academy Awards of our industry, there are many other amazing events, but there is a prestige to the Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show, that means for many builders, simply being invited to exhibit is a lifelong goal. Each year’s event is awash with incredible creations and it also serves as a stark reminder that when it comes to the Japanese scene, the rest of the world is really only getting a small glimpse behind the curtain. So, what better way to lift the lid on one of the nations best builders, who is largely unknown outside of Japan, than to show off his most recent trophy winning creation. Kenta Onishi is the boss at Eccentric Motorcycles, and this wild in white 1997 Kawasaki Estrella took out ‘Best Domestic Bike’ at the recent 2024 Yokohama show.
Onishi-san is a custom bike builder known for never following a trend, to the point that when a certain style is in vogue, he will avoid it like the plague. His small shop in the city of Kawaguchi has always been a place for those looking for something truly different, as a shared creative process between client and creator is truly encouraged. Onishi-san takes his job very seriously, and before putting pen to paper to create a design, he will often spend months studying the style and its history. For this build, his client wanted a custom that drew heavily on pre-war automobiles, while also incorporating plenty of Art Deco touches.
The problem was, as Onishi-san is the first to admit, he really didn’t know what Art Deco was, let alone a way to add it into a build. So, he jumped head first into the history books and gave himself a crash course on the cars and Parisian art style of the early 20th century. He of course, however, was very familiar with the donor bike, but most people won’t be, as those Estrella’s that did make it out of Japan never proved to be too popular. The retro design and single cylinder engine model is a bit of a cult Kwaka in its home country and has been seen as an alternative to the ever popular Yamaha SR.
For Onishi-san though, the bike served simply as a donor of mechanical parts to form the basis of his build, the rest he would craft from scratch and it all starts with the frame. Creating a motorcycle styled on the pre-war period, he felt it had to have a rigid frame, and set about converting the twin shock setup. And in creating his hardtail frame, he stayed true to his motto of never following the pack and steered away from using simply straight pieces of tube. The hardtail has a gentle curve down to the axle plate and the lower tube is bent in the opposite direction to match. Then the metal work is seamlessly integrated into the smoothed out and radiused backbone.
The custom single centrepost replaces the twin post stock items, with one rather large vertical line, and the down tube has been reshaped to match the rest of the build. It’s a hell of a lot of work, and the results are subtle, but create the foundation on which Onishi-san could now build upon. The first panel to take shape was the rear fender, and it’s actually three hand rolled fenders laid one over the other, and cut in various shapes, to create the end design. Even the struts are a complex construction, the three pronged approach with its chrome finish, allowing them to almost blend in with the spinning spokes when the bike is on the move.
In front of the complex fender, the seat base has been beautifully worked into the rigid frame, with a chrome surround hand shaped and featuring hidden mounts, just like the fender struts. The tank is all custom and once again you can see that this is a shop that places expert fabrication high on the priority list. The split design allowing each side to sit low on the bike and the bottom finished to run perfectly parallel to the ground. The white paint makes for a stark finish, but matched with the chrome and the vintage tail light and indicators, it all comes together brilliantly.
And this is the only way to describe the girder front end, another complete one-off creation, that functions flawless and serves up an engineering masterclass. It’s no easy feat on what is such a small bike, but the sweeping lines of the legs further complement the design of the frame and unlike a big chunky springer, it doesn’t dominate the entire appearance of the motorcycle. The use of the drum brake was an inspired choice, and a fresh set of rims are laced up and the rolling stock is finished out with a set of skinny white wall tyres.
The engine has been kept relatively factory, with the bulk of the work spent polishing the single cylinder within an inch of its life, and then bending up the brilliant exhaust system, which perfectly matches the lines of the frame. To add a little complexity and give the bike the riding feel of a true vintage machine, a suicide shifter has been crafted, with every last arm and linkage flawlessly finished. And then the final touch, select areas of the bike were treated to some beautiful Art Deco designs, engraved by hand and inspired by Onishi-sans history lesson. It’s not just a show winner and a stunning one off creation, this Kawasaki is a look behind the curtain at the grassroots of the Japanese custom scene; and we absolutely love what we see.
