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At first glance Double Shoot could be mistaken for just another reproduction of what has become an iconic XV custom build, but if time is spent looking into the detail you will find this is no copy. Designed for a client with exquisite taste, the build spec was exceptionally high and we had to achieve objectives that had never been achieved with any other XV build. Using the 50’s Benelli tank, a regular feature, it was essential that the lower edge of seat & tank meet evenly and be parallel to the ground. It had to have clip-on bars to go with the café look, but provide good ergo without excessive weight on the rider’s wrists. Of course, as a café it had to have spoked wire wheels capable of using modern soft rubber, and it must have twin exhausts. The XV doesn’t have a frame perse, but rather a 2-piece backbone that fastens to the top of the engine & wraps under and around the rear cylinder. The backbone acts as a plenum feeding fresh air to the carbs via two metal outlets protruding from the backbone. Raider removed these and remodelled the entire backbone; creating reliefs near the steering head to allow the tank to sit around 30-40mm lower over the backbone. Rather than inlet air the backbone now houses the majority of the wiring loom & electricals. The stock Hitachi carbs are exchanged with a pair of 36mm Dellorto’s, but this required shortening & re-profiling the inlet tubes, and similar mods to the manifolds, tank and backbone. After the tank was sitting low as possible the Hageman subframe was modified to provide the alignment required, plus an undertray was fitted to utilise the café seat hump for additional electrics and seat loom connector (the seat, lights/flashers etc are all one piece, & the entire unit unplugs & lifts off). The repro Benelli tanks use a cheap pressed flower fuel cap, which was cut-out and the entire profile reworked & reshaped so the flush filler was in the in the middle and level. In order to use soft tyres we started with a pair of XS650 hubs, then after machining and preparing them to the required standard, married them to a set of 17” black anodised SM Pro Platinum rims with SS spokes and Michelin Pilot Sport II hoops. The handmade front guard is possibly the smallest ever seen, and the nose profile is deliberately shaped to match the Pilot Sport tread pattern. Most XV builds use OEM foot-peg mounts, which are bulky, heavy and basically very ugly. In Yamaha’s defence, they were a clever piece of engineering as they have to provide not only foot-pegs mounts, but brake & gear lever pivot, exhaust mounts, and most importantly, support & tie the upper & lower sections of the backbone to the engine case. Raider had their own plans for the mufflers, but everything else was achieved in a set of rear sets that are so minimalist that they almost disappear into the bike. Meeting the customers wish for twin reverse cone mufflers was another monumental achievement. The stock pipes have very small OD, 35mm, so that was increased to 45mm by hand-working stainless steel tube and mandrel bends, snaking the rear through a series of S-bends that feed through the backbone and swing-arm, while the hand-spun SS mufflers are retained by springs & slip joints. In most builds the mufflers are retained by brackets hanging from the subframe, but in keeping with the minimalist lines these are supported by fabricated arms that lever off the backbone and disappear into the swing-arm & wheel area. Due to a shorter header configuration the L/H muffler flexed, and to overcome this additional rigidity was created by incorporating the hand-made chain-guard to add the required support; both mufflers are now ridged and do not wallow about under acceleration or cornering, a feat many manufactures can’t achieve in OEM spec. From photos alone, it is hard for viewers to appreciate the level of subtleness and delicate custom work that consumed 346 man-hours to produce Double Shot. Currently on NSW Club Plates, this bike can be ridden home.
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Ad Id | JBFD4086345 |
Make | yamaha |
Model | xv920 virago |
Price | sold |
Stock | DBLSHT |
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