Of all of the bikes that Bimota ever made, the DB3 Mantra is probably essentially the most peculiar. As you’d anticipate from the Italian agency, the DB3 featured a Ducati engine in an aluminum trellis body and was identified for its nimble dealing with. But its alien-like aesthetic was a little bit too far on the market for many pundits.
As uncommon because the Bimota DB3 Mantra is, custom-made examples of it are even rarer. We’ve solely ever featured one {custom} DB3 on these pages—and now, that exact same bike is again for one more spherical. It’s simply gone beneath the knife for the second time at Analog—and now seems to be even higher.
The DB3’s first makeover occurred eleven years in the past, when Analog’s Tony Prust modified it for his good good friend and drummer of the rock band Chevelle, Sam Loeffler. The bike made waves on the inaugural Handbuilt and Mama Tried exhibits, and starred in an episode of Café Racer TV. More importantly, Sam rode it… quite a bit.
More not too long ago, Sam introduced the bike again to Tony for a few delicate adjustments. He wished a entrance suspension improve, and he wished so as to add a entrance fender (one thing that was excluded the primary time round).
“I was reluctant,” says Tony. “In my opinion, it was a popular build in its time and I was proud of it, for the most part, as it was. Sure, there were some things that if I had to do again I would have made different choices—but it was a ‘finished’ Analog build.”
“Sam revisited the conversation a number of times and I finally caved. But I said that if we were doing that, what if we did more things, now that I have honed my skills since the original build. Sam was stoked on that idea and delivered the bike to our TN location.”
Swapping out the Bimota’s conventional forks for upside-downs proved to be one of many simpler jobs on the challenge. Tony sourced a set of Ducati Monster 900 items, after which had his buddy Bill Bailey machine a brand new steering stem to marry the Monster’s yokes to the the Bimota’s body. The entire association was stripped, powder-coated black, and reassembled.
“After that was done, I had a mental block and the project stalled for a bit,” Tony tells us. “I left it on a bench while I worked on other projects for months, and then it finally started to take shape.”
Focusing on the bodywork, Tony began fabricating new elements to enhance the one piece he supposed to maintain—the gas tank. “When I built it I did not know how to shape metal,” he explains. “But I was a carpenter by trade for many years, so I made a wood buck of the tank and hired Mike Ardito to make it.”
“He also made the tail section—but since I did not have a wood buck for it, it kind of ended up more his idea than mine. I was still learning my craft back then.”
Tony’s skillset has grown a heck of quite a bit over the past eleven years. So he fabricated a brand new tail part from scratch this time, ending it off with a deeply scooped saddle. The association is an ideal match for the gas tank’s myriad contours and edges, and sits properly within the previously-redesigned subframe.
Next, Tony constructed an identical entrance fender, full with a pair of built-in Denali LEDs that act as operating lights and switch alerts. Higher up, a custom-made headlight nacelle performs host to a Denali LED headlight, whereas the rear sports activities a Denail taillight and Analog flip alerts.
The bike already had tasty Alpine wheels and ISR brakes fitted, so these have been left alone. The engine had additionally been rebuilt within the earlier spherical, and was nonetheless operating robust with Keihin flat-slide carbs, velocity stacks, and an EVR slipper clutch. So Tony merely swapped out the exhaust for a bespoke two-into-one system, liberating up a little bit extra torque within the course of.
The Bimota was rewired round a Motogadget mo.unit field, with a Motogadget speedo doing obligation within the cockpit. Tony additionally swapped the present clip-on bars for a set of Renthal riser bars, put in a custom-built Hyperpro rear shock, and fitted contemporary Spiegler brake strains.
Although the DB3’s {custom} gas tank seems to be the identical as earlier than, it’s really sporting a brand new coat of paint. Tony had KC at Krossover Customs replicate the unique livery, carrying it by means of to the brand new fender, fairing, and tail. Regular Analog co-conspirator, Dane Utech, dealt with the seat foam and fabric.
Analog’s second crack on the Bimota DB3 Mantra not solely seems to be extra cohesive than the primary, nevertheless it’s reportedly extra snug too (sure, Sam nonetheless rides it). It’s a uncommon case of the sequel outshining the unique.
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