Topic: Bryon Fuller's carved 550 Shogun

[ekpent]

  In the latest issue of Cycle World they did an article on "Shogun". I like carved wood but doing it on metal takes it to a whole new level. 8 years in the making. Potential Bike of the Month around here    The article mentioned it is for sale.   http://www.streetmusclemag.com/event-coverage/sema-coverage-event-coverage/sema-2016-arp-and-fuller-moto-pull-off-a-bike-full-of-3d-tattoos/

[greenjeans]

Photos just don't do it justice.  It is truly amazing.

[BomberMann650]

Wowza

[Ericcb750]

That bike is just ridiculous, Absolutely love it. I can see why he's never sold that thing, The amount of work that went into that .... That's a once in a life time bike..... Still can't believe he Chopped up that guy's Sandcast right in front of him though.... haha.

Such a beautiful machine.

[lrutt]

While I can appreciate the amount of work involved,

[greenjeans]

That bike is just ridiculous, Absolutely love it. I can see why he's never sold that thing, The amount of work that went into that .... That's a once in a life time bike..... Still can't believe he Chopped up that guy's Sandcast right in front of him though.... haha.

Such a beautiful machine.

You know it wasn't a sandcast.  I was there.  It was a nice bike though. 

[DaveBarbier]

While I can appreciate the amount of work involved,

Same. I get that this took a while and was done by skilled craftsman, but if I was at that show I'd look at it for about 60 seconds and move on.

[Retro Rocket]

While I can appreciate the amount of work involved,

Same. I get that this took a while and was done by skilled craftsman, but if I was at that show I'd look at it for about 60 seconds and move on.

Yep, me too, looks like it was built to look at and not so much to function properly, not my cup of tea....

[754]

If you can only look at that for 60 seconds, What do you like to look at.. What captures your attention.?
 The builder generally does not care if it appeals to most people. He has this idea in his mind and he wants to bring it to fruition. He is creative, so he must create..it is just simply what he does.
Now if all he does starts looking too much the same, then he is not highly creative and the bikes become cookie cutter customs, and can get boring..
 Like the songwriter, or painter, or musician... There is a seed of an idea in their mind...and the longer they think about it, the more its time to get it out in the open and make it happen.
 You can never please everyone, just not going to happen...

[martin99]

Clearly a very personal journey. The time, commitment and work involved is something all of us can understand and appreciate, but it isn't my thing. To me, it shouts 'artist' rather than 'motorcyclist'. Each to his own though.

Six years to bring one bike to fruition? Nah, life's too short.

[Retro Rocket]

Well Frank, I wouldn't just marry a women just because she's wearing a pretty dress.... Attention to detail goes further than eye candy, I look at the whole bike as a proper functioning machine, not a pretty picture....

[greenjeans]

It's not a constant 6 years of work.  That bike has plenty of miles on it since its first incarnation.   It's definitely a artistic expression.  Nothing like it.
One thing about Bryan - he will, and does, ride the crap out of anything he has.  What's the point if you can't ride them?

[ekpent]

 I think the pictures in the Cycle World story do it more justice than the other online link I posted.  A collaboration of three different artists combined into one piece.
  I forgot that he was the fellow that carved up the K0 that got everybody all riled up sometime back.

[DaveBarbier]

If you can only look at that for 60 seconds, What do you like to look at.. What captures your attention.?

Generally I tend to find beauty or appeal in good proportions, simplicity, practicality and reliability. Anything too flashy I don't really care for. I'm sure there are exceptions to that for me but I can't think of anything right now.

I think that's why I like patina so much and things that wear nicely. Like a good pair of jeans or leather gloves or my truck. To me it shows longevity and good design.

I've been to bike/car shows and often times people are just crowded around the shiniest thing. The thing that's covered in the most chrome. Or the things with the curviest parts with the deepest gloss paint. Not for me.

Edit: And I know the metal carvings took a long time, but I still think it's kind of ugly.

[Tews19]

Thanks for sharing Eric. That bike is pretty awesome. Fuller has always created some good bikes imo.

[BPellerine]

he did a run with with some other bikes,through some twisties and they say it handled really good.bill

[calj737]

Its a beautiful bike and the result of both skilled craftsmen, and a very talented guy. I don't know the guy personally, but every report and reference to him states exactly the same thing: he's a helluva nice guy, hard working, humble, and extremely talented. The amount of detail in this build (like so many of his other works) is extraordinary. Perhaps the aesthetic of the carving or ornate designs is not some folks cup of tea, but it is consistent with the "theme" of the bike; Japanese art. He used engraving versus paint to decorate the bike. Its top flight.

Now, I'm not a personal fan of chrome and too shiny stuff, but I do absolutely admire the work and thought and artistry. As for "performance", I think the bike looks pretty well setup without any crazy geometry or steering limits. And of course, his use of ARP 12pts gets my personal nod