Hadouken! Street Fighter in a day

There is currently an advert on television for ADT Alarms that focuses on the trauma that victims of crime face. The only trauma I experienced when my Yamaha R6 was stolen was a short, sharp stabbing pain to the wallet as the insurance man ran off with all my money…

Armed with a pathetically limp £900 reimbursement from MCE Insurance, it was time to bust out the perma-tanned pillock David Dickinson and carry out some serious Bargain Hunting. Said bargain came in the form of a slowly tatty Suzuki SV650 with a lot of miles on the clock. It’s the perfect commuter bike but it’s not too easy on the eye. In steps Mark Butterworth and the boys behind Cable Tie Developments, an all-encompassing barn of wonders that can handle any automotive spot of tinkery.

We faced a battle against time as I had an appointment with a curry in the evening, so 5 hours of furious amateur mechanics ensued and in that time we managed a pretty tidy transformation. Gok Wan would be proud.

Off came the wheels, bars and battered old clocks. Bars were replaced with chunky Renthal Streetfighters for a wider, more aggressive stance. They had to be cut down to allow for easy London filtering but- on the contrary to the numerous SV650 forums- all the switchgear fits without the need for replacement cables. Just cut the bars down to match the length of the old ones… Simples.

Wheels were wrestled off, sanded down, primed and sprayed Satin Black, all courtesy of Halfords. The forks and yoke area were badly pitted and rusty, so the worst affected areas were also treated and sprayed. While the bike was in its skeleton state, it underwent some serious cleaning. We got through five or six cans of brake cleaner and the steamer saw some serious use. It’s not spotless but it looks ten times better.

The front end was in the worst shape- the clocks coming away so badly they required an old screen to stop them taking my head off at high speeds. These were replaced completely, an eBay purchase that was by far the most expensive aspect of the project but well worth it.

The finished product is a cleaner, meaner commuter bike that no longer looks like a courier’s knackered old donkey and more like a respectable machine.