Kevils Azure
By Anthony van Someren - 22 Nov 13
Seems like everyone out there is building supercool BMW R series customs these days, and that's probably because they are. It's a relatively affordable donor, and much lighter and more punchy than you'd expect, and by messing with the bars, foot rests, seat and tanks you can take them anywhere from a badass, gnarly, brat-style streetbike to a sleek, sophisticated cafe racer.
Kevils in Paignton certainly have it nailed, with a hard-earned reputation for solid, high-quality, R-Series builds of every description, even punting a couple out to A-List celebrities. And this one - another beauty from Kev Hill and his crew - was built for a lucky new owner, Uzoma, from Milan in Italy.
The donor is a 1982 R80 and was commissioned by Uzoma. He had plenty of ideas on how his dream cafe racer would look, so Kev and his crew took them all on board and worked up a spec and design that would set the bike apart with a mix of "racy styling and serious bling".
The colour scheme was inspired by muscle cars like the AC Cobra, old 60's and early 70s Ford Mustangs. The paintwork on the tank was matched to an electric blue powdercoated frame, and the bike earned its' nickname "Azure".
The bars are superwide, drag-style items rather than cafe clip-ons, which when combined with rear-set footrests mix a semi-racing crouch with decent leverage. The secret Kevils speedo graces the top yoke plus the usual mini-indies and bar end mirrors. The seat unit is also a Kevils special with the frenched-in rear lights and tuck-n'roll leather seat.
The bike hangs on to it's 80s rocker-covers on the black painted engine and black transmission, mated to wire-spoked BMW wheels. The whole package hangs together with a clean simplicity and design common-sense.
The result has been so well-received by Uzoma that his mate has put in for another Kevils commission, so keep your eyes on your rear view mirrors and listen out for the sounds of a pair of flat-twins if you're on the Streets of Milan next summer.
See plenty more from Kevils Speedshop on The Bike Shed's Kevils pages, their Facebook page and Website.