“THE PANTAH 350” / CapelosGarage78
1.
WHO ARE YOU?
• Where
are you from?
My
name is Nuno Capêlo Im from a Portuguese Paradise “Madeira
Island”, but i live and in Porto for 16 years now. came here to
study architecture and after the masters in architecture i stayed
here working.
• What
do you do?
I’m
an Architect and in 2012 when i started Capêlo’s Garage i was
still doing the 2 things Designing buildings an Designing bikes to be
build.
right
know i have an office together with my wife in down town Porto and im
80% designing bikes, illustrating and building from time to time. The
other 10% are dedicated to architecture cause i love it and i can’t
stay away from it the other 80% of architecture goes to my wife also
an architect. and like that i can live in the 2 worlds.
• Are
you a pro/amateur/semi-pro/new-kid-on-the-block?
don’t
really know in witch category i fit in cause i do design a lot of
bikes for others but builds i just have made 3 :D you choose
• What
inspired you to start building bikes/this bike?
The
inspiration for this bike was to show every one something design and
build by me but this time i wanted to do something more risky and
bold
but
also something that showed my taste.
• How
do we describe you? David, Big Dave, Davo, Dave-The-Bike, DaveMoto?
you
Can describe as Nuno Capêlo
• Who
else worked with you, are you a one-man operation or a
team/group/mates, etc.
I
did design this bike and created the final image for it but im not a
one man show and in the building department credits
must
go to my mechanic Leonel Ribeiro from “Oficina Das Motos” 80% of
this build was by is hands, also João and Bruno
from
“Project 724”, Miguel the guy who painted the bike and Ricardo
from “Elemental Rides” that helped with the electric part of it.
I
had the vision and the idea for it but this was a team work with lots
of hands working in the same thing, loved to give you that romantic
story of the guy that builds is bike all alone in is small garage but
no thats not me. to many hours designing bikes for clients so theres
not to many time to be doing the rest. But don’t get me wrong i was
involved 100% in the building process lets just say that i was that
pain in the a.. always saying “not like that look at the drawings…”
ahahaha
And
i enjoy working like that cause theres always some one to give you a
different approach in things that helps you in the next step.
• Do
you have any links we should connect readers to. How do they reach
you?
Portefolio
- www.nunocapelo.com
Facebook
- www.facebook.com/CapelosGarage78
Instagram
- www.instagram.com/capelosgarage
Email
- capelosbikes@gmail.com
2.
THE BIKE?
• Why
did you build this bike and what was your vision?
• Where
did it come from? Interesting find, or customer bike, ebay?
This
bike has a very interesting story cause i bought this bike
probably to the guy that gave the push to start doing what i do now.
cause
all of this started with me posting somo crapy renders in a forum of
my intentions to my Suzuki “Dented Brat”, and in the same
day i have a proposal from my big friend Pedro Novais to
design a Cagiva alazzura 350cc. i think that was one of my first
designs. And a few years later after a big twist in my friends life
(your a big inspiration to me Pedro) there i was buying the same bike
that started it all redesigning it and building it.
• What
was your vision/design/plan/brief?
My
vision was to make a bike showing my taste and vision. the idea of
this bike was to mix the 2 worlds modern and old, in my bikes i
always like give that Retro/Modern feel to it. But the most important
thing to me was to make it clean and sober and make the lines flow
all around the bike. Giving it in the end the clean flowing look she
has.
• What’s
the donor bike, make, model, year, cc?
The
donor bike was a Cagiva Alazzurra 350cc from 1987
• What
did you do to the bike – just the basics; but tell us all the cool
stuff, clever ideas and upgrades?
from
the donor bike i keep the frame, engine and gas tank.
The original gas tank was cute welded and reshaped and
joined to the rear
end
creating a monocoque all of it was hand shaped in sheet metal.
The rear part of the monocoque was something that i
design and sketched a lot and for me there was the problem of in the
end the guy that was going to do it didn’t do it exactly
like i wanted to so i put my skills to it and design it in
3D after that i print that model in ABS in my 3d printer at
the office, and with that i had a perfect 1/1
scale model of what i wanted. And having the 3D
printed model there where no way things cold go wrong in the
sheet metal department and has i predicted things when real
smooth with the help of that Model and son enough i had
my monocoque ready i think it take one week to do the tank
and the rear.
Also
the fairing was a challenge cause i had an idea for it and there
was nothing matching the measurements so i whent using one
that i already had and reshaped it making the top line parallel
with the bottom one and turning it a lot more slimmer
so it cold fit the idea that i have for it.
• If
you’ve upgraded parts like the wheels, lighting, gauges, brakes,
suspension, exhaust, etc, what make did you choose and where from, or
what was the donor bike?
-the
wheels are super moto 17” wheels. the rear wheels as the original
hub that come with it and the front wheel has a Super Tenere hub so
it can fit the Yamaha R1 front end with two Brake Clamps also wit the
wheels we needed to machine spacers to fit the disk rotors
to the wheels and also fabricate suportes for the brakes.
-Change
the rear lights to a very clean led he’d light
that fits the rear perfectly, the gauges where change by a
Motogadget motoscope mini, and the ignition was changed to a
m-lock and the battery was change for a lithium battery
that is underneath the rear tail of the monocoque.
-The
brakes the old Brembo brakes that came with the bike where change for
more modern brakes.
-The
engine was open clean and changed all the parts needed and replaced
all the gaskets.
-The
suspension in front are Yamaha R1 suspension also opened and restored
all the needed parts also as the rear showa shocks.
-In
the exhaust we maintain the manifolds and the exhaust tips where also
design in cad and hand made in the exact measurements
in
the end staying exactly as pretended.
• Any
interesting challenges or mistakes?
There interesting challenges
where the rear 3D print so it cold be reproduced in sheet metal an
the fairing that make from the picture it dosent look
that different from other but it is a lot slimmer and small and
that challenge was taken first with the idea of shaping in foam
the fairing something that happen but didn’t whent
as good has i wanted so we have to trow down the towel on
that and make a diferente approach, after that i tried the
3D approach but in that time my schedule was to busy
and there was no time to do it. One day i wake up with a possible
solution that in the end became the solution to the problem. that was
to cut the fairing making the right measurements so it cold
get slimmer and reshaped to that parallel lines. when mad the
main shape in just one afternoon so it cold be ready for the fiber
glass guy.
• Any
unique signature features?
i
think the unique signature features are the monocoque the
fairing, the rear brake spring that is a signature of my
mechanic Leonel
and
the small engine cover that has the 78 number that represents my
Brand lazer engraved on it.
another
unique feature for me is the seat with that brushed aluminum sheet on
the base and with the racing foam pad leaving room tho show that
brushed aluminium and giving you the opportunity to change the
foam for thicker or big one you just need to unstick the one
over there and change for what ever you whant to.
• How
would you describe the bike now?
Brat/Cafe/Bobber/Scrambler/Tracker/Hyrbrid/Bratster/CafeBrat/Woteva?
For
me this bikes fits in the “Racer” category
• Tell
us about the finish, logos, design?
in
the gas tank i cold have used the Cagiva logo but i decided to use
the Vintage Ducati leathers cause what inspired this build
for me was that beautiful Ducati Pantah engine being that the reason
that make me paint that engine in silver so it cold pop out of the
bike. love the way the engine suportes all the bike living it
hanging out on the frame.
Also
the paint job on the bike is also something i really
enjoy the final result it was always my idea do make something
not to flashy and the first decision was to painted it mate so the
engine could shine and the colors decision i went for
colors that where very neutral using in almost the all
bike a very dark metallic grey (almost black), and just
give some color to the tank with a very light grey in the
top followed by the red and white stripes this last 3 colores
have also a much of pearl in them witch in the sun
makes them really pop.
• How
does the bike ride?
the
bike rides amazingly even with that 350cc she’s a lot of
fun and completely different from the original bike.
it
feels so light and small.
• Are
you happy? Is the customer happy?
im
really happy with this bike first of all it turn exactly has i
intended " just like the design” , and the feed back
from every one is just amazing and this year at the bike shed i
was overwhelmed with such an amazing feed back from every one,
one of the things that made me really happy was that every one
understand my design intentions and had the same feeling with
the clean flowing lines and sober colors with out me explaining that
to them, i asked a lot of people what was their feeling looking
at the bike and all told they had that feeling of reto/modern and of
a clean and sober build where the lines flow all over. And that
for me was the cherry on top every one catch my ideas. And when
i told people that i study architecture every one said the same
thing “now i can see way the bike looks so clean"
• What
will you do next?
right know
im going to keep design for others, but already have some new ideas
and theres also some more 2 donor bikes at the garage waiting.
Also im in the middle of a build for a client of a BMW GS1150,
and Leonel is already hands on it.
- Cagiva
Alazzurra from 1987 “THE PANTAH 350”
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