High-dollar machines produced from big-name shops are all well and good, but there is something special about a bike built by a single man or woman just making their name. This Honda NX650 Dominator scrambler, by 25 year old Ruben Paz of Galicia’s Mutant Motorcycles, is such a build. Says Ruben:
I tell you, the project was done by my amateur way, nothing professional. It is my second preparation, the first was a Kawasaki KZ400.
In our estimation, Ruben is being humble. This bike speaks class and craftsmanship. Full details below.
Honda Dominator Scrambler: In the Builder’s Words
(Words by Ruben Paz, translated from the Spanish by BikeBound.)
First thank you, I am very excited to see my work published. I’ll tell you a bit. This is my second preparation before a KZ400 Kawasaki 1977. With this build, I sought to create a motorcycle based on an economic platform, but with a reliable engine that had the potential to be a good scrambler. The bike was spotless–very neat engine and components–which I purchased in early 2015.
My main inspiration was the Triumph scrambler aesthetics of JvB Moto. From there, I liked more work done on the NX650 and XR600 by Cafe Racer Dreams, Classified Moto, Deus ex Machina, etc.
The first thing is I wanted a tank as close as possible to the Triumph, and looking across the warehouse, I have a scrambler 125 Mash. The second was to lower the front height, so I got a 19″ front wheel off a Honda SLR650, which fitted perfectly with the fork and brake of the Dominator.
The next steps were to cut and weld the new sub-frame, and install all the new components. The bike was ready except the absence of paint, but summer 2015 approached, so I enjoyed it as it was during that summer. In the winter of 2016, I came back and tore it down completely for painting. During that process, I got a very well priced inverted fork from a Hyosung Comet 650, so I did all the necessary changes to adapt the fork to the frame, wheel, and brakes.
I finished the build this summer, and the truth is that I’m really enjoying it, in winter and even with all that rain here in Galicia. I will likely return to make some changes, or even sell it to start new projects. If I’m lucky I would like to prepare another bike on the basis of a XV1100 Yamaha or Yamaha XJR 1200/1300.
Major Components:
- Gas tank- Mash 125 scrambler
- Fork – Hyusung comet 650
- Exhaust- Supertrapp
Regards, and thank you very much.
-Rubén Paz Fontán
Follow the Builder
Follow Mutant Motorcycles: Facebook | Instagram
