“The Rapture,” a radical BMW scrambler…
We have seen a lot of BMW airhead builds, but rarely have we seen one with such swagger and attitude. Aptly named “The Rapture,” this 1978 BMW R65 scrambler is the work of Spain’s Voodoo Garage. Their original concept was direct:
“The idea was to make a motorcycle totally different from what is usually done with a BMW R.”
They totally overhauled the engine, fitting a single Weber DCOE car carburetor, as well as hand-building a custom 2-1-2 exhaust, subchassis, and so much more. Below, we get the full story on this custom R65.
“The Rapture” BMW Scrambler: Builder Interview
• Please tell us a bit about yourself, your history with motorcycles, and your workshop.
Voodoo Garage was formed in 2014 with the idea of making unique bikes. The Voodoo Garage team have always been enthusiasts of motorcycles, cars, and engineering. Initially, we started the project as a hobby, but due to the demand and good acceptance of our work, we decided to take the leap and dedicate ourselves full time to this task. In September of 2017, we moved to our new facilities where we hope to release to all our ideas.
• What’s the make, model, and year of the bike?
“The Rapture” was built from a BMW R65 of 1978.
• Why was this bike built?
Is a customer project.
• What was the design concept and what influenced the bike?
The idea was to make a motorcycle totally different from what is usually done with a BMW R. For this, we improved the engine completely, and we adapted a completely different carburetor system, using a car carburetor Weber DCOE, and a completely handmade 2-1-2 exhaust system manufactured by Voodoo Garage, inspired by the Nine-T models.
The work of painting and aesthetics aims to maintain the classic style of BMW but giving a modern and radical touch, for this we use an electrical system of Motogadget motoscope pro together with an m-unit. And white paint with BMW M lines mixed with anthracite chalk. The aesthetics of the motorbike is a mixture of white, black, and brushed aluminum to the purest racing style.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
Carb/intake system, exhaust system, brakes disk, clamps, subchassis, seat, headlights stands….
• How would you classify this bike?
We think that is a radical scrambler.
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
Was the first time that we built a hand made clamps — it was a challenge. And to operate the central carburetor correctly was very fun
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Voodoo Garage have built a stunningly beautiful machine.