Vinduro-Style Honda from Mestiere Works…
Indonesia is the world’s third largest motorcycle market, with more than 125 million motorbikes in use. An estimated 85% of households own at least one motorcycle, and Japanese manufacturers hold the lion’s share of the market. With motorcycles such an integral part of daily life, it should come as no surprise that the country has become a veritable hotbed of the custom world.
Recently, we had the pleasure of getting in touch with Kevin Adrian, the 22-year-old founder of Mestiere Works in Bandung, West Java.
“Living in Indonesia itself one is never far from a motorbike in daily life — I was always taken to school on a motorbike as were other people.”
Kevin has been modifying motorcycles since he was in high school, when he first took apart a delivery motorbike from his father’s work and put it back together…with some modifications, of course. Since then, he progressed to mopeds, dirt bikes, street bikes, and he’s even experimented with electric motorbikes.
He founded his workshop in 2019 originally as a bicycle paint shop, but he’s since opened his doors to full-blown custom motorcycle builds for clients.
The bike you see here began life as a 2006 Honda Tiger, a 200cc naked bike / commuter that’s popular in the country. Like many of Honda’s small-displacement bikes, it’s a bulletproof little workhorse, but pretty boring in factory trim — a perfect candidate for customization.
Kevin modified the standard frame, swapped in a set of Kawasaki KLX150L forks, replaced the stock mags for a set of 21 / 18″ spoked alloy wheels with Dunlop dual-sport rubber, added a Yamaha DT series tank, and hand-built such items as the rear fender, luggage rack, side covers, seat pan, bash plate, and more.
The result is a vinduro-style dual-purpose machine that’s perfect for the many remote mountain trails and beach paths of Indonesia, combining modern reliability with retro style. Below, we talk to Kevin for more details on the “Java Tigris.”
Honda Tiger Scrambler: Builder Interview
• Please tell us a bit about yourself, your history with motorcycles, and your workshop.
My name is Kevin, I am the founder and owner of Mestiere Works. You might be surprised to hear that I’m only 23 years old in October this year. But I’ve been in the world of motorbike modification since I was 16 years old.
The beginning of my love for motorbikes will probably be the same as most people, when I was a child I was introduced by my father indirectly at first, because my father liked to work on his own car in the garage of the house, and like a child in general who wants to know many things, of course I accompanied him.
Living in Indonesia itself one is never far from a motorbike in daily life — I was always taken to school on a motorbike as were other people. Time passed and finally I arrived at high school. There was a motorbike often used to deliver goods at the place where my father worked. Like a curious young man, I dismantled the bike until it was scattered, and then I inevitably had to be able to make the motorbike function as before. Of course I succeeded and also added a few modifications to the motorbike in the style of a Japanese streetcub. Time passed and I started trying to modify many types of motorbikes ranging from mopeds, motorcycles, dirt bikes, touring motorbikes, and even now I have started to explore electric motorbikes.
Mestiere Works itself was originally created as a bicycle paint shop and was not intentionally set up to venture into the automotive world as it is now. My workshop is located in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. This workshop itself has been established since 2019 — at first it was just an ordinary hobby workshop, and I finally decided to open this workshop more widely.
• What’s the make, model, and year of the bike?
Honda Tiger 2000, Cruiser, 2006.
• Why was this bike built?
This motorbike was originally made based on a project from a customer who asked to make a motorbike with a tracker concept, then we added additional modifications to make this custom motorbike look more attractive.
• What was the design concept and what influenced the build?
Java Tigris is one of the custom motorbike models made by Mestiere Works, based on the Honda Tiger 200cc (carburetored) motorbike. The form of this build itself is inspired by the retro Japanese trail models, which have a sleek body, double lights, and several chrome parts.
This motorbike is one of the favourites from Mestiere Works, considering the road terrain in Indonesia itself and the soul of the motorbike riders who like to travel to remote areas.
We hope this motorbike can be the choice for every adventurous soul in Indonesia or around the world.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
Of course, modifications were made to the motorbike’s frame, adjusting it to the desired shape. After that, we changed the tyres and wheels — this motorbike now uses 21-18″ alloy wheels clad with dual purpose tyres from Dunlop.
Not forgetting the front suspension, the forks were replaced with the telescopic suspension from the Kawasaki KLX150L, while the rear suspension uses a dual shock type to give a more retro impression.
The tank is a Yamaha DT model, while the seat is purely custom-made using resin, covered with leather to give a much more classic look. The rear fender was made using a 2mm thick galvanised plate and is also shaped to resemble the curve of the rear frame and chrome-plated.
The rear rack was customised using iron and shaped in the way you see.
Furthermore, the side plates use a plastic material.
• Does the bike have a nickname?
JAVA TIGRIS.
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
I feel proud that the motorbike my team and I built has been very well received by others both domestically and abroad.
Great build, just the perfect tool for the roads around here in Bali.
Thank you for the information and memories. I love them old bikes.
Now what I’m looking for is an old Honda XL 500 or XT 500 that are for sale.
Regards mike.