Honda CB600F Hornet by Revel Customs…
In the late 1990s, there was a small boom in four-cylinder naked middleweights. The big Japanese manufacturers wanted a slice of the Suzuki Bandit 600 market, and Honda’s answer was the CB600F Hornet. Better known as the Hornet 600, it used a retuned version of the CBR600F sportbike engine with a stout 97-horsepower on tap, slung beneath a steel spine frame with carburetors and inverted forks.
“It was almost the perfect all-round naked (though racers hated its 16-inch front tyre) and even has its own one make race series, which ran nationally and even supported the British GP back in 1999.” –Motor Cycle News
Fast forward 25 years, and the Hornet has increasingly found its way into the hands of custom builders who appreciate the blend of power, versatility, and relatively old-school technology.
Our friend Andrei Kouznetsov of the UK cut his teeth building an army of 125cc customs during the pandemic — so many he ended up quitting his job as a Design Director for an interior commerical design firm to open his own workshop, Revel Custom. Since then, he’s moved on to bigger bikes with an emphasis on the BMW K-series, including his K75 street trackers we previously featured. Andrei’s focus has always been “Form Follows Function.”
For this build, the customer wanted a reliable four-cylinder scrambler, and a 2003 Hornet 600 seemed to fit the bill perfectly as a light and nimble base.
“I want my builds to not only look good, but to feel ergonomic and comfortable too. While observing other similar examples using this donor bike, I sensed that this would be a challenge to both deliver my client’s vision as well as my usual practical and ergonomic design approach.”
Andrei’s keen eye for function soon caught a few issues, however. Foremost, the design called for a vintage-style tank — specifically, a CB550 repro unit, which would match the angle of the subframe and seat. In the customer’s examples of similar builds, however, the tanks were always angled much more aggressively toward the front of the bike…despite the petcock location being halfway up the tank:
“This meant that half of the petrol would never get consumed… The only way was to position the tank more horizontal, but that again was not possible because the tops of the carburettors were positioned too high.”
After a lot of adjustments and configurations, Andrei found a solution that allowed him to make the subframe horizontal with the line of the tank. He then shaped the new seat foam to keep the rider from sliding toward the tank — another detail that shows his focus on comfort and practicality as much as aesthetics. Andrei then fabricated a hull-shaped underseat tray to hold the original wiring and electrical components:
“The idea behind that is that it’s less visible if the sides of this compartment were angled rather than just a square shoebox underneath the seat.”
Most everything else on the bike has also been customized. The result is a relatively light and agile urban scrambler with plenty of power and an aggressive style:
“Smooth, nimble yet very planted despite its reduction in weight. It also has a nice burst of power as you would expect from a 600cc inline four engine.”
Below, we talk to Andrei for more details on this “Baby Mad Max.”
Honda CB600F Scrambler: Builder Interview
• What’s the make, model, and year of the donor bike?
Honda Hornet CB600F 2003.
• Why was this bike built?
It was a customer project, where he was specifically looking for a reliable four-cylinder machine. We started looking at larger capacity bikes but then realised it would be more sensible to use something more lightweight and nimble for this particular scrambler approach.
• What was the design concept and what influenced the build?
Our client used other examples as inspiration and ideas but me being the builder, I want my builds to not only look good, but to feel ergonomic and comfortable too. While observing other similar examples using this donor bike, I sensed that this would be a challenge to both deliver my client’s vision as well as my usual practical and ergonomic design approach.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
Chopping off the original subframe and introducing a new horizontal line between the new CB550 replica tank and custom seat was the longest process of this build. Before we even acquired the new alternative tank, there was only one place for the fuel tap to be welded underneath. Which was on the left side, right in between the top of the left cylinder and its carburettor therefore giving only millimeters of room for the petrol tap.
I noticed that on many similar builds the tanks are angled a lot towards the front and this would make it impossible for the petrol to flow out of the outlet given that it’s positioned half way up the tank. This meant that half of the petrol would never get consumed meaning the only way was to position the tank more horizontal but that again was not possible because the tops of the carburettors were positioned too high.
After many different adjustments to the underside of the tank and using soft spongy RAM air filters, I managed to get a sensible line of the tank which would also contribute towards the new position of the subframe. The angle of the custom subframe was still leaning towards the tank meaning I would need to shape the seat foam specifically to prevent the rider constantly sliding towards the tank. This was in fact a lot easier to fabricate and get right since I could sit on and test it as I would normally do before making the seat cover.
The subframe itself houses most of the original wiring and electrical components. It’s all situated in a bespoke tray which is shaped more like a coffin or a hull from a small boat. The idea behind that is that it’s less visible if the sides of this compartment were angled rather than just a square shoebox underneath the seat.
The exhaust muffler is an Akrapovic cone, removed from a dual piece set up (from an BMW R nineT). The link pipe was adjusted to suit the new position. Everything else was either chopped, modified and/or replaced with something more minimal.
• Does the bike have a nickname?
Yes, Baby Mad Max. I didn’t want to call it just Mad Max as it’s still raw, young and fresh out of the mancave — she’s yet to be tamed at the dyno for a full rejet before conquering the dirty desert.
• Any idea of horsepower, weight, and/or performance numbers?
Yes, we have now tuned it and despite removing the original air box and having almost knobbly tyres, it gave out pretty respectable figures measuring 76hp. It would have easily been 90hp at the rear wheel if it had roadgoing tires!
• Can you tell us what it’s like to ride this bike?
Smooth, nimble yet very planted despite its reduction in weight. It also has a nice burst of power as you would expect from a 600cc inline four engine.
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
The fact that this is a bike with carbs, I’ve managed to get the seat and tank line almost horizontal therefore it is unique in my eyes. Also it’s now very comfortable to ride despite still being visually aggressive.
• Is there anyone you’d like to thank?
I want to thank James from Horse Seats for making the seat the cover — it follows the line of the subframe underneath perfectly. Always a nice touch and just makes the overall design seamlessly integrated.
Follow the Builder
Web: www.revelcustom.com
Instagram: @revelcustoms
Per essere su base Hornet veramente un bel lavoretto non è semplice…
I guys congratulation.you did a really nice job!
Could you make a quick list of all pieces that you used?
I would like to use some of it.
Thanks.