From €150 Donor to Endurance-Style 90s Restomod…
Jonny Kerins (@jfk_bikes) of Ireland’s County Meath builds and restores bikes out of an old milking parlor on his 1950s farm. His love for sport bikes goes back to boyhood, when Santa gifted him a book about superbikes with a first-gen Fireblade on the cover.
“I’m a massive fan of late 80s and early 90s sports bikes. It was these bikes that captivated me as a kid and I still love them today.”
In 2023, we featured Jonny’s Rothmans Honda build, which involved shoehorning a 70-hp Africa Twin engine into a Honda Bros 400 — the 400cc version of the beloved Honda Hawk GT.
Now Jonny’s back with a fresh build, and you better believe it’s another vintage superbike. This time, a 1988 Yamaha FZR750 donor he picked up for a song:
“It was 150 euro on Marketplace with one picture and little information; it was in rough shape. I took a punt on it and bought it blind over the phone, mostly because my dad happened to be passing through the town it was in that day!”
His vision was for a 1990s factory-style bike with a bit of endurance racer mixed in — a bike that looked like it could’ve been built three decades ago.
“I live in rural Ireland and this bike is for Sunday spins on twisting country roads to go to local meetups, classic vehicle shows, and just for the pure fun of riding.”
The engine and frame are all that’s left of the donor FZR, and the frame itself was modified — all the stock FZR holes and features welded up for the cleanest finish possible. The bike is setting on K2 GSX-R forks, a Yamaha R6 swingarm, a hybrid FZR/R6 linkage, and an R1 rear shock — with the suspension at both ends re-sprung.
“My one piece of advice for riders is to get your suspension set up for your own weight and riding style.”
The rear subframe and tail section are completely custom. The tail is 30mm shorter and 25mm narrower than the OEM FZR tail, with the battery located inside it. Up front is a highly modified second-gen Fireblade track fairing with custom fox-eye headlights. The double filler in the tank continues the endurance theme, and the exhaust was custom-built to work with the new bodywork, ending in a period-correct Micron silencer.
The electronics are housed in the subframe, with an NWT Cycletronic X21 electronic control module doing the heavy lifting. Meanwhile, the magenta / yellow / black livery recalls the limited-edition 1992 Vance & Hines FZR600RD, which commemorated Thomas Stevens’ 1991 AMA Superbike Championship aboard a Vance & Hines Yamaha FZR750RR OW01.
The overall result is a sportbike that looks very much like it was factory-built in the 1990s, but startles the trained eye with its deviation from any known model of the era, causing an instant double-take: Wait, what the hell *is* that? Of course, that’s all part of Jonny’s idea:
“The greatest sense of achievement for me is to take parts from different bikes and blend them together in one cohesive unit. I love to talk to fellow bikers who know it all looks familiar but can’t quite figure it out.”
But this FZR is far more than a mere conversation-starter. Jonny has created the perfect mount for the twisties of rural Ireland:
“The bike has a great riding position; you almost sit in it rather than on it. The customising of the suspension has made it feel like it’s on rails through corners… The bike has plenty of power for my local back roads of County Meath, carving up bends and corners from town to town.”
Well done, Jonny! And we hope to see more builds from Ireland — with such a rich of history of road racing, we see relatively few Irish-built projects. Maith thú!
Builder Interview
• Please tell us a bit about yourself, your history with motorcycles, and your workshop.
My name is Jonny Kerins, I’m 37 and I’m from County Meath in Ireland. I work as a woodwork teacher for my day job and build / restore bikes as a hobby.
My interest in motorbikes started as a young boy when I got a book about superbikes with a gen 1 Fireblade on the cover from Santa. I’ve been in love with bikes ever since, and my tastes have not evolved as I’m still mostly interested in Japanese sport bikes from the late 80’s / early 90’s.
Over the last number of years, I’ve restored a number of bikes and cars (I currently have a ’93 Fireblade, ’89 VFR400 nc30, ’96 Pan European 1100, and an ’88 FZR 750 project), but this bike was the first special I built.
I live in a 1950’s farmhouse and my shed used to be an old milking parlor. It’s about 400 feet squared with one bike lift, parking room for my bikes, a workbench, shelves, and not too much else.
• What’s the make, model, and year of the donor bike?
The donor bike is a 1988 Yamaha FZR750 Genesis. It was 150 euro on Marketplace with one picture and little information; it was in rough shape. I took a punt on it and bought it blind over the phone, mostly because my Dad happened to be passing through the town it was in that day!
• Why was this bike built?
This was another personal project of mine. I’m a massive fan of late 80s and early 90s sports bikes. It was these bikes that captivated me as a kid and I still love them today. I live in rural Ireland and this bike is for Sunday spins on twisting country roads to go to local meetups, classic vehicle shows, and just for the pure fun of riding.
• What was the design concept and what influenced the build?
As with the previous Honda Rothmans bike I built, the concept was to build a bike that looks like it could have been built in the 90s. My own concept of a factory bike with a hint of an endurance racer theme. To the untrained eye it should look like a 90s sportsbike, with the styling and features of the time. The greatest sense of achievement for me is to take parts from different bikes and blend them together in one cohesive unit. I love to talk to fellow bikers who know it all looks familiar but can’t quite figure it out.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
All that remains of the original bike is the frame and engine. The frame has had all holes and distinctive FZR features welded up for a clean finish.
The front end is a K2 GSXR unit, which has been resprung to suit my own riding. An R6 swingarm was modified to fit the original frame with a hybrid FZR/R6 linkage and an R1 shock was resprung to finish off the back.
The entire tail of the bike is custom made. The subframe was made with a section for electronic components under the seat and the battery is located in the rear of the tail unit. The tail fairing was made from scratch as a slightly scaled down version of the original FZR with different rear styling. It is 30mm shorter and 25mm narrower than the original.
The front fairing started as a gen 2 Fireblade track fairing. It was modified to fit the frame and engine with bespoke fox eye style headlights. A lot of the trademark Fireblade features were removed or modified to ensure the fairing had its own individual look. The fuel tank was modified for a double filler to continue the endurance theme.
A custom exhaust system was fabricated to accommodate the new bodywork, which links to a period correct Micron can. The bike uses an X21 electronic control system from NWT Cycletronic.
As with every custom build; there are countless other brackets, modifications and once off parts included.
• Any idea of horsepower, weight, and/or performance numbers?
Horsepower is as standard although the bike is about 10kg lighter.
• Can you tell us what it’s like to ride this bike?
The bike is a pleasure to ride. The bike has a great riding position; you almost sit in it rather than on it. The customising of the suspension has made it feel like it’s on rails through corners. My one piece of advice for riders is to get your suspension set up for your own weight and riding style. The bike has plenty of power for my local back roads of County Meath, carving up bends and corners from town to town.
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
The thing I’m most proud of is completing all the work on the bike myself. I love to learn new skills and continue improving as a complete bike builder.
• Is there anyone you’d like to thank?
I’d like to thank my wife Aedín for the constant support with my bikes and projects.
Good