The search for new and interesting material comes from a careful selection of information and requests contact with a huge number of fans and customizer.
This bike I had seen months ago when it was still under construction and not yet complete, and I immediately asked the photos work is finished.
So after months of waiting I'm happy to be able to show this Italian cafe racer, in the base, but the Portuguese in the realization.
To learn more about its creator here is that I did an interview with him, to find out more information on the bike and his work
1- Who are you ?
• Where are you from?
My name is Nuno Capêlo Im from a Portuguese Paradise “Madeira Island”, but i live and in Porto for 16 years now. came here to study architecture and after the masters in architecture i stayed here working.
• What do you do?
I’m an Architect and in 2012 when i started Capêlo’s Garage i was still doing the 2 things Designing buildings an Designing bikes to be build.
right know i have an office together with my wife in down town Porto and im 80% designing bikes, illustrating and building from time to time. The other 10% are dedicated to architecture cause i love it and i can’t stay away from it the other 80% of architecture goes to my wife also an architect. and like that i can live in the 2 worlds.
• Are you a pro/amateur/semi-pro/new-kid-on-the-block?
don’t really know in witch category i fit in cause i do design a lot of bikes for others but builds i just have made 3 :D you choose
• What inspired you to start building bikes/this bike?
The inspiration for this bike was to show every one something design and build by me but this time i wanted to do something more risky and bold
but also something that showed my taste.
• How do we describe you? David, Big Dave, Davo, Dave-The-Bike, DaveMoto?
you Can describe as Nuno Capêlo
• Who else worked with you, are you a one-man operation or a team/group/mates, etc.
I did design this bike and created the final image for it but im not a one man show and in the building department credits
must go to my mechanic Leonel Ribeiro from “Oficina Das Motos” 80% of this build was by is hands, also João and Bruno
from “Project 724”, Miguel the guy who painted the bike and Ricardo from “Elemental Rides” that helped with the electric part of it.
I had the vision and the idea for it but this was a team work with lots of hands working in the same thing, loved to give you that romantic story of the guy that builds is bike all alone in is small garage but no thats not me. to many hours designing bikes for clients so theres not to many time to be doing the rest. But don’t get me wrong i was involved 100% in the building process lets just say that i was that pain in the a.. always saying “not like that look at the drawings…” ahahaha
And i enjoy working like that cause theres always some one to give you a different approach in things that helps you in the next step.
• Do you have any links we should connect readers to. How do they reach you?
Portefolio - www.nunocapelo.com
Facebook - www.facebook.com/CapelosGarage78
Instagram - www.instagram.com/capelosgarage
Email - capelosbikes@gmail.com
2. THE BIKE?
• Why did you build this bike and what was your vision?• Where did it come from? Interesting find, or customer bike, ebay?
This bike has a very interesting story cause i bought this bike probably to the guy that gave the push to start doing what i do now.
cause all of this started with me posting somo crapy renders in a forum of my intentions to my Suzuki “Dented Brat”, and in the same day i have a proposal from my big friend Pedro Novais to design a Cagiva alazzura 350cc. i think that was one of my first designs. And a few years later after a big twist in my friends life (your a big inspiration to me Pedro) there i was buying the same bike that started it all redesigning it and building it.
• What was your vision/design/plan/brief?
My vision was to make a bike showing my taste and vision. the idea of this bike was to mix the 2 worlds modern and old, in my bikes i always like give that Retro/Modern feel to it. But the most important thing to me was to make it clean and sober and make the lines flow all around the bike. Giving it in the end the clean flowing look she has.
• What’s the donor bike, make, model, year, cc?
The donor bike was a Cagiva Alazzurra 350cc from 1987
• What did you do to the bike – just the basics; but tell us all the cool stuff, clever ideas and upgrades?
from the donor bike i keep the frame, engine and gas tank. The original gas tank was cute welded and reshaped and joined to the rear
end creating a monocoque all of it was hand shaped in sheet metal. The rear part of the monocoque was something that i design and sketched a lot and for me there was the problem of in the end the guy that was going to do it didn’t do it exactly like i wanted to so i put my skills to it and design it in 3D after that i print that model in ABS in my 3d printer at the office, and with that i had a perfect 1/1 scale model of what i wanted. And having the 3D printed model there where no way things cold go wrong in the sheet metal department and has i predicted things when real smooth with the help of that Model and son enough i had my monocoque ready i think it take one week to do the tank and the rear.
Also the fairing was a challenge cause i had an idea for it and there was nothing matching the measurements so i whent using one that i already had and reshaped it making the top line parallel with the bottom one and turning it a lot more slimmer so it cold fit the idea that i have for it.
• If you’ve upgraded parts like the wheels, lighting, gauges, brakes, suspension, exhaust, etc, what make did you choose and where from, or what was the donor bike?
-the wheels are super moto 17” wheels. the rear wheels as the original hub that come with it and the front wheel has a Super Tenere hub so it can fit the Yamaha R1 front end with two Brake Clamps also wit the wheels we needed to machine spacers to fit the disk rotors to the wheels and also fabricate suportes for the brakes.
-Change the rear lights to a very clean led he’d light that fits the rear perfectly, the gauges where change by a Motogadget motoscope mini, and the ignition was changed to a m-lock and the battery was change for a lithium battery that is underneath the rear tail of the monocoque.
-The brakes the old Brembo brakes that came with the bike where change for more modern brakes.
-The engine was open clean and changed all the parts needed and replaced all the gaskets.
-The suspension in front are Yamaha R1 suspension also opened and restored all the needed parts also as the rear showa shocks.
-In the exhaust we maintain the manifolds and the exhaust tips where also design in cad and hand made in the exact measurements
in the end staying exactly as pretended.
• Any interesting challenges or mistakes?
There interesting challenges where the rear 3D print so it cold be reproduced in sheet metal an the fairing that make from the picture it dosent look that different from other but it is a lot slimmer and small and that challenge was taken first with the idea of shaping in foam the fairing something that happen but didn’t whent as good has i wanted so we have to trow down the towel on that and make a diferente approach, after that i tried the 3D approach but in that time my schedule was to busy and there was no time to do it. One day i wake up with a possible solution that in the end became the solution to the problem. that was to cut the fairing making the right measurements so it cold get slimmer and reshaped to that parallel lines. when mad the main shape in just one afternoon so it cold be ready for the fiber glass guy.
• Any unique signature features?
i think the unique signature features are the monocoque the fairing, the rear brake spring that is a signature of my mechanic Leonel
and the small engine cover that has the 78 number that represents my Brand lazer engraved on it.
another unique feature for me is the seat with that brushed aluminum sheet on the base and with the racing foam pad leaving room tho show that brushed aluminium and giving you the opportunity to change the foam for thicker or big one you just need to unstick the one over there and change for what ever you whant to.
• How would you describe the bike now? Brat/Cafe/Bobber/Scrambler/Tracker/Hyrbrid/Bratster/CafeBrat/Woteva?
For me this bikes fits in the “Racer” category
• Tell us about the finish, logos, design?
in the gas tank i cold have used the Cagiva logo but i decided to use the Vintage Ducati leathers cause what inspired this build for me was that beautiful Ducati Pantah engine being that the reason that make me paint that engine in silver so it cold pop out of the bike. love the way the engine suportes all the bike living it hanging out on the frame.
Also the paint job on the bike is also something i really enjoy the final result it was always my idea do make something not to flashy and the first decision was to painted it mate so the engine could shine and the colors decision i went for colors that where very neutral using in almost the all bike a very dark metallic grey (almost black), and just give some color to the tank with a very light grey in the top followed by the red and white stripes this last 3 colores have also a much of pearl in them witch in the sun makes them really pop.
• How does the bike ride?
the bike rides amazingly even with that 350cc she’s a lot of fun and completely different from the original bike.
it feels so light and small.
• Are you happy? Is the customer happy?
im really happy with this bike first of all it turn exactly has i intended " just like the design” , and the feed back from every one is just amazing and this year at the bike shed i was overwhelmed with such an amazing feed back from every one, one of the things that made me really happy was that every one understand my design intentions and had the same feeling with the clean flowing lines and sober colors with out me explaining that to them, i asked a lot of people what was their feeling looking at the bike and all told they had that feeling of reto/modern and of a clean and sober build where the lines flow all over. And that for me was the cherry on top every one catch my ideas. And when i told people that i study architecture every one said the same thing “now i can see way the bike looks so clean"
• What will you do next?
right know im going to keep design for others, but already have some new ideas and theres also some more 2 donor bikes at the garage waiting. Also im in the middle of a build for a client of a BMW GS1150, and Leonel is already hands on it.
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