AKA-TOMBO. Deus Indonesia's YardBuilt Yamaha XSR155

Oct 05, 2021

Yamaha’s Yardbuilt isn’t new but it wasn’t until the release of the XSR 155 that it moved into Indonesia.

The Deus Ex Machina Temple of Enthusiasm’s Bengkel (‘Bengkel’ is Workshop in Indonesian), was chosen as one of four Bali based ‘Bengkels’ to show what could be teased out of the very street looking donor bike. Yamaha gave us two stipulations on the build. Don’t touch the Delta frame and don’t touch the engine. The rest, as you can see, was fair game.

The final design reflects the true usage of what we ask of our bikes, what we do day in and day out. They needed to carry us to the beach for a pre-work surf. Head home after, strip off the racks and then head back into the office. Nights we might pull on some trousers, a collared shirt and head into town for a dinner for two.

The great thing about this build was that it was a true team design effort. No one of us input more than the others. Good ideas heard with the best ones used. Iqbal was the keeper of the multilayered Photoshop file that he worked tirelessly on. Ano wanted to add in a pipe lattice look to the swing arm. Arthur was super keen to get a headlamp cowl on. Something that grabbed onto the shocks, rounded sides, bulbous and round. The tail unit went through about ten different iterations, Dylan spent a huge amount of time mocking it up. All parts of what became the whole.

As a homage to the first bike Yamaha ever made back in 1955, the YA-1, we chose the name Aka-Tombo, Japanese for Red Dragonfly, we referenced it again when choosing the deep red for the body work. But that’s where the similarities stop. Our build is visually big and heavy, to juxtapose the small CC of the actual bike. It’s tall too, we went for upping the wheel size to 18” and dropping on a brutal set of Pirelli Scorpion Rallys to set a ride height over whatever Bali was ever going to throw in our way.

We removed most of what came standard. The fuel tank cover and fuel cell being front and centre of what to get rid of, add to that the stock seat, stock rear frame, the plastic side panels, fenders, bash plate, lights, as well as the overflow tank.

Hand built metal body work, is something of an Indonesian national specialty, and as you can see, the Deus ‘Bengkel Boy’s’, Arwin & Koko, they are the real hero’s here, everything you see is hand forged, Stainless, Aluminium and even the cast resin in the tail light. Their tools are rudimentary, an English wheel and a big old block of Iron Wood that they hammer sheet ally out on. Everything was smashed out; fenders, front fork stone guards, the bash plate and radiator side covers, which are just one big piece. The shape of the cast swing arm was all wrong for what we were angling for, instead making a statement with the lattice made from stainless pipe.

Rather than lose all the niceties of the electronics that come standard, the stock speedo was lifted from where it once was in front of the handlebars and dropped down in front of the new Ally tank, in front of the bars cleaning up the head look. We also lifted the OEM fuel cap off to keep the key lock. Speaking of locks, there is a hidden key hole under the tail which pops the tan leather seat to give access to the battery and electronics, just one of their wonderful little details.

There was a bit of machine help in the build with the perforated side panels. After cutting the aluminium plates from carboard templates we sent them out to be CnC drilled before the plates were teased into their final shape, flowing from the subframe and tail into the delta frame below, finally folding the flanges and marrying them in for mounting.

The extra height meant we could sling an imported Supertrapp Shorty Exhaust in underneath, we were rewarded with a warm rich sound that is nowhere near offensive. We upped the lumens with a Daymaker LED headlight wrapped in a custom aluminum cowl, we added bar end front indicators onto the ends of the Ariete grips on Japanese Hurricane Street Tracker black handle bars opting to keep the OEM switches.

As the Delta Frame was a must keep from Yamaha’s side, we decided that should be our main identifier. Running a full text DEM logo as large as possible along both sides. Grey on silver. When it came to the tank we wanted references of the Aluminium to shine through and reversed out the Deus Piston of Power and the angled sides of the tanks knee recesses.

We chose to use Challenger Automotive paints on this project. Lunar Silver for the frame, Glistening Grey for the Deus Ex Machina logo along the Delta and a Mitsubishi P26 Red for the tank, fenders, headlight and so on. Rohin, our master painter also dropped a few coats of High Sheen clear across the top to seal the job.

We get to keep this bike here at the Deus Temple of Enthusiasm, Yamaha gave it to us as part of the deal. We can’t sell it, it just becomes one of our shop bikes. We knew that going in and it was another massive factor in the design process.

So, you can see, this really is a bike built for us.

Full list of modifications

Built in 2021.
Custom sub frame.
Custom hand built – alloy gas tank, alloy side covers, alloy head light housing, alloy fenders, alloy fork guards, alloy engine & radiator guard, alloy tracker tail, alloy wheel well with integrated seat lock.
Custom stainless-steel swing arm.
Custom cast LED tail light. Custom header + SuperTrapp “Shorty” exhaust.
Hurricane handlebar.
Ariete hand grips.
18” Sprint XD alloy rims.
TK Racing spokes.
VND billet alloy hubs.
140/80-18 Pirelli Scorpion Rally tyres.
Upgraded rear sprocket.
DayMaker LED head light.
Removable surf racks

All photographs by Didit Prasetyo Adiwibowo

ENGLISH TEXT BELOW

Sabtu pagi, 17 Juni 2023, menjadi hari yang ditunggu-tunggu oleh 250 peserta reli sepeda motor dan 80 kontestan flat track race di Bali. Itu merupakan acara Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure keempat yang diselenggarakan oleh komunitas pecinta motor trail vintage yang lebih dari sekadar menggemari motor dual purpose era 80-90-an. Dikenal sebagai Trail Asik Adventurer, AKA… Tasik Adventure yang telah menunggu setahun untuk merencanakan dan mengerjakan nya demi tidak mengecewakan siapapun yang ikut berpartisipasi.

Coba kamu bayangkan , ada dua sisi koin berbeda pada event kali ini. Yang pertama adalah Reli. Mereka memberi nama Challenge "Tantangan", menjadikan setiap peserta sebagai "Penantang" Challenger. Jadi, di tempat parkir Sangeh Monkey Forest, sambil menikmati keteduhan pohon jati raksasa yang awet muda, 250 Penantang parkir untuk menerima kode QR untuk etape pertama rute reli. Seluruh perjalanan adalah 3 etape dengan 3 titik pemberhentian. 4 jika Anda menghitung tujuan.

Ada beberapa motor keren di sana, Honda XR, Yamaha DT, Suzuki TS, Suzuki DR, dan beberapa custom modern, motocross dan scrambler. Sekitar sepuluh atau lebih, mereka berbaris di titik start dan memulai rally dari sana. Misi setiap orang adalah menyelesaikan setiap tahap dan berhenti di 3 titik pemberhentian untuk mendapatkan kode QR untuk bagian berikutnya. Keindahan Bali selalu menjadi pendamping, saat kami terbang di sepanjang kombinasi jalan aspal, jalan pedesaan, dan jalan tanah di daerah Tabanan. Kami perlahan-lahan terbang tinggi dan semakin tinggi ke perbukitan dan pemandangan sawah dan hutan akhirnya habis, sebenarnya lebih seperti perlahan menjadi satu ketika kami sampai di tujuan. Bali Outbound Farmstay (BOF) yang juga menjadi tempat berkemah semalam. Jika Anda mengumpulkan semua kode QR Anda, Anda mendapat medali Rally sebagai bentuk penghargaan.

Sisi lain dari koin yang disebutkan sebelumnya, atau event kedua, adalah balap jalur datar (flat track). Atau dalam hal ini jalur dengan landasan yang tidak rata karena tempat mereka membangun jalur itu berada di atas tempat yang dulunya terdapat dua sawah terasering. Jadi titik start finish lebih tinggi dari jalur lurus pertama dengan penurunan pada tikungan pertama dan sedikit menanjak pada tikungan kedua. Saat kami masuk ke BOF, kami sudah bisa mendengar suara motor flat track dan sorakan penonton yang berkumpul. Kami parkir dan membuat jalur jalur seperti lebah.

Keseruan seutuhnya pada acara, disaat tingkat kesulitan tambahan dimasukkan ke dalam jadwal sore hari menarik perhatian yang sangat luar biasa. Mereka berhasil menarik sekitar delapan puluh peserta, terbagi dalam 4 kelas: Kelas Mesin Horizontal, Kelas FFA 4T Max 250cc, Kelas FFA 2T Max 250cc Flat Track, dan Kelas FFA Big Bore.

Antusiasme untuk balapan flat track sangat terasa. Kegembiraan tumbuh saat kami melewati babak penyisihan dan membangun sesuatu yang luar biasa untuk final setiap kelas. Tidak ada kata menahan, mereka hadir untuk memenangkannya. Pembalap dari setiap komunitas bersaing sengit di setiap kelas. Nama-nama seperti Maulana Sandi, Dewa Dimas, Harris Manasi Ride, Nova Rider Sing Mebekel, Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel, Bontok Giga MX, dan lain-lain tak main-main, sebagian besar dari memamerkan skill mereka tanpa mengesampingkan sportifitas dan keselamatan.

Trek dengan permukaan tanah liat merah keras yang kering memberikan tantangan. Di awal, para pembalap disuguhkan dengan bagian menurun pada tikungan pertama, setelah itu mereka memeras gas di bagian trek lurus sebelum berputar ke kiri lagi tapi kali ini menjadi bagian menanjak pada tikungan kedua. Itu memaksa mereka untuk menggabungkan keterampilan balap trek datar mereka dengan banyak teknik motocross. Pada akhirnya, semua pembalap bersenang-senang dengan debu tanah liat merah yang menutupi segalanya dan semua orang.

Saat matahari terbenam ke arah cakrawala, saudara dan sahabat motoran kami meraih pecahan cahaya terakhir untuk mendirikan tenda mereka dan dalam persiapan untuk berkemah malam. Matahari menghilang di balik Gunung Batukaru memberi semua orang pemandangan yang menakjubkan, tetapi segera menyelimuti kami dengan udara yang jauh lebih sejuk dari dataran tinggi di Baturiti Tabanan ini.

Percakapan tentang rute reli dan balapan flat track mengalir dari pintu tenda semua orang yang berkemah, yang lain membaringkan tubuh mereka yang lelah untuk mengantisipasi perjalanan keesokan harinya, perjalanan yang relatif santai ke Pantai Pasut.

Dengan begitu, acara Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure 2023 pun berakhir. Sampai bertemu lagi tahun depan, salam untuk semua penantang, pengalaman yang luar biasa.

Berikut daftar pemenang Kelas Flat Track:

Flat Rack Horizontal Engine Class Winners:
1. Chiko GTT Bali
2. Panduk Pisaga Delodan
3. Andika Monkey Brothers

Flat Rack FFA 4T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Nova Rider Sing Mebekel
2. Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel
3. Bontok Giga MX

Flat Rack FFA 2T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Sandi Maulana
2. Dewa Dita
3. Eponk Road Country

Flat Rack FFA Big Bore Class Winners:
1. Dewa Dimas
2. Haris Manasi Ride
3. Sandi Maulana

Saturday morning, June 17, 2023, was a highly anticipated day for 250 motorcycle rally participants and 80 flat track race contestants in Bali. It was the Fourth Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure event organized by a community of vintage trail motorcycle enthusiasts who love more than fanging about on their dual-purpose motorcycles from the 80s and 90s. Known as the Trail Asik Adventure Community, AKA… Tasik Adventure people had waited a year for the follow up and none were disappointed.

Just so you can get it straight in your head, there’s two very different sides to this coin. The first one was the Rally. They hung it under the banner of “Challenge”, making each partaker a “Challenger”. So, in the carpark of Sangeh Monkey Forest, which enjoys the shade of giant ageless teak trees, 250 Challengers parked up to receive the QR code for the first leg of the rally route. The entire ride was 3 stages with 3 stop points. 4 if you count the destination.

There were some amazing bikes there, Honda XR’s, Yamaha DT’s, Suzuki TS’s, Suzuki DR’s, and some custom modern motocross and scrambler bikes. In lots of ten or so, they lined up at the starting point then let them out for the event. Everyone’s mission was to complete each stage and stop at the 3 stop points to get the QR code for the next bit. Bali’s beauty was the constant companion, as we flew along a combination of asphalt roads, rural roads and dirt tracks in the Tabanan area. We slowly winded up high and higher into the hills and the views of rice fields and forests finally ran out, actually, it was more like blurred into one when we reached our destination. Bali Outbound Farmstay (BOF), which was also to be the overnight camping spot. If you collected all your QR codes you got a Rally medal as a form of appreciation.

The other side of the aforementioned coin, or second event, was the flat track. Or in this case staggered track because where they had built the track it was over a spot that had once held two rice terraces. So the Start finish straight sat higher than the return straight with a drop on the first turn and an uphill bit on the second. As we were pulling into BOF we could already hear the flat track bikes and the assembled crowd cheering. We parked up and made a bee line track side.

What an absolute corker of an event, the added degree of difficulty jammed into the afternoons schedule made for the most marvelous distraction. They’d managed to attract around eighty participants, split over 4 classes: Horizontal Engine Class, FFA 4T Max 250cc Class, Flat Track FFA 2T Max 250cc Class, and FFA Big Bore Class.

The enthusiasm for the flat track races was palpable. The excitement growing as we whittled down through the heats and building to something of a crescendo for the finals of each class. There was no holding back, they were in it to win it. Racers from each community fiercely competed in each class. Names like Maulana Sandi, Dewa Dimas, Harris Manasi Ride, Nova Rider Sing Mebekel, Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel, Bontok Giga MX, and others were letting nothing slip, flaunting their skills without compromising sportsmanship and safety. Mostly.

The track, with its dry hard red clay surface, presented challenges. Off the start, the racers were presented with a downhill section on the first turn, they hit the gas on the bottom straight before spinning left again but this time into an uphill section on the second turn. It forced them to combine their flat track racing skills with a slew of motocross techniques. In the end, all the racers had fun with the red clay dust lay across everything and everyone.

As the sun dipped towards the horizon, our compadres and accomplices grabbed the last shards of light to set up their tents in readiness for a night of camping. The sun disappeared behind Mount Batukaru affording everyone a magnificent view, but immediately enveloping us in the much cooler air of these high grounds here in Baturiti Tabanan.

Conversations about the rally route and the flat track race flowed out of the tent flaps of all those who camped others bedded their weary bodies down in anticipation for the next day's ride, a comparatively leisurely meander down to Pasut Beach.

With that, the Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure 2023 event came to an end. Until we meet again next year, greetings to all challengers, what an amazing time.

Here is the list of the days winners:

Flat Rack Horizontal Engine Class Winners:
1. Chiko GTT Bali
2. Panduk Pisaga Delodan
3. Andika Monkey Brothers

Flat Rack FFA 4T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Nova Rider Sing Mebekel
2. Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel
3. Bontok Giga MX

Flat Rack FFA 2T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Sandi Maulana
2. Dewa Dita
3. Eponk Road Country

Flat Rack FFA Big Bore Class Winners:
1. Dewa Dimas
2. Haris Manasi Ride
3. Sandi Maulana