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The
"Triple Threat" is based on a 1972 Kawasaki H-2 750 triple.
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By Joe Caswell
We live in an age of mass production. Goods are stamped out in huge quantities. As a result, they are relatively inexpensive and available to everyone. Motorcycles are no exception. Unfortunately, today's motorcyclist may be put in the
position of sacrificing individuality for the
sake of meeting with current high
levels of function and design.
For the true connoisseur of motorcycling exotica, and for the motorcyclist who wants that bike that
expresses his or her individuality, there
is but one hope, to build that
special bike. A bike that is, perhaps, radically unique and greatly removed from the everyday
commonness of mainstream motorcycle planes.
This month's
exotica is the “Triple Threat.” What is
“Triple Threat?” Simply put, it is a
pet name affectionately bestowed upon what is quite possibly the trickiest and
most potent three-cylinder bike ever to have a license plate bolted to it.
The Threat is
based on an old 1972 Kawasaki H-2 750 two-stroke. Yes, it's sixteen years old
(or at least some of the parts are), but The Threat doesn't show its age thanks
to the extensive efforts of owner Hugo Wendt.
Hugo recently
purchased Moto-Sport Accessories in Thousand Oaks and has been a big fan of
two-stroke power since 1975. This is the year he bought his first H-l 500
Kawasaki for transportation during his service in the Navy. Since then, Hugo
has accumulated a total of four H-2 750s and five H-2 motors. All but one have
given their proverbial lives to help create what is now The Triple Threat in
final product form. To get a complete, accurate picture of the extent of
modification to this machine, you must examine the features split into three
categories: handling, motor and bodywork.
Handling
The original frame has been utilized for the Threat. Besides its
powder-coated black finish, it has been gusseted in strategic areas for extra
strength and rigidity.
The bike is equipped with a front end fresh off a Kawasaki 600
Ninja. The forks are loaded with Progressive springs for improved handling.
A beautiful custom-built Cal Fab swingarm graces the back end of
the bike. It's longer (three inches over stock), stronger, lighter and more
rigid than the original tube-type arm.
Connecting this piece of structural art to the frame is a pair of
ELR (Eddie Lawson Replica) Works Performance shocks. The gold and blue painted
shocks add an unbelievable combination of function and style to the bike.
Stopping power is provided by a triple disk set up. The two Ninja
calipers up front clamp on a set of Hole-E rotors. These disks are giant, gold
trimmed, and, as the name implies, filled with holes. In back, a similar rotor
is used with help from a KZ1000 master cylinder and a Honda VFR caliper. Of
course, practically everything (including brake and fuel lines) is steel
braided.
Keeping the bike rolling is a pair of white tester maq wheels.
These wheels were originally intended for use with a KZ1000 and measure
eighteen inches front and back. Appropriately, a set of nicely scrubbed
Michelin Hi-Sports can be found wrapped around the rims. The Telefix clip-on
bars add to the overall styling on The Threat. They also feature total
adjustability.
Hugo created rearset foot pegs through a somewhat involved custom
fabrication effort. Raask rearset mounts had been modified to accept Tarrozi
linkages. The footpegs themselves are
completely unique.
The
Motor
Based on the infamous H-2 750 two stoke triple, the
bike gets its power to the ground by means of an H-2R close ratio road racing
five speed transmission. The gears have been undercut and magna-fluxed. As I
learned, magna-fluxing is a process of closely inspecting the work at hand.
The crankshaft is made by Falicon and provides
excellent strength and durability for the engine at any rev range. The Triple
Threat is also equipped with Toomey cylinders and chambers, and features stage
three porting. Wiseco pistons glide through the slightly bored cylinders, and
the heads have been o-ringed. No blowouts here!
The motor is aspirated
by means of three Mikuni 36mm flat slide carbs, which in turn breathe through
modified manifolds taken from a snowmobile!
The Bodywork
Covering the mechanicals is a Tracy H-2 one-piece body, and an H-2R
factory full fairing. The whole motorcycle bares a stunning Honda pearl white
and candy apple green paint scheme.
Setting off the colors is a custom day-glow green. Zero Gravity
It's 6 a.m. as we
pull into the pit area at Willow Springs Raceway. The early morning desert air
is quite nippy, and peculiarly still. As it turns out, I am one of the trio of
riders destined to serve as the Triple Threat dial-in crew. Objective: to
evaluate The Threat's performance under the grueling, fault finding conditions
only a racetrack can provide. The other two members of Team Threat are Hugo
"yes, it's mine" Wendt, and John "Butch" Killian.
We pull into a
vacant space along the pit wall, right beside a row of other racers, street
riders, and canyon squids. We're all here for the same reason; to shed the strangling
tentacles of the law for a day of riding as fast and cornering as hard as we
damn well please. In short, it's an "open day" at Willow, organized
and supervised by Rinard Fiscus' Track Riders Association.
The Triple Threat
arrives in John's pine green monster pick-up truck. Earlier it was decided that
The Threat would be run without its fanciful, expensive full fairing. Still,
the throngs of riders swarm around The Threat. A steady commotion gives way to
an occasional expression of enthusiastic praise and favorable critique. Like a
proud father, Hugo emerges from the truck and with John's help, begins to
unload the bike. As The Threat rolls into plain, non-obstructed view, an almost
comical level of "oooo's and aaah's" projects from the crowd. Hugo
grins ear-to-ear as The Triple aces its first test of the day, public appreciation.
The bike leans
dormant against John's truck as the collective group is called to the mandatory
rider’s meeting. During this crash course (if you'll excuse the expression) of
on-track etiquette, it becomes evident that Hugo is getting a little anxious.
When the session ends, we head for the bikes.
Early signs of
trouble sprout from The Triple as we hurriedly prep it for tech inspection. A
discouraging stream of gas pours from beneath the fiberglass fuel cell. A burr
from the frame had carved a hole in the tank causing the unsightly leak. A
strictly temporary, on-the-spot repair is initiated and John (our first rider)
is on his way. Rocketing by the pits on its first lap, the screaming, big-bore
two-stroke is hastily on its way to catch up with the rest of the pack, already
half a lap ahead.
As the main group
blasts down the front straight John has, in one lap, caught up and passed a
rider! Around they go again. Jubilantly, we witness John negotiating around two
more riders, and working on the fourth. The Triple Threat is sucking them up!
This time John is in mid-pack and about to blast past a whole string of bikes.
The Triple Threat
is quite a force, brutally overpowering even larger, newer machines. Hugo and I
are absolutely elated, giggling and cheering over our teammate's progress. Then
trouble strikes. Our mood suddenly turns serious. We are soberly concerned.
John slows al most to a stop, then limps the bike back into the pits.
The *&*@?@!
thing's stuck in third! In the same breath, John lists some possibilities for
correcting the problem. After a short, but intense trouble-shooting session,
the problem is determined to be in the linkages buried deep behind the clutch
cover. Luckily John (also the master mechanic of our group) brought a healthy
assortment of tools and supplies. The prognosis is good.
In a fury of
flying tools and scattered parts, The Threat is reduced al most to its
skeletal frame. a team effort
includes practically everyone in the pits, all joining forces to get The Threat
back into fighting form. A fiberglass kit is located, and in minutes the
previously ruptured fuel cell is permanently repaired. Meanwhile, Hugo is
adjusting the rearsets for better action, and I'm tracking down some 20w50
motor oil for the transmission.
Finally, it's
finished and we're ready to roll. Aside from a couple of very minor details The
Threat is free from fault. And so it remains for the rest of the day. On the
track, The Triple provides power from 4,000 rpm up, reaching a climactic boost
around 6,500 to 8,000. Hitting the power-band on this 750 is like, being
rear-ended by a bus! The power hits hard, often lofting the front end and
intimidating the pilot. One second you're wrestling the tortuously stiff
throttle spring trying to keep the bike from vibrating you off, and the next
you're in hyperspace.
Despite all the work and high-tech
hardware, handling characteristics are, to say the least interesting. This is
undoubtedly the result of over-kill horsepower mated to a relatively elastic
frame. One thing you must realize is that this chassis is just over sixteen
years old. With this in mind,
one can conclude that the bike handles and performs miraculously well under the
circumstances. Be sides, once you get used to the bike's unique character,
keeping up with the "fast bikes" is no problem.
Eventually, our day at the
track comes to an end. The Triple Threat saga is just about concluded. As we
leave Willow, we take with us a better machine than that which we brought The
Threat is dialed-in, and we all have a good, solid understanding of the
motorcycle - inside and out. What we leave behind is the popular assumption
that "old" necessarily means outdated. Undoubtedly, The Triple also
leaves something behind. It leaves behind fear deep in the hearts of some
superbike owners that one day they'll glance back and see a big-bore,
two-stroke closing in for the kill. And for some, that's a real threat.
Windscreen; It had
been formed to order by connecting two GSXS molds so that one large bubble
would result.
An impressive
trick list to be sure, but after all if s just a list. The real question is
what possesses a man to spend a year and a half creating such a machine? What
could possibly justify all the expense and effort? When I first saw The
Threat, like a bolt of lightening, I was struck by the novelty...the mechanical
splendor...the sheer poetry of style and personal expression incarnated into a
single vehicular form. Besides, it's fast! Real fast! The Toomey dynamometer
measures its potent Brae mill at right around an almost supernatural 130
horsepower!
Figure in a wet
weight of about four hundred pounds, and you've got a liter class performer in
750 form.
Hugo offers to fire it up and I was just
dying to hear the sound of those three formula style pipes attached to that
motor when Hugo swung his leg over The Threat and hurriedly flick-ed into view
the only chrome part on the whole bike-the kick-starter; Still straddling the
bike, Hugo anxiously worked the throttle and ripped on two unsuccessful kicks.
Upon the completion of his second try. Hugo glanced up at me, chuckled and with
childlike glee, sent the kick-starter sharply toward -the floor in one swift
motion. In a fury of violent revolutions, the big triple burst to life. It
sent sizable puffs of blue smoke from its exhaust pipes for a few seconds while
emitting a sound that can only be described by comparison to three
"uncorked" RZ 250s revving in unison. The ground buzzed from the
unleashed mechanical ferocity: Suddenly, Hugo cut the motor and let The Triple
Threat slip back into its dormant state.
He is anxious to hear my opinion of his
handiwork, but I'm so overwhelmed by it all, that I can only blurt out
"It's great!" "Great" doesn't even scratch the surface, but
that's all the diction I can spare. Still standing in • the Moto-Sport
showroom, Hugo and I are joined by two individuals seeking to make a purchase,
but who are also about to fall victim to the green rapture.
Exotic project
bikes are like people magnets. Done right they draw crowds wherever they go.
Done wrong they repel onlookers as though the poles had been reversed. The
Triple Threat is a shining example of a successful project bike. It performs,
it's undeniably unique, and much more importantly, serves as an extension of
Hugo's personality. And, when your mount does that for you, that's
motorcycling at its best.
