Most people stare on their phone when they’re bored — or turn on the TV and stare at their phone while their favorite show plays in the background. Luckily for us, Peter Rowland has a different approach to passing the time. Whenever he gets bored, he just goes outside his barn and burns the lathe.
In fact, judging by this 1971 Honda CB450 turn street watchers, making up isn’t just a rainy day pastime for Peter. We believe it is only what he does when he’s not eating or sleeping, because we’ve lost track of the sheer amount of parts he made from scratch for this build.
If you are familiar with Peter’s previous work (like this Yamaha RD350 track dirt), you’ll know that men like a challenge. His projects often start with donor bikes in the most difficult states of being abandoned. Believe it or not, the shiny red Honda you see here started out as a special pair of scrap yards; one is given away for free and one is only $210.
The task is very simple. Peter’s brother, John (a former dirt track), asked him for a classical piece flat tracker which he can perform on the street. His ideal form has only two requirements: a passenger hanger and a seat long enough to take his girlfriend out.
Between the two CB450s he donated, Rowland had a usable engine and a sturdy frame, but not much else worth saving. Where most builders would see a lost cause, Rowland sees a prime opportunity to kill time in the garage.
You’ll find some suspects often built on this sweet little street. The entire exhaust system is handmade, as is the battery box and brackets for the headlights and speedometer. But some of the things Rowland has chosen to rebuild from the ground up is completely unexpected.
A good example is the CB450’s hand control. The articulating clutch and brake lever that Peter machined is a nice touch, but he doesn’t just make the levers. He also builds the tuning hardware from scratch, right down to the notches on the barrel adjuster.
How about CB’s new swing arm? Since Peter sharpened the handlebar end of the frame to a neater 25 degrees, he had to build a longer swingarm to lengthen the bike’s wheelbase. Building a square swingarm from scratch is by no means a feat, but Peter also built all his own hardware for the rear wheel adjuster and rear axle.
We’d also be remiss if we hadn’t featured our personal favorite craft from the build — the CB450’s point cover. By copying the dimensions of the OEM cover into an AutoCAD system, Peter was able to create a new copy with a twist. The outer shell on his version has been replaced with a transparent Perspex disc—so you can watch the igniter perform its “arc and spark,” as Peter would put it.
Everywhere you look, from the three aluminum rods to the foot controller, you’ll find a custom built unit. So the more obvious question is whether there’s something Peter didn’t build himself. Yes — but nothing is equipped without at least some grab.
Take the front fork, taken from a first-generation Yamaha R6 sponsor. Peter realized they had been bent in a past life, so he built himself a custom jig to straighten them out by hand.
Peter repainted the 19-inch wheels himself, using Excel-made Yamaha YZ250 axles, along with Buchanan stainless steel Sun rims and spokes. The front brake calipers and master cylinder are from a Yamaha WR250, but Peter had to build a bracket for them to work with the R6 rotor, which in turn needed to be adjusted to accommodate the YZ axis. At least the Hel Performance brake lines are already on the market.
This tank is also a donor (it comes from the dump’s original CB), but it’s just as rough as the rest of the bike. In the end, Peter cut it into four pieces, cut about 40mm in the middle for a slimmer shape, and closed all the dents himself. He also built a new tunnel, a threaded tank, and his own gas cap.
The only major piece that doesn’t appear in Peter’s workshop are the flat racetrack seats. But Honda’s frame was modified to fit it (and removed the tabs elsewhere). Other accessories include new Ikon shocks, handlebars and grips, and an Acewell accelerator.
Naturally, Peter also rebuilt the engine. It now runs with oversized high-compression pistons and upgraded Mikuni cabins attached to custom intake manifolds. All the paintwork, from the trunk and tailgate to the black painted exhaust pipes, is also done in-house.
There’s no denying that Peter’s CB450 is a master at self-sufficient custom motorcycle building. Anyone willing to make their own from scratch deserves our utmost respect — especially when they’re impressive.
Andy Baker’s photo
