If you live Outside of Taiwan, you may not be familiar with the Yamaha SR150. It was produced and sold exclusively locally, and was eventually discontinued. But Taiwan’s burgeoning customs scene has earned it a second lease — and propelled it into the spotlight of international attention.
This is the third custom Yamaha SR150 we’ve recently introduced, and each one comes from a different workshop. This is the work of Huang Wen Chi of Hide Work Custom, based in Taoyuan City.
His name is ‘Achi’, and he’s been obsessed with motorcycles since he was a kid. He apprenticed as a lathe and mill operator after graduating from high school, then turned it into a 15-year career. Then, six years ago, he gave it all up to focus on building custom bikes.
Achi mainly works alone, only outsourcing professional work such as painting and upholstery. He also occasionally takes an apprentice or asks friends to help (like his neighbor Leon, who translated the details of this build for us).
The summary of this 2000 Yamaha SR150 is simple. The client removed the keywords “Cyberpunk” and “modern” and left the rest to Achi. He answered sharply street tracking It’s filled with handcrafted parts.
It was a good trio of decisions. Achi tweaked the SR’s stance to perfection, crafted a seamless bodywork and wrapped everything in a beautiful monochromatic finish.
Since antique bicycles are considered reliable rather than noisy, most of its running gear is suitable for the casual rider. Achi simply fitted an extension swingarm from Mark Motorcycles to get it to sit just right, then paired it with a pair of longer-than-usual shock absorbers.
He also refitted the OEM hubs to the 18-inch rims and added in classic Duro-style Scrambler tires.
Up front is a custom headlight cluster, equipped with LED lights lifted from the car. But that’s a big departure from the usual number plate setup you see on street trackers. Here, Achi has combined the headlights, front fenders and forks into a hand-shaped piece of aluminum.
There’s more of his craft work in the background, where he builds an aluminum flat road– tail design. A local upholsterer has shaped the foam and leather seat cushions, with stitching that combines traditional vertical seams with a diamond pattern. Behind is a slender LED taillight, neatly integrated into the tail.
On both sides of the Yamaha is a pair of custom side panels with the customer’s lucky number. Achi built them by hand, using two layers of aluminum and supporting wire mesh. Another custom section sits lower; a burly shield as the owner takes his SR off the slide.
Then there’s the fuel tank. An inspiring choice, it was upgraded from another Taiwanese-made motorcycle—Aeon MY150. With its tapered shape, it neatly ties the front and back together visually.
In the cockpit are new steering wheel, handles and switches, and a discreet rearview mirror. Everything comes from GarageSail—a local custom parts store and regular HWC supplier. Achi also adds a solid off-road footrest.
The custom license plate holder is located at the rear, attached to the swingarm on one side. And if you’re looking for Yamaha turn signals, they’re there; Achi installed them on the sides of the headlight panels and the tail.
More sophisticated details include a cleverly reworked subframe, some perforated frame spacers and a unique stainless steel exhaust system. Rover Works has done the kinetic paint job, complemented by a chrome powder coating effect on the frame. Tasty.
The introduction of HWC on the Yamaha SR150 is a powerful reminder not to oversleep in the Taiwanese custom scene—or this humble custom bike.
Hide job customization | Photo of GarageSail
