In recent years the Monkey has caught the attention of several custom boutique builders who have created bobbers, drag bikes, cafe racers and adventure bikes. RSD has tackled bikes that run the spectrum from cruiser, to sport bike, from Indian to Harley to BMW – one can confidently claim the California company is an equal opportunity customizer. Over the years we have featured many of Roland’s builds in the magazine both as stand alone projects and others that were the precursors of corporate builds. Often we would admire the overall lines of the build, perhaps a creative change or unique flare or interesting RSD components. But this particular build made us smile because it was most certainly done with a sense of fun,
Roland Sands Design tackled the Monkey for client Jason Acuna earlier this year.
The “Wee Monkey” received a complete makeover, and shed an astounding 19 kilograms over the stock Monkey, thanks to carbon fibre bodywork and wheels, an RSD fabricated subframe and fender eliminator kit. The addition of Yoshimura exhaust and some free-breathing accessories returned a Wee Monkey with a top speed of over 110 kmh.
To complement the power increase, the bike was fitted with Brembo calipers, Galfer wave rotors and Racing Brother fork lowering kit with 280mm rear shock.
While the big changes seem significant almost all the smaller pieces such as grips, bars, clutch cover, sprockets and even the gas cap were all swapped for aftermarket components. The bike is still a Honda Monkey but a very different Roland Sands’ Honda Monkey. That the finished product is so unified in design speaks to the willingness of the client to pour money into a relatively inexpensive machine, which is not something everyone would do. Getting Roland Sands to build your Honda Monkey is even more impressive.
- Canadian Biker, Issue #353
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