The Ultimate Parts-Bin Special
THE ULTIMATE PARTS-BIN SPECIAL
PERSONAL PROJECT
HAPPINESS, FOR BRUCE Enderle, is being an employee at Yamaha Motors Corp., U.S.A. with access to a parts bin stocked so full of goodies it rivals a fridge on Thanksgiving day. For Enderle, a 42-year-old technical specialist, purchasing a written-off wreck of a 1982 Yamaha Turbo 650 Seca from an insurance company set into motion a project that would see the bike once again on the road, but not without first receiving donations from 15 different Yamana models.
In its original form, the Turbo Seca’s styling was a bit, well, peculiar. “Ugly,” says Enderle, whose major goal was “to give the project a cleaner visual appearance, maintaining the fun of a boosted motor and updating other components in the process.”
Over the course of 18 months, Enderle occupied much of his spare time designing, modifying and fabricating the pieces which make the BES (Bruce Enderle Special) unlike any Seca we’ve seen.
Taking full advantage of his employee discount on parts, as well as having after hours access to Yamaha’s machine-shop facilities, Enderle completed the project for a remarkably low investment of less than $2000.
As you might expect with a wrecked bike, the fork was bent beyond repair. But measurements revealed that an FZ600 fork would fit into the Turbo’s triple clamps without modification. Next came the wheels and brakes. More dimension checks proved that an 18-inch hoop from a 1985 FJ600 would mount right up with the FZ fork, axle and spacers.
“The front rotors have been misidentified by nearly everyone,’’ chuckles Enderle. Although the brake discs are Yamaha components, in their intended role they’re hidden from view, located under bodywork at the rear of a Venture Royale tourer. Their carrier bolt pattern matched that of the FJ wheel, but Enderle put in some time at a lathe, narrowing the flanges on the wheel to obtain the proper offset so the rotors would fit between the fork legs. A pair of four-piston FZR1000 calipers are attached to the fork sliders with brackets fabricated by Enderle.
Matching the spoke pattern of the front FJ600 wheel, the rear wheel is of Seca 900 variety, and mated to the Turbo’s driveshaft with little difficulty. But adapting the 900’s rear-disc-brake system required more modification and fabrication.
To get a feel for the project’s styling, Enderle began hanging plastic from various models on the chassis. The final outcome is topped by an FZ750 fairing, which blends nicely with the standard Seca 650 tank, tail section and sidepanels.
“It’s fun to ride, docile in normal operation, but very responsive when on the boost,’’ states Enderle. “Now, it’s just a matter of stretching a Seca 900 motor to lOOOcc, adding an upside-down fork, Marvic wheels, single-shock rear suspension, twin turbos . . ..’’
Enderle’s Parts-Bin Special, it seems, will be a never-ending project. —Don Canet
