customcool
Honda CB250N – Thrive Motorcycles Indonesia
Alien tech
Bow down and worship at the wheel rims of the T9 Prototype
by Thrive Motorcycles –the best ’84 Honda CB250N we’ve ever seen
28 amcn.com.au
WORDSMARTIN HODGSON FOR PIPEBURN.COM
PHOTOGRAPHY PUTRA AGUNGIN THE WORLD of custom motorcycles it can
sometimes be difficult to appreciate the work
that goes into a finished project. But nothing
informs a builder of just how hard a certain
model is to work on than taking one, getting
their hands dirty, skinning their knuckles
and cursing aloud at the moon.
The Honda CB250N was a great commuter
bike of the early ’80s but rarely does anyone
build a good custom from one; I spent a year
trying and it wasn’t pretty. So hats off to
Thrive Motorcycles for the work they did to
produce the T9 Prototype, an incredible 1984
Honda CB250N.
The Indonesian company headed by
Indra Pratama and Barata Dwiputra has
been turning out impossibly cool machines,
largely from commuter-based models, for a
few years now.
In 2015 they were catching up with an old
college friend over a few beers. The friend
had become one of the country’s leading
tattoo artists and was telling the lads about
his love for the sci-fi movie District 9. He said
he dreamed of owning a custom bike that
wouldn’t look out of place in the flick.1