RSD TMAX by Roland Sands

This is a Yamaha TMAX 530 scooter turned by Roland Sands Design into the naked wonder, Yamaha is having fun with the introduction of the 2013 TMAX, asking various motorcycle personalities tune its innovative new scooter, which has its engine mounted in the frame, motorcycle style, as opposed to the swingarm.

“With this Hyper Modified project we wanted to take the TMAX back to the basics. I saw a picture of its aluminium frame, a signature of Yamaha sports bikes, and was blown away by what was underneath the fairing. I was surprised as structurally the TMAX looked really cool – different and a little bit weird, which appeals to me. I was intrigued and started thinking about the possibilities of taking this mechanical beauty and using it to create the look of the bike…”

“Once you strip the plastics away and remove the sub-frame and exhaust, the line of the frame is very pleasing; the TMAX is a cool looking raw bike. Most riders wouldn’t be expecting to see such a sportsbike styled aluminium frame on a scooter so we decided this would form the backbone of our project.”

“To give the bike a racer image we added grills into the frame and did a bunch of things to make it look more aggressive and kind of mean. We fabricated the whole tail unit and covered it in a distressed vinyl that looks great, then added risers, flat bars and number boards. The radiator intake is also built by us – after removing the plastics you need somewhere to put your feet so it doubles up as footrests. The front mudguard is a modified YZF-R6 unit and we built new engine covers and then hollowed them out to make the bike look more radical. All in all it took about four weeks to create the Hyper Modified TMAX – and it wasn’t easy.”

“This project was really stressful, far harder than modifying a conventional bike. We were continually fighting the urge to turn the TMAX into a normal motorcycle. It would have been very easy to build a mock petrol tank and tail section to turn it into something with classic motorcycle lines but we wanted to keep it a step-through. It was a fight to keep it cool but I think we have managed it as the reaction from people has been fantastic.”

“I’ve ridden the TMAX around and people freak out when they see it. To be honest I didn’t expect to like it myself as much as I do, it’s so different and weird and it works great. It still rides like a TMAX but is even lighter and more agile and sounds like a dirt bike thanks to the race exhaust! It’s crazy.”

“People think I’m into cruisers but I’m more driven by dirt bikes and racers, but there is no way I’m letting the Hyper Modified TMAX go. I’ve got a scooter in my garage now – I didn’t think that would happen! All I need to do now is to fit a surf rack on it and take it to the beach!”

Source RSD