There Are Plenty Of Baller Rides In Miami,But Their Status Has Changed Thanks To Eading Edge Customz' Honda Cbr1000rr.Spotting a wide-tire sportbike in Florida is about as common as finding a struggling actress turned porn star in L.A., and both lost their novelty long ago.
If you're rocking a stock bike then you might as well stay home. Going big and being unique are always in style though, and they're a necessity for getting noticed.
Jose Garcia of Leading Edge Customz was growing tired of seeing similar chromed and stretched Hayabusas around Miami, so he chose to build something totally different. He didn't hold back with his opinion of the Miami sportbike scene: "We wanted to bust everybody up in Miami, because a lot of shops are building custom 'Busas, but it's all the same stuff. The difference with my shop is that funding is the only limit to what we can accomplish-not skill."
Basing a build on a 2006 Honda CBR1000RR is definitely a bold move, and unless you've got the talent to make it sing the whole project could backfire. But Jose hooked it up across the board-from TV screens to one-off custom wheels there isn't an inch untouched on this wicked ride.
Typically a 360 rear tire is overpowering and it tends to dwarf the rest of the bike with an obscenely excessive display of rubber, but Jose didn't want that to be the focal point on his CBR. The solution to making the desirable junk in the trunk more proportional was to widen the rest of the bodywork to fit. This wasn't as easy as it sounds though-imagine if J-Lo decided to bulk the rest of her physique to match her buxom booty. She wouldn't fit through the door. But in this Honda's case the curves all matched up just right.
While in the process of making the body wider Jose also smoothed certain areas and tucked others. He explained his motivation to completely fabricate new bodywork, starting from scratch with foam patterns: "We wanted our bodywork to be fatter than stock so that the rear tire would sit inside the body. The stock fairing has a three-piece main body, but we built ours as a two-piece because it looks smoother and flows better. We also removed the windscreen and instead molded that area as part of the upper section.
We had to work for it though. Hell, we spent over two months just sanding the bodywork alone!"
Integrated into the fully customized bodywork are an iPod, Dynojet Power Commander LCD display and TV screens. Once the new body's mock-up was completed and fit properly it was time to really get wild, and "invisible" TV screens were designed into the side panels-but they have a secret. They aren't obvious during daylight hours because they hide behind painted translucent bodywork, but when the sun goes down the freaks come out. Above the dual TV screens is a Dynojet LCD screen that's incorporated into the gas tank, and in the dash area is the brains of the set-up-an iPod.
The catalyst for Jose's meticulous bodywork endeavor is a one-off custom wheel from chopper specialists RMD, and he chose a relative unknown in the sportbike market so he could remove his ride even further from the fold of Florida customs. The "Switchblade" design is truly unique, and the CNC plans were trashed after the billet beauties were finished to keep them that way-you might like 'em, but you can't have 'em.
A swingarm was needed to hold it all together, and there was only one shop Jose wanted to supply it-the pipe-bending magicians at C&S Custom Cycles. Once that was fitted in place a Tricky Air system was installed for slam-on-command capability, but that's not all it does. Although Tricky made the bike float on air it still needed a bit of balance, and a centerstand was incorporated into the air-ride system to keep it upright. Not only does the clever lever eliminate the need for a fully adjustable kickstand, but it also adds some special custom flair.
 |  | 
A color-coordinated clear clutch cover gets style points in a big way. |
 | 
Hand-made bodywork gives the CBR sleeker lines, while custom electronics give the cockpit some spaceship spice. |  |