Written by Martin Hodgson

The engineering professor who was the first to build functioning models of artificial neural networks has a quote he likes to use when explaining his work, ?the simple things are the hardest?! It was a philosophy that Uwe Kostrewa of Cologne’s Hombrese Bikes was to discover when taking on this build. His girlfriend wanted to get her motorcycle licence and have him build an easy to ride yet cool looking custom for when she passed her test. But despite Uwe having a portfolio of incredible machines, he was still working on this slick Honda FT500 street scrambler when she’d achieved her half of the bargain.

Uwe was on a break in the Netherlands visiting his girlfriend and started to wonder if she shared his passion for two wheels. ?I had one of my motorcycles with me and asked her if she would like to ride. After a short hesitation she said yes. After a few meters, she smiled and it was clear that she wanted her own motorcycle.? So while she got to learning and studying for her test, he was on the internet hunting for the right donor bike.
Having previously built custom SR500s and a GN400 that would be suitable for a learner, it was a Honda FT500 that caught his eye when browsing eBay. Wanting to check it out for himself he was soon to discover the bike was in good condition and was owned by a lady rider who’d enjoyed the bike, it was meant to be. So after some haggling on the price he was soon back at his workshop ready to start...