The Yamaha TRX850 is one of our favorite motorcycling anomalies. It was built in the mid-90s, when Japanese marques tried to corner the European market by injecting Italian flair into their sportbikes. The TRX850’s trellis frame, tri-spoke wheels, and sculpted fuel tank felt distinctly Ducati?but its parallel twin motor and angular tail section gave away its Japanese heritage.
Although it didn’t quite set the market ablaze when it launched, the Yamaha TRX850 eventually found its niche in the secondhand market in an ‘if you know, you know’ sort of way. Old enough to be considered a bonafide classic, it offers a fun ride and endless 90s swagger, for not too much money.

Those qualities also make the TRX a great candidate for customization?or, as Holger Breuer has so expertly demonstrated with his latest project, a great candidate for tasteful restomod. As the ‘HB’ in Germany’s HB-Custom, most of Holger’s projects are full-on custom jobs. But the owner of this 1996-model Yamaha TRX850 had owned the bike for a number of years and was more keen on restoring it than tearing it apart. That said, there were a few areas that he felt should be improved, starting with the TRX850’s chunky rear end.

Holger ditched all the rear plastics, then hacked off the end of the subframe and fabricated a new loop. Next, he hand-shaped an elegant café racer-style tailpiece out of aluminum. It sits neatly atop the Yamaha’s frame, exten...