The Mad Max Machine

Close your eyes and picture one of the most versatile adventure bikes on the market, the BMW GS. Now combine that with the meanest bobber imaginable and what do you get? The GS Mad Max.

- Gavin Perry

I have seen some interesting creations over the last year, and they seem to be getting better and better in South Africa. There is customising; like a paint job and some after-market parts. And then there are those jobs that entirely change the base bike into something unrecognisable. The GS Mad Max project was one of these builds.

This particular build was done by Theunis and his team at Reconstructed Customs. Their client had just bought a brand new BMW GS 1200 and rode it from BMW to Reconstruct-ed, arriving there with only 5km on the clock. His entire brief to Theunis, with some hand gestures and limited words were “OFF” while pointing to the seat, and “MAD MAX”.

From there they were not entirely sure what the plan was. And even now when you ask where the ideas and inspiration came from they say step-by-step; as throughout the build they implemented every new idea that came to mind. Once the bike was stripped down of everything including the motor and only a frame remained, they did the first request of cutting half the seat away, which was the first visual cue that helped the flow of additional plans and ideas.

When I say this bike ended up entirely different I really mean it. The parts added and changed are so extensive that the mental picture your mind builds leaves you itching to see what the bike is actually going to look like. This is as much of the additions and build as I was able to get from Theunis in our interview.

A massively thick 160 front wheel was added. The bike is fitted with Pirelli Rally off-road tyres for that rugged off-road look. For the rear they ordered a standard GS 1200 rim and turned their own spokes and inner hub.