What can you do you to “build up” a Ural?
After all, the machines have their roots in World War II, where both Nazis and Russians used the same basic boxer-engined bike to fight all over the world, from the dunes of the Sahara to the frozen wastes of the Russian front.
Well, gearmaker Icon decided to take that design a bit further; they took a 2012 Ural Solo and built this bike. They call it the QuarterMaster, and claim they’ve made it a single-track beast of burden.
We’re not sure what sort of hulking giant would want to muscle this bike through single track, but there’s no question their list of add-ons would make this bike much more off-road friendly, in a Mad Max/RoadWarrior sort of way. Actually, that doesn’t sound very friendly at all …
To beef the bike up, the builders made extensive frame modifications (oversized backbone, braced headstock, reinforced swingarm, and check out that re-designed subframe!). They added a custom skid plate, crash bars, high fenders, knobby tires and long-travel suspension for more off-road performance. Then, they bolted on an oversized fuel tank to improve the range.
Watch the video to see it in action:
The Nazis were lucky the Russians didn’t have this bike back in the 1940s … they might have made it to Berlin much more quickly.
If you like this bike, you can see a few more pix of it in the gallery below. You should also go visit Icon’s website – they have several other bikes done up in this rough-and-ready style, including a Honda VF100R, a Yamaha XS650 and a Harley-Davidson Sportster (which looks suspiciously similar to Costa’s Dual Sportster project from years ago!)
Gallery
Check out all the pics that go with this story! Click on the main sized pic to transition to the next or just press play to show in a slideshow.
I luv it … more punk than my R80 G/S
Surprisingly, that really works for me. I LOVE the way it sounds!