Valeno Mortale is Hyderabad based designer Reza Hussain’s first art piece. And well, what a piece of art it is!
Though Reza’s always been busy tinkering with his wheels – his bicycle as a kid and at his stock bikes as he grew up – with his very first attempt, he’s come up with this masterpiece. This gem also won him the title of the Best Chopper Designer of India Bike Week 2014.
Today, we take a closer look at this award-winning piece of work.
Bike Name: Valeno Mortale, meaning Deadly Venom.
Creator: Reza Hussain of RH Customs
Type: Chopper
Chassis: Custom
Theme: Reptilian
Engine: Royal Enfield 500cc stock
Only the engine and the wiring is kept stock from 2011 Royal Enfield 500; rest, everything is built from scratch.
Length: 8.5 feet
Headlight: Custom built brass headlight.
Tyres: World’s biggest rear tyre.
Brakes: Not on the rim but in the center.
Braking is done via dual chain – jackshaft. Brake stops the main drive and the final drive, simultaneously.
Fabrication: CNC machines for wheels and hand fabrication for body work.
Number of Manhours:
I just slept 3 hours every night for 40 days. At times, it so happened that I kept working on the bike non-stop for two days without sleeping.
Paint job: It was done through a technique called 3D Scaling. RHC’s in-house paint shop, applied the paint in a way that it would represent a snake is in motion, hence, at certain places one can see the shadow and at various places one can see the scales getting bigger and smaller to represent the movement of the skin.
Why the Reptilian Theme?
Reza: “I’ve been fascinated with reptiles since childhood. Whenever my father used to take me to the zoo, first thing that I’d ask him to show me were snakes and reptiles. It’s creepy for some but I admire their beauty.”
Just one bike old Reza already has more than half a dozen projects in the pipeline; we can only imagine what he’ll come up with next.
To stay up-to-date with Reza’s newest creations, you can check out his Facebook page here.
Disclaimer: The article was first published by the author in 2014 on RedBull.com
