Tattoo Projects is a creative agency based out of Charlotte, North Carolina. CEO Rudy Banny and President Buffy McCoy Kelly opened their doors in 2006 after illustrious careers in the agency world. When they’re not busy creating ad campaigns for the likes of Victory, Dodge, and John Deere, they use their creativity to reimagine vintage motorcycles.
Their bikes all have a clean and stripped-down style that strives to express the essence of their purpose and form. “They must move a rider emotionally before moving them physically,” explains Rudy. They’ve yet to put a bike up for sale, saying it’s “out of fear that once we do, we might lose sight of the fact that building bikes is a passion and not a job.”
As long as the lights are on, guys, keep turning them out. If you happen to run out of space, we might be able to help you store some overflow.
1986 BMW R80 Half brat-style, half café, it’s a brafé. We started by stripping this bike down to its core, and then only fitted it with the bare essentials. Fat Champ Deluxe tires, modified subframe, powder-coated wheels, rearsets, Monza gas cap, Acewell computer, and stainless steel reverse cone shorties come together to make this one badass Beemer. This bike should be named after a badass friend of ours, Chris Flynn!
1976 Kawasaki KZ400 We started by tearing off the bulky rear end and putting a modified subframe in place. We went with a solo seat, clip-ons, rearsets, Ohlin shocks, and she started taking shape. We had a custom triple-tree machined, powder-coated the wheels, then strapped on some gnarly Pirelli Scorpions. That’s when we recruited Nate Hamlin and Bob Iwankow of 2topia to do their magic. They hooked the KZ up with a complete overhaul on the wiring and buried most of it in the frame. After they cleaned up the wiring, we outfitted the bike with Motogadget components, some custom fenders, and a custom exhaust.
1970 BSA 650 Lightning Equal parts power, bad attitude, and unadulterated meanness, this bike is just a wicked, nasty S.O.B. A stretched swingarm, Ohlin Shocks, 1970 Triumph front end, Nitroheads seat, Wassel pipes with brass tips, and a King Bee chopper headlight are just some of the things that make us unable to turn away. Owning this bike is like being in a bad relationship: we know it’s trouble, but we just can’t quit it.
1974 Honda CB360 A trip back in time. This bike takes us back to the guys that introduced us to riding in the very beginning: the Jensen Brothers. These guys were some of the baddest dirt trackers in the Midwest, so it was only appropriate to turn this CB into a tracker. We fitted it with flat track bars, simple gauges, modified seat loop, low profile seat, modified rear fender, fat tires, and stainless steel reverse cone shorties. These mild mods are genuine to the era, and keep this bike honest and unassuming – unlike the Jensen Brothers. But, that’s a whole other story.
This article first appeared in issue 19 of Iron & Air Magazine, and is reproduced here under license
Words by Gregory George Moore & Tattoo Projects | Images by Tattoo Projects
