YouTuber Ayato has a big project ahead of him: turning it into a DIY Kaneda bike Akira. The Kaneda bike is one of the most iconic bikes in anime – no, make this popular culture big. There are numerous Kaneda bike projects on YouTube but this one is the best in my opinion.
Ayato has documented his progress in a series of clips. It’s a huge project that must comply with Japanese law to be street legal, but Ayato has approached it with aplomb and skill.
Ayato started with a Yamaha Majesty 250 bike but set the parameter that he wanted to try and build the Kaneda bike with what he had at home. (He ordered a few items throughout the project, but has remained true to a DIY ethos in his approach.)
In this video, uploaded nine months ago, he disassembles the Yamaha Majesty 250 and uses the chainsaw to remove any unwanted metal from the bike’s bare frame. Then he soldered in the parts he needed.
Here Ayato talks about the modifications he will be making to the original design. For example, he’s not a fan of the seat on the actual Kaneda bike in the anime (and manga), so he changes the design to a bucket seat, which he prefers.
However, other parts, such as the iconic front and wheel design, remain unchanged.
The other thing that makes the Kaneda bike design tricky is the way the motorcycle handle can be raised and lowered. Ayato decided to keep this as well and bring it to life.
He initially made the body out of cardboard, but then out of glass fiber reinforced plastic (FRP). You can see the process in the clips below.
It’s even more impressive when you find out he uses things like cat food bowls to create shapes.
You can really see the project come to life.
The project is not finished yet, but it will be interesting to see how it develops.
The clips are pretty deep. And while they’re not in English, the footage is extensive and if you modify or customize bikes (or make props and handicrafts)hopefully you should be able to follow.
