Okie and I meet for coffee everyday to straighten out the world’s problems and it’s an excuse to get in a ride early. Lately, though, Okie had been driving his truck and when I asked why he said, “I don’t want to wear out my bike just riding here and not even really warming it up. Besides, it’s too big for these tourist-filled back roads.” Made sense to me. At his request, I rode back to his house where he showed me something he had in a room of his unfinished cellar. Apparently his son had abandoned an ‘80s Honda 400 twin there years ago and it just sat. Okie rolled it outside through the slider for the first time in who knows when. All there, but a bit worse for wear.

 

   The “plan” was to get it going so he could ride this to coffee and whatever errands he could think up off the top of his head while the Harley sat happy keeping its miles in check. Like always, he said it ran when it was put in storage. We pulled the surprisingly- clean carbs and cleaned them anyway, changed the oil and filter and got a new battery and plugs installed. Using a gas can and a hose, we gave this baby a shot and it eventually fired up and ran pretty well all things considered. A quick refurbishing of brake fluid, cleaning the tank, and new tires followed and Okie had a daily rider for around town crap that he didn’t have put his beloved Harley through. Plus it’s easier to dodge out-of-state tourists in SUVs. Now he wants to customize it with a wild paintjob he’s always been too scared to do on his Harley. Something with flames. It never stops.

 

   That may not be the story behind our featured bike built by Devon Eckert, owner of Tango Whiskey Choppers in Thomasville, North Carolina, but it could be. Devon has graced these pages previously with a hot rod XS650 that was a show winner and rightly so. It was good looking. This take on an otherwise vanilla early ‘80s Yamaha XS400 twin ramps up the roughness a bit while amping up a bit of toughness with a hand-built rigid rear end. Where twin shocks and a swingarm once sat, a long and lazy pile of well-constructed tubing moves aft and keeps the flow on the top tube going to the rear axle save for the mildly dropped seat. Quite a bit of work on a bike like this so this has got to be somebody’s baby.

 

   Up front the stock forks minus-the-fender keeps the OEM mag in place carrying a stock disc brake. Good thing as the rear brake is AWOL for reasons unknown, but the single front should suffice nicely for this 36-horse powerhouse. You know, I’ve seen bikes, mainly British, with exposed fork springs and they’re as retro-cool as rubber fork gaiters to me, but Devon’s taken a new turn with is springs. As you probably noticed, they couldn’t do much compressing mounted between triple trees (hopefully) so I’m gonna assume Devon put these on as a brain teaser of sorts. I like it. It adds a bit of silly fun to an otherwise serious world of customs. I’m sure he’s had quite a few people “explain” to him why they don’t really work, but obviously he’s got a sense of humor about this build.

 

   That sense of humor extends to the large vintage Texaco MolyTex Grease can sitting right behind the engine. Nobody has this much need for grease on a motorcycle so those giveaway switches on the side says electrics without saying it. Kinda cool how it looks like it’s just sitting there like somebody forgot to put it back on a shelf. Or maybe it’s the mid-mounted, right side taillight that is probably right on the letter of some law or maybe not. Personally I like the cross brace dirt bike bars as they give this bike some sass. As far as the metal seat mounted directly to the frame, you gotta have a sense of humor to ride that as is. Ouch! I’m sure this will end up padded someday by some humanitarian, but in the meantime, it’s probably just like the owner wanted it.

 

  Speaking of how the owner wanted it, obviously that applies to the paintjob. Plus there was no holding back on the white once the painting started as everything but the block, cylinders, carbs and headers got a good dosing of the white stuff. Devon pulled off the old patina paint trick on the tank to good affect with his shop’s name in faded orange graphics on one side and 47.3 on the other. Unfortunately I don’t have the slightest idea what that code means maybe other than what Devon thinks the bike puts out powerwise. If it’s still making the stock 36hp, that would be both a surprise and a blessing. Either way, it’s a stripped-down, light bike to begin with so it’s probably just fine for simply putting around with no particular place to go.

 

   No particular place to go, just like my friend Okie. Having an old Japanese POS to buzz around on when you just want to buzz and not cruise is fine by me. That is unless you’re a kid with not much dinero whose only ride is a bike like this. You better believe the kid will ride it and ride it hard until he leaves it in his parent’s cellar for safekeeping.