RSD MV Agusta Dragster

World class builder and design studio @rolandsandsdesign recently unveiled to the world their newest custom motorcycle based on an MV Agusta Dragster 800RR. The bike's transformation was made possible with a focus on performance and fine attention to detail as well as the addition of special one off parts from RSD.

As with all its performance, maintaining a fully functional machine and improving performance is fundamental in our process. With MV Dragster, their goal was to bring classic aesthetics to the platform while maintaining the MV pilot spirit.

All the bodywork was replaced and fabricated in house from Aluminum  outside of the front fender which was replaced with a carbon fiber piece. Body was painted by Air Trix. Forks were re-valved by GP suspension for track duty and blacked out. Brakes were upgraded to GP spec nickel Brembo's. High bars were replaced with Clip ons for an aggressive attack stance for track use. Exhaust was made in titanium by Zard. Wheels were replaced with a one off design from RSD machined from Billet forgings and cera coated in a unique Blue Green with the frame and sub-frame.

If RSD is worried about some flak from the purists, a deeper explanation can be made as to why the silhouette was changed so radically from the production bike. 

The aesthetic was an echo of the shape of vintage MV' racers from the past with a twist. The headlight was replaced with a simplified shape and a new shroud was built around the headlight that continues the forward tilting line of the gas tank. Stock gauges were replaced with a small moto gadget unit.

The subframe was hand fabricated with Chromoly-tapered tubing, the same tubing used to construct BMX bikes. The one-off subframe also set the stage for the rest of the bodywork. We set a beautiful straight line through the bike, which maintained the new aesthetic from front to back. The shape of the entirely hand made aluminum gas tank was built in the spirit of championed MV racers of the past. However, we added a modern twist by replacing the typical twist off gas cap with a modern, quick fill style endurance racing fuel filler. 

The front light was ditched in favor of a modern minimalist café style light and complimented with a handbuilt aluminum shroud following the lines of the tank and tail and capturing that racer essence. The Radiator shrouds were also fabricated out of aluminum and then re-popped in carbon.

 A custom set of Roland Sands Design forged racing wheels were machined from blank billet aluminum using the standard MV hub design. The wheels were then covered in an Cerakote “Blue Titanium H-185” finish by Specialized Coatings. Specialized also coated MV’s trellis frame and custom subframe in the same “Blue Titanium” to match. Using MV's hub design allowed us to take advantage of the beautiful architecture of the stock single-sided swingarm showcasing the intricate design details of the wheel while giving the bike an un-obscured splash of color.

The solution used for the wheels, even if they are beautiful and elegant, perhaps replace a more vintage athlete, more in line with the objectives of the project, you could use spoked wheels like Jonich Wheels, it would have made a further leap in quality to the final result

The paint process and color scheme presented its own set of challenges. Getting the design perfect and ensuring the lines were straight required an extra trip to Chris Woods shop in Santa Barbra. Chris applied the precise taped linework on the freshly painted base job. The team at Airtrix did a brilliant job with the detailing some how colormatching the Cerakote “Blue Titanium” used on the stripes which were meticulously laid over eggshell white, giving the bike a sort of Lux-Race feel.

Thanks to Jose Gallina for the photo

Roland Sands Design