Custom Triumph Bonneville Shows What a Modern-Day Bathtub Design Might Look Like

Essentially, the design comprised a massive fender that covered much of its bearer’s rear-end equipment. It starts right behind the transmission case, completely enshrouding the bike’s airbox and subframe up top before working its way rearward behind the wheel. The whole affair looked very unusual and took up a ton of real estate, but the additional weather protection certainly came in handy for riders in the UK.

Although it made practical sense for those having to deal with a lot of rain, the U.S. market took little interest in the infamous bathtub. Triumph models bearing this design were particularly pointless in sunny California, where dealers often took it upon themselves to uninstall the rear bodywork before selling them on. All things considered, it didn’t take long for this concept to be phased out by the British marque, and few are those who remember it fondly today.

The Frenchmen over at BAAK Motocyclettes are, however, pretty keen on this unconventional attire, so they chose to replicate it on a stylish custom build in 2019. Shop boss Remi Reguin and his crew kicked things off with a 2018-model Bonneville T120, while drawing inspiration from a 1962 Thunderbird they’d bought alongside. We, like most of you, aren’t huge fans of the bathtub Triumphs, but there’s something undeniably alluring about BAAK’s one-off specimen!

Of course, the handmade, bathtub-style rear fender is the star of the show here, and it took just under a month for it to be manufactured from scratch. The process started with a few sketches of what the project’s authors had in mind, styled after the Thunderbird’s item but made to fit modern-day Bonneville. Then, the firm's in-house metalwork expert Victor took over.

He first made a cardboard mockup, and subsequently built the final part out of aluminum using traditional metal-shaping techniques. The fruit of his labor is rather impressive to say the least, achieved by way of a hammer, an English wheel, and some meticulous TIG welding. Sitting on a bespoke alloy subframe, it incorporates a small yet potent LED taillight and is topped with a stunning seat.

The Thunderbird vibes are evident on this red leather saddle, but there’s one notable difference on the motorcycle’s rear-end bodywork. Namely, the bathtub structure goes behind the shock absorbers as opposed to enshrouding them up top, which helps to achieve narrower proportions at the back. The rear equipment may be the raddest mod you’ll find on this T120, yet the custom wizardry continues at the front.

With some influence taken from the classic Thunderbird once again, Victor came up with a retro-looking front fender and had it placed on stainless-steel mounting hardware. Keen eyes will also spot a one-off sump guard a bit further back, while a stylish headlight nacelle can be seen up high right in front of the cockpit area. It surrounds a Lucas headlamp with vintage looks, and there’s also a Motogadget Chronoclassic dial embedded up top.

Examining the creature’s cockpit, we encounter a replacement handlebar from BAAK’s proprietary catalog of aftermarket goodies. It features CNC-machined switches, KustomTech control levers, and Biltwell grips, along with a pair of Motogadget bar-end turn signals. The ignition module is now located beneath the air intake on the right-hand side, thus tidying up the cockpit area even further.

Some suspension mods were on the menu, as well, involving the addition of premium Shock Factory paraphernalia at six o’clock. On the opposite end, Remi’s bike-modding gurus lowered the forks, fitted new triple clamps, and added rubber gaiters color-matched to the seat upholstery. The bathtub Bonneville also carries some fresh footwear, with diameters measuring 18 inches up north and 16 inches down south.

These new wheels are shod in vintage-style Avon rubber on both ends, while a pair of Beringer brake discs replace the OEM units at the front. BAAK didn’t mess with the Bonnie’s engine internals, but they did perform some tasteful intake and exhaust mods. The classy air filters are off-the-shelf items from the shop’s inventory, and they’re coupled with custom peashooter mufflers made of stainless-steel.

For the closing chapter of this endeavor, the French specialists proceed to address the paint job. The shiny dark grey color scheme they went with was inspired by the Porsche 356 and is a perfect match for the red seat upholstery and fork gaiters. It’s topped with subtle pinstripes on the fuel tank and both fenders, though the former is also home to a pair of cast aluminum badges depicting BAAK’s logo.