Photo: Nate via ratbike.org
Some love'em, some hate'em, but few would pass a well-modded ratbike and not halt for a couple of minutes wondering "how was that possible" and "why". Maybe that's the destiny of ratbikes, to keep their owner happy and the other riders happy as well thinking how nice and neat their bikes are (even i they're not).
So here's the Grabenratte, German for Grave Rat, a perfectly normal Suzuki DR350 resurrected into a demented ratbike we here have grown to like. After the initial strip-off, the DR350 got a new, bigger tank in 5mm sheet metal, but due to its height, the “ratter” had to have it pulled to the rear... just because the Grabenratte was actually a road bike and steering was rather necessary. The handlebars needed a lot of space for free movement, hence new look of the bike, by far a nice one.
The seat and subframe are probably an insult for a guy designing MV Agusta's, but they are now more comfortable than in the first place, and look 110% rat, so that's good. Hand and foot bent iron rods and gave a nice headlight cage and the exhaust went under the seat, just like on a sport bike.
With the CDI and wiring going inside a painter Dulux can strapped to the bike near the rectifier, the electrics have been take care of in a cheap and rattish manner. A final coat of paint and a funny “Do not clean this vehicle” and the Grave Rat is ready to prowl the streets, because that license plate holder is for real.
The seat and subframe are probably an insult for a guy designing MV Agusta's, but they are now more comfortable than in the first place, and look 110% rat, so that's good. Hand and foot bent iron rods and gave a nice headlight cage and the exhaust went under the seat, just like on a sport bike.
With the CDI and wiring going inside a painter Dulux can strapped to the bike near the rectifier, the electrics have been take care of in a cheap and rattish manner. A final coat of paint and a funny “Do not clean this vehicle” and the Grave Rat is ready to prowl the streets, because that license plate holder is for real.
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