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Three bored-out Honda CB750 engines into one land speed racer called 'The Galaxy' with a 12-cylinder 2,508cc glory is the creation of California-based custom motorcycle builder and mad genius Mitsuhiro “Kiyo” Kiyonaga. “There is a culture called ‘Kacho Fugetsu’ in Japan, which translates literally as flower, bird, wind, moon. But its meaning is the traditional beauty of nature in Japanese aesthetics, and the rhyme of nature. Some write poetry, some sing songs, and some express it in pictures. I want to express Kacho Fugetsu in our machines,” Kiyo tells Bikeexif. (Source: Bikeexif)
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The Galaxy’s four-cylinder power plants are all 1978 Honda CB750 units with F2 large port heads. Each motor has been bored out to 836 cc, and fully rebuilt with lightened and balanced crankshafts, heavy-duty connecting rods, performance cams and oversized stainless steel valves. Extra care was taken to make sure each motor’s internals conformed to the exact same spec. (Source: Bikeexif)
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The motors are each fed by four Keihin FCR 35 mm carbs, with significant work to the intake manifolds to help them run optimally. All three carb sets are linked via a rod-and-heim joint setup, to make it easier to synchronize the throttle slider. But rejetting is still a chore, given that there are 12 carbs to fettle. The entire setup breathes out through twelve custom-made exhausts. (Source: Bikeexif)
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One big challenge was splitting the number one and two engines’ transmissions—a process Kiyo nonchalantly refers to as “simply cutting off unnecessary transmission parts.” The rebuild included fabricating new covers, relocating the oil pumps to sit externally, and working out a custom-built system to circulate oil through all three motors sufficiently. (Source: Bikeexif)
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Even harder was constructing a primary system that would connect all three mills. What’s more, Kiyo was adamant that the system be easy to maintain under race conditions, so he limited himself to using easily obtainable parts. The resulting setup looks dead simple from the outside, since Kiyo removed the starter motor and built a ‘flat’ primary cover. But inside, there’s a complex system of pulleys, mounts and adjusters that will melt your brain, with the role of every part—and how it relates to the next part—considered in painstaking detail. (Source: Bikeexif)
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A three-piece chassis holds the trio of motors together: a tubular upper frame, and two large engine mounting plates that double up as a rigid ‘swingarm.’ Together with the extensive drillium on the rear plates, it’s part of the design language that defines Kiyo’s trilogy of land speeders. Aluminum spun wheels bookend the machine, with holes cut into the front to reduce the effect of crosswinds at speed. (Source: Bikeexif)
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When it came to the paint job though, Kiyo took his hands off, giving total creative freedom to the same artist that painted the previous two bikes: Gen Katsuragawa at Love Ear Art. The overall effect is surprisingly whimsical, belying just how potent this machine actually is. The Galaxy has now taken up residence in the Haas Moto Museum alongside its siblings, but Kiyo doesn’t consider it complete. Before he ticks that box, he has one more challenge to face: racing it at Bonneville. (Source: Bikeexif)
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