How would you like to spend your time building custom bikes somewhere nice and warm? That’s what Rag & Bone Customs do after friends Stu Cantellow and Paul Smith got together a few years ago and the pair now spend 6 months each year in the UK, and 6 months in their workshop in Goa, West India.
The company came about when Stuart wanted to build a custom rigid Royal Enfield in Goa and based himself in the garage of the more experienced Paul Smith. Over a period of 5 months the duo built a pair Enfields, and rode them along to the first India Bike Week in Goa a couple of years ago.
The bikes got a great response and various people suggested they set up a Facebook page and build more bikes. And that’s what they’ve done. Their name comes from the Rag and Bone men who started traveling around England in the 18th Century picking up unwanted household items and scavenged materials, and were still a common sight in the UK until relatively recently. Besides the links to old British motorcycles and history, it’s also a nod to the fact they achieve their builds with fairly basic tools and minimal budgets. The lack of off the shelf parts in India mean that pretty much everything has to be hand made in their garage, which has a vice, battery drill, electric hand grinders and a stick welder.
So far Rag & Bone Customs has focused on making bikes for themselves rather than taking commissions. While they’d like to spend more time building in Goa and also set up a small workshop in Europe, there’s a slightly different attitude to homemade customs between the countries; “You cant just build something with two wheels and ride the shit out if it….the police don’t like that to much back in the UK”. So in the meantime they can only manage one or two bikes per season.
Their immediate plan is to head back to Goa in October/November to start a new bike build and they intend to document every part of it, as part of their efforts to inspire other potential garage builders. We’ll be keeping up with their progress, or you can check out their Facebook page. And if you’re feeling inspired, there are plenty of Royal Enfields to be found for a project on eBay. Check out the gallery below for more pics.
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