Cycle News

VOL. 50 ISSUE 23 JUNE 11, 2013 by conventional single-cylinder standards. This sees the Ducati-sourced 40.5mm Dell'Orto throttle body that's presently fitted (a smaller 38mm Borile-made one will be used for production) facing forward, surmounted by a goodsized airbox positioned immediately behind the steering head, and a rear-facing exhaust port. The Euro 3-compliant exhaust system makes a right angle downwards turn soon after exiting the head, in order to avoid the 2.5-gallon fuel tank that's under the seat. "I had a Ducati Scrambler myself when I was young, like so many of my friends, and we all used to use them for riding on dirt roads and occasionally further afield," Borile says. "The Borile Scrambler must be equally adaptable - if opportunities arise." There's lots of neat details to admire on the Borile – though with the decidedly non-retro AIM digital dash that's used to experiment with different engine maps and wouldn't look out of place on a MotoGP racer, there's a constant reminder that this is a prototype bike that's still a work in be equally "The BorileifScrambler mustarise. adaptable - opportunities " - Umberto Borile But the retro-looking chromesided yellow airbox cover preserves the illusion of old school, as do the twin Bitubo rear shocks with coil-over springs and the 41mm Marzocchi fork. For the bike's off-road pretensions, it comes fitted with meaty-looking Czech-made Mitas dual-purpose tires fitted to the wire-wheels - a 110/90-19 front and 130/80-18 rear – fitted to alloy rims. There's just a single 260mm Brembo stainless steel front brake gripped by a twopiston caliper, with a 220mm rear disc and single-pot caliper. The half dry weight of the bike is 288 pounds with oil, with the 48/52 percent rearwards bias Borile was seeking for what he insists is a dual-purpose motorcycle. progress. But hop aboard the narrow though comfortable 32.2-inch high seat and you'll discover a relatively rangy, relaxed riding stance courtesy of low-set enduro-style footpegs, and a handlebar with the grips pulled back. The round mirrors look suitably retro, while at the same time giving a good rearwards view. Once lit, the Borile engine settles to a fast 2200 rpm idle, and there is absolutely no undue vibration between that and the 8200-rpm limiter. But that's not at the expense of removing any character from the motor and turning it into a sewing machine – indeed, the engine sounds a little too great at the moment, with very little mechanical noise but a P65 fruity and rather unsociably loud crack from what's practically an open exhaust. Okay, it's a work in progress, but at least stick a dB-killer in it, Umberto! Thanks to its light weight, the Borile accelerates well, though there's not a lot of torque immediately available even from that fast idle, and both low speed fuelling and part-throttle pickup are presently poor, though it cleans up at wider throttle openings, and/or once you dial up more than 4000 rpm. All that is still a work in progress on this prototype, making riding it off-road a bit awkward, since you must slip the clutch a fair bit to coax it into running cleanly. But once you get it chiming well at higher revs the desmo single is extremely zesty. There's a nice dollop of mid-range torque that you can feel peak out at around the 6000 rpm mark, making 7000 rpm a good place to hit a higher gear. When you do so, the fivespeed gearbox's shift action is crisp and precise and the lightaction cable-operated clutch is equally easy to use – I'm not sure there's any real point in going to the extra expense and weight of fitting a hydraulic one, as Umberto Borile says he plans to do. We can more easily understand, however, why he's also looking at installing a six-speed transmission because even this 450 engine is a little peaky at present, and the extra ratio would let you ride the torque curve better.

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