Diamond Atelier was founded in 2013 in Munich, Germany, and has spent the last 13 years creating handcrafted motorcycles defined by a minimalist design language. Each of its machines is a one-of-a-kind design and is numbered under the brand’s DA# naming convention.
During the Goodwood Festival of Speed last week, Diamond Atelier unveiled its latest creation, the DA#22, a bike. the company says “The first physical manifestation of a new category…the hyperbike.”
This is no design concept or showpiece, but a running, riding, street-legal prototype built by hand in Munich that Diamond Atelier says is “the foundation of a future ultra-limited hyperbike series.”
Photo by: RideApart.com
Created for collectors who are “not looking for another superbike… or another limited-edition factory model”. DA#22 The KTM LC8 is powered by a V-twin that produces over 205hp. The chassis was developed in partnership with Wilbers and features a Type 46 RR front fork derived from World Superbike technology, as well as a custom-developed rear shock that was built specifically for the DA #22.
DKB Special Parts designed the CNC-machined Formula 1-style handlebar switchgear and buttons, giving the cockpit a “motorsport-derived interface”. Press release. DKB also provided an open, illuminated clutch cover with a glass viewing window.
It also features a titanium exhaust system and 3D-printed titanium upper triple clamp that was manufactured by Aconity3D. Those parts are paired with a handlebar and rear set system manufactured by Giles Tooling.
KRT Frameworks founder Marvin Diehl hand-shaped the prototype’s aluminum bodywork, creating double-curved surfaces and fading edges, which combines with a voltage-activated electroluminescent paint system that was applied by Alex Bloch of Stillbrook Lack.
Wait…what the heck is an electroluminescent paint system?!
Photo by: RideApart.com
According to Diamond Atelier, “Selected areas of the bodywork become active illuminated surfaces when powered by electricity, turning the motorcycle skin into a controllable light source.” Correct. Apparently only one liter of this red electroluminescent paint formula was produced, which will not be used again.
Oh, and the motorcycle’s triple clamp features a genuine diamond, set in a hand-crafted sterling silver setting.
So this thing is beyond thinking. Beyond the limited-edition models or even the wild prototypes that manufacturers love to tease at international motorcycle shows. But as much as it is ‘bespoke’, I wouldn’t go so far as to say it is ‘excessive’.
Photo by: RideApart.com
Hand-crafted bodywork and electroluminescent paint, diamond-encrusted triple clamps and one-of-a-kind badging make the DA#22 special, but the LC8 V-twin powerplant and prototypical superbike suspension make it feel more ‘hypercustom’ as opposed to hyperbike.
Diamond Atelier says the future of the company’s hyperbike series will be even more exclusive than prototypes, suggesting that future motorcycles will be extremely limited, individually built and “tailored to discerning motorcycle enthusiasts.”
As nice as this thing looks, and as well-equipped and custom-built as it seems, it still feels like an over-the-top design exercise, not a new category of motorcycle. Because after all, isn’t the Ninja H2 a real hyperbike?
