Custom bike builders all work at their own pace, with some pushing finished machines out the door faster than others. That said, there are some craftsmen out there who only deliver a new project every once in a while, but always manage to leave us completely amazed when they do. Nicolas Baux of Motocyclette Certifiée Non Conforme (MCNC) is one such individual.
He’s the mastermind behind this gorgeous Moto Guzzi 850 T3, a sublime one-off café racer nicknamed La Macchina. The Frenchman has thrown everything but the kitchen sink into this build and the quality of his work is absolutely top-notch in every way possible. An insane amount of elbow grease has been applied to the rear suspension alone, turning it into an intricate pushrod mechanism reminiscent of an F1 car.
The build uses carbon fiber and aluminum tubing, along with a Fournales-supplied oleopneumatic shock absorber. A billet aluminum bracket ties it all together, with the bike’s nickname and Moto Guzzi lettering etched into it. While there’s not much suspension work up front, those newly revamped forks are sure to work like a charm.
CNC-machined triple clamps connect them to the T3 frame, and there’s a high-quality LED headlight mounted nearby. In the cockpit, a single aftermarket dial serves as the bike’s instrumentation, flanked by LSL clip-ons fitted with Domino grips and Brembo brake master cylinders. The billet instrument cluster is particularly interesting, as Nicolas chose to build it from scratch rather than resort to aftermarket solutions.
They also looked to improve stopping power, installing new Brembo calipers and drilled rotors at both ends. The wheels feature polished rims, new stainless steel spokes, and grippy Continental rubber, but what caught our eye about this build in the first place is the bodywork. After reviewing the Guzzi’s skeleton, MCNC immediately set to work on a custom aluminum setup that from a distance could almost be mistaken for a monocoque structure.
The hand-built fuel tank gives La Macchina a muscular stance in the center, and is accompanied by a radical rear unit further back. A circular LED taillight adorns the rearmost tip of the bodywork, while a simple Alcantara seat can be spotted a little further forward. Completing the updated equipment circle is a small front fender, the mounting hardware of which doubles as a fork brace.
After taking a look at the V-twin engine and remodeling it where necessary, our protagonist fitted a new stainless steel exhaust and custom intake funnels. The intake hardware features internal air filters, which give the impression of jet engines when held at just the right angle. MCNC did a fantastic job on the bike’s livery as well, using a mix of red, black and brushed alloy.