Mooyong Zeus is the founder, owner, designer, builder and all-round nice guy of Zeus Customs in Bangkok, Thailand. I last met Mooyong during my visit before Covid – so I was mighty curious how he is doing now that the pandemic-storm has subsided a bit.
Mooyong started Zeus Customs in 2014, when he decided his love for motorcycles – and customizing them – was more important to him than his secure income as a software developer… He started out customizing 150cc Stallion bikes, lightweight Chinese bikes which are very popular in Thailand, these are basically the same bikes as those sold under the brand name Mash in Europe. His first workshop was just a room in an apartment building, but he had to look for another place pretty soon as the neighbors complained to the landlord about the noise… That happened again with his next location, so then he moved to a large more industrial building on the outskirts of Bangkok. That’s where I met Mooyong three years ago. Covid was a difficult time for Zeus of course, but he survived! After Covid, he moved to a slightly smaller but more central place in a nice neighborhood of Bangkok, where he now has a much more intimate and really pleasant place with a great showroom, plenty of bikes on display and couches to hang out on, as well as a fabulous yard with more bikes and tables to enjoy your coffee or a drink…
Given his software developer background, no surprise that Mooyong is an avid and expert user of social media. His Instagram posts went viral in Thailand and before long he got requests to customize bigger bikes. After he did a first brat-style conversion based on a Ducati scrambler for a lady which got a lot of attention on Instagram, demand skyrocketed. Still, cutting up a big expensive bike for the first time was a big step, so Mooyong bought a Triumph to work on for himself first. But he only cut into the frame after a strong push from his girlfriend!
So now Mooyong does a max of 30 full customizations per year, not more to maintain quality, together with his 2 mechanics – which he kept on staff during all the difficult Covid period.
Zeus customizes mainly for Thai customers and long-term expats. His Thai customers tend to ask for full customization of for instance café racers, and then use the bikes mainly for special events and to decorate their homes. The expats usually do use their bikes on a daily basis, their modifications range from again full café racers to scramblers – depending on their need for comfort on the road… Zeus also do more light conversions for both groups, such as just handlebars and seats.
While Mooyong is very interested in exporting his customs, a lot of times the regulations of his customers’ countries get in the way. But while an export to Germany serves as a decoration piece because the owner cannot get it legalized, another bike is out on the streets of Moscow, Russia – as the rules seem less strict over there. He does have a partner in Japan now specifically for fully customized Honda Monkeys, which are wildly popular over there.
Right now, Zeus is converting 8 Royal Enfield Himalayans to competition-ready flat-track bikes, commissioned by the factory who want to open a flat-track school in Thailand! He is also working with Suzuki Thailand on a full café racer custom to inspire more customers to buy that particular model, and they then plan to auction it off…
Zeus’ main exports to Europe today are his homemade leather side-bags and tank straps. Custom parts are a little harder as specifications can differ even for the same model bikes.
He also sells quite a bit of merchandise to tourists who visit the shop to get some new ideas or just hang out. T-shirts, caps, mugs, bag-tags, you name it… These are all his own designs – great stuff if you ask me!
