Harley-Davidson is an icon of American culture and the most popular marque for custom builders. Shortly after the company was founded in 1903 in Milwaukee, customizers started bobbing, chopping and dirt tracking the famous V-twins.
After WW2 Harley motorcycles were at the center of the bobber craze, and kept their lead as Californian bikers turned to choppers in the late 1950s. The 45-degree engines have their own nicknames and folklore: from flatheads, knuckleheads, panheads and shovelheads to today’s Evolution and Milwaukee-Eight motors.
The Sportster is the basis for more Harley-Davidson customs than any other model. Originally fitted with an ‘Ironhead’ motor, it turned 60 years old in 2017. It’s probably the single most customized motorcycle on the planet, and certainly has the largest supply of aftermarket parts.
In rural New Zealand, where I am writing this, you often hear that someone has a ‘number eight wire mentality.’ ‘Number 8’ is a 4.0 mm gauge wire that was used for farm fencing decades ago. More importantly, it was also co-opted by clever types for general repairs and unusual fixes. A forerunner of duct…
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Building a custom bike is often beset with difficulties: there can be unreasonable client demands, unforeseen technical issues, cashflow problems, and in some countries, strict regulations to circumvent. We tend to dwell on these in our reports, but sometimes the build story is only half the real story. The other half is life outside the…
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After reporting on the custom scene for over ten years, it takes a lot to stop us dead in our tracks. But this incredible Harley custom from Smoked Garage is one of the most radical builds we’ve seen in the past decade. It was commissioned by the organizers of the huge Suryanation Motorland event in…
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If you’re looking for a classic American tourer, a Harley Electra Glide is just the ticket. They were popular with police departments for a good reason: few machines could match their all-day riding comfort. But if you like to carve the canyons of LA, or European mountain passes, the Electra Glide is likely way down…
Read more »What does it take to rack up two wins and four podiums, in the Modified Harley-Davidson class at the AMD World Championships?…
Read more »We’d love a glimpse inside Max Hazan’s head. His machines are elegant and visceral, and we’re left wondering how he actually builds…
Read more »Let’s all gawp at the latest oddity from Curtiss Motorcycles, and then drool over a fabulous retro kit for the Kawasaki Z900…
Read more »Right now, it’s hard to judge Harley-Davidson’s tactics without framing them against the stiff challenges the company is facing. If it’s not…
Read more »We’ve got a Harley-heavy selection this week, with a cafe racer from Italy, a scrambler from Japan and a tracker from the…
Read more »Custom Works Zon have a stellar reputation in their home country of Japan, but are only just becoming known outside. Six months…
Read more »Two years ago, Harley-Davidson flew Winston Yeh to Barcelona to test ride the new Milwaukee-Eight big twins. And like most riders at…
Read more »Despite being steeped in the custom scene, Harley-Davidson doesn’t often donate bikes to custom builders. So this Sportster Iron 1200 from Prism…
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