Japanese custom motorcycle culture can seem like a closed shop to Westerners. Granted, there’s the annual Mooneyes show, and a few builders have cast their nets outside their home country. But the language barrier is formidable: less than 10% of the Japanese population can speak English, and less than 1 in 500 Americans can speak…
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Most custom motorcycle builders are pretty handy in other areas of life and work. The ability to set up a lathe or tune an engine lends itself to different fields of craftsmanship. And if you’ve got a knack for aesthetics, you can probably also design (and print) a t-shirt. But one trend that’s caught us…
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We have an ongoing fascination with the Japanese custom scene. But it’s not only the skills and design chops that keep us captivated: It’s the perpetual air of mystery. We still know so little about our friends in the East. Today’s new discovery is a long, low Harley-Davidson Shovelhead by Sato Marine Cycle. The shop…
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James Roper-Caldbeck is one of our favorite Harley builders. Mostly because his creations are a million miles away from the metalflake baggers that populate the mainstream magazines. James is famous for his clean, stripped-back bobbers, but that might change soon. “Last year, I got a rather sheepish email asking if I would ever build a…
Read more »It’s hard to describe the Japanese style of custom building. But it’s easy to spot: the bikes usually have a timeless and…
Read more »Harley-Davidson styling has always been deliberately behind the times. Even in the 70s, the shovelheads had more of an early 60s vibe.…
Read more »Most custom motorcycles fit within a particular genre. And that genre will have its own conventions, as well as its fans and…
Read more »Named after a South American cactus known for its hallucinogenic properties, “Achuma” is part old Harley and part motocrosser, a Shovelhead-powered streetfighter…
Read more »Walt Siegl is one of those increasingly rare guys who can build a motorcycle from scratch. He was born in Austria but…
Read more »For the past few days, the center of the custom universe has been in Japan, at the the Mooneyes Yokohama Hot Rod…
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