AFT Customs Er Hed

This isn’t a vintage Harley custom: it’s a cleverly-crafted 21st century Yamaha that took first prize in the ‘metric’ class at last year’s World Championship of Custom Bike Building. Er Hed was designed by Jim Giuffra of California-based AFT Customs, which bills itself as ‘the home of the 8” headlight’. The modified Redneck Engineering frame is cradling one of the few stock parts on this bike, a 2004 Yamaha XVS Road Star engine. (The torquey motor gains even more grunt from Mikuni HSR 42 carburetion—more commonly seen on custom Harley twin cams.) Power runs through AFT’s own hydraulic clutch system, and other unusual details abound: the handlebars, for instance, also act as the brake fluid reservoir, and the wheels are 23” both front and rear.