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.
The early 1970s were trying times at Harley-Davidson. The effects of AMF’s takeover in 1969 were trashing the company’s reputation and finances, and the flood of incoming Japanese standards provided reliable low-cost alternatives. To make matters worse, Harley’s grip on dirt track racing was in jeopardy after Brits had twisted the AMA’s arm for a…
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The two custom motorcycles that headline this week’s edition of Speed Read couldn’t be more different. One is a Harley Pan America with wild scrambler styling, the other is a classic Triumph TR6R Tiger bobber. The second half of our round-up covers new mid-sized releases from European OEMs; the BMW F 900 R and F…
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Some custom motorcycle builders are drawn to the simplicity of vintage machines, while others favor the performance and reliability of modern motorcycles. The 2005-model Harley Softail Deuce sits somewhere in the middle. Officially named the Harley-Davidson Softail FXSTD, the mid-naughties Deuce featured Harley’s new (at the time) Twin Cam V-twin engine and disc brakes, but…
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Anyone who’s ever picked up a wrench has probably experienced the urge to create something from scratch; something that exudes craftsmanship and attention to detail. Few of us have what it takes, and pro builders must go even further to prove their mettle. While Josh Allison’s name was already established in the custom bike world,…
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Richard Pollock has an enviable problem: a full order book. Just last week, we featured a stunning Harley Sportster street tracker in…
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Have you noticed how photographers often favor the right-hand side of a motorcycle? Sometimes it’s because the bike’s side stand has it…
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Who would be deranged enough to commission a custom café racer with a Harley-Davidson V-Rod as a base? Only Mark ‘FKN’ Hawwa.…
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Like most skilled craftsmen, Richard ‘Mule’ Pollock can turn his hand to myriad custom motorcycle build styles. But there’s one particular type…
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Your bike is as much an extension of your body on the open road as it is your personality when parked at…
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Cries of heartbreak echoed across the internet when Harley-Davidson discontinued the revered Dyna. But it’s easy to forget that the Dyna’s inception…
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Released in 2008, the Harley-Davidson XR1200 should have been a big hit for The Motor Co.; an athletic Sportster fashioned after the…
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Even though the Harley-Davidson Evolution Sportster is no longer in production, it’s eons away from going extinct. There are plenty of second-hand…
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