Delbert’s been around this bike building thing after quietly and confidently replacing a stolen 2003 Sporty, his first-ever motorcycle, with his first-ever custom build, a Detroit Bros.-style bike not too long ago in the big scheme of things. We featured an article we called Delbert’s Blue Light Special in both the print and online version of Barnett’s Magazine and it was...

     This bike is so much more than just another built-on-the-cheap bobber with details I’m still trying to wrap my head around. First off, I’m a sucker for fat front tires with tall sidewalls especially when they have a similar sized rear tire and wheel. In case you were curious, those are Vee Rubber 200/70×21 tires. This kind of wheel and tire combo just looks fabulous, yet...

      Ol’ 48 as Ron calls this bike is quite a contraption and I say that with the upmost respect for Ron, his shop, and the many awards he’s won and will win although it’ll probably never be taken that way. Contraption in that he didn’t take the simple “Let’s build a board tracker by using the same size skinny wheels front and rear and a droopy handlebar and call it a day.” Nope,...

     Well I gotta say I like this jewel of a Shovelhead a lot with maybe one tiny little personal exception that doesn’t mean a damn thing to anyone but me (more on what it is later). Making me like this bike even more is the fact that Rick Bray is still a kid in the scheme of things and with what  he’s accomplished so far in a relatively short period of time, I  can’t even imagine...

       When I first took a look at Carsten The-Angry Kraut Fritzen’s little bit of green gold on earth, I thought it had to be an old barn find brought back to life, but I was wrong, wrong, wrong. Yeah, the rear disc brake is a dead giveaway, but I was too busy enjoying myself just drinking in this bike’s perfect Old School goodness (and I’m so used to disc brakes that they’re...

      Take this extremely modified 1980 Harley-Davidson Shovel that hits every vintage style point perfectly without looking like its even bothering to think about it. It’s all basic black bodywork lets the Shovel mechanically shine as only one of these tough guy lumps of vintage AMF metal can. There’s just enough of everything without the trying-too-hard traditional chop attempts...

Take a good look at Jack Cofano’s photos and you’ll see what I mean. Everywhere you look and I mean everywhere, each piece of metal has been lovingly massaged until it’s in total harmony with the rest of the feel of the design. Nothing sticks out and jabs you in the eye, but each piece, no matter how small or seemingly inconsequential, can stand on its own as a neat piece by...

    Smoke Out bikes always grab my attention as they’re real riders whether you believe it or not and they’re usually built by their owners in a garage just like yours. Imagination and skill displaces an unlimited budget and that’s a good thing. Making or modifying a part requires some thought and talent instead of sheer dollars invested and even bought parts are often eBay finds...

        By now you’ve probably noticed a missing link to all this late model (yes Mr. Knucklehead you’re late model in comparison) engine tomfoolery and that’s the unglamorous, but sometimes respected Flathead. This workhorse design is what every Harley-Davidson engine was from 1903 until the arrival of the OHV Knucklehead in 1936. The big block (74” and 80” models) Model U...

It should be no surprise then that I’m totally enamored with the sleek black Sporty chop you see before you built by Chop Machine in Toledo, Ohio.      We had a few of Chop Machine’s bikes in our photo gallery, but I gotta admit I locked onto the black bike in a nanosecond, well maybe two nanoseconds as I’m getting a little slower with rapidly advancing age. This bike is not even...