Misfit is a repeat offender on Barnett’s Magazine Online with a slew of custom Harley-Davidson Road Kings like the Less Is More Road King, Chopper Or Custom Bagger Road King?, That’s A Road King?, Naked And Blown Road King and an outlier non-Road King bagger Element 13. It really is worth checking out those four Misfit Road Kings as each one is honestly different from the others. And, not just a natural progression either as Chris and crew continue to push the no-limits limits of motorcycle customs using a combination of design, engineering, talent and damn good hard work to build bikes that make you reel back a bit and ponder what you’re actually looking at. I don’t know in what order our feature bike and Element 13 were built, but it sure seems like one possibly influenced the other even though they couldn’t be more different if they tried.

   One of the reasons I’m stymied as I stated right at the beginning is because this seems to be a complete departure from the steady stream of custom baggers Misfit has turned out so far. I mean, one look and I honestly knew it was a Misfit Made motorcycle. These guys like to work in metal and are good enough at it they dare leave it in metal for clinical observations by people who have no idea what’s involved getting raw metal to look like it does on their bikes. There’s not only skill involved, but a lot of confidence too as it’s the equivalent of walking around naked and getting comments pro and con. Wouldn’t it be just easier to beat the stuff out, slap on a bit of filler and some paint and call it a day? Yup, but that’s not the way Misfit rolls.

     All I can guess on this ride is that somebody had or found an old Harley-Davidson Night Train and Misfit decided to do something a bit wild and crazy with it. Wild and crazy to the tune of frame mods to accommodate the 26-inch front wheel and yet still keeping a Softail of sorts rear end. Built around lay frame construction design, the tubing casually cavorts around getting where it needs to be with a flair to the swingarm no Softail ever had. The frame’s all spindly and deliciously curving and as custom as can be.

    That very attractive girder fork is an air-suspended one-off that looks beefy as hell and capable of taking what’s thrown at it. Unusually for a radical custom, there’s a fork brace neatly hidden away behind the legs that surely keeps things in check on this unusual design. The mounting and how the fork actually operates is completely different yet works off the same principle. I really like some of the neat hocus-pocus machining Misfit deliberately used to create finning on both the fork legs and headlamp shell. A neat touch that required thought and work for no other reason than Misfit thought it was cool. I love these tasty little things like that Misfit brings to their builds like these lovely machined fins.

   One that that does totally stymie me is where is the on-board air stuff for the twin shocks up front and the pair of Softail-style units located under the engine/tranny? Like comic genius Sgt. Schultz used to say, “I see nothing!” and I mean nothing. Not a tank or compressor in sight, but it’s gotta be somewhere. Carrying a compressed air tank around by itself or depending on a nearby air hose is not something Misfit would ever do, but where the hell is it? Gotta be under the hand-formed aluminum tank that hangs over the top tube, but I’m sure I’m wrong. Speaking of that tank, is that a nice piece of metal art or what? There’s complex simplicity going on there forming up that piece and there’s nothing I don’t like about it.

   The back end of this bike is designed surgically clean and almost looks more mock-up than final rider. Between the simplicity of the double-arm swingarm, the four-piston caliper tucked neatly away in the elbow of the axle plate with an internal brake line, the seemingly bare rotor, and the metal finish rear fender that really does its best to fend off road crap from the appealingly chubby rear tire and wheel combo. Not too much and not too little ─ just enough to keep things a bit macho yet agile enough to ride. It’s probably just how extremely clean everything looks that makes it look more mock-up than finished. It just looks to clean to work.

    One thing that never surprises me about a Misfit build is that Chris puts a bit of himself in the build when it comes to power. He’s a man who likes his power in quadruples of what he had if possible. Big-inch engines, turbos, intercoolers are usually part of his repertoire, but on this relatively light ride he kinda let it ride so it appears. The Twin Cam features a bunch of Performance Machine engine covers littered about and they look lovely as always. Things like a timing chest cover and rocker box covers bring on the black to an already dark engine. Out of the black a carb and short velocity stack stick out just enough to leave darkness behind and add a touch of satisfying aggressiveness to Harley’s now slowly-heading-for-retirement engine. Misfit built a bad boy 2-into-1exhaust that hangs at an angle more appropriate for a hot rod than a motorcycle, but that’s probably why I like it. It looks ready to rumble as they used to say on wrestling TV.

    The large tubular oil tank hanging under the solidly-mounted solo seat brings a bit of old MOONEYES tank flavor without trying to be one. Maybe it’s just me, but that’s the thing that popped to mind when I saw it and classical references like that are nothing to be ashamed of. I doubt Chris is ashamed not the least. And, speaking of the seat, it’s a tidy affair too with a simple, slightly distressed leather finish. You’re not in this seat for the comfort, it’s all about the looks. I would die on this seat, but I sure love looking at it.

I think it would actually be pretty comfortable to reach the drag-bar-style handlebars wearing just what appears to be a pair of grips with not a lever or line in sight.

     The short stretch to the mid-mount BMX pedal foot pegs makes this look ready to rock as you probably still have to ride it a bit like a hardtail or a lowered Softail. Did I forget to mention the open chain primary that the peg and shifter lever are built into? Well I have now so any caught cuffs are none of my business. All I do know is that there is a long run of chains going on with the chain final drive too. I do like the look of chains way more than belts so I may be showing a personal preference here that might not be founded in the best thinking.

    Chris and the Misfit crew really edited themselves well when it came time to apply any cosmetic finishes anywhere on the bike. The shiny dullness of the raw aluminum body bits is beautifully tempered by the strikingly-subtle medium gray the frame’s sporting along with the fork and engine shades of gray. If this bike’s photo could have been taken with a colorless background, it would look like a cool old black & white photo of days gone by except for the subject matter. I like that as nothing’s flashy or trashy, it’s just a quality piece of work that’s not a bagger by a builder now known for their baggers.

   Whether that’s thinking outside the box or did somebody (possibly an employee?) just need or want a different ride doesn’t matter. The methods and construction along with an eye for design make this a cool build no matter what the reason or lack of one might be. Misfit Industries continues to make special bikes for special people and they wouldn’t have it any other way. That’s Texas for you.

For more info on Misfit Industries visit https://misfitmademotorcycles.com/ or check ‘em out on your social media.