The two air cleaners protruding through the top of the air box cover is a rare design, and it quickly reminded us of an old fifty something Chevy that hot rod owners ran air filters out the top of their car’s hoods. “We built this bike for a special show and we wanted to build something really different and something like no other V-ROD. The hot rod idea started with the chopped front fender,” said Joe Gambacorta, a top professional custom bike builder for more than two decades, and director of North American Warhorse custom operations shop.
The triple trees were made with the same rake angle, but the handlebars were made with a large radius to keep up with the radius lines on the rest of the bike. The bronze covers on the risers add some color to the bike. The front and rear wheels are both 100-spoke radially laced, and a 240mm rear tire was able to fit into a stock swingarm by switching the belt for a chain drive and putting in a little machine work.
The hot rod appearance continued with the radiator and other custom parts. Joe and team used a couple of old car radiators to make gold colored covers to fit over the stock V-ROD radiator. The radiator is left in the open and gives the bike a macho look.
The exhaust system was made similar to shotgun style pipes and then HPC coated. The special design chrome heat shields are practical and add a flashy appearance to the right side of the bike. Despite the use of real gold dust in the clear coat of the paint job, Joe was able to meet his goal of creating a one off custom machine with a price tag well under the six-digit figure.
This is one hot V-Rod from North American Warhorse and there are more to come. Their custom shop consists of five top builders and machinists who operate a full machine fabrication shop with a frame machine, Computrack dyno, and an Öhlins certified suspension center. This crew builds some the world’s top machines.
For more information on North American Warhorse and their complete line of products, click on www.nawarhorse.com
Up Close: On V-Rod Wide Tire Kits
While Rick’s inGermanyand a few others offer wide tire kits for V-Rods and even though The Motor Company also offers one, Joe decided to make his own. All kits offered include mag wheels and Joe wanted spokes, that was the first reason to do it himself. The second was, “if you keep buying and adding something off a shelf, your bike ceases to be really custom,” Joe explained. The standard Harley V-Rod swingarm is wide enough to hold a 240mm tire with 1/8” to spare on both sides. A drive chain was fitted instead of a belt to give the added clearance necessary to keep the secondary drive and tire apart. After that, a little machine work to relocate the rear caliper hanger and boom: wide tire, stock brakes, spoke wheel, some cost savings, and the satisfaction of having done it yourself. The front sprocket was supplied by Kosman and the rear by PBI.
Builder: Joe Gambacorta and North American Warhorse
Joe worked as a machinist for twenty years before letting his lifelong hobby of motorcycle riding lead him to our industry. He began working at North American Warhorse in Dunmore, PAas a mechanic, handling custom bike building. At first he did the machining necessary at his home but finally a machine shop was put in place at the store as orders increased. While the store sells all brands of bikes, Joe was enamored with the custom big twins and created at least one wild bike for the nearby JavitzCentershow each year. Trying to keep the cost of custom bikes down, he believes the days of the $70 and $80K bikes are over, and only ones priced more or less close to this custom V-Rod at around $35K will sell. You can check out some of his earlier bikes at the store’s website www.nawarhorse.com or give his shop a call at 1-866-222-BIKE.
SPECIFICATIONS | |
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Owner: | North American Warhorse, 1000 Dunham Dr., Dunmore, Pa |
Builder: | Joe Gambacorta |
Year / Make: | 2004 V-Rod |
Build time: |
One Month |
Engine: | 2004 Revolution |
Air Cleaner: | Warhorse |
Fuel Injection: | Highly modified |
Frame: | H-D |
Pipes: | Warhorse |
Rake/Stretch: | 34 degrees, none |
Swingarm: | H-D/ Warhorse |
Rear shocks: | Legend Air Prototype, 4” drop |
Wheels: |
American Wire Wheel |
Rear Tire: |
240/18 Metzeler |
Brakes: | H-D |
Front Fenders: | Warhorse |
Headlight: | CCI |
Tailight: | Warhorse |
Handlebars/Risers: | Warhorse |
Pegs: | Warhorse |
Seat: | Warhorse/ Rays Upholstery |
Dash: |
formed into air box cover Warhorse/ Fish Gello |
License bracket: |
Warhorse |