For this bike, Spitfire drew its inspiration for local color. “With all the long bikes around Cincy I wanted to build something short, fat, and low, and kind of scary.” Youth-n-Wisdom is obviously special to Bill Jr. “This is a build I will never forget,” he said. “The things I learned from my father and the things we have learned together are invaluable. This bike truly is the beginning of great things to come for Spitfire Customs.” Bill Jr. said Youth-n-Wisdom is his “fun ride,” but he uses his old FLH as his daily ride, although he doesn’t get to ride nearly as often as he’d like. “It has not been finished long so I have only been able to put on a few hundred miles on it. Hard miles! I stay pretty busy at the shop so getting to ride is less and less,” he said. “When I do get to ride it, it is around town or to the local bike night.”

His favorite aspect of Youth-n-Wisdom is the air cleaner, which shows the creativity behind Spitfire builds. “Our favorite has to be the Zurn storm drain cover air cleaner,” he said. “Like all the brass it was a scrap yard find.” The only real problem Spitfire came across in building Youth-n-Wisdom was the engine. “We had an issue with the motor down in Daytona, but luckily there was a CCI rep. by the name of Brian who helped us out as soon as we got home,” he explained. “They went above and beyond. I’m happy with the motor now after the little issues we had. It runs better than I thought it would. Plenty of power and it can take a hell of a beating.” A slighter, easier to fix problem was the cover for the spare tire. “The rib in the center of that spare tire cover is not in the center…not really!”

Spitfire Customs is a full service shop, offering a long list of services that run the gamut from tire mounting and wheel lacing all the way up to custom builds. But the crew isn’t interested in building competition bikes unless it’s for a customer. “We have shown Youth-n-Wisdom at a few shows, but we don’t usually enter the contests. Awards have never been our drive in building bikes,” Bill Jr. said.

For a good look at Spitfire’s photo gallery, custom builds, parts, services, and events they’ll be attending, check them out at www.spitfirecustoms.com.