ONE OF THE BEST. EVER

1972 Harley Davidson FLH by Samuel Aguiar's Shiny Hammer.

The main idea was to make a low and narrow chopper with trial wheels. First, the frame has been modified in the rear (about 2 inches lower and 1,5 inch narrower) to create a straight line in profil. I was looking for a solution to integrate the rear suspension into the frame since I only wanted the engine to pop out of the frame. I end up using oleo-pneumatic shocks and a one-off geometry.

Next came the fuel tanks, I had in mind a triangular shape that would follow the empty space between the engine and the chassis, like if all of them would be the same initial shapes then cut to have each their own function. At that stage, the capacity was 6,5 liters. I wanted around 8 liters on that bike so I came up with the idea to add a third fuel tank under the seat connected to the one-off oil tank. End result is 8 liters of fuel and 4 liters left for the oil. The tree fuel tanks have specific lines under and on top of the chassis to communicate as one and breath to be able to work.

The inspiration for the exhaust was to imagine how the smoke would travel while riding the bike without any physical exhaust. They swirl out of the heads and become more and more straight as they go to the rear of the bike. They are made of polished stainless steel.

I first rode the bike without paint and a regular telescopic fork and thought looking at the bike that the front wasn’t special enough compared to the rest of the mods already made. I end up learning and working 300 hours more to create a one-off girder fork. I of course wanted it to be narrow and I especially wanted to find a way to integrate the arms inside the fork and not outside of it as it usually is. I went through sketching, measuring, testing with cardboard, 3D model, machining and welding. I define the geometry to get as less trail as possible, having the wheel to move as vertically as possible. I kept the same wheel base as stock.

Photo credit Vince Perraud via Iron & Air Magazine.

Quote via Samuel's post via Instagram.