Neil was keen to further customize the bike, so he pulled up a chair and sat down with Ricky (Chrome Consultant @ Harley Heaven) who specializes in all that is custom. Ricky showed Neil previously completed bikes, which really got the creative juices flowing. The first thing they decided upon was to a Heartland Kit, as Neil didn’t like the standard seat setup.
Ricky also arranged to have a headlight and a front end from VPW fitted. This front end modification added an extra 7 degrees to the existing 36 degree rake. Neil also opted for chunky forks & decided to go for the preferred look of blind triple trees.
Wheels are important on any bike, Neil opted for Performance Machine Rival Wheels with matching discs and pulley, all ordered from Ben @ Rollies Speed Shop in Qld. Ben also supplied the HHI front Calipers to suit the front end.
Chrome is a big part of any build and this was no exception. Ricky was given ‘Free Reign’ to chrome anything that would enhance the look of the bike. Dave @ Huntingdale Electroplaters went Chrome Crazy on anything that Ricky couldn’t get his hands on already chromed.
Handlebars were the next thing on Ricky’s ‘To do List’. Burleigh V-bars were decided upon as they suited Neil and the bike best. Genuine Harley Davidson forward controls were chosen as they best suited Neil’s height, the dash was also changed to a FXSTD dash panel with genuine Harley Davidson Speedo / Tacho unit.
As work continued on the bike, Neil became aware of another bike in the showroom which showcased a Vance & Hines Big Radius Exhaust system & 211 Screamin Eagle Cams. He was so impressed that he instructed Ricky to fit them to his bike, altering the specs of the Cams to lift – 508”/508”, duration – 248 degrees / 256 degrees.
As the bike began to take shape, Neil mentioned to Ricky that he wanted to personalize the bike with some Custom paint & Airbrushing.
Carsten, from Airbrush Asylum was arranged to come and meet with Neil & Ricky to discuss options for completing a unique paintjob. Neil presented Carsten with a rough idea of what he wanted to include. He showed Carsten reference material of various bike paintjobs that he liked, also mentioning that he would like a Celtic Tribal theme and was hoping to get his wife & two children airbrushed somewhere on the bike.
Whilst Carsten completed sketches for approval, he handed the parts over to Andrew from X-Treme Bike Paint to begin preparing everything for the chosen base colour. Andy layed down a Jet Black base, followed by a very fine coat of silver crystal pearl, all parts then received 3 coats of clear. He then sanded the clear so that it was ready for Carsten to complete all of the artwork. Carsten, painstakingly masked out the Celtic / Tribal graphics airbrushing them silver and gold, the graphics were also rendered giving them a 3 dimensional look. Once completed he then airbrushed a cracking effect throughout the design to give it an aged appearance. The Harley Davidson skulls & Celtic knots were all rendered using appropriate colours to enhance the design. The family portrait was sketched on and using a photo reference was rendered in Sepia tones completely freehand.
Once all of the artwork was completed, all parts were then given back to Andy for the final coats of clear to provide the paintjob with depth and durability.
Whilst the paint was being completed, Neil mentioned to Ricky that he wanted to get the word ‘Hass’ stitched into his seat. Ricky contacted Vinnie from Axion Motor Trimming to complete the request. An internal competition between Axion team members began to see who could come up with a design to suit the bike, Georgie ended up winning the comp and was excited to see her design stitched on the seat.
Photos courtesy of Anchor Photography – www.AnchorPhotography.com.au
Built by Ricky and the team @ Harley Heaven Dandenong (03)9791 7722
