I am often in need of special tools that are not available in the marketplace, or when they are, come from unreliable sources and have very poor specs. Recently I have been tooling up our CNC milling machine with quick … Continue reading
Do you have a trip that you’ve always wanted to take and are always looking for info about? Is there that one road you want to ride from one end to the other? Some people are fortunate enough to be … Continue reading
I’m Kirk Taylor and my shop, Custom Design Studios, has been in business since 1988. We started by satisfying the needs of the motorcycle community because there weren’t many good, reliable painters in this area. Now, by way of background, … Continue reading
This gallery contains 60 photos.
Previously, we made a wooden buck for building our tank, now the fun begins. Select the material you want to use for the tank. Options commonly include steel, aluminum, and copper. Selection depends partially on your skill level. If you … Continue reading
Shaping your tank, making your buck/ Part 1
Virtually everyone has heard of Route 66, or Highway 101 in California. They are both great and legendary roads, don’t get me wrong. But let me tell you about the other end of the “101”.
Russell Mitchell and his Exile crew first met the Rockstar Energy Drink guys during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, back in 2005. They immediately hit it off, and enjoyed a combined weeklong reign of terror in the notoriously raucous, Full Throttle … Continue reading
Lil’ Blackie By 8 Ball Brian Have you ever had or ridden; a bike that was just sweet as hell to look at, wicked fast in a straight line, but could become just plain wicked going down the road? … Continue reading
I’ve stated before that finding great bikes is no mean feat and without help from our fans, colleagues in the business and the talented builders we feature, the job would be much harder. Case in point, if bike finding activities … Continue reading
Seems that notable machines and interesting oldsters generally have back story’s – and this machine and it’s owner are no exception as both are historically notable and somewhat long in the tooth. The current owner of this 1952 Model K, … Continue reading
With way less than legal tread on my rear tire, I knew its days were numbered. When it developed a goose egg sized bubble on the sidewall after a stretch of a few miles doing ‘80 plus’ on the freeway … Continue reading
V8 powered motorcycles are nowhere near as uncommon as they used to be, there have been many mild to wild rides built by speed demon bikers over recent years. British bike builder, Nick Argyle’s Rapom V8 is unquestionably the most … Continue reading
When Chris Rose of Caveman Custom Cycles bought this 1998 Dyna Low Rider back in 2006, his original intention was to clean up the bike, make some mild modifications, repaint it and put it up for sale at his shop … Continue reading
The Indian Chief was produced from the 1920’s up until the Springfield factory ceased production in 1953. It is undoubtedly a motorcycle that well represents the type of design that was popular in America at the time, and you could … Continue reading
We received an email inquiring about a bike build from an European woman who has a apartment in New York City. She wanted something reliable, comfortable and able to handle the rigors of New York traffic.
A No Win Situation! With just ten days to build a ground up, jaw dropping, custom bike, I was more than a little surprised that there was not much activity the morning of the first day; instead of Russell Mitchell … Continue reading
see the Kitchen Sink feature here “Buffalo’s First Ward is an area on the south side of Buffalo that was settled by the Irish in the 1820′s. The area developed into an industrial center in the late 1800′s after the … Continue reading
A commonly asked question we hear is: “If I use this (insert parts list here) combination of parts what will my compression be?” This appears to be one of the most misunderstood areas involved in building a performance engine. In … Continue reading
What do two immortal baseball players have to do with writing? In the case of Satchel Paige, a perennial star of the Negro Leagues, the oldest rookie to play in the major leagues and an all-star well into his forties, … Continue reading
To learn more about Pete Hilton and his instruments, you can visit his website: Hilton Guitars…
What you see here is a carved bronze shifter knob. When I say carved, I mean that literally. I start out with a block of solid bronze billet. The next stage takes about 3 hours using a heavy rotary file. … Continue reading
This is the fourth round in this set I asked Pete to take some images as he worked in his shop… and it’s evident just how much work goes into one of this stunning instruments. To learn more about Pete, … Continue reading
The ability to express yourself with the written word is critical, especially in the digital universe. 45dgree is always on the hunt for new contributors and talent and we regularly (here) hear “I can’t write”, p’shaw we say and so … Continue reading
Roberto Rossi of Mantova is a friend of 45dgree and a talented bike stylist who lives in rural Italy….. Take a look at his his latest project….
