Laidlaw's Customized New Bikes

             After being in the Harley-Davidson business for over 50 years we have seen a lot of bikes come and go. We have seen a lot of customized bikes and have gotten a feel for what people want to bolt onto their iron steeds. So on occasion we will take a fresh bike from the factory and equip it with some custom bars, chrome, wheels, paint, etc. to give it that “stand-out” look. Plus it’s easy to see stock Harley-Davidsons at any dealer and we like to give our customers some extra eye-candy.

Now these bikes don’t get built to win any trophies or get into magazines, they are built for our customers and are all for sale. We try to create a nice “start” for potential riders who are looking for a custom/radical look. Going over-the-top and dumping a bunch of money into them isn’t what we are after for a couple reasons. First, we want to still keep them in customer’s price range and second, the more you change/add the more the finished product has to fit into the image of what the ultimate buyer is looking for.

The last benefit these bikes have is one of economics. Basically we can make these upgrades a lot more cost effective than if the final customer bought the bike and turned around and did the same stuff. This is accomplished by performing multiple tasks at once and reducing labor costs. The savings is then past onto the buyer of the bike.

So check back here periodically even if it’s just to get some ideas for your own bike. But you never know, we may have already started your dream bike and laid down the initial modifications for you.    


2012 Road King Classic (FLHRC) in White Hot Pearl

The first thing you notice when you lay your eyes on this Road King are the ape hanger bars. We equipped this beast with 16 inch Carlini Gangster Apes that are 1.5 inches around, so they are meatier than most. They’ve been topped off with chrome switch housings and brake master cylinder. The clutch and brake lever were also swapped out with their chrome counter parts. Custom Harley grips were also installed to complete the fully chromed-out controls. New braided cables were strung for the brake and clutch and the electrical was internally wired for a very clean Ape Hanger look.

Chrome front forks are the next big item on the list. The Road King has Harley’s kit that includes the upper fork sliders and lower forks. The axel nuts have been covered with the chrome caps and both brake rotors replaced with the high polished ones. Basically the front end of this bike shines!

Next the front headlamps, passing lamps, and the turn signals all have the chrome visor trim wrapped around them giving the lighting situation upfront a serious make-over. The turn signals in the back have also received the same treatment. All around you will see the smoked lenses as well.

The Road King is then finished off with a few other touches of chrome such as the V-logo fender skirt and passenger footboard covers. Overall, the white color accented with tons of chrome makes for a bright, very clean showing motorcycle.   

   by Matt Laidlaw