Gear Patrol

Now that the riding season is under way in many parts of the country, it’s time to sign up for riding lessons and start thinking about the machine that’s best suited for your needs. You could jump right into researching bikes for months online, but we’d recommend starting with our roundup of the 5 best starter motorcycles first.

The Harley Sportster is a relatively inexpensive yet powerful bike, making it popular for modifications. Japanese builder Hidemo used a 1200cc 2011 model to make his version of the Custom Sportster that stands out from other customs. Hidemo abbreviated the front fender, added dropped mirrors a la cafe racer and gave the bike a subtle…

Shaw Speed & Custom churns out some pretty sweet bikes. But what about for the budget conscious? We can’t all throw down tens of thousands for the bike of our dreams. Their most recent custom job, the XL1200R made use of a 2006 Harley Sportster XLR1200R they had in stock as the “guinea hog.” The…

The Milwaukee Golf Caddie is a specialized accessory that combines a certain subset of men’s two greatest passions — a.k.a. golf and their Harley (apologies ladies). If you’re the proud owner of 1995 to Current Road King, Road Glide, Tour Glide, Street Glide or Electra Glide, then the Golf Caddie’s current offerings will fit on…

Conventional wisdom erroneously perceives that most Harley riders are over 40, beefy, peppered with tattoos and leather, with a preponderance of facial hair. Though a fair share of riders fall into that category, it’s also absolutely true that the pre-WWI motorcycle manufacturer has made serious inroads to the younger, hipper crowd. In case you didn’t…

In 2001, the the Harley-Davidson V-Rod was introduced as a new kind of muscle bike to compete with the other heavy-hitters on the market. It met with great success, using the Revolution engine, a 60 degree V-twin that was a joint effort between the Milwaukee-based manufacturer and Porsche and utilized liquid cooling, an HD first….

American motorcycles and British wristwatches. Not an engineering combination you’d think of right off the bat. But now, thanks to Harley-Davidson and Bell & Ross, the two great tastes show that they can indeed taste great together. Leading UK dealer, Shaw Harley-Davidson (the current champs of modified Hogs) approached Bell & Ross watches with the…

A hark to their roots in racing, the 2011 Harley-Davidson XR1200X ($11,799) is inspired by Evel Kneivel’s fabled XR750. After a year, the bike is landing on U.S. soil and features a fully adjustable Showa front and rear suspension (dialed in to rider weight, riding style, and road conditions), improved front brakes, 1200cc Evolution V-Twin…

If you are in the market for a new bike or undaunted at getting yourself onto a Harley, then the Harley Davidson Fat Boy Lo is an outstanding choice. This comes from personal experience. There are few words that sum up every aspect of this bike, but dark and massive are a good place to…