The Custom culture exists almost since motorcycles exist, along years lot of motorcyclists wanted their own touch and character on their bikes and this was the origin of a lot of custom tendences tagged under a pattern each one.

Well, even that’s a reality, in the last years the custom phenomenom became so fashionable and a movement named New Wave Custom appeared in force followed by or being part of a fashion tendece of retro-vintage, hipsters and other tags. All that looked like something new and started to be so trendy, you couldn’t be a “true” hipster if you don’t ride a “cafe racer”, and I can’t say that was bad for the motorcyle world, actually a lot of you started to be interested on motorcycles because of that, and that is good for the motorcycle world continuing growing, but let’s be clear… nothing of this fashionable New Wave Moto tendence is really new.

Ok, said that, I will go on the theme for this article, the true is that in lasts years I meet, almost daily, people that is starting on the motorcycle world because of that “attraction” for those cool custom bikes and the annexed lifestyle that all of us, builders, use to show on our media channels.

Lot of you have dropped by our shop asking for a custom bike even you haven’t got your moto license yet, and the questions were always similar, so get here some replies and advices, probably not the best for our business but for sure very usefull for you.

I’m in process of getting my license and I would like to order a custom motorcycle: Ok, for those that ask me that way my advice is very simple…. Got your license first!! Maybe sounds very grumpy but it isn’t, I just try to avoid you problems, motorcycling is not only a driving license, this is something like welding, cooking or driving cars… there are people that weld, cook or drive cars from 20 years ago and do it like shit, and others that just started to weld, cook or drive a car and do it so well…. I mean… the fact you got a License doesn’t mean you will ride fine, neither you will like to ride…. for discover that you would need to start riding and would be terrible to spend thousands of euro on a custom bike for discovering that bikes are not for you, so first of all… get your license.

I just got my license and I would like my first motorcycle being a custom one: Wrong!!! I know you are very proud and happy you got your license but that only means your process as motorcyclist just started… Custom bikes are not conventional, are not perfect, are not easy to understand, are not easy to ride, sometimes neither easy to start up…. Getting a custom bike as your first bike will cause you more deceptions than happiness. My advice is so simple, get a simple stock bike, a small-medium capacity could be ok, something you can ride and manage easily, something reliable and easy to start up, (for example for my experience, medium single cyls dual sport, like Dominators, DRs, KLRs are very good beginners’ bikes) and ride it as frequently as possible, get used with it, enjoy it…. if you have the motorcycling in your veins that bike will make you a true rider…. you will start to get interested in mechanics and how to service and fix it, and after some time probably you will want to start to customize it…
If you are one of those that inevitably needs to be the king of coolness remember that there are a lot of brand new motorcycles that offer you a retro custom look, choose one of those.

I got my license two years ago and I’m boring of my harmless commuter, I want a custom motorcycle: Ok, in this case you need to ask yourself a question, will you keep your commuter or want the custom motorcycle being also your commuting bike?
Getting a custom bike as daily bike is not an easy task, even for me is not, believe me, I ride my creepy BMW airhead in a daily basis, I travel long distances with it… but the number of insults by kilometer I emit is so high, I love that bike so much but sometimes I would like to ride a pretty brand new R NineT… the question is that for me a brand new bike would be so nice, so fine, so friendly, so easy to ride and so…… boring!!! I mean, me and most of my friends that ride custom bikes have developed this kind of relation love-hate with their custom bikes, if you feel like that, welcome to the insanity, if not, keep your commuter bike and got a custom bike just for weekend parade and DGR.

I don’t know if this will be helpful for you but I hope at least it makes you think about!!