Edge Cut Harley-Davidson Wide Glide
“Life throws some surprises at you and buying and customising this bike was one I did not see coming”
AFTER OWNING a Suzuki M90 for about four years, I never really considered getting another bike and never really had an interest in Harley-Davidson. A mate of mine needed to move and he asked If I would ride his Harley Rocker C to the new house which was only a couple of kilometres away.
I said, “No, you better ride the bike and I’ll take the car,” because his Harley is a one-of-a-kind with a lot of custom bits.
“Don’t stress, Tony,” he said. “Just ride it; you’ll be okay.”
When I arrived after the short ride the seed had been planted — there was no doubt whatsoever in my mind that I had to have a Harley.
So off I went to Central Coast Harley-Davidson and spoke to them about a V-Rod Muscle. They set me up with a demo bike and off I went. I liked the V-Rod but it just wasn’t what I was after. So I had a walk around the showroom floor and spotted the Wide Glide. Well, I gotta say, the rake on the Wide Glide sucked me right in.
“Let us send you out on one for another test ride,” they said.
I just loved the way it shook on idle when waiting for a green light. It felt like I imagined a Harley-Davidson should feel. I realised I had just found the bike for me.
I got back after an extra long test ride and the deal was done. A brand new FXDWG. Bye, bye, Suzuki M90.
Wanting to fit the Flame/Tribal collection from new, I spoke to a Tony in the Spare Parts Department at Central Coast Harley. He told me to pick the bike up as is, take home a copy of the huge Harley-Davidson Genuine Motor Parts & Accessories catalogue and take my time to pick right.
I am glad I listened to him because the more I looked through the catalogue, the more I liked the Edge Cut look. Plus H-D had the Magnum wheels to suit (wire wheels shit me with the cleaning).
So then I started buying everything in the book Edge Cut except the grips. I chose the Get-A-Grip grips; they are awesome.
The headlight got the flick; I fitted a bullet style Harley-Davidson one.
The turn signals got relocated to tidy up the handlebar/switch-block area.
Wide Glides are a cool and tuff looking bike so I ordered some beefy Burleigh handlebars through the boys at Central Coast H-D; the 1—3/4 inch bars did the trick. In my opinion, they changed the look of the bike immensely.
The front fender, as much as I tried to like it, reminded me of a Postie bike fender. Tony put me in touch with a local fabricator who made a whole new front fender and got it painted to match.
Next I was looking for a little more horsepower, so after talking it over with the boys in the Service Department, I decided to go with their suggestion: a Stage 3 kit, 295E cams, high comp pistons, high flow oil pump and cam plate. This was plenty for me and it sounds great with the V&H Big Shots.
The heavy breather with Edge Cut air cleaner cover performs and looks great.
I went with Progressive 430 rear shocks because of the Edge Cut look. I got Progressive front springs fitted also.
So for the best part — everything is Genuine Harley-Davidson except for the exhaust and suspension!
I am very happy with the way she has turned out. The Wide Glide’s design made me extremely happy when It took out Best Dyna at the Central Coast Harley bike show. Life throws some surprises at you and buying and customising this bike was one I did not see coming.
Photos by TS; words by Tony.
