Hi Ho Silver Harley-Davidson Buell

CRAIG’S BIKE started its motoring life as an ’05 Buell XB12R. Now anyone who knows their Buells will tell ya that these bikes broke a few of the rules: the oil tank was incorporated into the rear swingarm, the fuel was stored in the alloy beam frame and the front wheel sported a perimeter brake rotor that was mounted to the rim of the front wheel, not the hub. The bikes had a tough stance and went like a shower of shit. A pretty damn radical sort of bike, but not radical enough for Craig who has owned the Buell since new and has made the bike earn its keep since he first rode her out of the showroom.

A decision was made to give the Buell a makeover so it would stand out in the pack without going down the road of the more traditional styled custom theme.

The Buell now sports this stand-out alloy body-work that was hand-fabricated by Shane at Aliweld in Virginia, Brisbane. More than 200 hours of painstaking work went into the creation of this masterpiece using only a guillotine, welder and hammer. Virtually all the plastics were replaced with Shane’s alloy handy-work except for the lower chin fairing which is soon to get the alloy treatment as well.

Other mods to the bike include a Rizoma front pulley cover, hand grips and bar-end mirrors, wave brake rotors, Synto levers, GPR steering damper, Oberon uni-directional indicators, and a chain-drive conversion with four different final drive sprockets for all occasions. 

A suede leather seat takes care of the minimal posterior comfort department and the pillion doesn’t even get a look in.

The Jardine Titanium pipe/Reverso Race style exhaust system is tucked away nicely and exits behind the front wheel.

Custom mods include the airbox with twin scoops, oil catch can, chromed side cover, rubber (legal) slider spikes; and that large bump on the top cowl is a tidy home for a Nitrous wet-shot bottle for 25 hp of extra fun.

Much of the spanner work was performed by Craig but he can’t speak highly enough of Shane at Aliweld for the alloy body-work, Clean Image Alloy Polishing at Clontarf, and special thanks goes to Rollies Speed Shop for the ECM mapping and the dyno work. 

All this adds up to one wild looking Buell that has pushed a few of the conventional boundaries when it comes to customising one of Harley-Davidson’s race-bred machines. Obviously the judges and the spectators at the Concourse By The Bay bike show were of the same opinion. This bike not only rolled out of the show with the first place Street Special trophy under its belt but also scored the converted People’s Choice award as well. Not bad with the high quality of bikes that take part in this show each year. Good on ya, Craig. It goes to show there is no real rule book on what ya can or can’t do when it comes to personalising your ride. Should be more of it, I reckon!

Pics by Jo; words by Chuck U Farley