AMD 256 November 2020 American Motorcycle Dealer 256 Nov 2020 | Page 58

There was a time back in the 1980s when , ' Swedish Style ' long-fork choppers aside , the European custom motorcycle market followed trends in the United States slavishly - the dominance of the ' West Coast ' lowrider style as the market headed into the 1990s was a case in point . But that was the decade when everything changed - the emergence of the socalled ' Euro Style ' Streetfighter styling from the ' metric ' sportsbike market and the unmistakably German ' Fat Rear End ' phenomena and the tire wars it stimulated were cases in point . As the 21st century dawned , European builders started to diversify platforms , led the way with what became the ' Retro Vibe ', and the morphing of Bobbers into Scramblers and Trackers , the Café comeback and the ' Alt Moto ' scene all became the new orthodoxy of a market that now welcomes everything and anything - from Choppers to Baggers , from old to new , so long as it is authentic it ' s cool - especially in the case of the ' AMD ', where all school is cool school . One part of the market where Europe has not imitated , followed or adopted the United States custom scene though has been Baggers . Europe does have some superb Bagger builders , but the riding styles , roads and road conditions in Europe just do not , generally , reward them as much as U . S . riding opportunities do .

However , when Europe does produce Baggers , they are exquisite and of universally admired quality - both in terms of design and craftsmanship . One such is ' Bloody Mary ' by Aldo and Angelo Lanciano of American Dreams fame in Italy . Voted into 17th place by fellow competitors at the ' AMD ' in 2018 , this is a Twin Cam ( bored out to 107 ") with a superb handcrafted 32 " front wheel by JoNich in Italy and an American Dreams ' Super Stretch ' 42 degree rake frame / swingarm combo . JoNich wheels are handbuilt , top-end designs using INOX stainless steel , M6 or M9 spokes , Borrani high-grade aluminum rims spun from a single billet and 6082- T6 one-piece CNC-machined hubs . JoNich says it is the only custom motorcycle wheel builder in the world that uses the super-thick M9 spoke - the same used on the classic Ferrari sports cars . www . americandreams . it

58 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - NOVEMBER 2020 www . AMDcha