5 Custom Harley-Davidson Bikes to Remember This Week: Breakouts, Fat Boys, and a Sportster

You see, most of the time we're running individual stories on each of these modified American two-wheelers. At times though you can't get a comprehensive look at what's going on in the industry if you don't have the means to compare these projects.

So we decided that at the beginning of each week we'll have a centralized look at some of the best projects we discuss in the week prior. A "best of" list if you like of all the two-wheeled wonders we discover daily in this world, because they certainly deserve it.

And we'll start with a look back at what we discussed in the week of August 7 – 13, more precisely two Breakouts, an equal number of Fat Boys, and a Sportster.

5. Harley-Davidson Full Block

No Limit Custom (NLC) is one of the biggest names of the Harley-Davidson custom scene. Based in Germany, these guys are part producers, customizers, and generally speaking a badass crew when it comes to the machines they roll out.

Last week we brought under the spotlight a project of theirs called Full Block. Originally a Breakout of an unspecified model year, it underwent a radical visual transformation centered around the impression of raw aluminum.

The metal was used (and left to shine with no coat of painting the kind we're used to) on things like the front spoiler, fuel tank, and rear fender. Under the former piece of hardware, a custom wheel of undisclosed diameter sits supported by a swingarm.

The engine of the Breakout is the same one from the factory, but a custom exhaust system is now used to ensure breathing needs.

The total cost of the Harley-Davidson Full Block is not known, but NLC does list some of the parts that went into the project, and they all amount to $16k euros (close to $18,000).

4. Harley-Davidson Saalbach

Sportsters are some of the most widespread Harleys on this planet. The bike is currently selling as a refreshed model, but it's the older ones that still make the headlines in the custom world.

The Saalbach is a custom ride based on a Sportster 883 and was put together by German garage Kodlin on behalf of a crew of Austrians that organize each year in the Austrian Alps an insane biker meeting called Biker Mania.

The defining element of the bike is the paint job, a combination of black and yellow meant to highlight what a good racer the Sportster could have been. Visual upgrades include the fitting of a custom chin spoiler, rear fender, and seat.

The stock engine spins Roland Sands Design wheels and breathes through an exhaust system supplied by the same parts maker.

The total cost of this build, or that of the parts that went into it, is not known.

3. Harley-Davidson Melk No. 38

Coming before us from all the way in France is a nameless Breakout that looks as dark as night itself. It's the work of a garage called Melk, the crew's 38th bike ever made, and a testimony to their roots as a paint shop.

Released at the end of July 2023, the Breakout got new wheels, customer fenders to cover them, and a modified fuel tank. The wheels are aftermarket too, with the rear one coming in at 260 mm wide, and supported by an air suspension system.

The engine in the frame is the original one, only enhanced by means of an S&S Stage II kit. Breathing got a boost as well, with the installation of a Dr. Jekill & Mr. Hyde exhaust system and a Vance & Hines air filter.

The cost of the Harley-Davidson Melk No. 38 is the highest in our entire list, coming in at around $50,000. That's more than a Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack.

2. Harley-Davidson The Street Belongs to Me

Some custom Harleys are so extreme in nature that the people responsible for them include this trait right into the bike's name. That's what the Swiss from Bundnerbike did with this heavily modified Fat Boy called The Street Belongs to Me.

Stripped of the factory chrome and drowned in black with very visible checkered flag highlights in gold, the ride makes use of a large 300 mm wide tire at the rear wrapped in an 18-inch rim, obviously in the same copper-spoke design as the one at the front.

The bodywork devised for the Fat Boy includes a bulky fuel tank, the rear panel, and custom fenders. The seat is free-standing, as the fuel tank is not connected in any way to the rear side of the motorcycle.

Inside the bike's frame sits the original Milwaukee-Eight 114 engine running what appears to be the stock exhaust system.

The price of the Harley-Davidson The Street Belongs to Me was not made public.

1. Harley-Davidson Green Booster

Europe has a lot of custom motorcycle garages doing wonderful work, but few of them come even close to what the Germans from Thunderbike have to offer. And it's them we have to thank for the Green Booster.

Also a Fat Boy at its origins, the bike is a subtle nod to another great name of German engineering, Mercedes-AMG. It comes in the form of the bike's paint, a color known to drivers of high-performance cars made in Germany under the name as Olive Metallic.

The Green Booster was enhanced in other ways as well, more specifically with the fitting on equally sized (21 inches) wheels wrapped in Metzeler rubber, an air ride suspension system, and a single-side swingarm for the rear.

The Fat Boy's engine was bettered with the fitting of a Dr. Jekill & Mr. Hyde exhaust system and not much else.

In this case too we have no idea what the total cost of the build is, but we do get a sense of it thanks to the listing of parts used in the build. They all amount to about $17,500, but that does not include the exhaust system, the man hours, and the AMG paint job.