Photo: Bad Land
It's not clear who thought of fitting a wide rear tire on a motorcycle first, but custom bike lovers should thank them for that. After all, without such insane ideas, builds like the one called Black Mass would have been far less impressive.
Black Mass is the post-conversion name of a two-wheeler that started out life on this planet as a Harley-Davidson Night Train. That would be that kind of Softail machine the Milwaukee company has made between 1998 and 2009, one that grew to become one of the favorite platforms for shops all over the world.
This one was handled all the way in Japan by a crew we constantly cover, Bad Land. It's not a new build by any measure, having first surfaced back in 2011, at a time when the Night Train was still fresh in everyone's memory. Yet it still is interesting enough to have earned its 15 minutes of fame on autoevolution this Sunday.
It's not entirely clear where the name of the custom took inspiration from, but there's a good chance it has something to do with the fact it looks like a beautifully sculpted hunk of darkness. And all the aftermarket elements fitted on it contribute to that image.
The main elements of the build, if you ask me, are the thing's wheels. They are both of a design we've seen before, Super Steves put together by Bad Land's favorite partner in this department, Rick's Motorcycles. The one at the front is 18 inches in diameter, while the one at the rear just an inch smaller. It is, however, much larger, almost at the top of allowed width for a road-going two-wheeler: 330 mm.
It is this large size that makes the bike not only stand out, but also ties the rest of the project together. It perfectly fits in with the message the build is trying to send across, appearing like the center of a black hole pinned to a very dark sky.
Elsewhere, Bad Land fitted a new headlight made by Speed Point, an AS Industries front fork, and a Parker fuel tank. The engine has not been mechanically enhanced, but it does come with an AS Industries exhaust. The front and rear controls are of Performance Machine make, while Bad Land itself contributed the handlebar and the two fenders.
Like all other bikes made by Bad Land, the Black Mass was put together for a customer, meaning it's a one-off project. It's not clear what roads it currently roams, but it still probably turns some heads wherever that is. One aspect about it, the price, will probably never become public knowledge – unless, of course, it pops up for sale somewhere, with a tag attached, and then we'll get an idea about that as well.
This one was handled all the way in Japan by a crew we constantly cover, Bad Land. It's not a new build by any measure, having first surfaced back in 2011, at a time when the Night Train was still fresh in everyone's memory. Yet it still is interesting enough to have earned its 15 minutes of fame on autoevolution this Sunday.
It's not entirely clear where the name of the custom took inspiration from, but there's a good chance it has something to do with the fact it looks like a beautifully sculpted hunk of darkness. And all the aftermarket elements fitted on it contribute to that image.
The main elements of the build, if you ask me, are the thing's wheels. They are both of a design we've seen before, Super Steves put together by Bad Land's favorite partner in this department, Rick's Motorcycles. The one at the front is 18 inches in diameter, while the one at the rear just an inch smaller. It is, however, much larger, almost at the top of allowed width for a road-going two-wheeler: 330 mm.
It is this large size that makes the bike not only stand out, but also ties the rest of the project together. It perfectly fits in with the message the build is trying to send across, appearing like the center of a black hole pinned to a very dark sky.
Elsewhere, Bad Land fitted a new headlight made by Speed Point, an AS Industries front fork, and a Parker fuel tank. The engine has not been mechanically enhanced, but it does come with an AS Industries exhaust. The front and rear controls are of Performance Machine make, while Bad Land itself contributed the handlebar and the two fenders.
Like all other bikes made by Bad Land, the Black Mass was put together for a customer, meaning it's a one-off project. It's not clear what roads it currently roams, but it still probably turns some heads wherever that is. One aspect about it, the price, will probably never become public knowledge – unless, of course, it pops up for sale somewhere, with a tag attached, and then we'll get an idea about that as well.
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