Photo: Melk
The rather large range of Softail motorcycles offered by American bike maker Harley-Davidson is continuously shifting and transforming as the behemoth tries to keep up with the times. That means cutting or adding bikes to the lineup quite often in a bid for the company to keep at the front of the pack.
One of the Softail bikes that can no longer be had in new model year configuration is the FXDR. The rather recent Rewire strategy, implemented successfully as per Harley at the beginning of 2021, meant the discontinuation of several Softails, including the FXDR and Breakout.
Of course, if you insist on it you could still get the FXDR over in Europe, where its 2020 model year incarnation is still listed, but over in the U.S. the official offering for the model is limited to spare parts. Or, as an alternative, you could head over to one of the many custom motorcycle shops out there who are in the business of remaking FXDRs, reselling them as better incarnations of their former selves.
We found one such example sitting on the list of bikes offered by French garage Melk. We’re talking about a 2018 FXDR wearing the usual complement of modifications Melk supplies, from remade mechanical bits to new paint and decorations.
Nicknamed The Destroyer (and not connected in any other way to the infamous V-Rod made by Harley with the same name, for track use), the FXDR keeps to its sporty nature while looking like a more modern motorcycle.
First and foremost, Melk Is a paint shop, and that’s visible on this two-wheeler as well. Then Destroyer wears two shades of dark colors, vivid black and light gray, applied in gradient over the most important body elements. They are aided in their visual impact by graphic elements in painted leaf silver, most visible on the bike’s bar and shield logo and emblems, which spell both the Harley-Davidson name and the bike’s number in Melk’s portfolio, the unlucky-for-most, probably lucky-for the-shop number 13.
Before applying the paint job a lot of changes were made though to the FXDR. New parts were brought on board, including aftermarket bits supplied by Harley itself (stuff like the Screamin’ Eagle exhaust, drag handlebar, or risers) but also elements supplied by third parties, like the Arlen Ness air filter, Performance Machine grips and footrest, and Thunderbike LED lights, suspension adjuster, and belt covers.
The engine of the bike is still the original 114, enhanced by slapping a Stage 1 kit onto it and performing a remapping.
As usual when it comes to its builds, Melk does not say anything about how much it cost to put this thing together, but does say the model (most likely this type of conversion than the actual bike you see here) is available for order.
Of course, if you insist on it you could still get the FXDR over in Europe, where its 2020 model year incarnation is still listed, but over in the U.S. the official offering for the model is limited to spare parts. Or, as an alternative, you could head over to one of the many custom motorcycle shops out there who are in the business of remaking FXDRs, reselling them as better incarnations of their former selves.
We found one such example sitting on the list of bikes offered by French garage Melk. We’re talking about a 2018 FXDR wearing the usual complement of modifications Melk supplies, from remade mechanical bits to new paint and decorations.
Nicknamed The Destroyer (and not connected in any other way to the infamous V-Rod made by Harley with the same name, for track use), the FXDR keeps to its sporty nature while looking like a more modern motorcycle.
First and foremost, Melk Is a paint shop, and that’s visible on this two-wheeler as well. Then Destroyer wears two shades of dark colors, vivid black and light gray, applied in gradient over the most important body elements. They are aided in their visual impact by graphic elements in painted leaf silver, most visible on the bike’s bar and shield logo and emblems, which spell both the Harley-Davidson name and the bike’s number in Melk’s portfolio, the unlucky-for-most, probably lucky-for the-shop number 13.
Before applying the paint job a lot of changes were made though to the FXDR. New parts were brought on board, including aftermarket bits supplied by Harley itself (stuff like the Screamin’ Eagle exhaust, drag handlebar, or risers) but also elements supplied by third parties, like the Arlen Ness air filter, Performance Machine grips and footrest, and Thunderbike LED lights, suspension adjuster, and belt covers.
The engine of the bike is still the original 114, enhanced by slapping a Stage 1 kit onto it and performing a remapping.
As usual when it comes to its builds, Melk does not say anything about how much it cost to put this thing together, but does say the model (most likely this type of conversion than the actual bike you see here) is available for order.
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