Photo: Bad Land
For motorcycle fans, there is no better way to start the week than by getting to know an exciting custom motorcycle, fresh out of the oven of one of the world's most famous custom two-wheeler bakeries. Enter the Harley-Davidson Gray Joe, made over in Japan by Bad Land.
You might not be able to recognize it, but the Gray Joe was once a Breakout. A rather new one, meaning a 2022 model year, the likes of which European riders can still get their hands on (America only offers the 2023 model year with a 117 engine in the frame).
Not much of its original self is left, though, as the Japanese seem to have been determined to kill everything visually Breakout about the bike and transform it into something we don't often see: a cold, unforgiving bike that inspires borderline fear.
Responsible for that perception is the lack of many of the body parts fitted on the original bike. There is no front fender, no rear fender, no covers on the sides, and, above all, no paint anywhere to soften up the viciousness of the ride.
It's the wheels of the bike that capture all the attention, like someone shouting during a tennis match. They are of DNA Speciality make, and come in rather decent size for a build of this scope: 23 inches at the front, and 21 inches at the rear.
Those are dimensions we've come across before, even from Bad Land, so we're not particularly hyped about that. What does get the blood pumping is the heavy look of each of the two wheels, made so by no less than 52 spokes going across each of their radius. A heavy look that was made even more hard to bear by the dirty-looking, perfectly suited Metzeler tires.
The tires and stripping the Breakout of body parts are not the only changes made by Bad Land. Up front, a springer-style fork was fitted, two inches longer than the original.
The list of one-off parts that made it onto the build includes the handlebar, seat plate, side mount bracket for the license plate, and, of course, the fuel tank propped on top of the frame. Next to the wheels, this element of raw metal is another wow factor on the ride.
The Breakout remains unaltered in the engine departments, still rocking the 114 engine. There is a new exhaust system in lieu of the original one, of course, and that was supplied by Vance & Hines.
The Harley-Davidson Gray Joe is one of the most recent bikes shown by Bad Land, but just like many others before it, it does not come with any price sticker attached. For reference, a 2023 Breakout sells off the Harley lot for $20,999.
Not much of its original self is left, though, as the Japanese seem to have been determined to kill everything visually Breakout about the bike and transform it into something we don't often see: a cold, unforgiving bike that inspires borderline fear.
Responsible for that perception is the lack of many of the body parts fitted on the original bike. There is no front fender, no rear fender, no covers on the sides, and, above all, no paint anywhere to soften up the viciousness of the ride.
It's the wheels of the bike that capture all the attention, like someone shouting during a tennis match. They are of DNA Speciality make, and come in rather decent size for a build of this scope: 23 inches at the front, and 21 inches at the rear.
Those are dimensions we've come across before, even from Bad Land, so we're not particularly hyped about that. What does get the blood pumping is the heavy look of each of the two wheels, made so by no less than 52 spokes going across each of their radius. A heavy look that was made even more hard to bear by the dirty-looking, perfectly suited Metzeler tires.
The tires and stripping the Breakout of body parts are not the only changes made by Bad Land. Up front, a springer-style fork was fitted, two inches longer than the original.
The list of one-off parts that made it onto the build includes the handlebar, seat plate, side mount bracket for the license plate, and, of course, the fuel tank propped on top of the frame. Next to the wheels, this element of raw metal is another wow factor on the ride.
The Breakout remains unaltered in the engine departments, still rocking the 114 engine. There is a new exhaust system in lieu of the original one, of course, and that was supplied by Vance & Hines.
The Harley-Davidson Gray Joe is one of the most recent bikes shown by Bad Land, but just like many others before it, it does not come with any price sticker attached. For reference, a 2023 Breakout sells off the Harley lot for $20,999.
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