Photo: Bad Land
Back in the day when people did not know how to build bikes, something we now refer to as penny-farthing, or high wheel, came about. That would be strange contraptions with an extremely large wheel up front, and a tiny-by-comparison one at the rear that kind of made people look like they were moving about on some mutated variant of stilts.
The monstrosities were so strange that about a decade after their rise, in the 1870s, they disappeared, and were replaced by conventional-looking bicycles, pretty much the ones we have on the roads now. That means this strange way of building a two-wheeler never got to reach the motorcycle age.
That doesn’t mean people do not stick large wheels on motorcycles. They’re not as large as those on penny-farthings, sure, and when they are used, they’re placed at the end of very long forks, in a very careful balance that gives the entire build some sense.
The 2008 Harley-Davidson Dyna we have here didn’t quite make it on the right side of said balance. Sure, it looks right from some angles, but from others, the short distance and big size difference between the wheels make it look strange.
The bike is officially called Dyna Grace, and it’s described as a super high-end custom by the shop that made it, Japanese Bad Land. We nicknamed it Rodder, on account of the name of its wheels, provided by Rick's Motorcycles.
The one at the front, sitting under a Bad Land custom fender and wearing Avon rubber, is a five-spoke chunk of cold metal 23 inches in size. The one at the rear on the other hand comes in at just 18-inches and is wrapped in a Metzeler tire.
Bad Land topped the wheels with hardware made both in-house, and by others. The Japanese are responsible for the handlebar, fenders, and fuel tank, while another major garage, Thunderbike, supplied the foot control kit, and air cleaner. At the other end, the bike exhales through an AS Industries exhaust system.
As for the price of this peculiar machine, first shown in 2016, Bad Land does not say how much it spent on converting it.
That doesn’t mean people do not stick large wheels on motorcycles. They’re not as large as those on penny-farthings, sure, and when they are used, they’re placed at the end of very long forks, in a very careful balance that gives the entire build some sense.
The 2008 Harley-Davidson Dyna we have here didn’t quite make it on the right side of said balance. Sure, it looks right from some angles, but from others, the short distance and big size difference between the wheels make it look strange.
The bike is officially called Dyna Grace, and it’s described as a super high-end custom by the shop that made it, Japanese Bad Land. We nicknamed it Rodder, on account of the name of its wheels, provided by Rick's Motorcycles.
The one at the front, sitting under a Bad Land custom fender and wearing Avon rubber, is a five-spoke chunk of cold metal 23 inches in size. The one at the rear on the other hand comes in at just 18-inches and is wrapped in a Metzeler tire.
Bad Land topped the wheels with hardware made both in-house, and by others. The Japanese are responsible for the handlebar, fenders, and fuel tank, while another major garage, Thunderbike, supplied the foot control kit, and air cleaner. At the other end, the bike exhales through an AS Industries exhaust system.
As for the price of this peculiar machine, first shown in 2016, Bad Land does not say how much it spent on converting it.
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