Photo: Fredy Jaates
Courtesy of a very intense TV series called American Chopper, millions of people got a taste of what being a custom motorcycle builder is all about. For many, the show, which was centered around the Teutuls and their Orange County Choppers (OCC) business, marked the start of an undying love for all motorized contraptions on two wheels.
Presently, OCC is still around, although not as in the spotlight as it once was, and far less motorcycle-oriented than it used to be - trying to take advantage of the long-ago fame, it mostly sells apparel and such, and does the occasional podcasts.
For reasons I cannot fully explain, the custom Harley-Davidson V-Rod we have here brought OCC right back into my memory. Maybe it’s the flashy orange color (a childish reason, I know) sprayed over the thing’s fenders, frame or fuel tank, or the overall shape of the bike, reminiscent of some of the builds the garage once made, and with a very American feel to it.
Now, OCC never really handled V-Rods, as it preferred to build things from the ground up and mostly in the form of choppers. In fact, American custom garages do not like this particular breed of Harleys enough to focus on them, but over in Europe, things are entirely different.
These past few days, we’ve talked aplenty about V-Rods made in Estonia by someone named Fredy Jaates, and we decided to end the week with a blast by bringing to light this orange madness based on a 2002 VRSCA.
Propped like all other Fredy Jaates builds on 18-inch wheels, the thing looks much wider than your stock V-Rod thanks to the extra bits of body added in there, like the fenders, covers, fuel tank, or 300 mm wide rear tire.
Mechanically, the engine remains the stock one, but other bits were improved, replaced, or added, including the front fork lowering kit, Legend air suspension, brake hardware, or seat.
The price of the build was not revealed, of course, as Europeans seldom do that, but don’t go thinking that if this Jaates guy is far less famous than Paul Teutul this thing should somewhat be cheap.
For reasons I cannot fully explain, the custom Harley-Davidson V-Rod we have here brought OCC right back into my memory. Maybe it’s the flashy orange color (a childish reason, I know) sprayed over the thing’s fenders, frame or fuel tank, or the overall shape of the bike, reminiscent of some of the builds the garage once made, and with a very American feel to it.
Now, OCC never really handled V-Rods, as it preferred to build things from the ground up and mostly in the form of choppers. In fact, American custom garages do not like this particular breed of Harleys enough to focus on them, but over in Europe, things are entirely different.
These past few days, we’ve talked aplenty about V-Rods made in Estonia by someone named Fredy Jaates, and we decided to end the week with a blast by bringing to light this orange madness based on a 2002 VRSCA.
Propped like all other Fredy Jaates builds on 18-inch wheels, the thing looks much wider than your stock V-Rod thanks to the extra bits of body added in there, like the fenders, covers, fuel tank, or 300 mm wide rear tire.
Mechanically, the engine remains the stock one, but other bits were improved, replaced, or added, including the front fork lowering kit, Legend air suspension, brake hardware, or seat.
The price of the build was not revealed, of course, as Europeans seldom do that, but don’t go thinking that if this Jaates guy is far less famous than Paul Teutul this thing should somewhat be cheap.
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