It?s barely been a month since Harley-Davidson announced they were ending the Evolution-powered Sportster line, but great custom examples continue to roll out of workshops. It?s easy to see why?the versatile Evo Sportster is one of the cheapest bikes in the Harley lineup, and lends itself well to customization. Plus Sporty owners are constantly drowning in the millions of aftermarket parts available to them.
One man who knows both Sportsters and aftermarket parts well is 23-year-old Huang Jiahuan, from Kunming in China?s Yunnan Province. It?s not often we see custom bikes from China, let alone from someone as young as Jiahuan. So it?s great to see the scene alive and well.

Working out of his workshop, Sowing Garage, Jiahuan spends most of his time manufacturing parts, rather than building full-on custom bikes. But the stars aligned recently, and Jiahuan was asked by a customer in Beijing to do a full rework on his 2018-model Harley-Davidson Sportster. ?The majority of Chinese chopper lovers still have a hard time doing it themselves?even if I supply them with the right parts,? says Jiahuan. ?I rarely see Chinese mainland custom bikes on Bike EXIF, so I started wondering if I could do it myself.?

The plan was to build a slim chop that could slip through the crowded capital city streets, all while retaining some classic chopper aesthetics. ?We wanted Eastern and Western cultures to collide?and it had to be functional. A good-looking vintage bike sitting still on display...