We tend to be afraid of what we don?t understand, shying away from things that are ‘different’ or ‘foreign.’ Even something as lovely as this all-aluminum motorcycle from Enrico de Haas of Germany?s Wannabe-Choppers is hated by some?simply because it has an electric powertrain.
?Sometimes I?m even happy about the bullshit,? says a smiling Ricky, who founded Wannabe-Choppers at 15 with the aim of one day creating a completely scratch-built motorcycle. (Seriously: His shop recently started making grips in order to learn more about rubber manufacturing and use that knowledge to produce tires.)

Ricky and his team built this rigid EV for the exclusive European Biker Build-Off. For a decade he?d wanted to build an electric bike, but he didn?t think it would be the right fit for this particular event. Instead, he pursued another idea: creating a bespoke combustion engine and mounting it in a one-off frame. Soon, though, Ricky realized he didn?t have the time to bring his ambitious vision to life, so he steered back toward the electric bike. ?This bike?its stance, the way it looks?is something I had in my mind for a long time,? says Ricky. ?It was just something in my head I needed to get out.?

He borrowed a jig and positioned a bare, straight-leg Knucklehead frame on the table next to him, drawing inspiration from it as he tacked up a one-off, all-aluminum frame. He picked up a hub motor from a wrecked electric bike (Ricky refuses to reveal what model...