As one of its pre-eminent voices, Winston Yeh’s contribution to the modern custom motorcycle scene is undeniable. But where does he draw influence for his Rough Crafts creations from" This custom Harley Fat Boy offers a surprising clue.
?I’m a huge fan of the chopper era,? Winston tells us from his studio in Taipei, Taiwan. ?West Coast Choppers, Motorcycle Mania, Biker Build-Off; these were my heroes when I was still in school. The wild, fat rear tire, high handlebars, and Frisco tank look was the pinnacle of badass-ness for me.?

Winston’s custom Harleys are far removed from the raked-out, gaudy made-for-TV choppers of yesteryear. But if you ask him, those old-school machines are never far from his mind. It’s why the Rough Crafts aesthetic rides the line between old and new so well. It’s also why, when given free rein by his latest customer, Winston decided to explore the idea of a modern chopper-inspired performance cruiser. ?The customer came to my shop,? he tells us, ?pointed at one of my Softail builds, and said ‘How can you top that one"’ The only rule was that the riding position needed to be easygoing?but, other than that, it was basically an open brief.?

?That said, with Taiwan’s super-strict rule of no frame modifications I technically couldn’t call it a chopper, since I wouldn’t be chopping anything. So I set out to create as much of a chopper vibe as possible with the stock geometry. The ...