Once I’ve completed the arduous task of poring over our statistics to compile our list of the year’s most popular custom motorcycles, I have the even more onerous task of selecting my personal favorites. Given the caliber of the custom builders that grace these pages, it’s a tall order.
Each year’s routine is the same, starting with a ‘short’ list of 30-plus bikes. Once that’s trimmed down to a more palatable size, I eliminate any bikes that have already placed in our ranked Top 10, in the interest of fairness. The remaining candidates are sifted to compile my final selection—which is listed alphabetically, by the builder or workshop’s name.
All of the bikes on this list share one trait: they’ve been stuck in my head all year, playing on repeat like mechanical earworms.…