I can't speak for any other builders out there, but for me, the custom world ideal...the image I see has nothing to do with the above. I didn't change careers at 28 and start an endless learning curve to copy anybody, or worse, put longer forks and a flame job on a stock bike and call it a f*#king "Chopper."
The hype is always the same...Custom Shop "X" doesn't care how anybody else does it. They're "artists" who create original works of rolling art and f*#k everything else.
Problem is, unless you're independently wealthy, the wildest "cutting edge" custom shop can only build what their customers are willing to pay for.
It costs a lot of money these days to make a shop work. Overhead is high and folks are so overrun with information that you gotta whack 'em over the head repeatedly with a really cool thing or they simply won't see it. Or buy it. Way too much of a custom shop's resources needs to be spent on image, marketing, and promotion. These are resources that could be spent creating amazing work. All that tap dancing gets expensive real fast, and a lot of good builders are getting lost out there because of that. In a perfect world...a custom world...a badass motorcycle should be enough. A customer with balls knows this.
This is the reality of "custom" culture.
Well, I'll tell ya, I don't care if it's always been this way. I don't care if this system makes the world go round. My secret dream is for every motherf*#ker who utters the word "custom" to be a wooly, uncompromising nut job with nerves of steel, not some gee whiz quiverpuss who "just wants a little something cool but not so cool they'll feel self conscious."
That's right. Call me crazy, but the next customer I meet will want a true custom that'll be the baddest motherf*#ker ever built, and I'm just the man for the job. They'll respect all the labor needed to develop the idea. They'll know that designing the thing is real work, same as welding, machining, painting, and assembly. They'll know the finest parts, tools, and materials are expensive and make a big difference. They won't bitch about it, either, or waste my time with tales of "Give me a deal and I'll get you lots of exposure."
Their checks won't bounce because they forgot to transfer money from their offshore accounts, and they won't try and take the work without paying, because... "Aw man, I just bought a jet boat and I'm tapped until my royalty check from Dubai gets here. You understand, right? Bro?"
Now c'mon, I ain't out to hurt nobody's feelings and I'll be the first one to say any motorcycle is neato in some way or another. But custom should transcend neato. Or, dare I say, custom should gouge out neato's eyes, then flay the meat from its bones and make jerky. That's all I'm saying.
So, if you're thinkin' of having a "custom" anything built, reach down deep in that soul of yours and reeeeally git after it. Don't listen to those f*#kin' advertising agencies, and screw the media, rationality, or common sense. Get in touch with the man inside the man. The man who wants to roll down the street on a motorcycle that'll cause women to throw their panties at you and every swingin' johnson within five miles to shrink like a freezing cold acorn. Don't throttle back. Don't compromise. Say the word custom and mean it, Jack. You'll thank me later...maybe not outwardly, but whatever.
You're welcome.