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There once was a guy named Kyle Willis who rode a beautiful '98 H-D Heritage Softail. He loved his bike and rode it everywhere he went, until one day he parked it in a lot and an older couple backed into the front end and tore it all to hell. This horrible event did something to Kyle, not just to his bike but to his very soul. He called his friend Bandit, owner of Bandit Bikes, LLC in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and asked him if he'd pick up the pieces of his beloved Harley from the storage yard and rebuild it. Bandit (who pays the insurance deductible for anyone who rides a Harley) went and got it. He had some ideas about the rebuild, and got Kyle's blessing on the whole deal.

Bandit pieced the bike back together, putting a DNA Springer front end on it and adding an extra wide 16-inch front tire. He removed the front fender, added apes and Vance & Hines Longshots, and reworked the electrical system, among other things. He then started in on a wickedly beautiful orange and yellow flame paint job. "I really like that paint," he said, "but it was probably my last paint project, because everyone in my shop complained so much about the fumes. Now I use contractors."

But the paint was beautiful, the rebuild was beautiful, and Bandit fell in love. Kyle had been so traumatized by the old couple crushing his bike that he asked Bandit if he wanted to buy it, and he jumped at the chance. Kyle was still in love with his Heritage though, and seeing Bandit with his new and improved bike was a little like seeing your ex-girlfriend with a new man. He asked to buy the bike back, and Bandit let her go.

If you love a Harley, set it free. If you really love it, your mechanic may just sell it back to you.

Content Provided by Barnett Harley Davidson

 

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