Custom Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail Is the Definition of Starting Over
Custom Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail is the very definition of starting over, as it was crushed before work even began.
Among the sea of custom motorcycle builders out there, Majik Mike Rabideau is one of the more notable, as he has churned out his fair share of award-winning creations over the years. That was once again set to be the case when a customer approached Rabideau with a request to build a custom 1995 Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail, with an eye toward entering it in the 2025 Motul Hot Bike Tour. However, disaster struck this particular project before it could even get off the ground.
As Rabideau recently explained to Hot Bike, his industrial lathe tipped over, landing directly on top of the Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail and destroying every single one of its body panels in the process. That would be enough to simultaneously crush the spirit of most, but not this previous Hot Bike Build-Off winner – rather, that only motivated him to get started on the project.
The owner actually sent him a bunch of requests as to how to proceed, but that isn’t how Rabideau rolls – rather, he simply informed him to trust the process, and provided no updates or photos along the way. Thus, he proceeded to chop the frame, drop the seat, relocate the swingarm, reimagine the tank design, and reshape the rear section before coming up with a unique paint combo in conjunction with Ryan of Count’s Kustoms fame.
Just like the TV show that made that shop famous, this build was finished literally the day before the 2025 Motul Hot Bike Tour, taking things right down to the wire. It was also the first time the owner got to see his brand new build, and put its very first few miles on the odometer, too. Luckily, the owner was blown away with Rabideau’s work, and the ride went off without a hitch – even though he didn’t exactly take it easy.
Outside of the paint collab, every single thing that has been done to this bike – including all of its custom fabricated bits – was done by the builder himself, which is one of the many reasons why he’s quickly become one of the more respected in the business.
Photos: Hot Bike
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