The third weekend of April marked the return of two-wheeled celebrations of speed and style to Austin, Texas. MotoGP races were taking place at the nearby Circuit of the Americas racetrack, while downtown Austin hosted the annual celebration of motorcycle art and design at the Handbuilt Motorcycle Show.

Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Open late for all to enjoy, the show attracted many MotoGP fans after racing activities wrapped up at the Circuit of the America’s racetrack.  

The Handbuilt show returned to the cavernous underbelly warehouse of the Austin American-Statesman newspaper building for its eighth season. With more than 100,000 square feet of space, Handbuilt has grown from just a bike show into a cultural event that attracted 150 bike builders and thousands of onlookers from every slice of life. There was a large outdoor stage backdropped by the Austin city skyline with a nonstop lineup of bands and DJS, and attendees were entertained with a sportbike stunt show and the Ives Brothers Wall of Death.

Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
The elongated and simple lines of “Aerotracker,” a stunning creation of Richard Dozer from Kentucky, wowed the crowd. The vintage F-Head Harley-Davidson powerplant is framed like a jewel. 

The star of the Handbuilt Show is, of course, the collection of custom motorcycles and a few hotrods. Bikes came from all over America, as well as Canada and Mexico, and one even traveled from South Africa! A wide range of bikes were on display, and the curators have made it their mission to include variety in the show. There were motorcycles from champion builders and home-built creations alike.

Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
The high ceilings and industrial finish of the cavernous warehouse under the Austin American-Statesman building provided an ideal setting for the show. The final placement of the bikes is mapped out by Alan Stulberg, the founder of Revival Cycles and the Handbuilt Motorcycle show. 

We’ll bring you all the details and plenty of pictures of bikes seen at the show in American Rider’s June issue. Enjoy this taste of epic builds from Handbuilt below, and be sure to catch the full story in June! Subscribe here.

Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
The Allah-Las closed out the weekend with a chilled-out groove befitting an event held in the laid-back city of Austin. 
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Makoto Endo spent the weekend painting this beautiful rendition of a 1928 BMW R62. Endo’s unique method of laying down Indian inks with chopsticks creates a recognizable style of his own.  
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Every piece of exposed metal on Tim Scates’ Harley build was chromed and then “hand-satined,” a laborious process with smooth, glowing results.
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Cody and Kyle, aka “The Ives Brothers,” in their motodrome of speed known as The Wall of Death. 
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
This 1947 Harley-Davidson EL was ridden by owner Russell Becker in the Cross Country Chase featured in our January issue.  
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
The quality of this Shovelhead bobber took this young fan’s breath away. 
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Scrutinizing a clean design with cables and wires all hidden and tucked away.
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
A gorgeous Indian hillclimber.  
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Neat and tidy and exquisitely finished. 
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Simple elegance was a strong theme across the bike builds this year, like this Panhead Springer with all control cables and wires hidden from view. 
Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
There’s a lot to look at on “Voodoo Doll,” a creation of Charlie Giordano of Tailgunner Parts & Accessories. 

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