In the world of AI slop, the prompt is king. The more instructions you feed any given AI model, the better your chances of achieving a somewhat passable result. And this is why AI will never replace the likes of Winston Yeh. As the creative force behind the legendary Taiwanese custom house Rough Crafts, Winston is accustomed to working with briefs that are virtually non-existent. Most of his clients simply ask for a build in his signature style, add one or two vague preferences, and leave it at that.
It’s unsurprising, given his portfolio. Often imitated, but never emulated, the Rough Crafts aesthetic sits at the intersection of brutality and luxury, melding monochromatic finishes and aggressive proportions with high-end finishes and top-shelf components. True to form, Winston’s latest client had very little to offer in the way of creative direction. With one murdered-out Rough Crafts build already in his garage, he asked for something in a lighter hue and mentioned that he liked choppers. Winston responded with a striking Harley chopper that’s loaded with slick details and atypical touches.
The bike started out as a 2024-model Harley-Davidson Softail Street Bob, but very little of the stock bike remains. “The goal was clear,” says Winston. “Recreate the essence of an old-school chopper, without sacrificing the precision and ride quality of today’s engineering.”
“I used to believe old school choppers are ‘supposed’ to be tough to ride—but it feels so good when one actually rides this well.” Winston operates Rough Crafts as a creative collective, working with a trusted network of craftspeople in and around his home base, Taipei. Rough Crafts’ go-to fabricator, JZO Crafts, was first up to the plate, with a laundry list of chassis mods to work through.
The first step was to eliminate the Street Bob’s stamped neck and square backbone frame. JZO welded in a tubular backbone, and then fabricated a new steering neck with a 2.5” rise and a 0.5” stretch. “We retained the stock 30-degree rake,” Winson adds, “resulting in a compact, purposeful stance that feels both aggressive and controlled.”
Next, JZO constructed a bespoke girder front end using a smorgasbord of CNC-machined, 3D-printed, and handmade pieces. Damping comes courtesy of a one-off Öhlins rear shock. The swingarm is still stock, but another Öhlins unit replaced the rear shock.The Harley rides on gorgeous 21F/18R Wheels from Fatboy Design in Thailand, shod with Metzeler Cruisetec rubber. Beringer supplied the brakes: a six-piston calliper at the front and a four-piston calliper at the back, with custom disc carriers at both ends.
The stance is flawless, but the details are even better. Winston called in Meister Powder Coating to powder-coat the chassis, opting for a two-tone effect that creates the appearance of a vintage lugged frame. The effect is echoed in the cockpit, which is dominated by a set of direct-mount Frisco-style bars. The setup is super sano, sporting little more than a set of Lowbrow Customs grips and Beringer controls. The foot controls are standard, but they’ve been treated to a full set of Rough Crafts pegs and nubs.
A small Motogadget speedo floats between the Harley’s massive cylinder heads on the left-hand side, cradled by a handmade bracket. The grilled headlight is a Rough Crafts part, and the LED indicators are the result of a collaboration between RC and KOSO. (The rear signals double up as taillights.)
The custom bodywork is as minimal as it is well-judged. A petite petrol tank sits up top, designed with Rough Crafts’ unmistakable scalloped sides and adorned with a Rough Crafts filler cap. Rich Phillips Seat Co. created the bobbed saddle, which floats just in front of an abbreviated ducktailed fender.
Eagle-eyed readers will notice that the Street Bob’s Harley-Davidson Milwaukee Eight engine is no longer stock. Rough Crafts upgraded it with a burly 128 ci big-bore kit from S&S Cycle, then dressed it in a set of ribbed covers from the Rough Crafts x Arlen Ness collection.
The air cleaner is from Rough Crafts’ catalogue of Harley-specific parts. It feeds an S&S Cycle Super E carb, installed with an Altmann carb conversion kit and an AMM-P3M8 ignition. “This setup brings raw, mechanical character back into a contemporary platform,” says Winston.
Other upgrades include a Baker hydraulic clutch housing, an open primary from Belt Drives Ltd., and a chain conversion with a RK Takasago chain and a custom-made KCT rear sprocket. A pair of elegant Rough Crafts exhausts completes the package.
As you’d expect from Winston and co., the curiously-named ‘Aeternum Blade’ is finished in style. Rover Works Custom Paint executed a stunning Nardo Grey livery, punctuated by immaculate silver-leaf graphics. Regular RC collaborator 2 Abnormal Sides came to the party too, creating a set of handmade pushrod collars and tank badges.
Captured in vivid detail by the talented and ever-friendly Kazuo Matsumoto, Rough Crafts’ chopper is a testament to how much Winston thrives when he’s given free rein. “Every element is intentional,” he adds. “Aeternum Blade is a love letter to chopper culture—refined through years of obsession and executed with modern precision.”
[ Rough Crafts | Words by Wes Reyneke | Images by Kazuo Matsumoto ]