Back Street Heroes

Back Street Heroes is the UK’s biggest-selling and best custom bike magazine. We cover all styles of custom bikes and the custom biker lifestyle.

G’DAY, AND WELCOME TO THIS, THE NEW ISSUE OF BSH!

VALLEY BOBBERS • JUST LIKE BUSES, YOU WAIT FOR AGES TO SEE A WELSH XS650, AND THEN TWO TURN UP AT ONCE! WELL, ACTUALLY, NOTHING LIKE BUSES – THEY’RE SINGLE-SEATERS, NOT 56-SEATERS; THEY’RE TINY AND LOVELY-LOOKING, NOT MAHOOSIVE AND FUGLY; AND THEY’RE NOT COVERED IN DIRT, OLD CHEWING GUM, AND SPIT. I’LL LET LEIF AND TONY TELL YOU ABOUT THEIR BIKES. N.

LEIF’S XS650

TONY’S XS650

HEART TRANSPLANT • A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, IN A CAFÉ RACER SUPPLEMENT, WE RAN A FEATURE ON A GLORIOUS NORTON BUILT BY SWEDE DANIEL ANDERSSON, BASED AROUND A PARALLEL TWIN ENGINE THAT HE’D BOUGHT FROM STUART GARNER’S NORTON COMPANY BACK IN 2018.

KICKBACK • THE LAST TWO YEARS’VE BEEN A STRANGE TIME FOR THE WORLD OF CUSTOM BIKES (NOT THAT YOU NEED ME TO TELL YOU THAT), AND THE FOCUS OF HAVING A SHOW TO USE AS A DEADLINE FOR WHICH TO BUILD A BIKE HAS, TO A CERTAIN EXTENT, BEEN LOST.

K3 - LADY IN PINK • “A CHASSIS WITH A HARDTAIL FRAME, LONG FORKS, COOL CHOPPER TANK, AND SOME LOOSE PARTS – A BEAUTIFUL ‘FUN PACKAGE’ FROM A LONG-GONE ERA WAS OFFERED TO ME FOR A DECENT PRICE BACK IN 2012. IT WAS A LONG DRIVE TO COLLECT IT, AS IT WAS FAR FROM WHERE I LIVE, BUT I SAW POSSIBILITIES (AGAIN), AND COULDN’T RESIST BUYING IT.”

SEVEN FIFTY TWO CUSTOM’S SPRING BIKE DAY • SEVEN FIFTY TWO CUSTOMS’VE BEEN BUSY TOILING AWAY, CREATING MODERN CUSTOM BIKES, AND SOME GOOD FEW BIKE RESTORATIONS, FROM A TARDIS-STYLE INDUSTRIAL UNIT IN SEVENOAKS FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS NOW.

CHILDHOOD DREAM • WHEN I WAS A KID I SAW JOHN REED’S GOLD YAMAHA IN A GERMAN BIKE MAGAZINE, AND FELL IN LOVE WITH THE ENGRAVING DON BLOCKSIDGE’D DONE (I HAD EVERY CENTRESPREAD OF EVERY BIKE MAG WHICH SHOWED IT ON MY BEDROOM WALLS), AND PROMISED MYSELF THAT, ONE DAY, I’D HAVE A BIKE ENGRAVED BY DON.

FESTIVAL OF POWER • IT’S BEEN A FEW YEARS SINCE I’VE BEEN TO SANTA POD, AND EVEN LONGER SINCE I’VE BEEN TO ONE OF THEIR NATIONAL MEETINGS, AND, DO YOU KNOW, I’D KIND O’ FORGOTTEN HOW GOOD THEY ARE.

SPINE CRIPPLER • ALTHOUGH HE CALLS IT ‘SPINE CRIPPLER’, THE LEGEND ON THE TANK OF JASON WILLIAMSON’S XS650 READS ‘DEATHWISH’ – SOMETHING THAT A LOT OF FOLK MAY AGREE WITH WHEN THEY REALISE HIS BIKE’S SERIOUSLY LACKING IN THE FRONT BRAKE DEPARTMENT…

ANOTHER YEAR, ANOTHER BSH CUSTOM CHAMPS! • I’m guessing you already know how it works, but just in case… the BSH Custom Champs runs over six rounds:

BACK STREET HEROS

Pay just £3.67 per edition • That’s a 22% saving when paying by direct debit

NCC EASTER RUN • I’M SURE YOU KNOW ALREADY THAT THE NCC, THE NATIONAL CHOPPER CLUB, HOLD FOUR MAJOR RUNS A YEAR, ONE ON EACH OF THE FOUR UK BANK HOLIDAYS. THEY’RE TO VARIOUS DIFFERENT PLACES AROUND THE COUNTRY, HOSTED BY DIFFERENT COUNTIES (THE CLUB’S ORGANISED INTO COUNTIES – HERTS, BEDS, BUCKS, SHROPS, ETC.), AND ONE’S OFTEN TO PARTS FURTHER AFIELD, TOO (WALES, SCOTLAND, IRELAND, BELGIUM, HOLLAND, GERMANY, NORWAY, AND EVEN MACEDONIA).

KNICKER DROPPER GLORY • DID YOU KNOW THAT WIMPY BARS, THE HIGH STREET RESTAURANTS SO MANY OF US GREW UP WITH (AND THEIR AMUSINGLY NAMED ‘BENDER IN A BUN – STILL ONE OF THE GREATEST COMEDY PRODUCT NAMES EVER), DISAPPEARED IN THE LATE ‘80s/EARLY ‘90s BECAUSE THEY WERE BOUGHT, AND REBRANDED, BY BURGER KING? NO, NOR DID I.

MR BRIDGES’ MOTORCYCLE DIARIES • ON THE WHOLE I TRY AND KEEP THIS RELATIVELY LINEAR… AND WHEN YOU’VE FINISHED LAUGHING AT THAT, I DID SAY ‘TRY’.

THE CHRONICLES OF HORN PART THREE • IF YOU WANT TO GIVE ME SOMETHING GIVE ME A KEY AND I’LL FIND THE LOCK IT FITS IF IT TAKES ME THE REST OF MY LIFE THE BARD DONLEAVY (QUOTED IN THE BOOK OF HORN)

13COUNTY...