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  here’s
no question about the popularity of a big-tire on the tail, and Custom
Valley, the company maybe in this game the longest with its original
bolt-on wide tire conversions, has it all covered now. The newest thing
happening at Custom Valley is the addition of one of their true bolt
on wide-tire kits for the FLH series bikes, a kit joining those wildly
accepted Custom Valley Softail and Dyna packages already in the lineup.
Introduced just this past May, the FLH kit is already winning a strong
following, and for good reason. The kit, as Denis Desrosiers readily
acknowledges, is long overdue but Custom Valley doesn’t release
anything until it’s perfect. This conversion was worth the wait.When Custom Valley calls a kit a “bolt on,” you can believe it. This FLH conversion, slipping a 200-series tire on the back of those ever-popular dressers, doesn’t require any cutting, any welding, any fiddling or shoving things around and there’s not even a single hole that needs to be drilled. That’s a bolt on, and that’s what Custom Valley is offering. “To the honest about it,” Denis says, “we did have a few technical problems to sort out before this kit was ready.” The problems, he says, centered on the special tooling required to produce a one-piece, 14-gauge stamped-steel fender that’s part of the kit. “When you look at the way we designed it,” he says, “it looks almost like an OEM fender fitting right inside the frame, just like stock. That took some doing.” That isn’t all this Custom Valley FLH wide-tire kit offers, either. It allows the retention of the stock exhaust system, the stock saddlebags, stock tour pack and stock back rest, all using the factory docking hardware. And everything is strictly a bolt on. No cutting, no welding, no drilling or grinding for clearance. The new FLH kit, like all those Softail and Dyna kits, comes with everything needed for the job, minus the wheel and tire. The swingarm assembly with the rear axle and all required hardware and spacers is here, all the transmission and primary-drive extension parts and related hardware is included, there’s that one-piece stamped-steel rear fender that mounts the stock taillight and turn signals, and there are two fender struts in the kit along with all the attachments for the saddlebags, tour-pack and back rest. And if it’s a custom look you’re after Custom Valley has that, too. In addition to that stock-appearing rear fender there are a couple of other fender options available, a smooth version so you can do whatever you want with the look and lighting and there’s a third fender featuring an LED taillight and frenched license plate. The kit fits all 1997 through 2006 FLs, all the Road Kings, Classics and Electric Glides. If it’s an FLH, this Custom Valley conversion will work, bolting right on. “I probably could have released all this sooner than I did,” Denis says, “but I’m a fussy guy. I wanted to make sure it was right first. Our kits are a bit more expensive than some of the others on the market,” Denis says, “and I wanted to give my customers everything they paid for.” And you get plenty with Custom Valley as many dealers and shops have already learned. They’ve come to find out, sometimes the hard way, that a slightly higher up-front cost pays big dividends back in the shop when a kit bolts right in place as advertised and goes together in a reasonable amount of time. Sometimes an advertised “bolt on” can take a torch, a hammer and a grinder to fit in place. That’s not the case with Custom Valley. “In the long run,” Denis says, “quality pays for itself.” That’s sure proven true with the Custom Valley Softail and Dyna kits. They’re just as popular as ever, for all the same reasons the new FLH kit is so good. These kits are offered in 200-series and 240-series versions, too, and they’re both Custom Valley bolt ons, exactly like the new FLH package. Everything needed for the job comes in the box. The swingarm, a new axle, new fender struts, a transmission-offset mount for pre-Twin Cam bikes or an extended transmission main shaft and gear for the Twin Cams are all included along with all the spacers and hardware to complete the work. Everything is manufactured in North America using no-compromise materials, and Custom Valley has been awarded both U.S. and Canadian patents for all of this. Any shop can easily handle these fat-tire conversions because the job is a straightforward parts swap. Of course if someone’s never changed a transmission main shaft and gear, that part of the conversion (required on the Twin Cam bikes and an optional step on the earlier-year bikes if you want to leave the transmission in the stock location) is best left to a pro. But anyone who’s ever changed a drive belt on a Harley can handle the rest of the conversion with no problem at all. There’s a bolt on Custom Valley wide-tire kit for all applications. There are 12 different kits available just for the Softails, with seven more kits for the Dyna and now there’s that new package for the FLH models. If it’s a Harley, there’s a Custom Valley conversion for it to give that stock bike a pure custom look. All it takes is a call to Drag Specialties. All of the Custom Valley wide-tire kits, including the new FLH kit, are in stock and ready to bolt on. And with Custom Valley “bolt on” means just that! Call your Drag rep today!  |
