ith all the TV and magazine coverage he’s gotten lately it would seem Roland Sands, one of the celebrated “young guns” on the biker scene, just burst onto bike world full-blown. Hardly the case. Motorcycles are in Roland Sands’ blood. Start with the family business. Roland grew up sweeping the floors then running the lathes and milling machines at Performance Machine, a recognized industry leader. Move on into racing. By 1998 he’d won his first AMA National and then went on to win the AMA 250cc National Championship, later racing 600 Supersport bikes in England, Spain and Scotland for Team Factory Honda.      Roland Sands set track records at Daytona, Sears Point and Willow Springs. All that drive and determination was then focused in the design studio and prototype shop where Roland’s R&D role at Performance Machine has netted two V-Twin Magazine “Wheel Design of the Year” awards and one V-Twin “Control Design of the Year” trophy.
     And now he’s doing it all under his own name. “Roland Sands Design,”(RSD) a company formed to bring Roland’s unique concepts and sensibilities to the custom world, is coming to the FatBook and the inaugural parts offerings from this motorcycling phenom are nothing short of amazing. Taking cues from his racer’s past and the famous bikes he’s built for the Discovery Channel’s “Biker Build-Off” and the machines that have garnered him “Award of Design Excellence” and “Trendsetter of the Year” recognition Roland Sands’ initial parts list spells custom with a “capital C.” And it’s all exclusive to Drag Specialties. There’s nowhere else to get it.
     This first RSD parts mix has something for everyone. Roland has created a new genre of aftermarket products starting with conversion body kits. The Vintage Kit includes Gas Tanks, Fenders, Handlebars and Seats that re-define the term “body kit.” The Vintage Kit is the first of more conversion body kits to come, all re-defining the look of a stock Softail. There’s a pair of forged-aluminum one-piece wheels, too, offered in the contrast cut design, a method exclusive to RSD and executed flawlessly by Performance Machine. Each wheel style has a matching contrast cut pulley and polished disc. And there’s a whole assortment of custom engine covers all inspired by Roland’s absolutely outrageous “Glory Stomper” custom, covers with a vintage finned-aluminum look updated into the 21st century. Take a good look here. These are the kind of parts bikers have clamored for, the kind of custom parts needed to set any bike apart from the crowd–and then some. And all this is just the beginning. There’s lots more coming. Roland Sands is just warming up, and RSD is bringing it all to the FatBook. Exclusively.
     Let’s start with the Vintage Gas Tank. Here’s the perfect piece to add a period-correct bobber look to any late-model Softail. This is an all-steel tank and it includes a steel backbone cover that mounts the tank, hides the OEM wiring and holds a stock ignition switch. There’s an RSD Gas Cap, too, sold separately.
     A Vintage Rear Fender Kit continues the theme and the Softail conversion. Bobber-style, it’s designed to be used on the OE Harley frame and fit over any wide wheel kit. The fender includes billet struts and mounting requires the OE fender supports to be cut off the chassis.
RSD’s Vintage Seat Kit is the perfect complement to all of this. A great-looking little solo saddle, it’s bobber correct and includes a fiberglass battery cover, billet seat pivot, steel seat supports, hairpin seat springs and steel seat pan.
Vintage Handlebars round out this RSD Softail package. An updated ape-hanger, they’re offered in either a chrome-plated finish or raw steel ready for paint or powder coat. Put it all together–tank, fender, seat and handlebar and you’ll get one factory Softail looking anything but. All the RSD Vintage parts are available separately, too, allowing builders to pick and choose as they please.
Now take a look at the two new wheels from RSD, the Judge and the Domino. They’re made in the U.S.A. by Performance Machine, of course. These forged wheels are constructed using all of PM’s know-how, placing the highest material strength in the same direction as the operational load to create a light, strong wheel. And with Roland Sands’ designs they look like none other. Both styles, Judge and Domino, have a “contrast-cut” finish that starts with a polished wheel that’s been black anodized then re-cut to open up the design. There are matching brake rotors and contrast cut pulleys, too.
     Completing this initial RSD custom-parts collection is a whole assortment of engine covers, all featuring that distinctive finned-aluminum design. There are Derby Covers, Ignition Covers, Inspection Covers, Rocker Box Covers, Timing Covers and they’re all machined and finished to exacting standards then brilliantly chrome plated. All by themselves they’ll brighten the look of any bike; combined with the rest of the RSD parts shown here they’ll push a custom clear off the cool chart.
     And remember, all of this is exclusive to Drag Specialties. Like what you see? The biker world will, too, and this is just the start because Roland Sands and RSD are just warming up.