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Harley-Davidson Fat Boy Lo Long Term Update #3: Customizing Fatty

By , About.com Guide

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Exploring Harley-Davidson's Custom Possibilities
Harley Catalogue

This metal grind paint job caught my eye, but I ordered mine with silver accents.

Photo © Basem Wasef
My Fat Boy Lo long-term test bike didn't feel naked until I considered ways to customize it; after viewing Harley's online resources and flipping through the 856-page Harley-Davidson Genuine Motor Parts & Accessories catalogue (for those of you too young to remember the golden era of print, this one's actually made from dead trees), a Pandora's box of possibilities opened up— and I mean that in both the best and worst possible ways.

Why the mixed bag? At first, those copious options gave me a serious case of analysis paralysis. After looking through the laundry list of parts and digesting the possibilities, I wondered: Was chrome switchgear too garish? Would it clash with the black fluid reservoirs— and if it did, were matching chrome master cylinders too much? Not only was I concerned about altering some quintessential Softail traits, I didn't want to go overboard and make Fatty the rolling equivalent of a bad two-wheeled fashion statement due to a domino effect of mismatched parts.

When it comes to tricking out Fatty, paint finishes, seats, windshields, and saddlebags are fair game, as are hand and foot controls, electronics/gauges, brakes/suspension, lighting, and more. To see what I ordered, click "Next"!

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