2019 Mama Tried Motorcycle Show Gallery

Custom builds and vintage restorations at the Milwaukee moto show

Tony Prust of Analog Motorcycles mounted this 1968 Ducati 250 engine into a Moto3 prototype chassisMorgan Gales

This past week, Milwaukee was the hub of America's custom motorcycle scene as builders and enthusiasts rolled in from all over the country to see the annual Mama Tried Motorcycle Show. We traveled straight from Portland, Oregon's The One Moto Show to the other side of the country to experience what the East Coast custom world had to offer, and we were not disappointed. In the home of The Motor Company with Harley-Davidson as the title sponsor, MTMS is undoubtedly H-D-centric, but with tasteful and diverse curation. On the outskirts of Brewtown, on the third floor of an old concert venue, the bikes sat like art pieces to be appreciated.

The show is held at The Rave, a concert venue with huge rooms, multiple bars on multiple floors, and one large concert hall that was used as the main bike hall. Oil In The Blood, a film focusing on the custom builders who shape the world of motorcycling, had its second US showing following The One Moto Show and debuted to a large and excited crowd—including some of the builders featured in the movie.

Over the three days of the show, we ran into countless familiar faces and motorcycles—one of the best parts about coming out to a show like this. While the show bikes are always incredible and you can get lost in the details of any one of them, it’s the community that travels around from show to show with the bikes that really gets us excited about coming back to each one.

Your eyes aren't playing tricks on you, the rigid front end on Jeffrey Montgomery's 1946 EL chopper narrows from the axle all the way through the top triple treeMorgan Gales
Matt Harris of 40 Cal Customs made the frame for this early model H-D entirely out of plate steelMorgan Gales
Harris Performance built this salt-flats-styled bike on the new Royal Enfield 650 platformMorgan Gales
This old Triumph could be sitting in your grandpa's barn or just built by the coolest kid in BrooklynMorgan Gales
Molly Sanders' iconic color scheme on a custom Yamaha RD400Morgan Gales
Kevin Dunworth's build blends Kawasaki and Buell styles for a unique roadracing-styled customMorgan Gales
The beauty is in the patina and period-correct, performance-minded modifications. Although "performance-minded" means something else on a 40s H-DMorgan Gales
Proper choppers with Evo engines blend the best of both worlds with timeless style and reliabilityMorgan Gales
An 80-inch Knucklehead running alcohol through two Riley carburetorsMorgan Gales
Choppers that look like they're still ridden daily sit next to museum-quality restorations at Mama TriedMorgan Gales
CW Zon's R18 prototype BMW won Best In Show at Mooneyes Yokohama and has followed us through Portland, Oregon, here to MilwaukeeMorgan Gales
1968 Suzuki X6 Hustler two-stroke 250 with a bit of custom workMorgan Gales
Harley-Davidson FLH chop by True Love SpeedshopMorgan Gales
All day as I walked around the show, I kept coming back to Dave Polgreen's 74-inch Flathead. Just enough modification to style and performance—such a perfect balanceMorgan Gales
Martin Ellis of Terminal Speed's custom PanheadMorgan Gales
Noise Cycles brought this tight chopper and an XG750 with Husqvarna bodywork—one hell of a combinationMorgan Gales
It's not all choppers and Harleys at Mama Tried, shows like The One Moto and Handbuilt are definitely having an influenceMorgan Gales
Janis on a Knucklehead—obviously a tough guy's chopperMorgan Gales