For nearly two decades, Brandon Holstein of The Speed Merchant has been building motorcycles that reshape what riders think is possible with a Harley-Davidson platform. Known for his influence on modern performance Harley culture, Holstein’s creations often command attention wherever they appear.

But when he showed up to the 2025 Motul Hot Bike Tour, the mission wasn’t to unveil a brand-new showpiece. Instead, it was about something simpler: riding, reconnecting with friends, and rediscovering the creative spark that first pulled him into motorcycles.

Holstein’s connection to the Hot Bike Tour stretches back nearly a decade. When he learned the event was returning—this time carving through the scenic roads of Northern Arizona and Southern Utah—he knew he needed to be part of it.

“It was refreshing,” Holstein says. “To get out, be on the road with people I’ve known in this industry for almost two decades—it pulled me out of the normal everyday bubble.”

For Holstein, long rides have always been part of the creative process. Hours on the road often translate into new ideas in the shop.

“I’ve literally built bikes in my head on rides,” he explains. “Something happens when you’re out there—it’s eye-opening and thought-provoking.”

Originally, Holstein had planned to bring a freshly built customer FXR to the Tour. But life had other plans. Family commitments kept him out of the shop for several months, making a last-minute build unrealistic.

Rather than forcing a rushed project, he turned to a bike that had been slowly evolving for nearly a decade—an FXR chopper belonging to longtime friend and Speed Merchant collaborator Jess Franco.

At the heart of the bike is a rare Chopper Guys FXR frame and swingarm, sourced years earlier after Franco convinced legendary frame builder Mike Scraggs to produce one final example. The result is a tall, unmistakable stance defined by a 6-up frame with additional rake, delivering a classic Frisco-style chopper silhouette.

The fuel tank began as a late-model Sportster unit before being widened, reshaped, and re-tunneled to sit high and narrow over the backbone—another nod to classic San Francisco chopper styling.

One of the most unique elements of the build is the exhaust system. Franco insisted on a perfectly symmetrical design, which meant engineering around the FXR’s rubber-mounted drivetrain.

The solution was a dual-muffler system with Burns Stainless mufflers, one on each side of the bike.

“It took some figuring out,” Holstein says. “Because it’s rubber-mounted, we couldn’t cheat the routing. But we made it happen.”

For the Tour itself, the bike also received a practical addition—Leather Pros saddlebags wrapped with custom leather tops by MB Leathers.

“I’m not usually a bag guy,” Holstein laughs. “But for this trip, they were perfect.”

Holstein, Franco, and friend Rich rode the chopper from Long Beach to Phoenix to meet up with the rest of the Hot Bike Tour riders. Over the following days, the group carved through some of the most stunning riding territory in the American Southwest.

One highlight was an impromptu backroad route leading toward the Grand Canyon, where miles of empty pavement delivered the kind of riding experience that reminds builders why they started in the first place.

“You can’t go wrong in Northern Arizona,” Holstein says. “That whole area—you just can’t go wrong.”

Along the way, the Tour made stops at shops like Trask Performance and Kraus Motor Co., giving builders a chance to reconnect and talk bikes without the pressure of a traditional motorcycle show.

Holstein admits he’s been feeling burned out on the typical show circuit in recent years.

“This was different,” he says. “The camaraderie, the roads, the experience—it was more than I expected.”

In the end, the FXR chopper that almost didn’t make the Tour ended up embodying the spirit of the event perfectly.

It wasn’t built for trophies or attention. It was built to ride.

And for someone who has spent the better part of two decades shaping modern Harley-Davidson performance culture, the 2025 Motul Hot Bike Tour served as an important reminder: sometimes the best motorcycles are the ones that simply take you down the road with good friends. Holstein is already thinking about next year. “If you can top what we did this year,” he says, “it’ll be insane.”

“It pulled me out of the everyday bubble. The Tour reminded me why I fell in love with motorcycles in the first place.”

Bike Specs

Bike: Custom Harley-Davidson FXR Chopper
Builder: Brandon Holstein – The Speed Merchant
Owner: Jess Franco

Chassis & Fabrication

• Chopper Guys FXR frame and swingarm
  
• Approximately 6-up frame with additional rake for tall Frisco stance
  
• Rubber-mounted FXR drivetrain
  
• Symmetrical exhaust routing engineered around rubber-mount system
  
• Custom oil cooler routing wrapping around frame
  
• Hand-built tank mounts and brackets
  
• Leather Pros saddlebags for touring
  

Bodywork

• Modified late-model Sportster fuel tank (widened and reshaped)
  
• Saddlemen seat base re-wrapped by MB Leathers
  
• Leather Pros bags with custom leather tops

Photos: @Steeldog_Photo