Warranty Retained: Warr’s Custom Bobber Builder

Nostalgic Dreams

Charlie Stockwell might just have the best job in the world. As the head of custom design at Warr’s Harley-Davidson in London, England, Stockwell is a two-time winner of Battle of the Kings, and best-known for building modern bobbers that merge timeless looks with contemporary technology. Even better, Warr’s can realize nostalgic bike dreams without sacrificing the factory warranty.

Photos courtesy of The Rake.

Home Facility

Stockwell began working part-time at Warr’s when he was sixteen. Disenchanted with his art and graphic design studies, he eventually became a full-time apprentice. He later attended the Harley Davidson University located at the historic Juneau Avenue facility in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In an interview with The Rake, he pressed home on the importance of knowledge.

Early Inspiration

Stockwell stated, “You need to understand how each new bike is designed in order to redesign it.” After a few years of working as a service technician, he began looking for a creative outlet and persuaded his bosses to let him build a custom bike. With little to no British Harley-Davidson custom scene at the time, he turned to American magazines for inspiration.

Scene Melding

The build process was instrumental and led Stockwell to reflect on his own interests and preferences. Attracted to vintage machines, especially stripped-down, rigid-frame Knuckleheads, he explored the possibility of melding the look with contemporary reliability. Today, Stockwell is credited as a driving force behind London's custom bike scene and as an early adopter of the modern bobber.

Ideal Philosophy

If the name seems familiar, it is because Stockwell was selected as one of the few lucky individuals to customize the pre-production version of Harley-Davidson's 2022 Nightster. With over twenty-five years of experience and a fondness for Sportsters, he was an ideal candidate. In the video feature, Instruments of Expression he explained his basic approach and design philosophy behind custom building

Project Preference

Stockwell emphasized that a “simple design is sometimes the best design.” He continued, observing that there is no right or wrong with custom building, equating it to how art comes down to personal preference. As a fundamental, Stockwell explained how he likes to visualize a project in its entirety and build it in his head before dismantling the bike.

Official Representation

Like its employees, Warr's can boast about its own accolades. As Europe's oldest authorized Harley-Davidson dealership, Warr's was opened in 1924 by Captain Frederick James Warr. The dealership has also been instrumental in maintaining an overseas Motor Company presence. From the 1940s to the early 1970s, it was the only official representation for Harley-Davidson in the United Kingdom.

Emotive Touch

Not content to just customize bikes, Stockwell is also an avid racer, competing in the savage Hooligan class of flat tracking. He also brings a personal touch to business, stating, “When I build a bike today, I build it for one person.” For Stockwell, Harley-Davidson motorcycles hold an unexplained emotive connection—one that he has dedicated his life to exploring and developing.

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