“I WANT TO BUY YOUR BIKE!” That’s the message I found scrawled on the back of a business card on the seat of my 2006 Nomad™ motorcycle last spring.

The author's previous 2006 Nomad dressed in Candy Apple Red. (Photo: John Pappalardo)

I was shocked at how forward someone would be without knowing anything about me or the bike. It was obvious that I had done work to it, but there are a lot of nice-looking bikes on the road, besides mine. It wasn’t for sale, but I figured I’d give the guy a call and see where the conversation went. After talking for a few minutes I gave this stranger a price that would make it worth selling. He agreed. However, the next day, before coming to test ride the bike, he backed out. At that point, I figured, end of story. Right?

A few months later, in the dead of winter, I received a text message from the same guy asking if my bike was still available. I reminded him that I had no real intentions of selling it, but that it was, of course, still available at the price we’d discussed before. He wasn’t sure he could spend that much, but said he’d think it over. That night just prior to midnight, I received another text message saying he’d take it and wanted it the next day. So, I sold it and missed it almost immediately.

The newly customized 2006 Vulcan® 1600 Nomad™. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

I think the best way to fill the void of a bike is with something even better! After test riding a few different bikes, I came to the conclusion that the Nomad was still the best bike for me. This time, though, I’d have more money to customize it and really make it mine.

I had been looking at different bikes for over a month when I came across a lightly-used, 2006 Nomad that already had a few of the accessories I wanted. One problem though—the bike was located more than a thousand miles away from me. Sure, there were a few Nomads for sale that were closer, but I wanted to stretch my budget as far as it would go. This meant that I would be traveling a little farther myself. I made contact with a few VROC’ers who lived near the seller, and after having them thoroughly look over the bike (and provide excellent reports), I struck a deal with the seller.

The new 2006 Nomad before modifications began. (Photo: Jared Gant)

Part of the deal was that the seller would pick me up at the airport and have the bike ready to roll, which he did. The bike was everything that it was promised to be so I paid the man and hit the road.

During my 1,000-mile ride home from El Paso, Texas, I had plenty of time to think of how I was going to customize the motorcycle. Every bike I’ve owned has been unique. Even though this was my third Nomad, it felt different. It’s almost as if each bike has a soul of its own and this one was black as oil. By the time I returned home, I knew exactly what I was going to do with it, and three days later the revamping began. It took me three weeks to finish (as if a bike is ever really “finished”), working every spare minute I had.

The Quadzilla fairing fits the bike like an OEM part. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

Now, when you first look at the bike, the fairing and paint are often what stand out. For this bike, I chose the Quadzilla bat-wing fairing made by Hoppe Industries. Its size and shape compliment the Nomad’s hard saddlebags perfectly. The fairing mounted easily in the same location as the stock windshield. This made the transition from stock to a full-fairing clean and easy, almost as though the bike came from the factory with it installed.

The inner fairing shows off the 200-watt sound system. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

Next was the sound system. The 200-watt stereo (easily heard at various speeds, over most any exhaust) is a nice enhancement when cruising down the boulevard or spending long days riding across the super slab.

The paint booth where the magic happens. (Photo: Jared Gant)

Smoothed saddlebags with chrome top and bottom rails. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

Now it was time for the paint. As a novice, the painting was very difficult and time-consuming for me. There are four stages in the painting process (meaning four different products), a base coat, and an inner-clear with metallic, a candy coat, and another clear coat. The multi-stage is what really makes it pop. Using House of Kolor products, it was sprayed a candy paint, but with an additional mid-coat, in order to add the dry flake to the inner clear. From a distance, and in the shade, the paint has the depth of candy paint, but in the sun, the metallic gives it an alluring sparkle that really grabs your attention. I chose to use a single color because I really wanted to highlight the strong, defining lines—with the stretched out tank and arched saddlebags—of the 1600 Nomad. To enhance the single-color look, I removed the decal strips from the saddlebags and filled in the divots with a fiber body filler to make the saddlebags solid and smooth.

Air intake by Chuckster Customs giving the bike better performance, and a chrome water pump cover. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

If you take a closer look, you’ll notice the many chrome accents, rails, and other details that make this bike complete. Making the engine and surrounding areas look uncluttered and shine with as much chrome as possible were “must-haves.” I removed the chrome dog bowls (air intake) and added a chrome inner-engine cover, chrome drive shaft cover (designed for a Vulcan 1500, that I modified to fit my Nomad), chrome swing arm cover, and a chrome Irate Customs radiator grill.

Adding these larger items really helped the engine achieve its visual potential. Smaller chrome parts, such as the engine mount, caliper covers, signal bezels, speedometer cowl, axle tips, banjo caps and matching grips, pegs and brake pedal (the list could go on and on), are just the chrome icing on the Nomad cake and have been meticulously added to give the bike a clean, finished look.

The swing arm cover and exhaust system. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

I chose a three-piece Mustang seat (backrest not shown). (Photo: Jeff Hale)

Sit in the super comfortable and supportive three-piece Mustang seat and hit the starter button and you’ll hear a nice, deep rumble that few would ever expect from any metric motorcycle. The handmade “Ultimate Baffles,” designed by KawaNOW member, Cliff Evans, get everyone’s attention. The baffles (designed only for Vance and Hines pipes) sound nice and low with just the right rumble when idling, while not deafening when you crank it into gear. Squeeze the clutch and push down on the shifter and you’re on your way to feeling the power of 1552cc. Twist the throttle even harder and, with the addition of Vance & Hines Performance Exhaust, Chucksters Customs free-flowing air intake, and a well-tuned fuel processor, this bike has more than enough power to ride aggressively. By adjusting the stock air intake and adding these performance modifications, the bike performs much smoother to me. Moreover, these modifications did not negatively affect fuel economy.

The Nomad really growls with these Vance & Hines pipes. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

My custom Nomad recently took 1^st place in the metric category at a local motorcycle show (the only one I’ve entered so far), making it an award-winning bike. More importantly, my bike has driven me to learn many new things, has allowed me to form many new friendships and to enjoy numerous rides and events in my community and beyond.

The author alongside his newly customized 2006 Vulcan 1600 Nomad. (Photo: Jeff Hale)

I am not a mechanic, nor do I have any training in the field of motorcycles, or custom painting. I am a passionate motorcyclist, a do-it-yourselfer, who with the advice of friends, and online resources has been able to build, customize and paint this bike to match my personal style. Almost all of the work has been done in my home garage. It has been challenging at times, but very fun overall. I put in a lot of love (read: many hours of work) and a little bit of money (under $10K), and in return have a gorgeous, personalized, one-of-a-kind bike. Even the initial research and work of personalizing a bike brings great satisfaction. Then, of course, the final product is vastly rewarding as well. The resources are available to anyone with the drive to seek them out and the passion to ride.

By Jared Gant

Jared Gant is a young rider who is passionate about motorcycling and has traveled throughout the country. He has owned several bikes and currently owns an award-winning Kawasaki Nomad™ that he customized himself. Jared is an assistant regional leader for the fastest growing Kawasaki affiliate group, VulcanBagger.org. You can keep up with Jared by following his blog at UtahMotorcyclist.org.

More Featured Articles