Motorcycles
Early Boss Hoss releases were considered cumbersome and unfinished. The bikes were difficult to ride, and were largely considered an expensive novelty. Since they were fitting a high-end automotive motor onto a motorcycle frame, they found themselves stuck between using aftermarketparts intended for the Harley-Davidson and muscle car markets. They were stuck somewhere between Küryakyn and Edelbrock and this left the bikes with an unbalanced appearance as well as unbalanced hardware capabilities.
Early models were almost as notable for their jury rigged appearance as they were for their girth and conspicuous V8 engine. They often had substantial amounts of thermal tape around the manifold and upper exhaust as well as ad hoc heat shields that appeared to be reused from other applications. The distributor was cumbersomely situated directly in front of the seat and there were numerous other finish flaws. Also, the large radiator was conspicuous for its boxiness and lack of ornamentation on such an otherwise curvy and stylish machine.
In the late 1990s, a new custom 4130 chromoly frame helped address a lot of the visual balance issues and accommodated solutions to a lot of the mechanical balance issues. The heat shielding issues were solved and the large radiator was dressed up with chrome screens and frames. The radiator is still the Boss Hoss's weakest aesthetic feature, but there has been vast improvement. The 2006 models dress up the enormous radiator as well as or better than the much smaller radiators of other high-volume manufacturers.
Current models have all the details of high end custom bikes, like braided lines, hidden wiring, and a chrome swingarm. They also have custom appearance parts that only Boss Hoss bikes use, like chrome heat shields for V8 manifolds, as well as Boss Hoss labeled gauges.
They have also lengthened the bike over the years, going up to a 78 inches (2,000 mm) wheelbase in the late 1990s to an 82 inches (2,100 mm) wheelbase for the 502 model in the mid-2000s. This allows for a lower seat height, since the seat is more forward of the rear wheel. The lower seat height helps stabilize the bike for smaller riders.
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