Eraserhead: Tracking down a legend of custom bike history

Legendary custom bike Eraserhead seemed to quickly disappear off the face of the earth. Then, Nik unexpectedly stumbled across it.

This article originally appeared in the September 2025 edition of Back Street Heroes Magazine. For more like it, why not subscribe and get the magazine delivered to your door every month?

When those of us with a penchant for custom bike history get together, especially if there’s alcohol involved, there’s always a discussion about epic bikes of yore – it’s something I’m sure you and your mates do too. The difference, often, is that when myself and the other reprobates I hang about with do this we’re not talking about the shiny, beautifully made, and beautifully finished; no, we talk about the legendary matt black, but iconic, motorcycles from way back when.

The Future Bike, The Changeling, Budgie’s Gaspode, Hank’s Scumbag XS1100 chop, the late Rob Bowyer’s Illogical Progression, Monster Munch, John Mansfield’s Mould Wing, Shaun ‘Dr Death’ Gemmell’s square-section CBR600 chop, Lil’ Mark’s Auntie Social Super Dream, Dillon’s Beartrap (the one with the seat made of the three-prong garden fork), Stu’s Agitator, the BSH Rat-Rod, and others are all discussed and nodded upon sagely (usually at about four pints in). I know, I know, I’ve always been odd, have you only just realised that?

There’s one other legendary rat from days gone by whose name doesn’t appear on that list; Phil Woods’ Eraserhead, as featured in AWoL magazine back in its first year of publication (Vol 1, no 7 to be precise). It was based around an old GS1000 (Suzuki) motor, bored to 1100 and fitted with Weber DCOE carbs (plural), in a very almost Harrisesque (well, in poor light… if you squint) frame, with a modified Katana tank, and a very original front end made using rear shock absorbers fitted behind the legs of a pair of upside-down forks. It was a striking-looking machine (especially if you’re heavily into such things) and one which, like The Changeling, seemed to disappear off the face of the planet not too long after it was featured.

Fast forward to late last year when, on a visit to Raw Steel Choppers, I spotted a very distinctive frame and tank outside the workshop. “F-cuk me!” I said, “Is that Eraserhead?!?”

“Yeah”, said String, “I’ve just reframed it for the owner, who’ll be taking it off to Sweden, where he lives, as soon as it’s finished.” I’m jumping ahead a little though, let’s go back a little, shall we?

Chris Boddington was at college with Phil Woods back at the end of the ‘80s, and they shared a student house in south London (and were mates with the late Baz, who built The Changeling), which was there as Eraserhead was, first, built and then went through a second incarnation. He went off to work abroad at some point after this and returned in 2007, met up with Phil, and learned that (a) the bike was in his mum’s garage, and (b) that she was short on space so would he like it? Chris didn’t need asking twice, and soon he’d picked it up and, because it hadn’t run in years, took it to the now defunct Andy Harris Custom Cycles in Essex to get him to get it back on the road.

The years, and the fact that Phil wasn’t averse to running it down the dragstrip at the Bulldog, hadn’t been kind to it, and the frame’d started to twist so the big-bore, big-power 1100 motor was taken out and replaced with a 850 to try and stop any further twist. Chris then smoked it about for a bit, but went off to work in China a couple of years later, leaving the bike in storage. He then moved to Cuba, toying briefly with the idea of shipping it over there to be with him, and then to Sweden where he started thinking about getting Eraserhead back on the road. He contacted String at Raw Steel and took the bike to him, and was told in no uncertain terms that, as was, it wasn’t safe – the mounting points on the engine had corrosion issues, and the frame’d never pass an MoT (or be safe to use) so he (Chris) asked him (String) to build a third incarnation of the bike, working to the pictures from AWoL, and using more modern components, but using some original parts to keep its essential Eraserheadness (if you will). String agreed, and the result is what you see here in front of you… albeit a lot blacker and shinier (for the moment) than it ever was back in the day.

He remade the frame, using the old one as a template, in heavier gauge steel, and fitted it with a Bandit 1200 motor, adapting the exhaust headers to take the original can, and used the wheels and brakes from a Hayabusa to replace the rotted-out spoked originals. The swingarm is ‘Busa too, albeit modified to resemble the first incarnation’s, with a Hagon shock, and the original massive fork set-up that Phil made all those years ago, with its extranl shocks, has been retained too, attached to the frame using a set of yokes made by Paul at Demeanor Customs. An aftermarket front muddie’s a little more pronounced than the beak the original bike had, but will no doubt weather with age and use, but the tank’s the original modified Katana item, reworked to fit the new frame, and the very pillion-unfriendly seat is the original too.

Chris says String’s delivered exactly what was looking for – the bike looks the part, is as uncompromising as it was way back when it was first built 35-plus years ago, and after some advice from Phil on how to set up the forks he made, rides just as it looks. It’s fast, it’s loud – it’s Eraserhead.

Spec:

Suzuki GSF 1200 Bandit engine (Ramair filters, Dynojetted carbs, modified exhaust headers, original can)/loom, one-off frame/foot-rests/hangers, Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa wheels/brakes/swingarm (modified), one-off 62mm USD forks, one-off yokes, one-off ‘bars, original clocks, aftermarket brake master-cylinders (front/rear), Suzuki Katana tank (very modified), original seat/rear muddie, one-off battery & electrics boxes, Hagon rear shock, original headlights, aftermarket tail-light

Finish:

Black! Painted by Paintwerx (07545 326566 or www.paintwerx.co.uk), powder-coated by Maldon Shot Blasting & Powder-Coating (01621 841100 or www.ctc-powder-coating.co.uk)

Engineering:

Bike built & all engineering by Raw Steel Choppers (07814 540528 or www.rawsteelchoppers.co.uk) except original parts by Phil Woods, one-off yokes by Demeanour Customs (01953 681308 or www.demeanourcustoms.com)

Thanks To:

“String at Raw Steel Choppers; Paul at Demeanour Customs; Gary at Paintwerx; Chris at Maldon Shot-Blasting; & Phil for selling it to me!”