Behold the Red Giant — Bryan Dax’s custom 1990 Diamond Reo

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Dsc 0540Just what is that motorcycle doing in front of Two Rivers, Wis.-based owner-operator Bryan Dax’s custom 1990 Diamond Reo “Red Giant?”

When I visited with Dax this past week (you may recall his rig from my coverage of the Nashville Chrome & Class show last year) at the tail end of my tour through Minnesota and Wisconsin doing some reporting, his son-in-law, Brian Wingrove, showed up on the newly rebuilt bike, a 2009 Harley-Davidson Rocker C custom-airbrushed with a patriotic theme by Fly-By Custom Airbrush of Two Rivers. Wingrove himself had just finished putting the bike (Harley discontinued the short-lived model in 2011) back together for the riding season after powder-coating the frame. “Everything but the painting on it I’ve done myself,” the BJW Custom Designs business owner says, including a new air cleaner, grips and more. What you don’t see, he adds, is a new seat on the back he’s built for his wife, likewise a cradle for “a flagpole on the back with an American flag.”

2Wingrove does other design work, such as glass etching, engraving and custom metal work. He’s got a bright-yellow 2006 Amarillo edition Ford F350 he’s raised 4.5 inches and outfitted with a “big exhaust, custom speakers on the inside, and lots of chrome,” he says. “That’s my little semi.”

Next week, he says, he’ll take delivery of a golf cart he hopes to turn into a street-legal replica of Dax’s Diamond Reo. “I’ll stretch the frame and try to make it look like Bryan’s semi.”

With any luck, you’ll see the Reo (here pictured) out on the highways and by-ways again soon. It’s just a marvel of creative custom-truck engineering and dedication on the part of its owner to making perhaps the most unique rig in the country. With two steerable axles, four stacks and a mammoth 430-inch wheelbase made possible by the folks at S&J Truck Sales in Fort Wayne, Ind.; slide-out LED-board displays integrated into either side of the 252-inch ICT sleeper; 53-ft. Kentucky race trailer with integrated front living quarters; and extensive cab and interior work by A-Car Restoration of Reedsville, Wis., with Rockwood Products burled-maple doors, floors and dash, the truck is just amazing to see up close. I hope the pictures in the gallery below do it at least a little justice.

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After Dax worked advertising pay-per-view boxing matches on his reefer here and there over the years, the idea for the Giant was born. Keep an eye on the blog for more news of where you will be able to see it yourself in the months to come.