What Motorcycles Are in The Bikeriders?

A Breakdown of the Major Bikes in the Film…  

Jeff Nichols’s The Bikeriders (2024) is one of the more authentic motorcycle films in recent years, built as it is around real Midwest club culture. Based on Danny Lyon’s landmark 1968 photo-book chronicling the Chicago Outlaws MC, The Bikeriders follows the rise and evolution of a midwestern motorcycle club as seen through the eyes of its members and the loved ones orbiting their world.

The film blends style and grit, mixing documentary realism with dramatic storytelling as it traces how an informal brotherhood transforms into a more dangerous organization over the years. Critics have praised its atmosphere, performances, and period authenticity — particularly its unvarnished portrayal of 1960s motorcycle culture — while also noting its melancholy tone and focus on character over plot.

For motorcycle enthusiasts, the highlight is the film’s commitment to era-correct machines and riding scenes that feel grounded, raw, and real…at least for a mainstream film. Rather than using shiny modern retros or Hollywood customs, the filmmakers went out of their way to use period-correct machines from the early-to-mid 1960s. The result: a gritty, lived-in motorcycle world filled with patina and real vintage machinery.

We decided to do a deep dive into the motorcycles featured in The Bikeriders, including what the main characters ride and what bikes appear throughout the film.

---

Benny’s Bike: 1965 Harley Electra Glide (Panhead)

Ridden by: Benny (Austin Butler)

Benny’s bike is the hero machine of the film: a 1965 Harley-Davidson Electra Glide, the last year of the Panhead engine and the first year Harley introduced electric start (alongside the kickstart). Hence the name Electra Glide. In the movie, the bike is depicted in stripped-down “club style” form, with minimal accessories, buddy seat, and fishtail pipes.

This bike perfectly captures the era of early club bikes — powerful, simple, and made for long rides, not polished showroom shine. While filming Elvis in Australia, actor Austin Butler had met a friend who owned a cafe and fixed up old Harleys, which gave him his first experiences on vintage machines. Still, he says the drum brakes on the film’s movie bikes took some getting used to (“feels like stopping a train”).

Butler liked the hero bike so much that he bought an Electra Glide of his own, a white 1966 model that appears here and there in the film, ridden by another member of The Vandals. 

Butler did suffer a minor crash while filming, riding on a wet road covered in dead leaves. 

“I felt like I was riding on ice. I was okay! But all I could think about was the bike.”

Fortunately, both Butler and the bike were fine. Benny’s Electra Glide is easily the most iconic motorcycle in The Bikeriders.

---

Tom Hardy’s Bike: 1950s Harley Panhead Hydra-Glide

Ridden by: Johnny (Tom Hardy)

Tom Hardy’s character, Johnny — the founder and leader of The Vandals MC — rides a 1950s Harley-Davidson Hydra-Glide. Introduced in 1949, the Hydra-Glide was Harley’s first big twin with hydraulic front suspension. By the mid-1950s it had become a quintessential platform for riders who valued torque, stability, and a heavy, authoritative presence on the road. It’s a perfectly chosen machine for the era, personality, and culture the film portrays.

Johnny’s bike in the film is not a flashy showpiece, but a worn-in working-class Harley: big, loud, and stripped down just enough to fit the practical, blue-collar feel of the midwestern motorcycle scene. It reflects a man who commands respect, carries old-school sensibilities, and rides a machine that symbolizes both leadership and legacy.

Key features seen in the film:

• Panhead V-twin engine
• Hydra-Glide front fork
• Stripped touring trim (no bags, no windshield)
• Solo seat 
• Subtle patina, minimal cosmetic frills

Johnny’s bike embodies the club elder: solid, powerful, and rooted in old-school Harley identity — a contrast to Benny’s younger, wilder Electra Glide.

---

Norman Reedus’s Bike: 1960s Harley “Frankenbike”

Ridden by: Funny Sonny (Norman Reedus)

Norman Reedus appears in The Bikeriders as Funny Sonny, one of the more eccentric and free-spirited members of the outlaw M.C. community…and his motorcycle reflects that personality. Sonny rides a 1960s Harley-Davidson Shovelhead bobber, a bike that stands out among the club’s more traditional big twins.

Unlike Johnny’s authoritative Hydra-Glide or Benny’s stripped Electra Glide, Sonny’s machine has a more eccentric look — leaner, louder, and unmistakably belonging to a rider with character. Something of a “Frankenstein bike,” it features classic custom hallmarks of the late ’50s and early ’60s, an era before long-fork choppers became popular.

Highlights include a late ’40s Springer front end, a ’50s Panhead frame, and a ’70s Shovelhead motor, along with a bronze rubber ducky suicide shifter. To explain the newer engine, the crew came up with a story that Sonny originally had a ’50s engine in the bike, but it blew up and he had to replace it with a newer Shovelhead motor. 

 

 

Sonny’s bike adds texture to the film’s lineup. It fits perfectly for Reedus, whose real-life passion for motorcycles shines through onscreen. We highly recommend his show Ride with Norman Reedus, where The Walking Dead star rides and visits with various friends, icons, and custom builders from the two-wheeled community.

---

Other Motorcycles from The Bikeriders

• 1960s Harley-Davidson Duo-Glide / Early Electra-Glide Models

Ridden by: Members of The Vandals MC

Many of the background riders are on a mix of Duo-Glide and early Electra-Glide Harleys — machines that defined 1960s club culture. These big twins had:

• Large chrome tanks
• Floorboards
• Windshields or no fairings
• Saddlebags (often removed for club use)
• Panhead or early Shovelhead engines

These bikes represent the “working man’s Harley” — big, torquey, and built for long straight roads in the Midwest.

• Harley-Davidson Panheads (1950s–1960s)

The film is filled with Panhead choppers and bobbers, many lightly modified rather than extreme show builds. These bikes reflect the real aesthetic of the time:

• Shaved fenders
• Peanut tanks or narrowed stock tanks
• Tall risers
• Thin solo seats
• Straight pipes
• Minimal lighting

These aren’t cartoonish “Easy Rider” choppers. They look like real club bikes from Danny Lyon’s photos.

• Harley-Davidson Knuckleheads (Late 1940s–Early 1950s)

A few Knuckleheads appear, identifiable by their distinctive valve covers. They’re rare, valuable, and extremely sought-after today, but in the 1960s they were simply older used Harleys, often passed between riders. Many are modified, including:

• Rigid frames
• Springer forks
• Mini ape bars
• Narrow tires

These bikes add to the film’s mechanical authenticity.

• Harley-Davidson Sportsters (Ironhead)

Several Vandals riders use Ironhead Sportsters from the late 1950s into the mid-60s: fast, lighter, and more aggressive than the big twins. Sportsters were often the pick for younger or more spirited club riders. What you’ll see on screen:

• Peanut tanks
• Slim fenders
• Low bars or mid-rise bars
• Kickstart-only
• Loud, raw exhaust

Their presence helps break up the sea of big twins and shows the diversity within real clubs.

---

• Triumph Bonneville / Tiger (1960s Unit-Twins)

Not every rider in the film is on a Harley. A handful of Triumph twins appear— mostly Bonnies and Tigers from 1963–1967. These British bikes were light, quick, and popular with younger riders and ex-café-racers entering club culture. Common traits seen in the movie:

• Slimline tanks
• Polished alloy
• High pipes or straight pipes
• Minimal chrome compared to Harleys

Their inclusion helps the film feel historically accurate — many Midwest clubs in the 60s had a mix of British and American iron.

•  BMW Airheads (Early / Mid 1960s)

A few early BMW R-series models appear briefly, representing the eclectic nature of certain club members. These would include:

• R50
• R60
• R69

Not common, but they did exist in U.S. clubs — and their presence anchors the film in real-world history, not stereotype.

---

Why These Bikes Matter to Authenticity

Jeff Nichols insisted on era-correct motorcycles, many of them sourced from private collectors or custom-built to match the look in Danny Lyon’s photographs. This avoids the usual Hollywood mistake of:

• Modern bikes pretending to be old
• Over-the-top custom choppers
• Inconsistent eras

Instead, The Bikeriders looks and feels like the real Midwest motorcycle culture of the late 1950s through the 1960s — raw, gritty, and grounded.

Oliver Peck and The Bikeriders Tour

Tattoo artist Oliver Peck provided several of his personal motorcycles for the film, most notably the ’55 Panhead FLH ridden by Tom Hardy’s character. He also collaborated with stunt coordinator Jeff Milburn, who supplied other bikes and performed stunts, and the connection is further highlighted by the “Bikeriders Tour,” a separate project featuring Oliver Peck and musician Ben Nichols, brother of director Jeff Nichols and headman of the band Lucero, whose “Bikeriders” song is used in the film.

---

The Bikeriders: Full Bike List

Below is a complete list of the motorcycles seen (or strongly implied) in The Bikeriders, including what the major characters ride:

Main Character Motorcycles

• Benny (Austin Butler): 1965 Harley-Davidson Electra Glide (Panhead)
• Johnny (Tom Hardy): 1950s Harley-Davidson Panhead Hydra-Glide

Motorcycles Ridden by Vandals MC Members

• 1960s Harley-Davidson Duo-Glide
• Early Harley-Davidson Electra-Glide (1965–1966 era)
• Harley-Davidson Panhead bobbers
• Harley-Davidson Panhead choppers
• Harley-Davidson Knuckleheads (assorted late ’40s / early ’50s models)
• Harley-Davidson Ironhead Sportsters (late ’50s–mid ’60s)
• Triumph Bonneville (1963–1967)
• Triumph Tiger (1960s unit-twin)
• BMW R-series Airheads (R50, R60, R69 variants)

General Motorcycle Types Featured

• Panhead club bikes
• Early Hydra-Glides and Duo-Glides
• Kickstart Harley big twins
• Period-correct British twins
• Early BMW touring standards

Most Common Bikes in the Film

• Harley-Davidson Panheads (multiple variations)
• Duo-Glide / Electra-Glide big twins
• Ironhead Sportsters
• 1960s Triumph twins

---

Real Bikes, Just like the Book

The Bikeriders stands out not just for its performances and story, but for its authentic portrayal of motorcycle culture. The bikes aren’t shiny customs — they’re period-correct machines that look lived-in, dirty, and real. They match the era, the tone, and the original Danny Lyon photographs that inspired the film.