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Read More THE CHOPPER OF CHOPPERS FOR SALE
By Robin Technologies |
This bike represents an upbeat era when choppers were kings and the Discovery Channel made it so.
We are going to attempt to tell the story of the bike, the shows, and the esteemed owner, Hugh “The Chopper” King, the producer/director.
Hugh actually worked for Easyriders, as the video editor/director, while I watched over the magazines. But he moved on to Original Productions. Motorcycle Mania was the first motorcycle show and I got a call. “Who should I recommend?” Dave Nichols asked. I said Jesse James, and the rest is history.
“Tom Beers, the boss of Original Productions, came to me,” Hugh said. “He asked me if I knew anything about motorcycles, and I said I knew everything about motorcycles, which of course I didn’t.”
“I had worked for one year at Easyriders, “Hugh continued, “doing Easyriders home videos, back when Keith Ball was the editor. These videos really captured the hard core, get down, biker lifestyle. So when Discovery came to us about a custom Harley show, I was all over it.”
The industry started flying and the ratings for these shows went through the roof. During filming at an Easyriders granddaddy bike show in Columbus, the Discovery Channel guys interviewed me and they asked what sorta chopper show I would suggest.
I told them about a bike build-off series that would culminate in a test ride from one wild location to another. Tom Beers and Original Productions suggested the East vs. West aspect to Discovery and they signed off on the notion with a competition between Rodger Bourget and Billy Lane.
“It was East Coast vs. West Coast, Old School vs. more streamlined,” said Hugh, “and it would end at a small out of control event in North Carolina, the Smoke Out by Commander Edge, the magnificent creator and founder of the wildest bike run on the planet.”
“Roger built his beautiful machine in honor of his daughter,” said Hugh, “who was killed on a motorcycle on the previous New Year’s Eve. It was very moving. His bikes are mean, man, and they run. The guys rode like bats out of hell, at over 100 mph a lot of the time, from Florida to North Carolina. At one point, Billy hit a big pothole, and flew so high into the air I thought we were going to lose him. That episode was really well received, which was enough for Discovery to order four more, and then seven after that, and 11 after that. There were a total of 44 Biker Build-offs.”
Hugh and I talked from time to time during the seasons. The flurry of action was high and the drive-by builders to be celebrities flew over the top. I remember riding my 2003 Road King to the Laughlin River Run. Hugh invited me to, I believe, the unveiling of this bike, but as usual, I got lost with a girl in the desert and never made it. While at Hot Bike, I attended with my crew one of the season finales to celebrate the builders and their accomplishment. The King presided over the festivities.
In the next episode, we will cover more of the extreme history of the famous Biker Build-offs and the Chopper King. Then we will cover this creation by most of the major Build-off players including Billy Lane, Arlen Ness, Chica, Eddie Trotta, Kendall Johnson, Mitch Bergeron, Russell Mitchell and Joe Martin. Hang on for the next report.
This chopper may end up on eBay, but if you’re seriously interested reach out to Hugh King at: hughk16@gmail.com.
What the Hell is 5-Ball Racing?
By Robin Technologies |
It all started when my mother ran over my metal- flaked Honda 55 Super Cub with a single shotgun pipe. She stormed into our tiny stucco house in Long Beach and announced, “Get that damn thing out from under my car.” Her car was a massive ’59 Ford station wagon. It was 1964 and I was 15.5 years of age. That Honda was my first motorcycle.
Mom and I didn’t see eye-to-eye on a couple of issues. The day after I graduated from high school, I joined the Navy and was shipped to a heavy cruiser off the coast of Vietnam for three tours. I fell in love, and got married, to my mother’s chagrin (my loves have always played a major part, as you will see). During that time, I bought my first Harley, a ’69 kick-only XLCH with a magneto and no battery.
And so began a life of running wild, building motorcycles, ditching wives, and being involved in Bonneville racing. One of the first bikers I ever met was on a small destroyer, the USS Maddox. Andy Hanson was also building his first ground-up big twin in 1970, and his mentor was the late Bob George. Bob was an engine builder and an innovator. He taught me how to build engines. When I slipped away from the Vietnam War, honorably discharged, while dodging a pot-smuggling bust, I returned to civilian life. I was innocent, I tell ya.
They let me out early if I took a trade course, so I took a welding class at Long Beach City College, so I could rake frames. I took the certified welder course. Once clear of the Navy, I enrolled at the liberal arts campus at LBCC and started taking classes. I worked part time at US Choppers in Inglewood, and built engines and bikes on the side. One of the bikes, a Knucklehead, belonged to a high school buddy, Brad. As we were about to finish this wild chop, a new magazine appeared on the racks, Easyriders.
I wrote the publisher a note about Brad’s Knuckle and Lou Kimzey, the publisher, came to see it. The next thing you know, I was the manager of ABATE, the first grass routes organization fighting for motorcycling freedom in America. Then I became an associate editor of Easyriders magazine. Long story short, I worked for this publishing company off and on for 30 years and built a few bikes during that time. Okay, so during that stretch, I introduced Bob George to the Jammer Cycle bosses, Joe Teresi and Mil Blair.
Bob built a streamliner with two 90-inch Shovelhead engines and wanted to go after Don Vesco’s 314 mph motorcycle world land speed record (the granddaddy of records), but he needed financial backing. He couldn’t do it alone. It became the Jammer, then the Easyriders streamliner always piloted by Dave Campos. About this time, I ran off on my first wife and hooked up with a biker broad, who became the second Mrs. Ball and we had a son. That didn’t last long, either.
I became more of a crazed bike builder, joined a club, wrote more articles and hooked up with a club sweetie, the third Mrs. Ball. That was the era of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. Nothing lasted more than a minute, and she was gone, but what a party we had.
Then in the mid ‘80s, I met the most beautiful redhead on the planet and fell in love. I ditched five girlfriends and married the fourth Mrs. Ball. About the same time, Joe Teresi took over the streamliner effort and Paisano Publications. Keith Ruxton became the engine builder/crew chief and Easyriders readers went after that world land speed record. In 1989, we set a major record at 284 mph, but that wasn’t good enough.
We returned in 1990 with Micah McCloskey, Dean Shawler, Kit Maria, and a solid bunch and brought the land speed record back to America at 321 mph. We held that record for 16 years, longer than any of my marriages, so number four was history.
I took a break and then met number five, Rebecca and so 5-Ball was born as a tribute to her and to all the Mrs. Balls in my life. I finally came to the dire conclusion: Marriages weren’t for me. There would only be five. I started writing motorcycle fiction books and they all fell under the 5-Ball brand. Then as the Internet fluttered to life, I started Bikernet.com, also a 5-Ball entity.
At the time, about the mid ‘90s I would build a motorcycle each year and test it on the roads to Sturgis, often with a bunch called the Hamsters. Then in 2006, we established the 5-Ball Racing Team and returned to Bub’s Bonneville with the first sport-bike Panhead based around John Reed’s V-Bike and Berry Wardlaw’s 120-inch Panhead engine. It was a pure fluke, but Valerie Thompson rode this monster into the record books at a top speed of 152 mph. I was standing on the salt the day the ER record was snatched by the Ack Attack streamliner, 16 years later (342 mph).
We learned so much that year that we decided to return in 2007 with another Panhead. This time, we built an aerodynamic bullet and our notion was to build the World’s Fastest Panhead. We did set another record in our class with a top speed of 162-mph during horrible salt conditions.
I pulled away from the magazine world, but continued to write wild fiction books, and then a Bonneville book around our second Panhead World Record, while building Bikernet.com. Hell, we didn’t know what we were doing. But we did know we were having the time of our lives, writing about motorcycles, building motorcycles, and living the two-wheeled dream.
I wasn’t much for trophies or organized sports. I liked to sit alone and write a story, or tinker in my shop. I didn’t ride with groups much, but enjoyed the open road alone, in search of the next redhead and bottle of whiskey. I’ve tried to live by the code of the west and always be available to a downed brother or sister. And I endeavor to help folks in the industry, and with Chris Callen we promote the Motorcycle Riders Foundation Industry Council.
So, a couple of years ago, a young man approached me and wanted to build an apparel line around Bikernet. I leaned back in my tattered leather chair and kicked my boots up on my Panhead desk. After a shot of Single-Barrel Jack the 5-Ball Racing brand was born. I told him there was no money in it, but Andrew Calogero persisted, while the 5-Ball team prepared for another run at the salt.
While we grappled with designing and building the first streamlined Belly Tank trike for Bonneville, I hooked up another positive element to the growing team, Bob Kay, a man who has lived and breathed the motorcycle business as long as I have. Andrew is the operations and sales arm (rolled 5-Ball apparel into the J&P catalog), while Bob designed a carefully thought-out line of leather goods, and suddenly we had a 5-Ball Racing line of riding leathers.
So, there you have it. We were just a handful of brothers and sisters living the chopper dream, snorting racing fuel, drinking whiskey and running amuck. This year, we hope to roll back to the salt with Ray Wheeler’s 124-inch, turbocharged, Hayabusa-suspended Twin Cam; the 5-Ball 1940 45 flathead with a K-model top end (featured in Cycle Source with an engine built by Departure Bike Works in Richmond, VA), and the JIMS Machine, Paughco, Lucky Devil, 5-Ball streamlined trike. Hang on, because there’s never a dull moment around Bikernet or the 5-Ball Racing headquarters.
Timbo’s ’64 FL Restoration (Part Five)
By Robin Technologies |
Well here she is, finally complete and out for her last shake down run. We stopped at a scenic area and shot a few pictures before I have to hand her over to the owner, Tim. 
I took my buddy Sal along. He’s the only one I have available to kick start this old gal. Sal owned a couple of Pans in the past, and he has the starting sequence down pat! With gas off, kick her through a couple times, gas on, breaker retarded, half choke and a little throttle, and Ka Bam! She starts right up!
Riding the Pan is an art form in itself. The steering is spot on; it will turn on a dime! The suspension is wonderful for the age of the bike. It floats along better than most modern Harleys. The only thing I can’t get use to yet is the pogo seat, feels like it wants to buck you off sometimes.
On the way back from our ride, I noticed a loud noise as I pulled to the stoplight. It’s Sal, yelling at me to slow down, YOUR DOING 85!!
If you followed the articles from the past year and a half, you know that hundreds of man-hours and a little mega money went into this restoration. And I loved every minute of it!
I’d be safe in estimating the restoration at 95% original, give or take a percent or two.
Enjoy the photos, and stay tuned next month when I start another restoration. This time a 1966 Shovelhead, Police special. Here’s a sneak peak!
Hope everyone has a save and wonderful 2013 Holiday season!
–Tail Gunner out till next month.
Doug Coffey’s RetroMod Panhead Part 3
By Robin Technologies |
I needed an oil tank for this build that would be rather unique. It had to hold a full size battery from a late model electric start Dyna or Softail as my large high compression stroker motor would need all the starting power it could get. It had to completely hide the battery because I didn’t want any of it to protrude above the frame rails and it had to hold lots of oil.
My preference was round oil tanks so I started looking for cylinder like containers to see what size might fit.
After testing a variety of ice cream containers and my wife’s Tupperware I found a one gallon paint can to be perfect. (once I cut the bottom out to clear the electric starter)
The first step in making the oil tank was to fabricate a battery box. I used some 14 gauge sheet metal and bent one up on my brake and then welded in the sides. The batteries I use are the late sealed type so they can be placed in any position. This one was going to lay in at an angle to miss the electric starter.
With the battery box out of the way I used some more 14 gauge sheet metal and rolled up the tank on my 3 roll machine.
I cut a rectangular piece out of the tank shell and welded the batter box inside the tank. Now you can see why I wanted such a big tank, that battery box displaces a lot of oil holding capacity.
The under side of the tank had to be notched for electric starter clearance.
With the oil tank shell part taken care of it was time to make some tank ends. I wanted my ends flat so i could later bolt on polished aluminum covers.
After plasma cutting the ends out I drilled holes to mount them in my lathe and turn them round. I need perfectly round ends to help pull the tank shell into shape as i tack welded everything together.
Before welding the ends in place I had to weld two threaded blind bungs in the back sides to attach my aluminum side covers. This was a little tricky as the threaded holes needed to be parallel with the fins on my motor’s right side timing cover as I planned to machine matching fins for the oil tank end cover.
Lower front oil tank mount is hinged to flip up for easy removal. If I need to work on the starter, the oil tank must come out.
Oil tank top mounts are countersunk for Allen cap screws. I do this with all my mounts so I am not tightening bolts and washers against paint.
Time to make those oil tank end covers.
The left side cover had to be notched for the starter drive.
Right side cover test fit and oil tank filler welded in and capped.
I machined and radius cut the exact same fin pattern as the engine timing gear cover on the right side cover. The left side cover was easy as it was all done on my lathe.
I think it was all worth the extra effort.
The RetroMod Panhead is Provided by Doug Coffey with www.Head-quarters.com
Bennett’s Performance Dyna Build, Part Two
By Robin Technologies |
It took a while before the call shook the receiver on the wall.
“We’re ready, finally to move onto the next stage,” Eric said, and I slipped across congested Long Beach on Pacific Coast Highway to the base of Signal Hill, where the clean offices of Bennett’s Performance and Branch O’Keefe reside in an alley.
There’s a bit of a dichotomy here. When you say Pacific Coast Highway, you immediately have visions of the sea splashing against white sand. That’s not the case when PCH skirts through the Los Angeles Harbor area behind container ships, container trucks, and container trains Terminal Island and through the concrete jungle of Long Beach packed with steel supply joints, body shops, junk yards, stucco Mexican fast food joints, and dingy bars. Sure, once you weave south of Long Beach, the coast comes into view again and islands, marinas, and white sand can one again be seen.
Sorta the same equation in reverse fits Bennett’s. They are located on an alley, but it’s about as clean and wide as a comfortable two-lanner, and the buildings are pristine and orderly. Hell, there’s even some landscaping bordering the buildings. Eric and his dad keep the shop tidy and it’s open and painted white on the interior and the exterior. Makes it easy to take tech shots.
So we got to work. Eric hadn’t ridden his own motorcycle in six months, broke up with his girlfriend three times, and needed his two-wheeled Valium. Working with D&D, they altered a stock D&D system to fit ’91 to ’13 Dynas. The heat shield was modified and the system was ceramic-coated for a long-lasting satin black. He also had to modify the mounting bracket for the performance pipe system. Eric is going to share his mods with the D&D gang so they can make adjustments to their manufacturing process for these model years.
Eric’s first move was to avoid a potential problem with the 5-speed tranny main shaft inner primary race. They occasionally drift inwards from the inner primary toward the tranny main shaft seal and damage the threads. A malady solution included installing a JIMS inner primary bearing upgrade Kit.
Here’s what the JIMS team has to say about it: Thinking of running an open primary system, or looking for added durability in your high output engine? JIMS now has a double-row ball-bearing with seal and retaining ring kit.
For use on 1990 to 2006 FLH and FXST, and on 1990 to 2005 Dyna models or any 5 or 6-speeds using H-D bearing No. 9135.
Note: Not compatible with Bandit clutch kits.
Eric used his Custom Cycle Engineering swing arm punch to remove the stock bearing. Then he used JIMS tools, including the race puller No. 34902-84 and the seal installer No. 967, to press in the bearing to the perfect depth. The JIMS kit removes the main-shaft bearing race.
With the bearing pressed in perfectly, Eric installed the snap ring with the flat side toward the transmission, then the JIMS seal. It was time to install the inner primary using 22 foot-pounds of torque on the 5/16 bolts with a dab of blue Loctite.
He was ready to install the new Rivera Pro Cutch, but first he had to press out the stock clutch hub. The performance differences in the clutches were obvious. The difference in the fiber surface areas was substantial. For big-inch motorcycles, the more surface contact area, the better.
Per the Rivera/Primo instructions, we needed to soak the Rivera clutch plates in ATF transmission fluid before assembly. “If we don’t, Ben Kudon, from Rivera will bust my balls,” Eric said trembling. Per the instructions, we soaked them for 10-15 minutes.
While waiting, we installed the stock compensating sprocket using a 2.5-inch socket and Loctite, and the primary chain adjuster. Eric installed the clutch hub with a 1 3/16 socket, being careful to handle the left-handed threads. Then he installed the first thick steel plate into the hub, followed by a fiber, then steel, and then another fiber plate.
Eric runs ATF fluid in his primary. With the pressure plate in place, the diaphragm and the retainer, the clutch was a done deal. “Don’t over-tighten the fasteners against the locking ears,” Eric pointed out.
Eric uses JIMS guide pins to hold gaskets in place, so the primary could be slid into place without fighting the gasket. They are easy to make, or just buy a set the perfect length from JIMS. He tightened the stock primary to 120-inch-pounds of torque.
Between the last time I darkened the Bennett’s Performance door and this point, Eric and John O’Keefe from Bennett’s Performance had a brain fart to machine only Twin Cam cylinders to give them a drag bike appearance. Eric volunteered to be first and tore his engine apart again.
[page break]
John O’Keeffe has a special lathe fixture designed to hold cylinders in place while boring. He used the same fixture to turn these cylinders down slightly, but not enough to hamper cooling.
“It’s a looks-only modification,” said Paul, at Branch O’Keefe. “It gives them a stout look.” The cost is about the same as boring, about $200 a set. “If a customer wants, they could have their cylinders powder-coated or treated first before machining.”
John O’Keefe has given this signature look a new name: Branch Race Cut Cylinders. Eric chose to be the trial run and they cause a stir around the shop. Currently, the Branch team doesn’t have enough cylinders to offer an exchange service, but you can send your cylinders out, and depending on the shipping service you select, get them back within a week.
At this point, we installed the S&S intake manifold per the instructions with the S&S G series shorty carb.
“The new S&S intake manifolds are perfect,” Eric said. “This one aligned perfectly with the stock ports and the inside surface was smooth and finished. Branch didn’t need to touch it, unless you want that polished look.”
He installed the carb with the isolator block and new S&S O-rings dry. “If the surfaces are in good shape,” Eric said, “you don’t need grease or sealants. They just cause problems for the next mechanic.”
We took a break, since Eric was working with a Speed Merchant and Alloy Art on a couple of custom products, plus a couple of items needed powder-coating. Eric was anxious for final assembly and to fire the monster for the first time and go for a ride.
When I returned, Eric was installing a new H-D floating rotor on the rear wheel of his bike. “You can’t install the rear wheel until you pull the wiring into place.” Eric pointed out the wiring pocket in front of the rear wheel cavity, which is very tough to reach with the rear wheel in place. “Only ’05 and earlier Dynas were set up this way. It’s a pain in the ass.”
Okay, this may get a tad confusing, but I’ll do my best. Alloy Art is a machine shop and they build parts for companies like Speed Merchant and Harley-Davidson. They machined these Speed Merchant triple trees for Dynas, in keeping with Buell configuration and agile handling. You can see the difference.
He greased the neck bearing and the Timken, and began to slip the fully adjustable stock forks into place. With the dust shield in place, the top triple tree was added.
Eric chose to run Alloy Art super clean rear turn signals, no fronts, and an Alloy Art tight billet headlight and grips. He also installed good and tight Alloy Art urethane riser bushings. Next came his own headlight mount bracket and the Alloy Art billet headlight, plus his handlebars and controls, and the Dakota Digital dash, speedo, tach, and data acquisition system. Then he pulled the stock wiring harness runs into place under the rear fender and installed the stock wiring plugs.
The Alloy Art rear turn signals required drilling one hole for a signal wire. Then it was a matter of installing his pre-ordered Goodrich front and rear brake lines. He installed and adjusted the pull throttle cable first, then the push. He slipped chunks of ½ inch black shrink tubing over the dual throttle cables and used them as guides. Once the cables were run and comfortable, he used a heat gun to tighten the shrink-wrap.
We were getting close. He would use a vacuum bleeder later to bleed the brakes. Finally, he installed the new S&S air cleaner with the bracket for the choke lever in place.
These puppies are well-designed to include a velocity stack element for enhanced airflow and throttle response and ease of maintenance. It was a breeze to install, and then Eric checked all of his fluids, installed a stock H-D battery, and bada-bing it fired to life.
He is pilling on the miles (585 as we speak). Next, we will bring you dyno results, and then a feature after he adds some final details. “I love the way it runs,” said Eric.
It’s not a show bike, but a hard-riding hot rod build with all the finest mechanical elements. We will report on all the results from the dyno, the streets, and seat of the pants. Hang on!
Sources:
Bennett’s Performance
Rivera Primo
S&S
Branch O’Keefe
Alloy Art
TEL: 626 963 5021
FAX: 626 335 3685
CONTACT@ALLOYART.COM
154 S. VALENCIA ST.
GLENDORA, CA 91741
Speed Merchant
www.thespeedmerchant.com
info@tsmracing.net
Custom Cycle Engineering
Mudflap Girl FXRs, Part 10, Suspension Tuning and Le Pera Seat
By Robin Technologies |
Mudflap 8: http://www.bikernet.com/pages/Mudflap_Girl_FXRs_Part_8_Wiring_World.aspx
Mudflap 9: http://www.bikernet.com/pages/Mudflap_Girl_FXRs_Build_part_9.aspx
I’ve been riding and tuning Mudflap Girl FXR for a couple of months. We finally dialed in our rear shocks, maybe. David Zelma, from Progressive taught me the ropes regarding spring pressure and travel. We will get into that. We have also been monkeying with my Spitfire Girder shocks. Again, the problem is travel.
My son’s FXR faces similar dilemmas, but hopefully we will be able to transfer knowledge from my bike to his. Fortunately, Progressive suspension is just down the street in Orange County, so David Zelma stopped by with a variety of springs. “Your shock angle is more like a Dyna Glide than an FXR,” David said, “which makes for much more severe spring rates.”
I kept trying tougher and tougher FXR or touring H-D springs and the rate of sag was too much, indicating a too-soft spring. Also, I had to mess with additional bumpers, limiting the shock travel to prevent the fender from smacking the Avon tyre. It’s a humorous dilemma, one that any sport bike rider would scoff at, since he doesn’t care if there’s a foot of air between the rear tire and the fender.
Ultimately, we ended up with 12.5-inch Progressive Dyna shocks, but my travel, with limiters, is just over ¾ of an inch, sort of the same as a lowered Softail.
“I’m not happy with this system,” David said. “I want to see more travel for a comfortable ride.”
I like the way the bike looks, and I will ride it to Mammoth Lake next weekend to hook up with the Hamsters on their long road to Sturgis from the West Coast. That’s the iron test.
Next, I looked at the front Spitfire Girder shocks and discussed it with Rick Krost, who messes with bicycle seat shocks for custom applications. He removes the stock springs and switches them for cut springer springs. They were, unfortunately, too soft for the girders. Our problems with the seat shocks were two fold. The springs were 300-pound jobs and the shocks did very little to dampen the ride. So I went on a hunt. I discovered RockShox and Fox bicycle shocks, which run over $500 a piece. Good god!
Rick supplied me with a couple of RockShox with springs rated at 500 pounds per inch. Again that’s too tough, so I tried running one shock in a position more directly in line with the girder, another Rick suggestion. With one 300-pound rated spring I received good movement, but again very limited, like just over a ½ inch of travel. I’m still on the hunt for 2 inches of travel, and fortunately the Spitfire girder affords me the ability to mess with the positioning of a shock. I found a Fox shock that could be perfect, but the cost was prohibitive. RockShox also allows me a variety of spring rates, but of course I can’t find a price on their web site.
While on the girder shock hunt, we worked with Le Pera on a seat for my son’s Mudflap Girl FXR. Christine and Bob Le Pera took over their dad’s company when he passed. Christine picked my brain for styling, and then sent me a seat pan.
First, I made a bracket to catch the supplied tongue, welded under the seat. Before final welding, I may move the frame bracket back a ½-inch. Even with the tongue extended, I’m still not perfectly happy.
With the pan in place, we marked mods and adjustments with a felt pen and started hours of grinding and fitment. Then Ray C. Wheeler hacked-out an extension to afford my son enough seat for a passenger.
We cut a chunk of like thickness sheet metal and made a cardboard template, which was transferred to the sheet of tin and cut out with cut-off wheels. We could have made smooth work of it with a plasma cutter, but the grinding would burn the clock, and warping might become an issue.
We spent hours grinding, hammering and fitting until we thought we were close. I would love to find an English wheel and make the time to take a sheet metal class. Then we tacked the pan to our extension, and worked on it some more. I didn’t want to send it back to Le Pera’s historical shop looking like shit, so we worked over the pan extensively, and then drilled additional rivet holes to match the traditional pattern of Le Pera holes.
Le Pera is the home of the chopper seat, the cool, low, stylish, bare bones butt pads. “We can’t make ‘em fast enough,” Christine said. They have also shifted to more dresser seats, and seats for tall guys are popular.
This is their 40th anniversary in the seat-making business, and their focus for this year is new products, not parties. They constantly study new fabrics, threads, and embossed products. While in Italy at a dealer show, a customer approached Christine and told her, “Le Pera is the Ferrari of custom seats.”
When I spoke to Christine, my first question was regarding my seat pan. “How did we do?”
“You did a good job,” Christine said. “According to Bob, it was easy to cover.”
After they inspected our Bikernet shop handy work, she sent the pan out for powder coating. Then they installed a tough rubber edging molded over a metal insert. The metal grabs the pan securely, and the rubber clings securely to the metal. Together they protect the cover fabric.
While the pan is prepped for padding, the Le Pera liquid foam formula spilled into the standard Silhouette foam mold and was clamped into place while it cured.
Bob Le Pera, Christine’s brother, glued the foam figure of the seat to the pan and started hand-shaving the foam. “He’s the artist,” Christine said. Once shaped, the seat was ready for the fabric cover.
Bob chose a long-lasting comfortable fabric, but the master of seat patterns, Gus, a 32-year member of the team, laid out and customized the seat template, extending the standard Silhouette pattern, which he transferred to the resilient fabric, cut out the various pattern segments, and sewed the pieces together with upholstery-grade, ultraviolet-light-resistant bonded polyester thread. The color selection is vast.
Another long-term veteran member of the Le Pera team, Rick, with 27 years under his leather belt, completed the seat. He attached the stitched cover over the hand-shaped foam, made sure all the lines were symmetrical and tacked it in place with a couple of rivets, starting at the rear with a rivet gun.
With the completed seat in hand, Rick carefully glued a protective template of carpeting on the bottom.
I asked Christine about ordering custom seats from them, and they are open to a variety or requests. It’s often best to work with a knowledgeable dealer who can give you tips and knows how to speak the lingo to the Le Pera staff. You can always e-mail the staff and hit them up for info. Try to nail down a style before you reach out. Styles range from thin, low, and sleek, to touring, or tall guy seats. Check their catalog for ideas, and once you’ve nailed the basics down, you can discuss custom stitching, inlays, fabrics, leathers, and or embossing, and of course an affordable budget.
With the seat in hand and the Spitfire forward controls mounted and dialed it, Frank’s Mudflap Girl FXR is ready for a ride. He just needs a plate, registration, and insurance documents, and we will begin the Eddie Trotta break-in routine.
Mudflap Girl FXR Sources:
Le Pera Seats
Spitfire
D&D Exhaust
Biker’s Choice
Rivera/Primo
JIMS Machine
MetalSport
BDL/GMA
Wire Plus
Branch O’Keefe
Bennett’s Performance
Custom Cycle Engineering
Saddlemen
Bub
Progressive Suspension
Check out my road test in the next chapter: http://www.bikernet.com/pages/Mudflap_Girl_FXRs_part_11_The_First_Road_Test.aspx
Doug Coffey’s RetroMod Panhead Part 2
By Robin Technologies |
I’m using a Baker DD6 transmission and they mount on a 5 speed transmission plate as used in Evolution Softail frames. I don’t care for the flimsy stamped sheet metal trans mounting plates available commercially so I opted to make my own.
Back in the day we used to have V shaped rear foot peg mounting brackets I always thought looked pretty cool and they helped fill in an empty spot in the frame for a ‘tighter’ look I prefer.
Here you see me getting started.
Four holes later
With a little machining, we have a transmission mounting plate.
Here we see the old style foot peg bracket bolted on.
Now the transmission is in and will line up perfectly with the engine using a Baker billet motor plate that comes with their 3 inch outside belt drive.
Hold on for part 3, when Doug turns a couple chunks of aluminum into a one of a kind OilTank — Richard Kranzler
1964 Pan Head part 4 (frame)
By Robin Technologies |
Well, here we are, past the point of no return. In this chapter I cover the reassembly of the 1964FL restoration. I have been working on this classic for the past nine months. I know it says frame above, but the frame was bone stock, no dings, or mods. The customer requested paint over powder, so off it went. We sandblasted it clean, checked for cracks, magna-fluxed the frame for imperfections, and checked all dimensions for tweaks. This puppy was straight. With new neck bearings and cups from J&P the frame flew back together. We cleaned the paint off the engine and transmission mounts and went to work. Assembly was straight forward, almost the reverse of the disassembly. Engine goes in first, followed by the transmission.
Primary with belt drive is next. However before the inner primary goes on, make sure you hook up the shift linkage, otherwise there’s not enough room to install the pin and cotter pin. After the linkage and inner primary are on, you can install the main shaft pulley and belt drive clutch. Loosen the transmission and adjust it all the way forward to ease the belt installation. After the belt is on, adjust the transmission rearward to achieve the proper belt tension.
I figured this was a good time to install the rear wheel and chain, making sure the proper alignment and chain tension are acquired.
Oil tank and lines were next on my agenda. I opted for a more modern spin on oil filter adapter, it looks nice and makes oil changes a snap. I kept the original oil filter that was polished just in case the owner wants to go all original some day.
The front forks have been completely rebuilt with all new modern seals, I had them polished also, looks nice! My customer decided he wanted a old school look on the wheels like they did in the ’30s and ’40s, so we blacked out the spokes and hubs leaving the star bearing plates and lug bolts the original parkerized coating.
Just about everything that is aluminum was polished like chrome. We kept to the OEM look on the primary and oil tank, which was black with touches of chrome. 
The original bugle horn was restored and polished.
As for the clutch shift linkage (mouse trap), it also was completely gone through and restored, polished and looks like new. I did find out why they call it a mouse trap! Got my Fuckin’! finger snapped twice while trying to adjust it, IT HURT BAD!
The brakes have all new shoes, lines and fittings. Front brake is mechanical and rear is hydraulic, all juiced, adjusted and ready to go. Tires we picked are replicas of the day. They are Shinko reproduction white walls. Not the best, not the worst, but fit the budget just right. They have all new tubes, rim belts and have been balanced and trued by me.
The new exhaust went on comfortably with new head clamps. We kept the original muffler. It was salvageable. All the footboards have been rebuilt with new rubber and rivets and foot controls were installed. 
The original generator in chapter 3, was a no go, it had a bad armature and wasn’t cost effective for a rewind. So I ordered (cust. request) a new 6v generator with built in voltage regulator, it too looks very nice. Just a quick rundown, the electric system although all 6v, has all new solid state components i.e. electronic dual breaker distributor with a solid state voltage regulator, no mechanical parts. 
The electrical has all been installed and wiring is complete less the head light and tail light. Both electrical junction boxes have been rebuilt with new insulators and wiring harness.
There’s a lot of little things like the $5 chrome chain guard I found at the swap meet and some odds and ends I also found in good condition cheap, at the swap meet. You can see them in the photo’s if you look hard. The steering head lock was a nightmare. It took me months to track one down on eBay. Shortly after I purchased the one on eBay, JP Cycles informed me that they finally had one in stock, go figure!
So here she is, just waiting for the tanks to come back from the painter.
ETA on the tins is end of June, then on they go. Hooking up the fuel system and tins installation will be the next chapter, followed by all systems start and run. I plan on giving the bike to Timbo at his semiannual “Ranch Party.”
He goes all out with a dozen live bands, free food and drink to all his friends, which is about a thousand or so. People show up weeks ahead to help construct stages, dance floors and the Bar-B-Q area. It is truly a sight to behold, covering five+ acres, your never board, everything from darts to wild monkey sex is going on! But this year is special.
Timbo is retiring with 30+ years of service to the Boeing air craft company at Edwards AFB. The bike is his gift to him, so it all has to come together. No pressure for me, HA! If you guys have any questions, feel free to write, or if I left out anything you deem important, ask!
–Tail Gunner out! Checking back with you in July.
Sources:
Note: Some 90% of the parts I used were from J&P Cycles with the exception of a few swap meet finds and the dual electronic ignition from a previous chapter. We found the seat on Ebay. It’s a replica ’48 tractor on pogo. Pipes are classic Paughco replacement units. It looks like a Primo belt drive. The only clue I had was a clutch spacer that was left out for some reason. I contacted Primo, and they said it was an early system and I needed to install the spacer. — Gunner
J&P Cycles
Rivera-Primo
Paughco
Timbo’s ’64 FL Restoration (Part One)
By Robin Technologies |
Not too long ago, my good friend Timbo approached me with a proposition, restore his 1964 Harley FL, I agreed. Problem was, it’s in a box, literally! So after a brief discussion on exactly what we wanted to do, how much it would cost and the possible value at the end of the rainbow, I started the Hard Ride back from Hell with the old ’64. I picked up the bike, basically a roller and all the boxes of parts that came with it. As you probably expected, this will be a frame up restoration as close to factory specs as I can get it.
There will be some minor changes, which I’ll talk about as we go along. First thing was to lay it all out and take inventory to see what was missing. After some research, I found replacing parts for the ’64 surprisingly easy thanks to J&P Cycle, Biker’s Choice, and the internet. I ordered the Vintage catalog J&P Cycle puts out and started researching parts I needed to replace.
I also found a local polishing company and chrome hardware supplier (needmorechrome.com) to make life easier. Tear down was a snap. Make sure you bag or box all your parts as you go and label what they are, and in some instances what order they go in. It’s not a bad idea to take lots of photographs for future reference. Sometimes a parts manual comes in handy.
After tear down, I started the fun stuff, going through each and every part, each nut and bolt and cleaning them. Some parts and hardware will not be salvageable, so you’ll have to replace them with either new, or good condition used. I found that there is a tons of vendors on line for just about everything you need. Buying new parts from the catalog is not always the best answer, especially if you’re on a budget like I am.
So shop around, do some research, you may be able to save as much as 50% sometimes. You will also need repair manuals and a few restoration guides like the one my friend Bandit sent me for reference from Wolfgang publishing, thanks Bandit. It has been very useful so far. This is the first of many articles on this restoration project. As the months progress, I’ll try and give you a detail look at what’s involved with a full-blown restoration.
Tail Gunner out for now, see ya next month!
Here’s the link to the next Chapter: http://www.bikernet.com/pages/Timbos__64_FL_Restoration_Part_Two.aspx
Doug Coffey’s RetroMod Panhead Part 1
By Robin Technologies |
Having been in the aftermarket Harley business since 1969, I have pretty much done everything from lacing wheels and custom painting to establishing a performance specialty manufacturing company known as Head Quarters.
Over the years everything in Harley-Davidson aftermarket world has evolved. Today finds old timers like myself better skilled with better tools and far better parts to work with than we had back in the day.
I have built probably thirty motorcycles from the frame up and they have all been builds that kept pace with what the current factory offerings were and the style of the day. The latter builds being Evos and Twin Cams in rubber mount swingarm frames.
That being said, I didn’t find I got the same buzz I used to get when I first started out building those rigid framed choppers back in the early 1970’s.
Some people count sheep to go to sleep. I found myself planning a new rigid frame chopper to send me off to La La Land for a good night’s sleep.
This went on for two or three years before I decided the time had come to act upon my dreams.
After twenty five years of manufacturing performance parts for my company Head Quarters, I realized most of the people I had met over that period had no idea I could actually build a custom bike completely by myself so I decided I would do everything possible in my own shop.
As I preferred the look of the choppers built in the 1960’s and early 70’s but preferred the technology of the parts offered today, I refer to my build as a Retro Mod Chopper combining both old style and new improved parts.
Allow me to show you how this new bike evolved.
The first thing I needed was a frame and I acquired this mid-70’s Shovelhead frame with a Fabricator Kevin hardtail welded on.
Other than the missing sidecar sidecar loops, it has a strong resemblance to a 1957 straight leg rigid frame. Exactly what I wanted.
Other than the missing sidecar sidecar loops, it has a strong resemblance to a 1957 straight leg rigid frame. Exactly what I wanted.
Now it was time to get busy and clean up the frame by cutting, grinding and yes, milling unsightly castings off the frame.
I needed to replace the cross bar for one that would enable me to slide the battery in and out of the oil tank. here you can see it in place ready to be welded. Once I had it tacked in place I was able to remove the original cross bar.
The right side axle plates on the old rigid frames have an elongated slot for the purpose of easier wheel removal. The old bike used drum brakes and the extra length in the slot enabled a long Allen wrench to slide in and remove the five bolts that held the wheel to the drum.
Since I would be using a more modern disc brake wheel I wouldn’t need the long slot so I close it up to match the left side.
Finally a frame back from the sand blaster. If you compare with the original frame you will see I have done more modification work than covered here in these images, I will be explaining some of those modifications over the next few articles