After watching “The History of the Chopper” Jesse did on the Discovery Channel, it brought back memories of Dick Allen back in the day.
I was fresh out of the Marine Corps in 1971. I bought a H-D three wheeler and chopped it up. Saw the Dick Allen Springer front-end around the South Bay and had to have one. But I could not find Dick Allen. He must have been in jail again. I did find out about a machine shop on Artesia Blvd, in South Redondo Beach, where Dick worked in his early years. It turned out to be true.
I went in and asked the old machinist for a Dick Allen Springer front-end. He said, “Go ask Dick Allen.”
My response, “Dick is nowhere to be found, heard he was in jail.”
He yells back, “sound’s about right.”
I Came back the next day and went over the build for the new Springer. A few weeks went by when I got the call and the front-end was done. It still was a Dick Allen Springer because this old guy worked hand ‘n hand with Dick at the beginnings of the front end.
The Springer was in the corner of the shop. Going over to it, I yelled, “Where’s the chrome.”
His come back was, “Does this look like a chrome shop?”
Off to find a chrome shop I go. Then I mounted it on the old trike.
Eights months later I sold the Trike for enough money to buy my new Shovelhead. As time rolled on I met Dick Allen with some of the South Bay guys I was riding with. Going to his shop was always an adventure. I learned always bring beer or other party favors with you; this was a good trade for work.
I picked up a 12 spoke, 15-inch mag (Magnesium rim off drag cars) for the rear of the rigid Shovel. All of us knew him as “POP”. He was the only one, at the time who adapted the car wheel for a motorcycle. Being a 15-inch wheel there was no motorcycle tires on the market, so we ran a car tire, a 155/15 or 165/15. I ran a 155/15 Pirelli radial with low PSI for better handling.
Dick was definitely ahead of his time. He developed the Belt Drive, Disc Brakes, the long narrow Springer front-end that worked, Stainless steel one piece oil lines, 2-into-1 exhaust collector and many other items which he never got credit for. Pop lived the life to the fullest each day.
I am still running the 12 spoke mag today except with 15-inch Avon tire. His shop was a cool place to hang once in awhile, we never knew what he would come up with next. Once he took a Chevy 327 and put it in a H-D trike, rolled out and hit the throttle. It had so much torque it twisted and threw the trike into a telephone pole. Just another day at the shop.
One thing that stands out was about 1974. We left the South Bay for the Kern River Run on Memorial Day weekend. Meeting up with a bunch of the So. Cal. Guys, we stayed a day at Kern River and than split to Three Rivers up north where there was a party on someone’s property. Can’t quite remember. A band was playing and there were lots of party favors. Everyone was loaded to the sky.
At night a barn fire was blazing, I remember everyone was dancing in the blaze of the fire including Pop. It was one hell of a weekend run, one of many. Monday night it was homeward bound for all. Running in the holiday traffic I missed the turn-off for fuel and ended riding by myself in this madness home. But then, in my rear view mirror, I noticed a light flicking in the distance moving fast down the white line of traffic. It was Pop, he slowed that old Knucklehead down looked over at me said, “Hey kid, lets go.”
I was in my early 20s then. Off we went down the white line so fast the cars looked blurred. I swear it was the Twilight Zone. I guess I was as loaded as Pop. I will never forget this. Dick Allen was a pioneer for the industry. He was a true biker and rebel.
–Bob T
