The Black Hawk Indian

This wild Indian custom built by Carl Blake of Black Hawk Customs, out of Waterloo, Iowa is an interesting mix of old and new. Carl was kind enough to tell us his story: I built my first custom chopper from parts gleaned fromthe California swap meets when I was in second grade. My father and Ibuilt a very cool 5 hp chopper that we road everywhere in the mountains ofSimi Valley, California. Since then I have owned several choppers and Harleys. Infact, my exclusive college transportation was a chopper. I never drove a car. Ialways wanted an Indian or even an old Harley Knucklehead. But I didn’twant the problems associated with the older bikes.

I wished that I couldbuild a new bike but with the old look and feel. I gatheredparts for a dream custom bike I wanted to build one day for myself. On a special day afriend and I got in touch, and he had some Indian engines he wanted to getrid of. He bought them from Indian still in boxes never assembled. Hetold me they were prototypes for the new motors Indian was coming out withlater in 2004. But the company never made it and the engines were never used. Joe Leon from Indianexplained that only one bike was assembled just before the auction, with one ofthese motors…it was sold at auction. This is NOT the Power Plus engine.

Indians had their hay days in the ‘40s and 50s on race tracks all over the country. Photo from the Bob T. collection.

All the markings on this engine show INDIAN not S&S. For thisreason I decided to build an Indian bike around this engine. I wanted abike that, at first glance, you KNEW it was Indian but up further inspection, the viewer becomes perplexed. What could it be.

I come from the old school of sissy bars andapes. I could not have it any other way. It had to be chopped….Not somuch to make it hard to ride but enough to stick the front end out, so Icould stretch back and put my legs up and cruise as far as I wanted to go.

Okay, what happened to the sissybar?

It HAD to have a sissy bar that was equal in size and strength to theapes. I had to have the witches hat and some twists in it. The bike hadto have big bars, not the little cheap 1 1/4 or 1 inch bars. After all,it has a front end called the Fat Bastard. How could I build it withanything less than 1 ½-inch bars? I was riding bikes with the back tires as bigas they could go in the ‘70s and ‘80s, then it became some sort of crazein recent years. I think anything over 200 series is a waste of tire andmoney for long trips etc. So I had to have at least a 180.

What you seehere is the culmination of two years gathering the right parts and then sevenmonths of building, fabricating and painting the bike in our own shop. My son Sean assisted with this build and spent many nights with me workingon it. I think we were successful in melding the new technology with theold Indian look of skirted fenders.

You judge for yourself.

Branscombe Richmond (right) worked hard to make the last Indian Motorcycle effort fly. He still supports American Indian education and the CrazyHorse monument in South Dakota with his partner in American 1902 Motorcycles, Bob Page.

THE BLACK HAWK CUSTOM SPEC SHEET

Owner: Carl Blake of Black Hawk Customs
City/State:Waterloo, Iowa

Builder:Carl Blake
City/state:Black Hawk Customs
432 W. Parker
Waterloo, IA 50703
Indian@chopped.com
319-234-2661
Fabrication:Carl Blake
Manufacturing:Carl Blake
Welding:Carl Blake
Machining:Carl Blake, Mark Lawrence, Terry Rule, Mike Hansen, TommyLahmann, Doug McCarthy, Gary (Boomer) Boomgarten

Engine

Year:2004
Make:Indian (By S&S)
Model:Evo Indian Style with round jugs
Displacement:92 Cubic Inches
Builder or Rebuilder: Dave Feazell of Two Wheel Travel. Dave and Jakebuilt the engine from out of the box.
Cases:S&S
Case finish:Gloss Black
Barrels:Round Indian Style
Bore:Stock
Pistons:Stock
Barrel finish:Factory Gloss Black
Lower end:Stock
Stroke:Stock
Rods:Stock
Heads:Stock
Head finish:Stock
Valves and springs:Stock
Pushrods:Stock
Cams:Stock
Lifters:Stock
Carburetion:S&S Super E with custom Indian Air breather, custom billetchoke knob.
Other: This Engine was made for Indian by S&S as a 92 Cubic Inchengine. It never made it on a production bike before their bankruptcy. Only a few of these engines were made. It clearly has the Indian name andthe Indian “I” logo in the cases and heads. All other engines for Indiancame with the S&S moniker. This engine according to Joe Leon(An IndianProduction Manager) was one of the first prototypes sent to Indian.

Transmission

Year:2004, Revtech tranny but made for Indian with no markings.
Make:5 Speed
Gear configuration:Stock
Final drive:Belt
Primary: Chain, Indian setup. The primary inner and outer cover arefrom an Indian Chief. The 92 Cubic Inch that you see on the primary coveron the left was actually from a 2004 Victory primary cover. They stampedthat right into their cases. This one was a flawed unit that was going inthe trash.

I asked if I could have it and they gave it to me. I thenwent to work and cut the 92 cubic inch right out of the primary case withmy saw. Then I cut the pieces out then sanded and ground them until thewere perfectly straight on the back and flat so they would mount right onthe outside of my primary cover. I then TIG welded them right onto thecase. Then painted them right in with the rest. Looks like it is supposedto be there like it did on the victory. I wanted it to say somewhere onthe bike it was a 92 cubic inch and this seemed the nicest way to go.Hated to cut up the Polished Victory primary but it looks a LOT better onthe Indian.
Clutch:Indian Stock Clutch for Chief, wet clutch.

Frame

Year:2004
Make:Santee
Style or Model:Chica Style Gooseneck
Stretch:5 inch
Rake:38 with 5 in the trees
Modifications: Custom built peg mounts for all pegs, installed IndianWar Bonnet in Gooseneck, Modified rear boomerang to accept Indian Chieffender. Welded pipe fittings to accept hoses from engine carbs etc. Ihate hoses hanging of the engine with no where to go. Made and welded gastank mounts.

Front End

Make:Ultima
Model:Fat Bastard
Year:2004
Length:2 inch over
Mods: The stock handle bar stops were hitting directly in the center ofthe frame tube on the side and eventually would cut a hole in it over timeand ruin the paint. Terry Rule made some caps that cover the originalposts. He turned them out another 1 inch longer and placed over the topof the factory posts and works like a champ and looks nicer than factorytoo.

Sheet metal

I initially wanted a paint job that looked likemolten lava. Alsa Corp had something that was REAL close. Problem was Iwas not familiar with painting their products. After a bit of practice Iwas able to apply the paint and make it as close to their version ofmolten lava as I could get. The paint really has a different personalitydepending on where you have the bike. Outside in the sun it is acompletely different color than when it is inside. The color is alwaysstriking no matter where I have it. Pictures don’t do the paint justice.

Tanks: Custom Chrome 1 piece stretch 5 inch over. Due to the way thetank fitted on the bike and how it would ride I decided to use a dualpetcock system using Accel-Hi-Flow Petcocks. One on each side with theright one located in the front and the left one located in the rear. Ithen tied them up with a GT Chopper Fuel tank Selector. This allows me toget all the fuel out of the tank. Nothing more stupid than having a 5gallon tank and only being able to get 4.1 gallons out of it. I moved theoriginal bungs and welded in new ones and then built the custom drop downconnector that the tank is bolted to on the frame. The Indian Emblem onthe tank is made by the Zambini Bros. located in California. He made itby hand,sculpted it then covered it in four separate metals…copper,bronze, aluminum and some blue metal I can’t identify. It is a 3-D typelogo and I attached it to the tank. These were originally made for Indianbut they went out of business.
Fenders: The front fender is an Indian Chief from 2001. It waspurchased black and had some issues. I welded all the holes shut andsmoothed it out then put the mounting holes in the correct location tomake the fender sit like it should. The Indian war bonnet is from a 1954Royal Enfield Indian. This piece was not lit up like all the others andwas a one piece unit. I found this almost pristine piece from a collectorin England. I have never seen one in this good of shape anywhere. The backFender was from an 2001 Indian Chief. I split the fender and widened it 2inches. I built a completely new set up to connect it to the frame andboomerang. The 2001 Indian Fenders had a bad habit of cracking since theyhad two bolts on each side and the pressure when someone sat on the back,under load, would crack the fender at the bolt hole. The 2003 IndianChief had a much better set up but it did not have internal struts.

Imade a point to have internal struts since I think struts make it lookugly. I modified the 2001 Indian Chief Fender to look like the 2003 IndianChief and made my own mount points with rubber bumpers. I made the entireset up on my vise and with a grinder and the TIG unit. I also frenched inthe license plate and then installed the 39 Ford Tear Drop tail light. Doug McCarthy assisted me with the new head that had to be made to attachthe fender under the seat to the frame.
Oil tank:Custom Krafttech Inc. Chopper tank
Other:Modified to accept the Doughtery Machine trick billet filterunder the seat. This removed the oil filter unit from the front of thebike hiding it under the seat. Custom Indian Tribal war bonnet from theIndian site.

Paint

All paint work by Carl Blake in Black Hawk Customs paintbooth. Used Alsa Corp paints and materials. Killer Black, Red Crazer,Candy Apple Red, Candy Orange, Speed Clear

Sheet metal: All metal was sanded, cleaned and prepped by hand. Tried touse original Indian materials as much as possible.
Molding: Carl Blake. Filler used is called All Metal. I won’t useanything else after using it on the bike. It worked well, can be drilledand tapped, and sticks better t han any putty I have every used.
Base coat:Killer Black from Alsa Corp
Graphics:Carl Blake and his Macintosh computer
Frame:Carl Blake
Molding: I did not do anything with the welds since they were nearperfect. They were unto themselves a work of art. Why ruin a beautifulthing by covering it up?
Base coat:Killer Black from Alsa Corp.
Graphics or art:Carl Blake
Special effects: Red Crazer from Alsa Corp. Killer Black, and thecrazer using Glad Wrap to assist with my design. Some guys like to useSaran Wrap but I used Glad due to the fact Glad Wrap has additionaltexture in the plastic. This gave it more design elements and makes itsparkle in the sun. I then covered with a single coat of Candy Apple Red,then covered again in Candy Orange, then clear coated it with 6 coats ofclear and sanded and blocked in between each coat. The paint looked likeit had orange peel in it due to the texture of the Crazer. I decidedrather than anyone think it was orange peel I’d simply work it out. So Isanded with 1000 grit then finished with 1500 then cleared it again andagain until I got it so the paint still looked wet sitting on the bikewith no flaws in it.
Pinstriping:None

Wheels

Front
Make:Pro-One Sinn-A-Ster Series Polished
Size:21
Brake calipers:Pro-One 4 piston Chromed
Brake rotor(s):Pro-One matching Sinn-A-Ster Series rotor
Tire:Avon Super Venom

Rear
Make:Pro-One Sinn-A-Ster V Series Black Anodized
Size:18 inch 180
Brake calipers:Pro-One 4 piston
Brake rotor:Pro-One Sinn-A-Ster matching rotor Black Anodized
Pulley:Pro-One Sinn-A-Ster matching rotor Black Anodized
Tire:Avon Super Venom

Controls

Foot controls:Pegasus Performance Fatrols with Maltese Cross Inlaid. 1936 Indian head nickles were inlaid into each of the pegs on the controlsand foot pegs.
Finish:Polished
Master cylinder:Pegasus Performance
Brake lines:Russell Pro System II, Covered with NAMZ Copper braid
Handlebar controls:Joker Machine JX Series Hand Controls Black Anodized
Finish:Black Anodized
Clutch Cable:Russell Pro System II Hydraulic, Covered with NAMZ Copperbraid
Brake Lines:Russell Pro System II Covered with NAMZ Copper braid
Shifting:Pegasus Performance Fatrols with Maltese Cross Inlaid

Electrical

Ignition:Thunder Heart Performance corp.
Ignition switch:Wires Plus
Coils:Thunder Heart Performance corp.
Regulator:Thunder Heart Performance corp.
Charging:38 amp Three Phase Thunder Heart Charging system
Wiring:Wires Plus
Harness:Wires Plus
Headlight:2003 Indian Scout with PlasmaGlow HID Blue Xenon KryptonPlasma light
Taillight:39 Ford Tear Drop with blue dot and 21 LED Radial light
Accessory lights: Turn Signals, are built into the mirrors with 3 superbright LED’s on the backside of the Maximum Products mirrors. The rearturn signals are built into the license plate and are sequential in thatthey point the way I am turning. All lights are LED for high efficiencyand long life. There are NO actual light bulbs anywhere on this bike. Even the Wire Plus indiciator lights for the electrical are LED’s.
Electrical accessories:
Switches:Joker Machine Controls and brake light switches feature highquality MARQUARDT waterproof,dustproof,and heat resistant switches forbrake,turn signal,horn, and kill switch functions. Specially designedbillet switch buttons are retained inside the housing to prevent fallingout from the front. Wiring is desiged to be installed inside of the barsfor a super-sano look!
Battery:Big Boar Dry Cell

What’s Left

Seat:Custom Indian Chief Seat rebuilt to fit the bike and made larger. Leather work and covering by Peyton.
Pipes:MGS F5 Pipes. Covered in Red ceramic color. I made the heatshields from 2.5 inch stainless tubing.
Mufflers:What muffler?
Exhaust finish:Ceramic Coat
Gas caps:Hidden gas cap from Custom Chrome
Handlebars:1 1/2 by 18 Inch Apes from Tolemar. I kept breaking the 11/4 and 1 inch apes. Scott sent me these and said if I brake this set andprovided I live he would give me a new set. These are 1.5 inches even atthe riser. No cheesy 1 inch reduction in the middle.
Grips:Pegasus Performance Chrome knurled Fatrols. Larger than stockdiameters. Inlaid Indian head nickles in each end (1936).
Pegs:Pegasus Performance Chrome knurled Fatrols. Larger than stockdiameters. Inlaid Indian head nickles in each end (1936).
Oil filter:Dougherty Machine internal billet oil filter relocated tothe Round Oil Bag.
Oil cooler:None
Oil lines:NAMZ Copper braided
Fuel filter:Combined with Petcock.
Fuel Lines:NAMZ Copper braided
Throttle:Custom Throttle cable due to long length of cable
Throttle cables:Use only one
Fasteners:All fasteners on bike are either button head stainless steelor socket head stainless steel

Specialty Items:Notice the bike has no visible Speedo orOdometer or gauges. The speedo and odometer are located in the slung low,chopper style, mirrors from Maximum Products Inc. These mirrors do itall. Neutral indicator, turn indicators, oil indicator, speedo, odometer,trip meter plus front turn signals all in one. When the bike is runningall indicators are working but when you shut the bike off all theindicators get shut off. Imagine your speedo and gauges just disappearingwhen you shut down. This cleans up the entire front of the bike and doesnot clutter up the natural beauty of the tank and risers and any framework.

More Specialty Items:The sissy bar is made from 3/4 square solidsteel, cold rolled. Mark Lawrence built most of it and is probably one ofthe best machinists and black-smiths in our area. We twisted the steeland bent it and welded, sanded, smoothed it all out until we built theultimate sissy bar that mated right up with the rear fender I completelyremade. The Indian arrow on top was made from a 1/4 piece of steel by MarkLawrence and heated in the forge and hammered until it looked like a realarrowhead. Mike Hansen made the ferrule that the arrow attached to on thesissy bar. I welded it all up and attached it to the bike and then tookit down for painting. I wanted it chrome but I wanted to try a newproduct from Alsa Corp. Their new Mirra Chrome. It took some prep workbut looks as close to chrome as I think you can get.

Comments:I wanted to go the extra mile on this bike since I was building it formyself and as our show bike for Black Hawk Customs. I think I was able tosuccessfully meld the old school Indian look with the new schooltechnology and make a one of a kind Custom Indian Chief.

Credits:Special Thanks to: Sean Blake, Dave Feazell, Mark Lawrence, Mike Hansen,Tom Lahmann, Doug McCarthy, Gary(Boomer) Boomgarden, Keith Kittle fromThunder Heart, Pro-One, Joker Machine, Pegasus Performance, IndianMotorcycles, Dougherty Machine, Speigler, Midwest Motorcycle, CustomChrome, Wires Plus, Robert at Maximum Products, Alsa Corp, Namz, Scot’sSupply. I’d also like to thank Jeff at Joker Machine who is no longerwith us.

This Samdixon.com girl has a body to die for. Incredible and I’m not sure Carl deserves her for this feature. His photography lacked. We needed more sharp detail shot. But what the hell, the bike was wild. Happy New Year, 2007)