This is going to be a good one for several reasons. Dave is one of the last of a breed, a Sinner member who wears a silver embossed Sinner's belt, black demins, black shades and a black racing jacket with a full faced helmet (white), like a sport bike rider. He's the essence of today's performance chopper builders. He loves the old classic shit, but wants to ride like a sport bike guy.
“I'm done with stuff that doesn't work,” Dave said. “I like being able to really ride hard and get on it.”
Dave lives in Long Beach, California on the edge of Los Angeles County, where splitting lanes is mandatory and the asphalt runs from the beaches to the mountains in every direction. He knows the lane splitting code of building motorcycles fast, narrow, light and agile.
“That's what you're supposed to do with a bike like this,” Dave said. “I'm over bikes that you can't ride or that aren't built to be ridden.”
Yeah, if you can't ride it 100 mph between semis parked on a downtown freeway just two feet apart, you ain't shit.
If you read the story in the Horse, Dave's spelled out how he got involved with this project through Brett Smith, the boss of S&S.
“I was caught off guard when Smith asked me if I wanted to build an X-Wedge for them to debut the motor in Japan the following year at Cool Breaker, said Dave” (Cool Breaker is a show in Japan.)
Okay, so he built this bike with the help of Ben Kudon at Rivera Primo, Tara from Brembo Brakes, James Simonelli, his tech helper from S&S, Westminster H-D, Akinori Skamoto, Jon Olson also from S&S, and Fab Kevin and Nelson Kanno who hooked him up with the X-Wedge Build. But there's more to Dave as I mentioned above. He finished the build incorporating a great deal of hand-cast components, which is his old school passion, along with building cool classic Harleys and Triumphs. He cast the tank, the oil tank with the X-Wedge logo, the air cleaner, you name it.
This bike became a mixture of elements from the past, combined with the latest technology from S&S. Every element had to be adjusted for the X-wedge engine and fuel injection system, yet Dave made the bike look light and minimalist.
“Well, the frame itself needs to be different than a normal H-D frame, the mounts are further apart and wider,” Dave said. “If my memory serves, ha-ha, that's scary, the front mounts are 1.5 inches further forward from the sprocket shaft centerline and the rear is 1 inch further back, as well as being about 2 inches wider front and rear. Also, it uses 7/16-in. bolts instead of 3/8-in. As far as a top motor mount, the motor uses two 3/8-in. bolts that thread into the heads. You will need to make a top mount, even though S&S will probably make their own at some point.”
Let's jump back to the old school casting element. He also made his wheels. “No one made a dished skinny 21-inch mag,” Dave noted.
So he called Jeff Wright of Church of Choppers. “Do a Moto mag,” Jeff said.
“I never rode BMX in the '80s,” Dave said. “I skated and broke stuff, but never on a bicycle.”
Dave cut the wheels from blanks and had the Moto design machined into them with Jeff's help. But the more I looked at the bike, the more I noticed cast parts like the pegs, brass badges, and license plate plaque. I know this shit is catching on and Dave's a source, so I asked him about the process.
“Well, it depends on what you want,” Dave answered. “As far as footpegs, that's easy. I have all the letter sets to do patterns for footpegs in a basic font and now in old English. All the parts I do as ordered for the most part, so it can be anywhere from two weeks to four. In the past, I have had delays much longer than that, sorry to say, as well as shipping problems, but I pretty much have it all worked out now.
“As far as points covers and air cleaners, I need camera-ready artwork to start from and it takes a bit longer, but I have been really happy with the results. I have produced some killer points covers for Death Machine (www.deathmachinecorpse.com) as well as an air cleaner for Church of Choppers (www.ChurchofChoppers.com). So the best way to start is for someone to contact me through my website or blog and ship me artwork. I can modify it as needed and figure out how to make it work.”
Bandit and the Bikernet crew started pulling away from fancy finishes a few years ago, and I respected and enjoyed Dave's simple finish of black powder and natural metal and a tad of polished items thrown in. It all melded with the cast X-Wedge engine. I also noticed his extensive use of safety wiring.
“Ha-ha, safety wire,” Dave said, “Great Stuff! Well, I just returned from my first ride of more than a short distance. My buddy Dustin and I rode to San Diego for the Dice magazine party, at high speed. We got back on Sunday, and Monday I took a look at the bike. The lower exhaust support bolt had disappeared. I meant to safety wire all the blind hole bolts. Those are the ones that didn't have a nut on the back of them, so away I went! The exhaust mount bolts, tach mounts, headlight mounts, foot controls, the brake pedal, front brake caliper mounts and master cylinder were safety-wired in an hour. There is nothing better than safety wire, it just fucking works!”
The first X-Wedge chopper in Southern California, besides a Jay Leno bike, was shipped back to Japan for the Cool Breakers show, then stored in Yokohama for 2.5 months to be used in the Moon Eye's show.
“Riding in Japan is as tough as LA,” Dave said, “maybe worse, with riding on the opposite side of the road, narrow streets and lots of congestion and stop-and-go city traffic.”
Dave grew up around motorcycles, so he’s accustomed to splitting lanes and peeling out.
“My mom had a 350 Yamaha when I was 13, and my dad rode later on, but just as a commuter,” Dave said. “I really got into bikes as an extension of '50s cars and hot rods. I learned to ride on a 550 Suzuki when I was 18, and three months later I was riding a BSA chop with 18-inch over forks! After about six different Brit bikes, I rode a '51 Pan and from then on, it was all over. I was always obsessed with '50s and '60s cars and customs, and it just sort of shifted to bikes. Once I was riding, there was no going back. I somehow managed to see the same 'fuck you' attitude that I found in punk rock in riding choppers.”
I had to ask him about the chopper addiction and the Code of the West. We all have to face it sooner or letter. Intervention won't help once the bondo dust, rust and high-octane fuel slips under the skin.
“I will never forget that first chopper. I was somewhere with my parents in the late '70s and a guy on a long bike blew by us at high speed on some rural highway. I have no real memory of what the bike looked like, but the noise and speed was insane. I'll never forget it.”
So what's a poor boy industry supposed to do about this X-Wedge engine?
“I think it's a quality product,” Dave said. “I want to build another one. Actually, I would like to build it in an FXR frame, a bike that you could ride for a long distance at 100 mph-plus. Bandit has that in his 120-inch sport bike Panhead, V-bike rubber mounted monster. Talk about a cross-country race. Wind 'em up.”
Chopperdave's Secret Weapon Tech Sheet
Owner ChoppperDave
Shop Name chopperdaves casting co
Phone 562 756 1954
Address Long Beach
Website
E-mail Address mail@chopperdaves.com
Make/Model Chopperdaves Secret Weapon
Year 2007
Fabrication chopperdave
Assembly chopperdave
Build/Rebuild Time 3 mo
ENGINE
Year/Size 2007 117ci
Type X-Wedge
Builder s&s
Cases s&s
Flywheels s&s
Rods s&s
Pistons s&s
Cylinders s&s
Heads s&s
Bore 4.125″
Stroke 4.375″
Compression 9.75 to 1
Valves s&s
Rockers s&s
Rocker Boxes s&s
Pushrods s&s
Pushrods Tubes s&s
Cam(s) s&s
Lifters s&s
Carbureter s&s variable fuel injection
Air Cleaner chopperdaves race only prototype
Ignition s&s
Exhaust chopperdave
Finish s&s stardust finish
Special cut out cam cover
TRANSMISSION
Builder/Year/Type s&s 2007 6 speed
Finish stardust finish
Case s&s
Top/Side Covers s&s, hydraulic
Clutch Rivera Primo pro clutch w/ Brembo MC
Primary Drive Rivera Primo slimline
Final Drive Sundance chain
Front Sprockets Teeth 24
Rear Sprockets Teeth 48
Special shaved inner primary
FRAME
Year/Type 2007 BYC chopperdaves X-wedge
Rake 30 degrees
Stretch 2″
Molding none
Finish black powder coat
Swingarm none
Special built custom for x-wedge
SUSPENSION
Front
Builder Harley-Davidson
Year/Type 2007 fxdx cartridge 39mm
Modifications shaved legs to single disc
Triple-Trees Mullins Chain Drive
Rear
Year/Type chopperdaves
Modifications Seat shocks only!
WHEELS, TIRES, AND BRAKES
Front
Size/Type Chopperdaves casting co/ church of choppers Motor Mags 21″
Tire Make/Size avon speedmaster 3.00 x 21
Hub/Spokes Chopperdaves casting co/ church of choppers
Calipers(s) brembo 4 piston 4 pad
Master Cylinder brembo
Rotors(s) brembo
Special prototype wheels
Rear
Size/Type Chopperdaves casting co/ church of choppers Motor Mags 18x 3.5
Tire Make/Size dunlop k180 18″
Hub/Spokes chopperdaves casting co/ church of choppers
Caliper(s) 2 brembo 2 piston
Master Cylinder brembo
Rotor(s) brembo
Special rear carrier bracket by Fab Kevin
FINISH/PAINT
Color(s) no paint
Graphics & Artist harpoon pin striping
Molding none
Chrome Plating/Pol. No chrome all polishing J&D Polishing
Powdercoating Primo Powdercoating
ACCESSORIES
Front Fender fab kevin fork brace only
Rear Fender polish alum front street cycle
Fender Struts chopperdave
Gas Tank(s)&Cap(s) chopperdave cast “powered by s&s” tank w/ bronze badges
Oil Tank chopperdave x-wedge tank
Dash none
Speed O none
Gauges autometer race tach
Handlebars chopperdave
Risers chopperdave
Mirrors none
Grips harley davidson
Hand Controls brembo radial mc's
Foot Controls chopperdave
Footpegs chopperdave “secret weapon”
Headlight bates
Taillight chopperdave
Turn Signals none
License Mount chopperdave
Oil Cooler none
Seat fab kevin muskrat covered by mauricio
Electrical s&s / harley davidson
Coil Harley-Davidson
Starter Harley-Davidson
Special everything!
Comment:
Special thanks to,
S&S
Amprotech – Nelson Kanno
Primo Rivera
Qtmi / Brembo
Westminster Harley-Davidson
Akinori Sakamoto
John “Opie” Olson at S&S
Fab Kevin
