The Crazy Fast Cracker Does it Again, the Kracken

There are a handful of kickass builders who build bikes tighter and more rideable than stock. This little bastard is one of them. Tom Foster gets it. He understands style, simplicity, and function. I’ve known Tom Foster from when he had no tattoos and worked in a Hughes research lab. He built a bike every year and screamed up and down Malibu Canyon to the Easyriders offices to show us his shit.

Tom learned from the best in the industry, but he had a driving/riding mantra. His bikes had to haul ass, handle, and hang together in Los Angeles. I’m sure most of the country is tired of hearing about LA, Hollywood, and even the Pacific Ocean. Yeah, it’s generally bitchin’, the weather is fine, but the traffic sucks. It’s all about too much population, but I won’t go there; just don’t let it happen to your community.

Riding a motorcycle in LA is the only way to go, if you don’t mind taking your life in your hands every second you’re flying along county concrete. I don’t care if Tom is rumbling through an alley in a suburb, or brave enough to slip onto a downtown freeway during rush hour. Hell, it’s rush hour every minute of every day. Stepping out, leathered up, firing up, and peeling out is a roll of the dice.

Let me try to put this war zone into perspective direct from Wikipedia: Los Angeles County (incorporated as the County of Los Angeles) is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states. The county seat is the city of Los Angeles, the largest city in California, and the second-largest city in the United States (after New York City).

Los Angeles County also includes two offshore islands, San Clemente Island and Santa Catalina Island. The county is home to 88 incorporated cities and many unincorporated areas. At 4,083 square miles, it is larger than the combined areas of the states of Rhode Island and Delaware.

On top of that, you’ve got the media. They want to write about helmets, can’t mention an accident without discussing helmets, and then there’s the loud pipe issue. I wish the freedom loving press would make freedom, in other sectors, a priority. Meanwhile, Tom is trying to pass a broad in a SUV who is sneering at him, because his loud pipes are interrupting her cell phone conversation. If it wasn’t for his pipes, he’d be dead.

 The bottom line is Tom has always built bikes to survive the rough streets of LA, and Hollywood, with the potholes, the fast and furious, muscle cars, drunks, distracted drivers, and speed freaks. Each bike must be Crazy Fast, agile, and strong.

Over the years, Tom has refined his building ability, learned which products to trust, and what to avoid. This one-off Softail was built for Jake Wood, a 6’7″, 300-lb monster. He came up with the Kraken name behind a monster movie character. Jake was no slouch, and noted the style and quality in Tom’s workmanship. He stepped up and Tom went to work. He handed the Chopper Guys team the specs for the frame and stepped back. Fortunately, he scored one of the last Chopper Guys frames before they went out of business.

He ordered an Ultima 127 Black Jewel from Mike Garrison, and the project was underway. Jake wanted a two-wheeled hot rod version of the Gran Turismo Maserati, since he owns one. The bike would be black, in various forms, which make photography a major pain, especially when the black finishes contain various textures, from mattes, to anodizing, powder, and paint. Brandon M. Turner, of BMTPhoto.com, a professional photographer did a helluva job with the images.

Jake makes his bread by owning several gyms in Los Angeles, so he didn’t mince pennies with this build, and allowed Tom to run after the best products from the engine to the Storz front end, the Todd’s risers, Biltwell Bars and the one of a kind swingarm, with the hearty fender bolted to it.

Tom avoided mountains of chrome with polished stainless 12-point fasteners from Diamond Engineering. He always uses quality PM wheels, brakes, and controls and Baker Transmissions. And he eliminates anything unnecessary, including gauges. The only instrument on the bike is an oil pressure gauge. Tom builds up to four bikes a year, and he studies other builders who build like motorcycles for heavily congested areas, by attending shows in Tokyo, Singapore, or Malaysia. “I love the era of the ’60s and ’70s,” Tom said, “and they go after the early styles.” He is also working on a ’52 Chevy Deluxe, with a ’65 T-Bird interior.

“BTW I am converting a 2012 “Blackline” Softail into one of my two-wheel terrors for Glock Firearms to giveaway at the “Shot Show” in Vegas in January,” Tom said. “It’s sponsored by CCI, Heartland, and Vance & Hines. I worked a great deal with Ernie Snair at Glendale Harley on the Softail.”

We always look forward to a new hot rod from Tom. He has that touch, and won’t let a bike roll out of his shop that’s not dead-nuts on track.

“Wait,” Tom said. “Don’t forget to mention my project vendor Leader Enterprises. My homeboy Marc Altieri is VP there and took delivery of a full hand-fabricated Softail from me, the same week I delivered Jake’s. Marc’s bike was featured in Hot Bike a few months ago. One of my most favorite bikes.”

Extreme Bikernet Kraken Tech Chart

Regular Stuff

Owner: Jake Wood
Bike name: Kraken
City/State: Thousand Oaks, California
Builder: Tom Foster “The Crazy Fast Cracker”

City/state: N.E. LA, California
Company info: Crazy Fast Cracker Inc.
Phone: 323-428-5830
Web site: CrazyFastCracker.com
E-mail: CrazyFastCracker@yahoo.com
Fabrication: Tom Foster
Manufacturing: Tom Foster
Welding: Jeff Tigdken
Machining: Tom Foster

Engine:

Year: 2010
Make: Ultima
Model: Evo “Black Jewel”
Displacement: 127 inches
Cases: Ultima
Case Finish: Wrinkle black
Barrels: Ultima
Carburetor: HSR45 Mikunk
Air Cleaner: Todd’s Cycle
Exhaust: Tom Foster/Steve Poole
Mufflers: Burns

Transmission

Year: 2010
Make: Baker 6-Speed
Gears configuration: six goddammit
Final Drive: for the Bar
Primary Drive: Evil Engineering
Clutch: Evil Engineering
Kicker: of Ass!
Starter: Spyke

Frame

Year: 2010
Builder: Chopper Guys
Style or model: Softail
Stretch: 2 inches
Rake: 36 degrees
Modifications: Many

Front End

Make: Storz
Model: Inverted
Year: 2010
Length: 2 inches over
Mods: None needed

Sheet Metal

Gas Tank: Modified Sportster
Fenders: Fat Katz & Tom Foster
Oil Tank: Chopper Guys

Paint

Sheet Metal: Rich Evans Designs
Molding: Rich Evans
Base coat: Gloss Black
Graphics: none
Type of Paint: The shiny kind
Frame: Concept Powder Coating
Frame Molding: Concept Powder Coating
Base Coat: Gloss Black

Wheels

Front
Make: Performance Machine
Size: 21 by 3.5 inches
Brake Caliper: PM
Brake Rotor: PM
Tire: Metzler

Rear
Make: Performance Machine
Size: 18 by 8.5
Brake Caliper: PM
Brake Rotor: PM
Sprocket: PM
Tire: Metzler

Controls

Foot Controls: PM
Finish: Contrast Cut
Master Cylinder: PM
Brake Lines: Russell
Handlebar Controls: PM
Finish: Contrast Cut
Clutch Cable: Russell
Brake Lines: Russell
Shifting: Foot Fast
Kickstand: Matt Hotch

Electrical

Ignition: Ultima
Ignition Switch: Bob McKay
Coils: Dyna
Regulator: Compu-Fire
Charging: Spyke
Wiring: Tom Foster
Headlight: Headwinds
Taillight: Fab Kevin
Battery: Braille, Carbon Fiber

What’s Left

Seat: Bitchin’ Rich
Mirror: I look good in…
Gas Cap: CCI
Handlebars: Biltwell
Grips: Todd’s Cycle
Risers: Todd’s Cycle
Pegs: PM
Oil Filter: Scott’s
Oil Lines: Hooked up correctly
Fuel Filter: CCI
Throttle: PM
Fasteners: Diamond Engineering

Credits: Tom Foster, Jason and Jeff Tiedken, Rich Evans, Repo, Ryan Sudhop, Todd Scilicato

Sources