Gaylord Street rests on the west side of Long Beach, California, a bunched industrial community of little stucco shops, cinder-block buildings, even a small home or two, and oil refineries next to the Port of Long Beach. It’s the low rent district.
There’s an unmarked shop next to a blacked-out iron gate very close to the end of Long Beach proper, the largest city in Los Angeles. McQuiston’s Custom Cycles is definitely on the outskirts of the city, but it’s packed with projects. Ryan McQuiston loves choppers. “But everyone wants to build bobbers these days,” he says.
Ryan has his own code of the West. He loves building motorcycles with his shop mouse, cute Oginee (she works as hard as any of the guys). It’s not about the money; it’s about helping a brother or sister hit the road in rustic style. “Nobody has any money,” Ryan said.
He prefers to work on Knuckles and Pans, but will work on anything delivered to his shop unceremoniously, usually in old milk crates and oil-soaked cardboard boxes, like this 650 XS Yamaha. Right now he’s inundated with Triumphs and Ironhead Sportsters.
This shop project began as a basket. “I had a skateboarding buddy from Carson, California, and he needed some money,” said Ralph Garcia of Long Beach.
“That was a year and a half ago. I drove out to Carson to find it in boxes for a couple of grand.”
Ralph, a certified air-conditioning tech had never built a motorcycle, but he had a goal. “I wanted to ride a bike I built to Born Free in Irvine, California.”
He had no notion of what he was scrambling into, and another friend introduced him to Ryan McQuiston. Of course, Ryan offered to help and away they went.
The basket came with the hard-tailed frame and miscellaneous pieces and they went to work. Ryan made parts, frisco’d the peanut tank, built the pipes and guided the mechanics. Ralph studied XS650.com for info and started to build his first bobber. Since budget was a major consideration, they went with a DNA springer, noted for breaking.
“It comes with a notice,” Ryan said. “It says for show only, not the street.” The overseas Paughco knock-off comes with axle spacers. “I think the spacers are the key. If you don’t set up the wheel spacing properly, it will add stress to the springer legs. I’ve never had one break.”
Ryan made the electrical box behind the engine and the fender rails, while Ralph installed a PMA Alternator Kit and the TC Brothers forward controls. He wired it, and the tuning process began. Five months later, he finally figured out the Mikuni carbs after spending plenty of time setting up the float bowls, adjusting the mixtures and figuring out the jets.
He missed the 2013 Born Free while grappling with the carbs. “We spent five months surrounded by carb issues.” And in the end, he switched out the plugs, re-timed the motor and it came to life and runs like gangbusters. He rides this puppy daily in the SoCal region.
“I’m ready to build a long-distance bike,” Ralph said. He’s looking for a Panhead, Shovelhead, or Ironhead. “It’s up in the air, but I gotta ride a long distance, maybe to Sturgis.”
In short order, we will bring you more about Ryan and McQuiston’s Custom Motorcycles, on the pages of Cycle Source Magazine. Hang on.–Bandit
McQuiston’s Chopper Design’s XS 650
AKA El-Serape
Owner: Raphael Garcia
Builder: Ryan McQuiston
City/state: Long Beach, CA
Fabrication by: Ryan McQuiston
Year: Basket case blues
Model: XS Yamaha
Time: 1 year
Engine
Year: 1978-‘83
Model: XS 4-stroke
Builder: Ralph Garcia sorta
Ignition: HHP PMA electronic
Displacement: 650 cc
Pistons: Factory
Heads: XS
Cams: stock Yamaha
Carburetor-PWK Performance 32mm Mikuni (2)
Air Cleaner-XS Performance Pods
Exhaust-Custom built McQuiston’s Chopper Designs
Transmission
Year: What could it me?
Make: Yamaha
Kicker-XS Performance kick only
Frame
Year: Around 1980
Make: Yamaha
Rake: Rake is stock
Stretch: 4 inches up, drop 2-inch custom hardtail
Front end
Year: 2010
Make: Paughco knock-off
Extension: Minus 2 inches
Triple Trees: Show only DNA
Wheels:
Front wheel: Spokes
Size: 21” Harley-Davidson 60-spoke
Front tire: knobby Shinko
Brakes: None
Rear Wheel: Spoke
Size: 16″ stock XS spokes
Rear tire: Shinko square
Brakes: Stock drum
Paint
Painter: McQuiston’s Chopper Designs
Color: Anything buy Blue, Red, or Green
Type: Metal flake
Graphics: Airbrushed graphics
Molding: Not much
Accessories
Handlebars: Custom built Z-bars
Risers: J&P Cycle
Hand controls: Mike’s XS throttle, Biker’s Choice
Gas Tank: Frisco’d traditional Peanut
Rear fender: A chunk by Ryan
Seat: Swap meet or Le Pera
Foot Controls: TC Bro’s forward control kit
Oil Tank: In engine
Taillight: Re-pop from J&P
Headlight: Triangle from Throttle Addiction
Speedo: None
Other: Struts, pipes, gussets, Battery tray, and electrical box by Ryan
Credit to Cycle Source for featuring the bike in their September 2014 issue. This is Ryan and Ralph’s first published bike feature.
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