May 31, 2007 Part 2
By Bandit | | General Posts
Continued From Page 1
ASSALT WEAPAN BONNEVILLE BUILD DRAWS RESPONSE–Hey Bandit, just read the article on aerodynamics from Hot Rod magazine. Must be where I got that idea about down force and wind tunnel testing I told you about.
It’s serious shit. Also congrats on your diet(s) They’re a bitch but it’ll be worth it. And just to help out, I had enough Margaritas for us both last weekend.
Ride hard,ride safe,
–Pete(from florida)
NC BAND LOOKING FOR BIKER GIGS–My name is Jamie Wellington from Lumberton, N.C. I play in a band MoJo Mac with 3 others. We are all in out late 40’s and love to jam. My band is well reasoned in rock and roll (Zepplin, Skynard, Cream, ZZ top and more). We have been playing since our teen years.
MoJo Mac has the equipment and talent for a good four hour show. Please E-mail back and let me know what it takes to play in some of your establishments. The band is willing to go to any bar or hangout located in NC, SC, or VA.
If your crowds like rock and roll you will not be disappointed.
Jamie Wellington
jdwell@hotmail.com
WHERE BAKER DRIVETRAIN THROWS STURGIS SUPPORT– Baker Drivetrain has our irons in fires all over Sturgis this year! We’ll be on Lazelle Street, out at the Buffalo Chip, the Broken Spoke, at the Kids and Chrome dinner and charity auction, the Builders Breakfast, down at Grease Monkey Mayhem, and on the Black List. Here’s the who, what, where, when and why!
The Buffalo Chip:
Above the ‘Chip’s partying masses, Baker heisted the burnout pit and dubbed it The Baker Burnout Box!!! We then we put tall torches on it for a spectacle of burning flames and burning rubber. We’ll be raisin’ hell in the middle of this staple American motorcycling destination. So follow the smell of melted rubber, ride your bike on up the ramp and show everyone at this historic Sturgis location what you’re made of! You won’t miss it: it’ll be the only burn-out box in Sturgis to sit high in the sky, surrounded by flaming torches and clouds of sweet, hot, burned up tires. Fill your lungs with scorched glory!
The Broken Spoke:
Baker is always so proud to back Jay Allen and the Broken Spoke, in all locations. This year in Sturgis is no different. We couldn’t be more proud to lend our support to Jay and the largest bar in Sturgis: the Broken Spoke, as he pushes forward helping Sturgis to grow bigger and better every year.
Kids and Chrome:
Baker will be working with the Children’s Home Society, the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum, and Nick Genender from New York City Choppers in an effort to raise funds for these deserving causes. Mr. Genender and the fellas over at NYC Choppers will be building a custom motorcycle for the 2007 Kids and Chrome Raffle. Baker Drivetrain was more than happy to donate one of our 6-Speed, Right Side Drive Transmissions to this project.
We will also be donating our new Function-Formed King Kong Klutch for the auction to take place at the event, scheduled to be held Wednesday August 8th, 2007 at the Spearfish Convention Center. We hold this event near and dear to our hearts. Lisa and Bert Baker see no more deserving or worthy causes than that of a home for children in need, and a place dedicated to our American motorcycling heritage. For more info check out: http://www.kidsandchrome.com/
Builders Breakfast:
Baker Drivetrain is joining forces with the Builders Breakfast this year at the Broken Spoke on Lazelle St. in Sturgis. This event, scheduled to take place the morning of Tuesday August 7th, 2007, is always a big draw for fans of the art of bike building and designing. Baker will assist the Builders Breakfast in their goal of raising funds for Make-A- Wish Foundation, South Dakota at the 2nd Annual Breakfast. For more info, check out: Grease Monkey Mayhem: These builders are all together in one location to celebrate the art of bike building, unity among builders, and to have a good time – and Baker Drivetrain wouldn’t miss out on this party for the world! We’re looking forward to checking out the builders all camped out in the Grease Monkey lot during Sturgis this year, and lending our support to these guys who love Baker transmissions almost as much as we do! Rupert’s Ride for Kids: We all know Rupert from his time on the ole’ t.v. as the winner of the show “Survivor”, but did you know that he has a passion for charity and a love for motorcycles? Well he does, and in Sturgis he is hosting a day long ride with food and entertainment at the end, all for a good cause: children in need. We support Rupert in his efforts in Sturgis, and hope everyone finds the time to join in the fun for a worthwhile cause. The Black List: Aw man, we’ve done it this time! Scout and Trish are always trying to make Baker Drivetrain just a little more punk rock, and we couldn’t be missing out on a bitchin’ opportunity like this! The Black List is, in its own words “A ground-breaking entertainment and events platform bringing a high-octane mix of customs, extreme sports, art and music designed to redefine and revolutionize rally entertainment”. We see it as a good f*ckin’ time! In hopes of a bike venue that caters toward a more youthful culture, we’ve been waiting for something that is more suited to BAKER’s Creative Department, and has elements of basically all things rad. This is it. We’ll be there tearin’ it up, and even giving away a transmission on stage where all this takes place: the Full Throttle Saloon. LAZELLE STREET And what would Sturgis be without Baker Drivetrain set up in our usual spot, in the corner of the Samson Lot, where 5th and Lazelle come together? Stop by, pick up one of our scandalous Baker 2007 Calendars, a catalog and some stickers and talk with us about all things Drivetrain. Our booth will be full of the guys who build and sell these trannys every day. We’ll also have lots of our new innovations, including the members of the Function-Formed family of products there, for you to see first-hand and drool over. So, think Sturgis is ready for us?! For additional information, visit TONGLET EARNS FOURTH DESTROYER WIN OF THE SCREAMIN’ EAGLE AHDRA CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON–COMMERCE, Ga. (May 28, 2007) – L.E. Tonglet has earned the Destroyer category win at four of the first five events of the Screamin’ Eagle championship AHDRA season. Not bad for a guy who won just one race in the same category in 2006. Tonglet snagged his fourth Destroyer victory of the season by beating Ronnie Fensick Sunday in the final round at the Stone Mountain Harley-Davidson Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway. Tonglet turned in a 9.343-second pass at 136.57 mph to beat Fensick’s 9.426 at 137.93 in Fensick’s first final round appearance of the season. Tonglet also was the top qualifier (9.195) followed by Wanda Poff (9.337) and Fensick (9.346) to round out the top three. Tak Shigematsu equaled his win total in Nitro Top Fuel racing from 2006 with his victory over Doug Vancil. The Ehime, Japan native rode his Don Johnson Racing Harley-Davidson to the victory in his first final round appearance of the season. Shigematsu recorded a 6.752 at 178.76, topping Vancil’s 11.341 at 74.52 on his Vance & Hines Motorsports Harley-Davidson. Jay Turner was the No. 1 qualifier in the Nitro Top Fuel category after turning in a 6.498 while Steve Stordeur was second (6.559) and Joey Sternotti was third (6.578). Shigematsu and Vancil were fifth and eighth, respectively. Greg Best beat Chip Sutinen for the Screamin’ Eagle Performance (SEP) victory on Sunday. Best earned his second win in as many final rounds with an 11.650 to top Sutinen’s 11.450. Joey Talbott earned his first win in his second final round appearance of the year in the ET category. Talbott recorded an 11.633 to beat Roberta Seaman, who fouled at the starting line. The next AHDRA event is the Roeder Harley-Davidson Buckeye Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio on June 9-10. LEATHER SEATS FROM ENVY–Three seat pan styles available, seven patterns all for a low $499 apiece. Watch for shots of the Streetwalker by Envy wild exhaust systems. They keep 500 in stock, so if you order, they’re shipped pronto. Also, watch for an Envy bike to be featured tomorrow with more of their seats and exhaust systems. The bike will soon be featured in Easyriders so keep your eye on the newsstands. MOTORCYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE RECONVENES–The Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF) is pleased to announce that theFederalHighway Administration’s (FHWA) Motorcycle Advisory Committee (MAC) heldits secondmeeting in Washington DC recently. As outlined in the legislation thatthe MRF wasinstrumental in developing and passing through Congress, the MAC’s purposeis toprovide advice to the Secretary of Transportation, through the FHWA, on allinfrastructure issues and how they affect motorcycles. The Council iscomprised of10 individuals representing all different facets of the motorcyclingcommunityincluding the MRF, the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA), The NationalAssociation of State Motorcycle Safety Administrators (SMSA), StateDepartment ofTransportation (DOT) officials and “road furniture” safety engineers. “Roadfurniture” refers to anything on the road other than the actual road – sosignage,guard rails, bridges, light posts, striping, lane markers, etc. would beconsidered”road furniture.” The best part is that ALL of the MAC members must beriders. MACcovered a lot of ground over the two-day meeting, and all of the meetingminutes,recommendations and action items will be available soon on the MAC website athttp://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/mac/index.htm. A lot of the meeting was spent on retro-reflectivity of pavement markings,which isessentially the brightness of the markings when headlights light them up.Apparently with materials currently used for pavement markings, when youincreaseslip resistance you decrease the level of retro-reflectivity. Thisfundamental issueputs motorcycling directly at odds with pavement markings the way they arethoughtof today. In the safety community brighter is better, and very littlethought hasgone into slip resistance except with pedestrian markings. For years,both publicand private highway designers have forgotten to consider the smallsignature oftwo-wheeled vehicles. MAC was designed to change that mentality, and as aMACmember who has attended both meetings on your behalf, I can tell you witheveryconfidence that is about to change. Another issue discussed a lot was the cable barriers across the countrythat arecommonly referred to as “bologna slicers” or “cheese slicers.” I have totell youthat the state DOT folks and safety engineers do not agree withmotorcyclists onthis one. Obviously all types of barriers are bad, and when roadsidedepartureoccurs, things go from bad to worse in a fraction of second. Anything youstrikewith your bike, car or body is going to be a serious factor in the crash. Otherpotential hazards include signposts, telephone and utility poles, firehydrants, oranything else commonly found occupying space on the side of the road.According tothe engineers, there is no proof that concrete barriers are less deadlythan cablebarriers; in fact, they claim that the opposite is true. With the use ofcablebarriers in the state of Texas last year, they went from 54 deaths fromvehiclescrossing the median or double yellow line down to 2. With results like that,motorcyclists will have a tough time declaring cable barriers unsafe atany speed. Cable barriers came from Europe, like a lot of things these days, and areundergoingmany safety upgrades across the pond. Retrofitting wood, plastic and/ornylon tothe cable barriers may decrease the chances of the rider being, for lackof a moreglamorous term, sliced in half. The MRF and its SMRO partners envisioned and helped create this MotorcycleAdvisoryCommittee to bring the issues and concerns of motorcyclists to the peoplewho designthe roads we use. As you can see, the MAC is accomplishing exactly thatgoal. Ride Free and Ride Often –Jeff Hennie MORE WILD REPORTS COMING FROM PAUL GARSON–Ya got love the Mini- Peterbilt the Ed Built – very cool daily driver. Dale Walksler and Indian on which he Barber Museum Race of the Century Just completed “Akira” bike…a runner…for rap video..and I was there…but notRapping –Paul Garson SCOTT JACOBS DEAL OF THE WEEK–A rare and important original acrylic painting is up for sale from the artist’s private collection. SPLITTING IMAGE is that painting and was created during the period that Mr. Jacobs was the official artist for Chevrolet’s Fine Art Program. The opportunity to collect an original of this magnitude comes along once in a blue moon. This is the actual original that the limited edition: “Splitting Image” was produced from and hence became the most successful and recognized print of the entire Corvette line. The original painting measures a magnificent 40″ x 50″ and was completed over ten years ago. This one of a kind was also the LAST mid-year Corvette painting rendered by Scott Jacobs. The logical place, financially speaking, to offer this work would be at auction but Scott’s wish is for one of his loyal collectors to acquire and enjoy it. He also would like to know where it is and be able to access the work for possible future museum exhibitions. If you are at all interested in the painting (see visual below) please contact me to discuss or email any questions you may have. Cheers, BACK STREET HEROS CHECKS IN–All received safe and sound, and Scooter has been abig help with SALT SHAKER pics from the salt flats. I think thefeature will be scheduled in for the issue after theone we’re working on. I would have liked to have gotit in sooner but we’re in the great/frustratingposition of having so much damn material at the momentthat we could do with an extra fifty pages a month. It’s crazy, I’ve been doing this job for twelve or soyears, and I’ve never known a year like the last onein the UK – we’ve been innundated with both featurebikes and events stuff. Guess it’s all good forbusiness! How are things over there? I had a mysterious emailfrom Mr Reed saying he’s not working for CCI any more.I can’t say I’m surprised. He’s trying to persuade meto go to Disneyland rather than the Las Vegas BikeFest. I suspect I wouldn’t notice the differenceanyway… –Blue CHRIS CARR IS A SPEED FREAK – ON BIKERNET TV– Chris Carr is the fastest Motorcycle Racer in the World. His boss, Denis Manning, a 2006 inductee in the Motorcycle Hall of Fame, is the designer, builder, and owner of the BUB #7 streamliner. Carr talks with Thunder Bob on Bikernet TV about his World Record of 350.885 MPH. Don’t miss it, you can almost feel the heat and smell the salt. Check it out here. –Jeff Najar Continued On Page 3
–Ron Copple
Scott Jacobs Studio
303-431-4453
www.scottjacobsstudio.com
Director
Bikernet TV Network
jeff@horsepowermarketing.com
May 31, 2007 Part 1
By Bandit | | General Posts
Hey,
Let me plant a seed. We talk of honesty, dedication and integrity, but our current stock market corporate structure sends the opposite message. If you want to scale the corporate ladder, what’s important? Quarterly reports demonstrating increased profits, lower costs, positive PR and increased stock values do the trick, no matter what. Screw the competition, steal ideas and products from others, throw dedicated employees away to cut costs and pile more work on existing employees.
At the end of the day it comes down to the bottom line. Did the value of the company grow? What’s that mean? The stock price went up and the guys at the top can tell their pals, over a drink and the club, “I’m worth another million today. The stockholders love me.”
It’s sad, but it also says a lot for the small business where veracity and dedication still matter. At the end of the day the team is everything and they expect honor and truthfulness from the owners. We need to keep the faith. In so many respects, all the material bullshit in the world is just that without honor. Let’s hit the news, then I’ll point out some strong examples of commitment and enthusiasm in our industry:
MAZAK ANNOUNCES SPONSORSHIP OF G2 MOTORSPORTS’ NHRA PRO STOCK DRAG RACING MOTORCYCLE–(FLORENCE, KENTUCKY) – Mazak Corporation announces its supporting sponsorship of the G2 Motorsports (Americus, GA) Chip Ellis/DRAG Specialties/S&S Cycle S&S-powered Buell drag-racing motorcycle.
Driven by Ellis, the bike competes in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Pro Stock series as well as the All Harley Drag Racing Association (AHDRA).
“We are specially pleased to have Mazak join as a supporting sponsor for the Chip Ellis/DRAG Specialties/S&S Cycle team,” says George Smith, co-owner of G2 Motorsports. “The Pro Stock motor that we campaign in the NHRA would not be possible without Mazak’s fine-quality machine tools.”
Smith co-founded G2 Motorsports along with partner George Bryce in 2003 to campaign the race bike. The company has evolved since then to include selling between $3 million and $4 million in turnkey racing motorcycles, racing engines and support parts to drag-racing enthusiasts
G2’s racing engines – the ones it races as well as the ones it sells – are manufactured by S & S Cycle, which operates plants in Viola and La Crosse, WI. S&S was founded by Smith’s parents, George and Marjorie Smith, in 1958, and now is the world’s most respected manufacturer of high-performance engines and components for American air-cooled Harley-style V-Twin motorcycle engines.
SUCKER PUNCH SALLY’S SUPPORT THE TROOPS AT 29 PALMS–Sucker Punch Sally’s crew was invited to attend a gathering for returing Iraq veterans at the base in 29 Palms. The base organizes these encounters for the troops on a regular basis, usually inviting celebs, but there was a demand for SPS builders Donnie and Mike. Christian, the new owner said, “We’ll do one better. We’ll bring out a rig full of our bikes, both builders and our Sucker Punch girls.” They went to work and we’ll bring you a complete report shortly.
“I haveattached a pic of a marine and his lady who read aboutSPS being at 29 Palms on Bikernet and drove from SanDiego to see us…what an honor,” said Ken Conte, SPS PR manager. “You can’t believe theStories. I was humbled to be in their presence…alsogot a marine haircut at the local barber (makes goodTV and they bet me $100).”
ALL NEW BIKERNET HEALTH CARE PLAN–A wealthy hospital benefactor was being shown around the hospital.During her tour she passed a room where a male patient was masturbatingfuriously.
“Oh my GOD!” screamed the woman. “That’s disgraceful! Why is he doing that?”
The doctor who was leading the tour calmly explained, “I’m very sorry thatyou were exposed to that, but this man has a serious condition where histesticles rapidly fill with semen, and if he doesn’t do that at least fivetimes a day, he’ll be in extreme pain and his testicles could easilyrupture.”
“Oh, well in that case, I guess it’s okay,” said the woman.
As they passed by the very next room, they saw a male patient laying in bedwhile a nurse performed oral sex on him. Again, the woman screamed, “Oh myGOD! How can THAT be justified? Again the doctor spoke very calmly: “Same illness, better health plan.”
–from Bogart
IMPORTANT UPDATE AND BDL PRODUCT CHANGE–BDL items EVO-900 series 3-inch belt drives, with outboard support, EVO-3000 out board support retro fit kit and TF-2000 have been changed. We have eliminated the front pulley and engine shaft support and front bearing off the outboard support.
This change was due to too many aftermarket components that come on a special construction motorcycles. We find that several of these components do not allow proper alignment of the entire motorcycle.
Outboard supports were intended to keep the engine and rear transmission shafts from moving excessively. Improper alignment causes unusual wear and pre-mature failure of the sealed bearings.
By supporting only the rear shaft we have eliminated any potential problems mis-alignment may cause.
Thank you,
–Bob G.
BDL
BIKERNET EXCLUSIVE, BAKER’S NEW FILL SPOUT–Thanks forstaying on top of BAKER stuff! Nobody else has this release yet. That’swhat you get for askin’…first dibs. That’s why Bikernet is so good.
Thanks again!
–//Scout
scout@bakerdrivetrain.com>
A SHOUT OUT FOR THE NEW BAKER SPOUT–HASLETT, MIHere at BAKER we’ve run into problems with that big, honkin’ stock oil spout hanging off of the side of an FL. With the way we test ride our bikes, or even ride daily, we blow the stock caps right off. In addition, we often have to engineer around this excessively large contraption in a fight for clearance as we innovate our drivetrain components, thus compromising our innovation. The fasteners rust. Oh, and we think it can be prettier.
So on the side, we easily created our new Function-Formed (FF) FL Oil Spout which remedies our woes. We’re happy with this little bugger and we now include it standard on all FL transmission assemblies that we sell. It includes stainless steel fasteners and polished stainless steel hard lines for the Twin Cam version.
You won’t blow the cap off when you throttle down. Your fasteners won’t rust. You will look custom, cool and upgraded. You’ll fit all aftermarket side covers.
The FF FL Oil Spout will fit 1993-1998 Evo FL and 1999-2006 Twin Cam FL applications. The spout is available in polished, chrome, or black anodized finishes. The dipstick is in polished or chrome. Your line options are stainless steel or braided stainless.
See more on this innovation online at the bottom of this page: www.bakerdrivetrain.com/flt
For additional information, call BAKER Drivetrain at the number above and ask the sales department anything!
ESTOK RIDES BUELL TO VICTORY AT ASRA THUNDERBIKE NATIONAL–SUMMIT POINT, W.V. (May 28, 2007) – Deeley H-D/Buell Canada/Ruthless Racing’s David Estok made a dramatic last-lap pass of Hal’s H-D/Buell Hal’s Speed Shop’s Dan Bilansky to win the third round of the American Sportbike Racing Association (ASRA) Pro Thunderbike series at Summit Point Motorsports Park. Both riders were aboard Buell Firebolt XB12R motorcycles.
“I couldn’t be more happy with this win,” said Estok. “I’ve never won a pro race at this track and it’s been really frustrating for me. The Deeley team put a great Buell under me today and I was able to find a way to pass Dan one more time before the finish.”
To take the win, Estok first had to recover from a bad start in the 10-lap Thunderbike National that put him back in the pack while Bilansky, the defending ASRA Thunderbike champion, took the early lead. Estok caught Bilansky on lap four, and the pair of Buell riders then traded the lead position for the next six laps, racing side-by-side as neither was able to gain a significant advantage. On the final lap, Estok passed Bilansky for the lead and was able to open a gap of about four bike lengths as he recorded his best Thunderbike lap time of the weekend. Estok took the win by just 0.211 seconds. Arnold Hastings finished third aboard a Suzuki SV, followed by Buell riders Joe Rozynski (Sound Waves/Hal’s Speed Shop) and Sam Rozynski (Sound Waves/Hal’s Speed Shop).
H-D/Buell of Frederick rider Bryan Bemisderfer earned the pole for the Thunderbike National with a lap time of 1:18.359 on the two-mile Summit Point road course, but did not start the race after his motorcycle developed a mechanical problem during Monday morning practice. Deeley H-D/Buell Canada/Ruthless Racing rider Darren James, second in Thunderbike points coming into the Summit Point event, dropped out after two laps with a mechanical problem.
After three of eight ASRA Pro Thunderbike rounds, Bilansky has 88 points to lead the series, followed by Estok with 82.
In Championship Cup Series (CCS) sprint racing on Sunday, Art Diaz rode a Buell Firebolt XB12R to win the GT Lights Expert class, while Bemisderfer, Estok and James swept the podium in the Thunderbike Expert class. On Monday, Diaz rode his Buell to victory in the CCS Lightweight Superbike Expert class.
The next event on the eight-race 2007 ASRA Pro Thunderbike series schedule is the VIR Festival of Speed, June 23-24 at Virginia International Raceway, Alton, Va.
For the Buell dealer nearest you, pull into
PRO-CLUTCHFITS 2006-UP DYNA MODELS & 2007 TWIN CAM BIG TWINS–As you know, Harley has made some major changes on the 2006 Dyna models as well as on the 2007 Twin Cam Big Twins. Besides having 6-speed transmissions, they have changed mainshaft & sprocket shaft configurations. RIVERA PRIMO has kept abreast & now introduces the latest addition to the world famous PRO-CLUTCH line . . . part number 1056-0020, a complete clutch assembly for these bikes.
As with the earlier version, this new model increases clutch area yet it provides effortless hand control at the lever. Installation is easy following the step-by-step instructions.
Complete kit includes steel inner & aluminum outer clutch hubs, bearings, snap rings, clutch pack consisting of seven Kevlar friction plates, seven steel drive plates, one .120″ thick steel drive plate for the rear of the new hub, billet aluminum pressure plate, silver competition diaphragm spring, retainer, retainer nuts and a clutch hub nut & seal kit with adjusting screw.
–RIVERA PRIMO INC.
12450 Whittier Blvd.
Whittier, California 90602
Tel: 562-907-2600
Fax: 562-907-2606
www.riveraengineering.com
BIKERNET UNIVERSITY HISTORY LESSON–156 years ago–a true history of California.Do you know what happened this week back in 1850, 156 years ago?
California became a state.
The State had no electricity.
The State had no money.
Almost everyone spoke Spanish.
There were gunfights in the streets.
So basically, it was just like California is today,except the women had real breasts and the men didn’t hold hands.
–from Rodan
WIN A CUSTOM THUNDER SADDLE OF YOUR TATTOO!–WIN a custom Thunder Saddle each month. These saddles are the most exclusive saddles and most comfortable saddles every made. They are very cool because each saddle represents your tattoo.
The Tattoo Contest
BANDIT of Bikernet will pick the best looking tattoo of the month and we will make a custom Thunder Saddle with the Tattoo embossed on the saddle. Each saddle comes equipped with Saddlemen’s Saddle Gel. Saddle Gel makes an incredibly comfortable seat and allows you to stay on your motorcycle for longer periods of enjoyable riding.
How to Enter the Thunder Saddle Contest
Entering is easy. Just send an email to: tat@horsepowermarketing.com with your:
? Name
? Telephone number
? Picture of you and your tattoo
? Year and model of motorcycle
It’s just that easy. Send a picture of yourself sporting your favorite tattoo and you could be riding around with it on your motorcycle. It is your exclusive seat that is a show stopper and conversation piece wherever you stop.
For more details and rules clicking here.
–Jeff Najar
Horsepower Marketing
O: 919-383-0500
M: 928-814-2935
BIKERNET AUSTRALIAN READER, RAY RUSSELL DEVELOPS USEABLE COAL-TO-LIQUID TECHNOLOGY–A project that has taken more than two years to develop came to commercial fruition this month with the announcement that a new coal-to-liquid plant will process coal into diesel fuel.
This announcement was made by Ray Russell, Principal of Victorian-based Company Coal Gas & Liquids Pty Ltd. Coal Gas & Liquids Pty Ltd (CGL) Coal to Liquids Technology produces a coal-base fuel that can be used directly in today’s vehicles, with no need for modification.
A pilot plant was built late 2005 and then trial of various coals proceeded with the result being a diesel fuel that has low sulphur and virtually no aromatics plus NOx and CO that more than comply with EPA emission regulations.
Scale-up engineering drawings are being prepared for the first commercialised plant which is expected to be commissioned first quarter 2008. The plant is designed to process 25 tonnes of coal per hour with an approximate yield of 12,000 litres per 25 tonnes.
Tightening oil markets and record high prices have brought oil vulnerability back into focus. CGL’s Coal to Liquids Technology has emerged as the perfect solution as it would reduce the dependence on energy imports and also cuts down the reliance of countries on oil, thus reducing vulnerabilities in national security.
Meetings with numerous Australian coal mining companies has resulted in a positive response wherein they have identified that by utilising their own non commercial coal in conjunction with CGL’s Coal to Liquids Technology they are able to be totally self sufficient by way of producing their own diesel fuel for their mining vehicles, subsequently saving millions of dollars per annum.
–Lane O’Donoghue
Marketing Manager
WHO IS BARACK OBAMA, WHAT HAS HE DONE FOR AMERICA?– We Should know more about our presidential candidates?
Probable U. S. presidential candidate, BarackHussein Obama was born inHonolulu, Hawaii, to Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., a black Muslim from Nyangoma-Kogel, Kenya and Ann Dunham, a white atheist from Wichita,Kansas.
Obama’s parents met at the University of Hawaii.When Obama was two years old, his parents divorced. His father returned to Kenya.
His mother then married Lolo Soetoro, a radicalMuslim From Indonesia. When Obama was 6 years old, the family relocated to Indonesia. Obama attended a Muslim school in Jakarta. He also spent two years in a Catholic school.
Obama takes great care to conceal the fact that he is a Muslim. He Is quick to point out that, “He was once a Muslim, but that he also attended Catholic school.”
Obama’s political handlers are attempting to make it appear that Obama’s introduction to Islam came via his father, and that this influence was temporary at best.
In reality, the senior Obama returned to Kenya Soon after the divorce, and never again had any direct influence over his son’s education.
Lolo Soetoro, the second husband of Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, introduced his stepson to Islam.Obama was enrolled in a Wahabi school in Jakarta. Wahabism is the radical teaching that is followed by the Muslim terrorists who are now waging Jihad against the western world.
Since it is politically expedient to be a Christian whenseeking Major public office in the United States, BarackHussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ in an attempt to downplay his Muslim background.
Let us all remain alert concerning Obama’s expectedpresidential candidacy. The Muslims have said they plan ondestroying the US from the inside out, what betterway to start than at the highest level……………..Think about it….
Highwayman pointed out that this may be slanted and sent us a link to an Obama site. “Here’s a link to the Wikipedia story line on Barack,” Highwayman said. “Check it out. I’m no Barack fan myself (I generally vote conservative), but at the same time it’s important we tell the truth about someone.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama#Early_life_and_career
DON’T MISS CHAPTER TWO, THREE AND FOUR OF THE NEWS–Here’s a tease: BIKERNET NEWS FLASH–CHRIS CARR ON BIKERNET TV, BACK STREET HERO CHECKS IN, SCOTT JACOBS DEAL OF THE WEEK, WILD REPORT FROM PAUL GARSON, MRF ANNOUNCEMENT, LEATHER SEATS FROM ENVY CYCLES, BAKER IN STURGIS AND ASSALT WEAPAN ADVICE.
Continued On Page 2
Arlin Fatland The Godfather of The Custom Shop
By Bandit | | General Posts
With so many fly-by-night operations around these days, it is great to see an original chopper builder still rockin’ 30 years later. It’s not hard to see why he’s flourished in today’s environment, once you speak with Arlin Fatland, owner and founder of 2-Wheelers motorcycle shops in Denver, Sturgis, and Daytona. He’s a mad man, who loves choppers as much as he loves beer. He’s the godfather of Hamster shop owners all over the country. You name it, he’s done it and enjoyed everyday.
Building bikes for a living is not about money. It’s about the rush a man receives when that bikes fires for the first time. It’s about unwrapping that new paint job or a Duanne Ballard seat. It’s creativity personified. It’s that buzz in the seat of his pants when he finished welding the perfect sissy bar, or that bracket he handmade and machined fits. It’s the crowning achievement of having that project bike glisten under a saloon’s neon lights for the first time, tinkling as the engine cools. All the money in the world won’t buy any man that sensation of achievement and honor.
Two-Wheelers was founded in 1970 in Denver, a time when choppers weren’t mainstream at all. Arlin, at 28, built his shop outta fist fights, running from the law, wars with citizens and beer cans. Bikers weren’t even considered acceptable in the ‘70s. When he opened, the chopper culture wasn’t embraced like today. The folks in the ghetto neighborhood tried to run the dirty bikers out. “One day I opened a package and found five sticks of dynamite,” Arlin said. “I’m still serving customers who shot at me in the ‘70s.” There were many nights when Arlin and his staff stood armed, at watched until dawn, to make sure 2-Wheelers was standing in the morning.
Those were the days when 2-Wheelers was closed on Sundays and Mondays, so the clan could ride. Those were the days of dodging cops and mad citizens, fighting other young punks and building the two wheeled creations from the ground up and testing them against mile-high asphalt at 90 mph. Those were the days when the only way you were getting in after-hours was with a bottle of Jack, a gun, or a hot broad.
Real old-time bike shops, the few left standing, exude coolness. When you walk into 2-Wheelers these days, you can tell it’s been there over 30 years from the surrounding history. You get the sense that whatever you need, they have or know where to get it…I know, when I can’t find a part in my area, 2-Wheelers has it. So, I ride down to the city, experience the vibe, and get the part no one else has in stock.
They have such an experienced staff that when you ask for a part they can help you whether it’s a stock Harley peice or a custom component for a project. They’ve worked on every style and model built for 36 years. Arlin has also built virtually every style from bobbers, his favorite, to late ‘70s Arlen Ness Pencil Sharpener Sportsters. “They handled like a wheel barrow fulla wet concrete,” Arlin said, “but that was the style at the time and we rode ‘em everywhere.” The guys at 2-Wheelers are real bikers who know their shit, a fact evident in their constant project builds. You can find everything from a Sporty bobber to a classic Knucklehead chop, all meticulously assembled and fabricated to match the style of the era, and all meant to be ridden hard. “I like to demonstrate what’s possible to younger riders,” Arlin said. “We support all the local shows and take up to 12 rollers as examples of what a young guy can build on a limited budget.”
Arlin is working with with the Easyriders crew to support the growth of the Denvers Easyriders show in April. “I hauled 20 bikes to the show last year,” Arlin said. “They’re leased a new venue for this year and we’ll pass out fliers all year long. I even recommended a local biker band for entertainment, the Brethren ‘n Fast.” The population of Denver is now 3 million and he believes the show should rock like Donnie Smith’s in Minneapolis, with enough support from locals.
Arlin said that back in the '70s it was hard to find custom parts, and if he truly wanted a unique chopper, he had to fabricate many components from scratch. Being at the top of the motorcycle industry has its advantages because he gets to see trends come and go, then resurface. Not being one to follow trends, Arlin has always tried to learn something new in each build he does, and if you look at his bikes over the years you will notice they have only one thing in common, attention to detail. He builds what he feels will have longevity in a business that changes everyday, and although he notices what is going on around him, he, like many other top builders who have been in the business, keeps building bikes that are timeless yet innovative. It’s kind of like Rock n’ Roll, it never dies, it just keeps getting appreciated by more and more people.
In 1973, while staggering around City Park in Sturgis, Arlin noticed that no shops existed to help guys with parts and service. He bought a building in Downtown Sturgis and for years it serviced all the Harley riders who rode to the Black Hills Rally. At the time riders needed parts, oil and tires. He discovered similer services lacking in Daytona and two years later opened 2-Wheelers in Daytona and of course he now rolls into Florida for Biketoberfest.
Today Arlin tries to focus on providing parts and services to his customers at an affordable price and doesn’t pay much attention to wide tires and bling. His goal is to open the creative chopper door to everyone. “Young guys want to build old school bikes,” Arlin said, “so I try to provide frames starting at just $900 and rollers to give them the basic platform at affordable prices.” He believes the younger crowd is the future of chopper building.
“It’s all stemmed from what’s in my blood,” Arlin said. He caters to everyone by having a huge selection of parts and having stuff that no one else has. Being one of the founding members of the infamous Hamsters has its benefits as well, and he has always been part of an elite membership of builders who continue to define the industry and will continue to push the envelope in their unique way.
Hell, the crew at Bikernet is planning a Mudflap Trucker Girl project inspired by Arlin. If you want to get some of your own trucker girls or the quirkiest stuff on the planet for bikes see what 2-Wheelers is all about, visit 2-Wheelers online at www.2wheelersmc.com. Watch for features on Arlin’s classic customs and 2-Wheelers products in the Bikernet news.
2007 Isle Of Man
By Tim Monroe | | General Posts
Racing on the Streets
It’s our version of Mecca. No other race in the U.S., or even the world, quite matches the experience of seeing the TT in person. Not only is the race action great, but the atmosphere is incredible. It’s you and 100,000 of your best motorcycling friends from around the world, all gathered to celebrate the love of fast motorcycles.
Isle of Man TT Grid Girls… Lovely!
This was the 100th year of the Isle of Man TT races. Except for a few war years, motorcycles have been racing on the island every year since 1907. Back then the roads were rough and unpaved. An Indian won the premier race that year, with an average speed of just 47 mph – a far cry from what’s possible today.
2007 saw a new lap record set. John McGuiness averaged just over 130 mph during the Senior TT on the last day of racing, on a Honda CBR1000RR. Wow!!! Unfortunately there was an accident during the race, leaving one rider and two spectators dead. The island can be a deadly place. The yearly death toll averages more than 2 riders per year.
The TT features several days of racing, with various classes including sidecars. The Superbike-spec 1000s can hit over 200 miles per hour on some sections of the track. The 600s and sidecars are a bit slower, but no less thrilling.
Car Racing at Speed
Locals and visitors watch the races from almost everywhere. Yards, driveways, house windows, schoolyards, gas stations, pubs……. anywhere along the 37 ½ mile course is fair game. It’s sobering to see the various hard surfaces – light posts, walls, gas pumps, houses – along the course that have been covered with hay bales and padding in an attempt to soften the blow for a rider traveling at over 100 mph.
Locals and visitors watch the races from almost everywhere.
When the races are over it’s time to head to the Promenade. The “Prom” is the main street along the bay where the nightly festivities happen. This year you could see a number of stunt shows and contests, as well as dozens of ancient race bikes being started up and ridden by racing legends. Where else can you see and hear a 1938 DKW supercharged 2-stroke race bike being ridden? And there were two of those things!! The sound was amazing, almost as nasty as the shriek from the exhaust of a 1960’s vintage Honda 250 six cylinder racer.
Quite a few racing legends were in attendance this year. Giacomo Agostini, Phil Read, and Kevin Schwantz were there, and there was a somewhat odd appearance by Michelle Duff, formerly Mike Duff. Duff was an accomplished Grand Prix and TT racer from the 1960s who later became a transgender. The announcer called her “Mike…er I mean Michelle” a couple of times. I think the audience was equally confused.
Bikes at the Isle of Man
Here in the states we certainly have a huge variety of bikes, in every shape, flavor and color. We have the choppers of course, and chromed out sportbikes with extended swingarms, repli-racers, vintage bikes, etc. And for a completely new take on the meaning of “custom bikes”, look around at the TT.
No trip to the Isle of Man TT races is complete without checking out the German streetfighters. Streetfighters are not exclusive to the Germans, but the Germans do seem to take their bikes to the greatest extremes. Check out the photos, and look at the detail of these bikes. You’ll see turbos, nitrous, bikes with no seat pads, and some with polished aluminum seats. Like your ‘fighter chromed? With flashy paint? Polished aluminum bodywork? Take your choice. Want your bike’s ass end sticking up sky high? How about a 4 into 4 exhaust, with underseat outlets going thru the bodywork? Nothing is too bizarre for the Streetfighter crowd. Function be damned, these are way bitchin’ bikes.
One bike in particular caught our attention. The “General Lee” appeared to be an early 80’s Suzuki, completely done up in full Dukes of Hazard paint scheme. This General Lee probably couldn’t jump very well, but I’ll bet it kicks ass at the dragstrip. The bike’s owner obviously spent a lot of time with the General. Among other things, it has a turbocharger, custom wheels with rim mounted brake discs in front, and an adjustable length swingarm to keep things stable at the strip. Even if you’re not a fan of the 70’s TV show, you have to give props to the guy who built this bike.
Want more weirdness? How about a bobbed Honda Valkyrie, with 6 intake stacks, and 6 into 6 exhausts with the ends pointed up as if to shoot at incoming aircraft? Then there was the Ford V-6 powered rat-trike looking like it came from a post-apocalyptic world, complete with mice, rats and bats.
Sidecar rigs abound at the Isle of Man. A blue Gold Wing had what appeared to be a small car attached to its side. In reality it was a 2 person sidecar with 2 wheels, front and rear, the front wheel being steered with the Gold Wing’s. And though I hate the idea of ruining the handling on a great naked sportbike, there was a gorgeous Aprilia Tuono (the Racing version no less) attached to an equally beautiful carbon fiber sidecar.
The entire atmosphere surrounding the TT races is amazing. With the Isle of Man’s location pretty far north, daylight stays around until 11 pm in the summer. It’s amusing to be at the Bushy’s tent (the local brew) after 10 pm, in full daylight, watching stunters and chatting with an international crowd of mad bikers.
Considering the danger involved with 200 mph bikes in close proximity to rock walls, it’s anyone’s guess how long the Isle of Man races will continue. For years there’s been talk of shutting it down. But as a substantial part of the island’s economy revolves around the annual TT races, the locals are doing everything in their power to keep this party going.
One more time–The Girls of The Isle Of Man.
2007 European World Championship
By Neil Blabber | | General Posts
CUSTOM CHROME EUROPEDEALERSHOW 2007–AMD European Championship of Custombike-Building.March 24th and 25th 2007, Phoenixhall, Mainz/Rhine/Germany.
Full House: The 2007 CUSTOM CHROME EUROPE DEALER SHOW exceeded everybody’s expectations both in terms of attending dealers, visitors and bike show-participants. The quality of the motorcycles exhibited blew everybody’s mind – as some 70+ never before seen custom bikes premiered at what now is the most excellent bikeshow of Europe.
Europe’s market leader in Customparts-Distribution again has teamed up their show with the AMD European Championship of Custombike-Building to create one of the best Custombike-Shows Europe has to offer. More than 110 awesome custombikes from all over the globe – this years line-up included entries from Russia, USA, Japan and Columbia (!!!) participated, competing for three tickets to the World Championship at Sturgis/South Dakota in August 2007 and prices worth no less than 30.000 €.
Runner-up “Art of Racer“ won the jury with what might be remembered as the most compact Sportster ever: “Rock ‘n’ Bike” was as “Bonsai“ as a Sporty can be, with the frame running supertight around the “customized“ engine block.
2nd runner-up came from France too, featuring a great tribute to the 1924 Pikes Peak Hillclimb Race: Riverside Motorcycles from Vallon Pont d’Arc named the unique handcrafted machine “The Crosser“.
With a stunning new Bonneville theme bike “Goodwood”, Fred Krugger won 4th and the best German bike by TGS-Motorcycles, “Seppster” followed at 5th position.
The Custom Chrome Motorcycle class, based on the popular kitbikes, was won by TGS motorcycles with their entry “Helter Skelter.“
The modified Harley was taken by storm by the US-build Young Chopper’s creation “P-Tang“, that is now owned by Numero Uno at Milano.
Adding to the immense attraction of the show, both Jammer President Ed Martin and S&S President Brett Smith picked their favourite Top-3 bikes, backed up with very attractive prices including S&S 96 Cubic Inch engine, gearbox and exhaust system!
The Custom Chrome Europe Dealershow featured 21 european and 21 US Top-class manufacturers of V-Twin customparts, spareparts and accessories, answering to the dealers and the public, which can visit the show on Sunday. Several manufacturers offer seminars on their products, including S&S, Barnetts, Mikuni and Belt Drive Ltd.. A special seminar was focusing on the successful line of CUSTOM CHROME MOTORCYCLES.
This years Special Guests included Indian Larry Legacy bike builder PAUL COX, world renowned Custombike photographer MICHAEL LICHTER, CCE designer and legendary bike-builder JOHN REED who left the show with new impressions and stunned by the variety of styles exhibited.
Lichter, who was attending the meeting on invitation by Custom Chrome won the audience with his classic Sturgis Images and two slide shows. “We are looking forward to the 2007 season with great confidence,” said Holger Mohr, we have very interesting new products for all Twin Cam riders and our Custom Chrome Motorcycle line is running well.“
Check out: www.custom-chrome-europe.com
2007 Smoke Out West Run With Bikernet Crew
By Bandit | | General Posts
“The hard way”… Well, not really
I had just returned home from my sidecar excursion with the kids, and was trying to figure out a way to break it to the old lady that I was leaving again in less than 48 hrs to head back down south on another bike trip.
I had been kicking the plan around for weeks. I was to hook up with Bandit and crew, and ride out to the Smoke out in Cottonwood AZ. I had already started packing before I even told her about it. After a while, I figured I might as well get this over with and propose the idea to her.
I told her of my plans, and then waited for the backlash. To my surprise, nothing happened. She was cool with the whole thing, and understood my need for the open road. Did I mention how lucky I am to have this woman by my side? Anyway, that’s a whole other story that I haven’t really figured out yet my self. So Sunday afternoon, I called Bandit to see when he was thinking of leaving. He wasn’t home, but Nyla tells me they planned to pull out on Thursday morning. YIKES! I’m located about 3 days away, and still had a ton of shit to do to the Glide before I could hit the road.
Monday morning.
I hit the ground running that morning with the destination of Port Alberni (where my bike was located) locked into my sights. Once I got to the bike, I immediately began tearing in to it. One of my main tasks was to pull the fairing apart, and fabricate 3 of the 4 brackets that hold the thing on the bike. The LA roads busted the shit out of them on my last trip down there with the sidecar. I also want to change all the fluids as well as do a quick repair on the main bracket that holds the tour pack on.
As is usually the case, once I started working on her, I remembered several other items that needed tending. I had to rig a toggle switch to replace the ignition switch that had calved on me the week before. It totally gave up the ghost after I had gotten home.
After a few hours of cutting and torching, all brackets were fixed, ignition was working, and I saved about $200.00 on parts from the stealership. I would leave on time. Although it was raining heavily at my departure Monday at 3:00 pm, I doggedly rode ahead for the ferry scheduled for a 5 pm departure to the mainland. I just made it before the ship was ready to depart. It stopped raining while I was on the boat, and I thought I was in for a break. NOT !!!
When I got off the boat, the rain really started to come down. Adding to the drama was the fact it was getting dark as well. Riding in the rain isn’t that big a deal on a touring bike, but riding in the rain and the dark, forget it! I tucked into some dumpy little motel right by the border, and thought to myself, I will hit it hard in the morning….
Tuesday morning.
I got up about dark-thirty and chugged a few Styrofoam cups of bad coffee while waiting for the daylight to appear. Unfortunately the rain was still lashing down like liquid knives ready to cut me to ribbons. I was encouraged by the rising sun hoping the new day would slow the rain, but I would have no such good fortune this day. So once again, I donned my rain suit, and loaded up for the road. Before I knew it, I was minutes from the border. I decided I would wait to eat breakfast until I crossed the border. I planned on some biscuits and gravy on the other side, a meal you can’t get in Canada. I rode for a couple of hours before finally stopping to eat. It was still raining off and on. My plan was to ride hard as long as I could, and head inland towards I-90, and then on to Yakima. I hoped to get a break in the weather as soon as I got over the Cascades. While it did ease up a bit, it still wasn’t the best.
I took I-90 to Ellensburg, then I-82 to Yakima, and got on to Highway 97; 97 runs all the way from Northern BC to the California border. It is a great Highway with decent speed limits, until you cross in to Oregon.
What the fuck is up with Oregon?
That state has a no fun law as soon as you cross the border! I was doing 75 mph plus with no problem until I crossed into Oregon, then BAM! I had to slow down to 55. Oh well, carry on and make the best of it. The weather was starting to clear up a bit, but still grey and foreboding. I stopped in Bend to have a look at one of the Harley shops along the way, but once you have been to one, you have been to all of them.
After a while, with a bit of sunshine poking through here and there, it really started to look better out. I jammed all afternoon, staying on 97 and after seeing a few deer on the side of the road, I decided to shut it down about 8:00 pm. I have an innate fear of deer after hitting one on my bike about 20 years ago in the dark. Believe me, they leave a mark.
I was just outside of Klamath Falls Oregon, near the California border. I had ridden about 600 miles. Not bad for day one in the rain. I checked into a cheap motel and got the weather report for the next day from the girl behind the front desk. RAIN!!! WTF?!!! In Klamath Falls? It’s like a desert here, and I hit it the one day a year they get rain? Oh well….
Wednesday morning…
She was right, it was raining out. I sat in the lobby and filled up on the free continental stale breakfast muffins and cereal. In the dark I sat, waiting for the sun which seemed as if it would never come. Finally, I toweled off the bike with some complimentary super 8 towels, and hit the road. It was just after 7:00 am. I crossed over into California less than half an hour later still on 97, and heading for Weed, Cal.
It was really coming down, but I could see off in the distance there was some sunshine. The combination of rain and morning sunlight created some of the most brilliant rainbows I have ever seen. I just had to get past this one downpour, and I did, shortly after hooking up with I5. It was nice now. Clear sunny skies and crisp morning air. The bike and I were digging it now.
I rode hard for the next few hours and ended up in Redding just before lunch. I stopped for fuel, a bite to eat, and asked the station attendant how long he would guess the drive to LA from here was. He says, “Oh no sweat, you are pretty much there, only another 550 miles, and absolutely nothing to see between here and there”. This guy wasn’t kidding man. It’s a wasteland along that stretch, like something out of Chopper Orwell. The good thing about it is you can really make time, so that’s what I did. This stretch of road was pretty uneventful, other than cooking along at sometimes up to 90 mph, and covering some major miles. I hooked up with another rider on an Electraglide like mine. We rode together for the next couple of hundred miles taking turns in the lead while really booking it. We never communicated, it was just an unspoken agreement, we were both in a freaking hurry, and would take turns riding out front…and risking the ticket. I finally lost him when I turned off for a rest after a 150 mile stretch without stopping, and he carried on.
The weather was nice enough now, I was down to a long sleeve T and a vest. This is the reason I ride all the way down here at this time of year. After some time in biker euphoria, I’m back on the freeway jamming. I knew I was getting close, and I didn’t want to stop. It was still warm when the sun started to go down, and I just needed to cross over the hills outside of LA and I would be done for the day. It got a bit crisp at the top of the hills, but was still warm enough to ride in a T shirt so I carried on making it in to LA before dark. I arrived in Santa Clarita around 7:00 pm, just as it started to get dark. I called Bandit to let him know I was there and that I would see him in the morning.He tells me I am welcome to spend the night at his place, but I am done. From where I am to his place was about an hour on some of the scariest freeways on the planet. Besides, it’s dark now, and I just rode about 700 miles. I’m spent. Thanks anyway Bandit, but I couldn’t if I wanted to. I grab a room at the same Motel 6 I just stayed in a couple of weeks before with my kids, which is just down the road from Magic Mountain. It is familiar, and I am tired.
Thursday morning
I woke early, and was stoked. It was a sunny and warm day, and I knew I was on my way to ride with a legend. I called Bandit and told him I would be there in an hour or so. “No hurry” he says, “we are just getting ready to load the bikes in to the truck”………….I said “Pardon”???…………………..He tells me that he and the boys are loading up the bikes and truck them out of LA as far as Parker AZ. After the ride from Santa Clarita to Long beach, and Bikernet HQ, I ask him if there is room in the truck for one more bike. I don’t know how you cats that live down there do it man. Those roads are THE SHITS!! No 2 ways about it and I’m on a bagger. Now I see why he wants to truck them until we hit the desert. I wouldn’t last 50 miles in downtown LA on a rigid.
I arrived at the HQ just in time to meet Nyla, who is just pulling out. I told her I was just going to grab a quick bite to eat, but she says “hang around, I am just on my way out to grab some breakfast burritos with Glenn.” She has Glenn Priddle from Australia with her, so I pull in to the high security compound at HQ, and a minute later Jeremiah pulls in on “The Hard Way”, a bad as shit rigid him and Bandit put together for the Smokeout. I had met Jeremiah a few weeks earlier at the Salt flats, so we had a good bullshit for a bit, while we were waiting for Bandit to get out of the shower. I was looking over their creation, and was in awe of the details that went in to this bike. Bandit hasn’t done a feature on it yet, but I’m hoping he will. It is unreal. Not a big buck show bike, just a mean as hell, in your face, shovelhead, rocker foot clutching, jockey shifting, sprung seat, open piped, bitchin rigid ride. I loved it right away…
Some of the mounts on this thing look like they should be in a museum, and Jeremiah tells me they are all Bandits doing. The oil bag and the oil filter mount he whipped up should have a patent on them. Easy to see why Bandit was chosen for the one and only chopper build that Monster garage has ever done.
The man pulled up the big garage door and we started getting things ready to roll. Nyla and Glenn P pulled in, and I got to meet Glenn for the first time. We hit it off instantly, and you could tell right away that this guy is the real thing.I play official photographer as the boys messed with tie down straps and what not, loading up the bikes. I ain’t touching these things….. Long story……
They got them lashed down, and we finished up our breakfast burritos, and hit the road. Bandit, Glenn, and Jeremiah in the Bikernet shop truck, and me taking up the rear on my E Glide. We were headed for Palm Springs to meet up with Larry Petrie from Chop N Grind racing team, and have a quick lunch at the “Handle Bar” right next door to the Harley shop. It is a dark and ominous place with waitresses that just oozed attitude, even in the middle of the day. I like it.
We had a quick lunch, then hit the road again. The landscape was surrounded by a thousand windmills sucking up the continuous gale force wind that this area is known for. I had never seen anything like it. Again, it reminded me of something out of Chopper Orwell; very futuristic.
We passed through Joshua Tree National Park and 29 Palms, on our way to the AZ border. It was downright hot out, but the roads were smooth and endless. I was still following the shop truck, but couldn’t stand the sight of these 2 beautiful choppers in the back of a pickup anymore. I had to twist the wick, pass the boys, so as to have the whole desert to myself, or so it seemed.
I love blasting through the desert on a bike, and this road is one of the most beautiful stretches I had ever seen. I know it was killing Bandit and Jeremiah to have those things in the truck, but we were just about at the unload point, in Parker AZ.
We crossed the border around dinner time, and I threw my helmet in the back of the shop truck at around 60 mph. Wouldn’t be needing that for a few days. We checked our room and went down the road to the local steak house. Several people had given us different directions but we managed to find it anyway. Had a great dinner, and then hit the nearest Casino for a few drinks and a bit of fun. Turns out Jeremiah is a master at the slots. He was winning small jackpots all over the place, but then started really searching for that one machine that would pay off. He found it.
He plugs a $5 bill in to his machine of choice, gives the side a gentle rub, like you would if you were trying to talk your old lady in to a night of passion, and then pulls the one arm bandit. Bells, lights and whistles fill the room…On his $5 bet, he wins $764.00…. Drinks are on Jeremiah tonight
We headed for one of the local taverns, had a couple of cool ones courtesy of Jeremiah, and shot the shit. We looked at the Thursday news on my little pocket PC so Bandit can make sure Sinwu is on the ball while he is away. After a few nightcaps, we headed back to our rooms. Glenn P and I shared a room and a late night bullshit session before we drifted off; another very good day. Tomorrow, we ride……
Friday
The next morning, Glenn and I were up early. We grabbed a free cup of luke-warm, stale coffee from the motel office. Bandit and Jeremiah are late sleepers from the look of it, so we shot the breeze in the morning sunlight, outside our room, admiring the two custom built bikes in the back of the shop truck. Finally, around 7:30, the boys are up. We unloaded the bikes and got ready to hit the road.I offer my ride up to Glenn, who is a long way from home and probably itching to ride. I had been on the road for 4 weeks already doing various trips, so a morning in the truck wouldn’t be so bad. Glenn accepted the offer, getting his gear on for a brisk morning ride through the Arizona desert. We decided to put on a few miles before stopping for something to eat. This was great, as it’s the way I usually roll, so for all of us to agree on this was unusual.
We stopped in a small town called “Hope” for fuel. After leaving town I see a sign on the side of the road “You are now beyond Hope”. I didn’t have a camera ready, so I missed the opportunity for a picture. After a few hours, we stopped for breakfast in a small, nameless, ghost town. There were 4 other choppers in the parking lot of this disheveled restaurant, and from the looks of them, they were headed to the Smokeout. 2 were highbar, springer, rigid choppers that looked like they were just completed the day before. No paint to speak of and a plethora of bungee cords holding belongings to whatever they could strap on to. One was a new triumph ridden by the only woman in the group. They were from San Diego, and were in fact on their way to Cottonwood.
We talked for a while when we entered the restaurant, and then followed them outside to see them off. One of them was having trouble with his charging system, so they had to keep swapping batteries back and forth between one of the other bikes. The lone woman was telling us what a long trip it had been from San Diego because of all the breakdowns they were experiencing, but nobody seemed the worse for wear. They were all in good spirits, and this was no big deal. Just what it takes to ride a home built, back-street chopper to the Smokeout.
Once they were underway, we went back inside for a great breakfast and then hit the road ourselves. Glenn rode my E Glide for a couple more hours, then I took over at the next fuel stop. It was sunny and warm day, and it was killing me to be sitting in the pickup truck. Bandit was the next to offer up his ride to Glenn, which he accepted gracefully, so Bandit jumped on the “Hard Way” and Jeremiah drove the chase truck. We were jamming through the desert, and it was perfect. I will remember that stretch of highway for ever.
I pulled out my camera and snapped a few shots as we cruised the barren desert. A couple of the shots I took that day are among my favorite pictures of all time. You know the ones; you take hundreds, and you get a few that really turn out. Thank God for digital cameras. I cant tell you which highways we were on, as I don’t have my map in front of me as I write this, and to be honest, the number of turnoffs, and changes we took after the directions Bandit got from one of his friends, still has me baffled. I just followed along.
We stopped for lunch a few hours later, and Jeremiah was ready to ride, so Glenn took over in the truck, and we hit it hard. Maybe it was just me, but I noticed the pace picked up considerably. I think it was probably the younger Jeremiah pushing us a little harder, taunting us to twist the wick just a bit more, so we did.
Approaching the town of Jerome in the late afternoon, there is a stretch of highway that is all twisties climbing up in to the mountains, and then descending again into town, which is about midway up the hills on the east facing slope. What a ride! We got lucky as far as traffic was concerned. There wasn’t any, so we rode hard up the mountain. My Glide was starving for power going up, and looking for breaks going down, but I wasn’t going to lose pace to Bandit and Jeremiah who were up front. These cats can ride!!! You would swear they were on a couple of sport bikes the way they attacked the corners, not a pair of rigid frame hand shifting stroked shovelhead choppers.
My twin cam was groaning under the pressure to keep up, but it did. Coming down the other side was a trip to remember. Hitting the stretches with way too much throttle, and then diving on the breaks for the hair pin mountain road turns to avoid the drop from the precipice at every turn. I know that if some of my riding buddies from home were with us, we would have been waiting at the bottom for them for a while. It was hairy, but exhilarating. When we reached the town of Jerome, I pulled up to Bandit, and yelled above the open pipes of his chopper, “What a fuckin hoot, lets go do that again!” He just laughed, and grinned a grin that told you he had done it a thousand times.
If you look on a map, Jerome is shown as a ghost town, and when you roll through it, you can see why. The streets are lined with houses that literally butt right up to the sides of the roadways. They wind their way through this hillside town like a snake. There are taverns on every corner it seems, and no particular rhyme or reason for any of the criss-crossing streets. I would guess they were laid out before the turn of the century, and haven’t changed much since. We didn’t stop here on our way through, but I did go back there in the next day or so, and it is a town I would like to visit again, when I have more time.
We carried on as we were only a few miles from our destination, Cottonwood Arizona, home of the “Smokeout West 2”, put on by Colonel Edge.
We went straight to our hotel to check in and get cleaned up. Bandit informed us we were invited to a luncheon put on by the Horse to welcome all staff and press to the event. The luncheon was put on in the Legion in Cottonwood, and they had a great spread of all kinds of food and deserts. It was around dinner time actually, so this was a welcome treat after another long day on the road.
We were introduced to Hammer from the Horse, and Edge, the event promoter, and quite a few other staff members from the magazine. It was great to meet all these people that I have been seeing in the magazine for years.
Now here I was sitting down to a meal with them. After a great dinner, and good company, we went back to our room, and got a few things ready before descending on the fairgrounds for the kickoff to the event at 5:30. The Smokeout was on!
We rolled in on our bikes, and found a place to park near one of the many buildings filled with cool bikes and chopper part vendors. Glenn and I hooked up and went for a walk around the site while Bandit was yakking with one of his many friends there.
You can’t walk 50 feet with Bandit at one of these events without him bumping in to somebody he knows, or someone who knows him. One of the vendors I saw there was a guy who could take any digital image, and transfer it on to a mug, or T-shirt, or anything you could think of.
It hit me right away. I went and took him my memory card, and had him make up 3 T shirts with one of the pictures I took earlier that day of Bandit and Glenn P jamming through the desert. One for each of them, and one for me to keep. It is now one of my favorite shirts.
I had to put the stall on Glenn as he kept hanging around the booth where the guy was making the shirts, so I gave him some bullshit excuse about not being able to find the bathrooms. I got him away from there and, anyway, long story short, I gave the boys the shirts later that evening. They were blown away.. gotta love modern technology.
We toured around the fair grounds, trying to take in all there was to see before things got crowded, but it was getting busier by the minute, and there was still tons of stuff to check out.
One of the highlights for me was seeing the Suckerpunch Sally’s booth there. I have been a HUGE fan of their bikes for years, and seeing them up close was the best. I got to meet Jeff briefly, and Donny, and got to tell them what a fan I was of their work. They both seemed like good guys.
Down to earth, the kind of guys you would want to hang out with and shoot the breeze over a cold one. Unfortunately, they were both pretty busy, understandably. I did get to spend way too much time scrutinizing their bikes though, and I can tell you first hand, these things are built tough. They have the appearance of a bike you could ride the shit out of, and then park it for the night, not ever having to give a second thought before getting up and riding the shit out of it again. I WANT ONE!!!! There was a ton of builders on hand there, but these bikes really stood out.
Another one of the builders that really caught my eye was Route 66 choppers.They had a board track racer style bobber there that I just fell in love with.As I was drooling over this bike and all the super clean details of it, I was pondering on how much a machine like this would be worth, when out of the blue, the owner, tells me it’s for sale. I was afraid to ask, when he volunteered the price anyway, $17000.00!! Are you freaking kidding me? This was sure to be one of those high dollar customs I could never afford, and could only dream about. Unreal!! As much as I would have loved to sign on the dotted line right there and then, it wouldn’t have been mine. I plan on building my next scoot, but I did get a bunch of ideas that would lend themselves well to my Suckerpunch bike that I plan on buying one of these days.
I went to tell Bandit about this board track racer in the show barn, and he was interested in taking a look, so when I took him back to the barn to introduce him to the owner, wouldn’t you know it, he knows the dude already. Go figure. “Hey, how ya doin man””My buddy says you got a bitchin bike on display?”So he takes us back to where his bike was, and Bandit was impressed. So much so, that this bike was one of his 3 choices for “Bandits Choice award” at the Smokeout. When I win the lotto, I will be calling Route 66 very soon.
There were so many stand out bikes there, I couldn’t possibly talk about them all here, but I will try to mention a few more. Another was the “Cadillac Gangster”, a chopped, FLH type, shovelhead that was clean beyond words. It had just the right mix of chrome and black accents with whitewalls and gloss black paint. Hand-formed copper hard lines were very tidy and discreet, from the rockerbox crossover tube to the copper spun oil tank; just a very nice job.
The “Dublin Mob” put together some very kool chops as well with details like revolver tail lights, black powder gun shifters, and heavy patina type finishes on their frames. These were tough looking bikes, like the kind, you don’t wanna fuck with whoever rides it, even if it’s a chick !!
Some of the coolest bikes there were not even in the show, but out in the parking lot, as usual. I tried to take pictures of as many of them as I could, but when I reached close to 300 pics, I thought, I had better slow down.
Friday night we decided to hit one of the local bars for a few drinks. We went back to the hotel and dropped off the bikes, flipped a coin to see who the designated driver was going to be and started for the bar. I don’t remember who lost the coin toss, but I hope it wasn’t me. It was a hoot. We ran in to the same group from the breakfast restaurant the day before with the lone chick rider, and had a good BS.
There was just as much going on outside the bar as there was inside, especially with all the bikes coming and going. There was a pretty strong police presence there, but they were not screwing around much with bullshit infractions. Seemed to me they were just looking for serious shit, like DUI and the like. They were everywhere, so I’m glad I wasn’t driving. At least I don’t think I was.
After returning to our hotel later that night, Bandit suggested we walk down to the lounge right in the hotel we were staying in. It was a quiet place, yet a good spot to sit and talk over a Jack on the rocks. Bandit, Glenn P, Jeremiah, and myself hit the lounge and had a great time just gabbin about all the shit we had seen as well as coaxing a few stories out of Bandit.
I have been reading his stuff for years, but let me tell you, it is nothing like sitting in a bar over a few drinks and listening to him tell you stories about back in the day. Some of them I had read here or there before, but listening to him tell them in person, you can’t help but feel you are in the presence of a motorcycle legend. This was one of the other highlights of my trip. Just sitting at the bar, bullshitting with the man.. What a night…
Glenn and I are up early again, and decided to jump in the truck and take the 20 minute drive to Sedona for breakfast. We knew it could be a few hours before Bandit and Jeremiah roll out of the rack..
Glenn had been to Sedona before, so he knew the best spots for scenery and good food. Unfortunately, we were there before most places were open, but we did find one spot that served up great food. After a quick bite, we went for a walk around town. This place looks like it just jumped off a post card. I can’t wait to go back again with the wife on the back of the bike. A quick walk around town to some of the local shops, and Glenn found a small touristy shop that had everything you could think of including some very cool leather works which, if you haven’t read any of Glenn’s pieces, is right up his ally. We took a few photos that he would use when he got home as patterns for making his own stuff. Glenn has made a few pieces that have been featured on this site, and most recently, the seat for Johnny Humbles’ brothers’ bike, that he is presenting to him on his return from Iraq. (You can check the coverage of the build here on bikernet in the garage section)
I buttered up Glenn to make a sheath for my switch blade that I carry on the bike with me. I will post some photos when he is done, although after hearing what his schedule is like, it could be some time before I actually see it.
We headed back to Cottonwood around 10:00 in the morning hoping that Bandit and his sidekick would be out of the sack. Glenn saw the bikes in a parking lot of a local eatery, so we stopped and joined them for coffee, and made a plan for the day. We headed back down to the Smokeout for the day, and took in some more of the activities to be had. Edge told Bandit that he was going to be presenting the “Bandit’s choice” award at 8:00 that night, so he had to get busy and check out all the bikes, a daunting task at an event this big.
Every time he turned around there was either some celebrity trying to get his attention, or some hottie who wanted her picture taken with him. I stuck to him like glue. We hooked up with Paul Yaffe, Myron Larrabe and Doug, the Cottonwood Police Cheif, for a visit, then Jeff and Donny from Suckerpunch. I hooked up again with Glenn, and we took in the wet T shirt contest, and the bikini bike wash. The girls were very busy, as the whole event was held in a gravel parking lot, and it was very windy most of the time, so every bike outside was covered in dust.
There was the roller derby girls, who put on a great show. We hooked up with Bandit again, and we got to meet Goth Girl from the Devil Dolls. What a hoot. A bit later in the day, we went for dinner at one of the local taverns, and then back to the bar from the night before, for a couple of drinks, then we had to high tail it back to the fairgrounds for the “Bandits Choice” awards. We hung out for a couple of the live bands that were playing there, who put on a wicked show. There was a great turn out for the shows and everybody was having a blast. Later on, we headed back to the hotel to take in the impromptu mini-bike races that were taking place that night at midnight.
George the Painter, and Gothgirl were there as well as a bunch of Horse staffers. The races were a hoot, but it was pitch black so getting pictures was tough, although one of the girls there was a professional photographer, and tried to give me a few tips. I think I will just wait to see her pictures show up in the horse.It was the small hours of the morning when we finally shut it down for the night, but we weren’t the last ones to call it a night. You could hear burn outs going until almost daybreak, and a party in every other room. The Horse staff knows how to party.
Sunday Morning
We were all up a bit later than usual, but not too late. We fired up the bikes and headed to Sedona for breakfast. It was packed and we had to wait about a half hour to be seated, but it was worth it, as the food was great. After Breakfast we went to Chris Kallas’s new house in Sedona for a visit. What a place. It was beautiful and he and his wife are very lucky. I am very envious. We hung out there for an hour or so, and then started getting ready to hit the road. Bandit, Jeremiah, and Glenn were getting ready to head back to LA via 29 palms for the night, but I decided to head north out of Sedona, and head for home.
We said our goodbyes, and went our separate ways. My weekend with Bandit and crew was one to remember. I had an absolute blast, but this was about week 5 away from home, so I was on a mission. I rode as far as Zion National Park on Sunday, and got a room just outside the park, as I wanted to check it out in the morning.
At first light, I was on the road in nippy Utah, and rode through the parks’ many tunnels, and winding mountain roads. This is now my new favorite place to ride. If you have never been there, I highly recommend it. I rode through Zion, then back on to the freeway heading north, and on to Salt Lake City and beyond.I rode in to Idaho and as far as Boise on Monday, where I shut her down for the night. Tuesday was going to be a ball buster.
I woke early and left Boise at first light headed for home. I wanted to make it to the ferry in Vancouver before the last sailing at 9:00 pm. I crossed over in to Oregon early in the day, and stopped only for fuel, and a quick bite to eat once in a while. The weather held out for me the whole way, right in to Washington state, but as soon as I crawled down the western slopes of the cascades, in to the Seattle area, it started to rain again. Welcome home.
I rode in the rain for a couple more hours before arriving at the ferry terminal around 6:00 at night. I loaded on to the 7:00 pm ferry, and treated myself to the buffet dinner they serve on this particular sailing. Upon hitting the Island, I cruised the last half hour in the rain to my folks place in Victoria. A little over 750 miles making it extra nice to be home.
As I drifted off to sleep, I wondered how I was going to break it to the Old Lady, that I was going on another trip in a week or so… I will let you know how that goes after I tell her.
2007 Smoke Out Ride From DC
By Barry Green | | General Posts
Sunday mornin’ finds me sittin, drinkin coffee with mild apprehension about the longest ride to date on my ‘05 Shovelhead. There is a serious electrical issue that needs to be dealt with before I even consider this ride. Slowly a plan starts to materialize after runnin’ the electrical schematics through my head. I have already purchased a new coil, after experiencing a phantom ignition failure while riding last Monday. I was riding a large loop around the area, which took several hours. The bike died, then after sitting for ten or so minutes fired right up?
I walked out the house an sized my bike up, walked back inside an started grabbing tools. This was going to be a major once over for my skimpy assed aftermarket electrical system. Off with the gas tanks, battery and solenoid. I dug up three different solenoids the night before and came up with, what I believed was a good one, after looking the old unit over I came to the conclusion that it was fine.
The cap was solid an the plunger seemed to work fine. I took a deep breath and reinstalled it after cleaning the lugs. While I was in the neighborhood I swapped out my coil and shifted my attention to what I perceived as the scariest part of my sled, the circuit board. I purchased this set up, and I’m running it because I ain’t safe around anything electrical. I personally have watched many different wiring harnesses go up in smoke after I laid my greasy little fingers on them.
Well shit, it’s either me riding down the road or this thing shipped to the shop for the third time. This gaggle of wires has fended-off some of the best attempts, from semi-trained professionals. After pickin’ around at things for an hour or so the whole thing looked good, except for some very cheesy terminal disconnects made outta melted down beer cans. Off to my local Ace hardware store for two packs of 22-18 AWG disconnects, a very good set of adjustable wire strippers and a solid crimp tool. I know all you solder freaks are cleanin your coke bottle glasses an shakin your peanut heads at Mr. Crimp Man, but soldering has still eluded me even with Bandit’s double roach clip soldering tool that now sits with both roach clips soldered together.
After sorting out all my wires, crimpin’ new ends on them an hopefully putting them back in the correct terminals, it was time to throw the tanks an dash panel back on my ride. I reinstalled the battery, after I put new isolators on the battery box and last but not least, the seat. Everything went as smoothly as a stock 1980 FX could go. Wednesday night, it was make-or-break time.
I filled the tanks and primed the carb, held my breath and hit the button. Ah the sweet sound of an out-dated starter pushin’ all 88 inches over. I checked my watch and figured I had time for a test ride before catchin an AA meeting at the National Cathedral.
The ride ran well an the button was working fine. Got to the meeting and was getting some hairy looks from some of the upper crust, but what the hell. I just got paid, wasn’t drunk and was headed to the Smoke Out. A friend walked up and told me his Road King would shut of after it got hot. We walked over to my bike, and I showed him what I did recently. The last thing I did was grabbed the circuit breaker the attach it to my battery. I told him how they worked. After the meeting I walked over to my bike, Mr. Button start, hit the button an nadda? WTF? Back to the kicker dim-whit.
I lay in bed that night for a while running everything through my head when it hit me. The hot wire to the solenoid comes off of that breaker. Bingo, Crimp Man to the Rescue.
Thursday morning broke clean an clear. Packed what little shit I was bringin’. Strange thing about ownin’ an older obsolete motorcycle, you have the tendency to empty your whole toolbox into the soft bags? The funny thing is, you ain’t goin to find a shop around with the parts you need to make use of the tools. More on that topic later. After figurin out I needed more bungy straps and a last stop at the local Ace, I loaded up. Almost 10:30, rush hour in the city was over and I had double-checked everything four times. I was eager to head out, so it was time to roll. Hit the button, and the Shovel fired into a steady idle. Nice, looked up and down the street, all clear, clunked into first, eased out the clutch an I was gone.
Motorin through the city felt good, bike packed an gassed up, three quarts of 70wt. in the soft bags. As I eased through town I was getting the looks from the sorry assed stiffs in their imports, as they went about what the fuck ever they had to do. Yep, later assholes just don’t run me over today. I made my way down 35th St. to M St. an got the hell outta town via the Francis Scott Key bridge which will take me to Interstate 66 an straight to Front Royal Va.
Once on 66 I tried to just take it easy in the slow lane but the folks in their cages were shuffling all around me. I know the answer to this situation, and I pulled it off often, without the law hammering me, 85 in a 65. Out in the fast lane, blowin’ ‘em off. The bike seemed well balanced. No hi-speed wobbles just smooth Shovel power in the fast lane, where it needed to be. The added weight of my toolbox seemed to help sittin’ low. Just another long boring concrete slab ahead of me.
Front Royal was on me in no time, as I carved through around 75 miles, might as well gas up, due to the fact that this is were I picked up Skyline Drive. I pull into an Exxon an stopped away from the pumps. I’m in no hurry to get any where, so I figured I would knock off a soda and a smoke. I walked around my bike and notice that it’s leaving a very large puddle of some type of oil? Fuck me, 75 miles an this shit, down on all fours I try to determine if it’s trans fluid or motor oil? I look up at the “dip” stick and pull it. Sure enough down two quarts. Fuck now what? I push my sled over to the pumps and walked into the station, ask for a fill up and a paper funnel.
The lady at the counter tells me how nice my bike is and ask me where I’m goin? I tell here N.C. she gives me that look, and I walk out. I filled up the gas tanks an say fuck it as I pull two quarts of liquid gold outta the saddle bags. I figure that I ran 75 miles at 85 mph, so I’ll just ease up on the Ol’boy the rest of the way. I walk in to the station for my change and grabbed a soda, push the bike outta the way of the pumps an took five, while looking over the beast.
I purchased a Harley- Davidson Ride Atlas of North America. This guide has the best riding roads highlighted, and the route I planned to take happened to be one. It is listed by state alphabetically, so if you are riding through several states like myself, it was a little tricky at first. I found a rural route rolling me to the entrance of Sky Line Drive in Shenandoah National Park. The ride winds through the smallish town of Front Royal is easy an punctuated by traffic lights. I saw no lawmen as I rode through town. Three miles out of town I found my first destination, the entrance to Skyline Drive. I paid ten bucks to enter which is a seven-day pass, so it covered my return trip.
As soon as I entered the Park I ran into another world. I noticed the speed limit was 35mph, which started my brain calculating miles. After a while I just said fuck it, I was overwhelmed by the view. Fuck, who cares was my new out look.
The sights were simply mind blowin’ an after awhile you could care less, if all you had to do was ride along this road the rest of your life. I just settle into one turn after another, up hill, down hill, banked, off camber, it don’t matter any more. All that matters is settin’ up for the next curve an seein’ what was waitin’ around it.
I found myself tryin’ to look around and ride at 50 mph in a 35. I pushed the Super Glide to the edge, and I loved every second of it. As I motored along, I realized that I was spotting about ten bikes to every cage?
I believed I have found the motorcycle interstate of the east. This road was truly a biker’s playground, to think that it was built in the ‘30s under the guidance of President Roosevelt, freaks me out. The surface was well maintained an safe. There were plenty of places for cages to pull over an get outta the way, which is just what they do, to my amazement.
After awhile I just got into the ride and motor. The pics I have really don’t do this ride any justice. If you ever do anything on two wheels in your life do this stretch of roadway.
After two gas stops an payin 2.79 a gallon for Hi-Test, I rolled outta the Shenandoah just past Rockfish Gap elev. 1,900 ft. The elevation changes throughout this ride and will keep your ears poppin.
I gassed up again before enterin’ the George Washington National Forest an the Blue Ridge Parkway. I’m just pushin to Roanoke today so I pull out the map an figure that I am about half way there.
Shit I got time to burn. As I’m sittin’ looking at the map in the grass by a guard rail two dressers pull up and two road weary riders pile off of their bikes. We shot the shit, as I burn one; they sure have some strange accents? I ask ’em where their from and they said Ontario. “Far-out,” I replied. “Where ya’all headed?” The Dragon’s Tail was the response. I smiled, fire my bike up and they kinda look at me funny?
“What year is that? One asked me. I tell ’em it’s an ‘05 Shovelhead an pull off.
We play cat an mouse down the road. I was sleepin on the shoulder in the grass when they caught me again. Just eased up on me and kicked me in the foot. They had killed their motors and coasted down hill on me. Guess they figured I was broke down or dead.
I caught them at an overlook and buzzed ’em at about 60 mph. Good laugh for all, and that was the last I saw of ’em.
The elevations on this stretch ran from 649feet, at the James River, to 3950 feet at Terrapin Mt. The run to Roanoke was about 120 miles and was kickass. The speed limits on the BRP were 45mph, so the miles clicked-off somewhat slow. I rolled into town around 6 p.m. and snagged a room that sucked, but what the hell I’m on the road. I checked the oil and it was fine. A steak dinner at Applebee’s and I was done. Day one was sweet. Skyline Dr. was about 106-112 miles and the run down the Blue Ridge Parkway to Roanoke was another 120. Put on about 300 easy miles.
Friday arrived the same as Thursday, clean an clear. I ain’t big on eatin’ in the morning, but as bad as my room was, I cleaned out the Frosted Flakes at the continental breakfast. I drank about a gallon of coffee while waitin’ out the local rush hour. I headed back to my room and packed up, after checkin’ out various nuts an bolts on the sled. I was on the road by 10 a.m. I was headed to the Smoke Out– Fuckin-A, some times life is good.
I was going to ride to highway 321 an get off at Blowing Rock, but I cut the planned route short, due to the fact that I had never ridden this route before. I ended up getting of at RT. 77, which is a trip to ride comin’ outta the mountains
The sights on the Parkway were spectacular as always an the day’s ride was a sad 90 miles to Rt. 77, which resembles Rt. 66. It is just another super slab that runs down hill with a posted 75 mph speed limit. I wasn’t happy to see the limit, with my case pressure acting up, an pushin’ oil outta the breather. After tryin to run 60-65 and getting passed by everything in sight, I said fuck to the wind, and let the big dog eat. The Shovel strolled at 90 and nobody slipped up behind me, ‘cause my breather dumped directly onto my final drive chain. This has a way of creating a 70 wt. rooster tail.
I rode to the magic 100 mile number and looked for a fuel stop. I found one and pulled off at the ramp. I eased up to the pumps an two folks were messin’ with an Ol’ ‘76 FLH. One of them was on a dual plugged 1200 Sportster that looked like a bad piece of equipment. No time for photo opps.. here. I had one hot motor that was down on oil. First thing I said was hey ya’all must be goin to the Smoke Out. It was happening; the closer I got to the event the more I ran into folks on the road to it. I offered help, and my traveling toolbox but was declined, so back to my own situation, gas an oil. I had one qt. of 70 wt. left an poured it in along with a fill-up of Hi-Test. I wiped the oil off the back of my bike and helmet, made a remark about sunscreen, hit the road.
The last leg in, I needed to find a bike shop, which is what I had in mind when I cut the trip short for the day. I was cash heavy. I made it to my exit, which was Statesville, and started looking for Tilley’s Harley-Davidson. It wasn’t hard to find. They scored a giant billboard offering directions. I was in need of a one way breather badly, as I motored down Tilley’s road. I saw a Super Eight Hotel that looked way cleaner than the Days Inn room in Roanoke.
I found Tilley’s, no problem, and the parts guy was as helpful as he could be, to a guy on a Shovel. The Tilley’s in Salisbury was getting raves from the folks I met at the Smoke Out. They directed me to the Nitro Shack in Statesville, and I spent quite a while shooting the shit with the Owner [sorry I can’t remember your name I gave your card away at the S.O.]. The owner has campaigned several drag bikes nationwide and was building several very clean Bobbers and big inch bikes. In the end he called a Auto Parts store, hopin’ what they had would work.
After ridin around town for a bit I found the place, but their breathers had the wrong size nipple for my breather hose. I headed back to the Super Eight an scored a room for $50.00 a night, king sized bed, ect. Once I found my room, I pulled the bags offa the bike, caught a shower an headed to the Smoke Out. I wanted to put faces to names on the web site.
The ride from Statesville was comfortable, and I passed a place called Hendrix Barbeque. The lot was full an that’s all I needed to see. I found the fairgrounds. The place was a little subdued for me, a lot of bikes that were very cool. I had my camera in tow and pulled up, paid my thirty-five dollars, so into the show I went.
I parked in the grass out back an started wanderin’ around takin’ pics for all of ya. After shootin’ for a while, I figured I would find the Stealth an Meanest. Being as how I was worn out. I walked to my bike and used it as my mode of transportation. I found the Bikernet booth, but it was not manned, so I headed back to my bike to find Stealth. It seemed every time I moved, I stop and looked at another bike, shot the shit then moved on. I went by the Indian Larry booth and Paul was there. Got some shots of his stuff but didn’t try to talk. They were swarmed. Eventually I gave up on finding Stealth, and the crew till Saturday. My stomach was sendin’ me distress signals. I cashed in and headed to Hendrix then back to my room.
Once at the hotel the lot was full of bikes an bikers. We all sat around shootin’ the shit till midnight, just talking bikes and where we were from, the ride down ect… a good time and a good end to another good day.
Saturday morning broke on me with the sound of motors comin’ to life an sunshine on my window. I rolled outta bed at seven and walked out to take in a new day. Most of the bikes were gone already, but I did get some shots of this nice little Triumph chop from Colorado. Shot the shit with the owner for a few, as I slugged coffee that was way too weak for my taste. I’m building a ’67, so I had a lot of interest in where he located certain parts. He fired it up and several more folks made their way outta their rooms as we parted ways.
I made my way back to my room to catch a shower an grab film. After more weak coffee, I made my way to the bike an fired it to life. The motor sounded fine, but my inner primary was makin’ one hell of a racket. Figured it was just in need of adjustment, said fuck it and rolled out. I made my way to Salisbury with out seein’ the law, which was a surprise.
When I rolled into the Smoke Out, I knew that today was going to be interesting. There were new faces to put with names and bikes to be photographed.
First thing to do was park in a central location. I was way early and the sun was right for pics, so that was the first thing on the list. I headed to the Indian Larry Legacy booth to shoot a bike I had eyed the day before. I had a half-a-roll of 800 in the camera, but the Indian Larry folks must partied hard the night before
Plan “B” arrived in the form of Stevenson’s Cycle. They had a kick-ass shovel or two there. As I shot their bikes we all shot the shit, and they are good down to earth folks that build some kick-ass shit. I gazed over and a green Shovel caught my eye. I believe it was a Sucker Punch bike, got that one to.
I started to wander around looking for more bikes an actin’ the pro. I knew that soon I would lose the early morning light so I started to make tracks.
I found Departure Bike Works rollin’ there stuff out. Told ’em I was from Bikernet and Bandit had sent me. That got a large laugh outta everyone. We shot the shit, and I asked about the Bonne Belle, which entered me into a conversation about 45 in. flywheels. It was way over my head.
Those guys got there shit together, when it comes to the old iron. Got a shot or two of the Virginian Gentleman. For those of you that don’t know that is some kick-ass bourbon.
I asked the folks at Departure where Stealth Bike works was an they pointed to a booth about twenty feet away. Shit, I’ll be damned, went by it twice yesterday. I walked over and there sat Chopper John, a great guy. I introduced myself and we shot the shit for a bit. The Stealth man and the Meanest weren’t on site yet, so I walked around shootin more bikes. Breezed by the B.N. booth but no one was home.
I ran outta film, so I dumped a roll of 400 professional in the Ol’ Nikon and went to work. I hate to say it, but this whole roll of film disappeared in processing. Sorry folks, a lot of good shots on that roll. I made the rounds and the band started up. Got some shots of the band when I spied a fine thing in a Five Ball Racing shirt doing the same. I got one more shot and turned to walk over an say hello but she was gone. What the hell, I thought? About that time the Burn out pit fired to life and the smell of burnnin rubber descended on the crowd drivin’ it into a two wheeled frenzy.
I looked around the area an realized what all the talk about this get together was about. There was every kind of bike you could think of here, bare bones chops to Dressers, cut down Buells, Triumphs, Hondas an Kaws, all hacked to no frills perfection. I headed back to the S.B.W both and was told where to locate the Stealth and his better half. We finally met and shot the shit for a while. Stealth pointed me to Fritz, Fritz pointed me to Parts man, and we walked over to compare notes on our Shovels.
Then One Eye arrived who introduced me to Jackrocks. We took a group photo, which hasn’t surfaced yet, but we all had a great time, and I truly felt a feeling of brotherhood from all of these guys. All of ya’all are a freakin’ okay in my book, and I’m looking forward to meetin’ ya next year. Jackrocks, myself and One Eye wandered the area shootin’ the shit with some cool folks and just takin’ in the whole scene. The sun lowered and we talked about next year’s location and what that ride may bring. We parted ways, and I headed out. As I left I followed a Pan outta the fairgrounds that was runnin on racin’ fuel. Sweet smellin’ an a fitting end to a great day.
Sunday morning found me packin’ the bike again for two more days on the road. I started my Shovel after turning in my room key an headed out. The weather was perfect and the traffic was light. The Smoke Out was great, but for me it was all about the ride.
I stopped an gassed up before hittin’ the Parkway. While there I noticed that my inner primary was makin’ a racket, but it was Sunday so I just moved on. I made it to my first stop which was Vesta. I stopped there on the way down and liked the place, so I figured I would gas up an get a cup of coffee there. When I pulled into the lot I noticed that the primary chain was makin a hell of a racket. I shut the bike down and started for the tools. I parked next to a Ural three wheeler and soon the owner was givin’ me a hand.
My primary Teflon adjusting shoe was in a melted puddle sittin’ on the bottom of the inner primary. Well, I figured I was fucked, but the Ural rider was a local, and he took me inside to meet one of the waitresses. So happened she rode a Shovel and happened to have an old adjustin’ shoe at her place. I just had to wait for her shift to end and head to her place. I got the bike fixed and was back on the road the next day. I’ll be headed down that way, on the weekends, but that’s another story for another day.
— LTR
Bonneville Effort 2007, Chapter 10
By Bandit | | General Posts
The 2007 Bikernet Bonneville Assalt Weapon is in production. We are shooting for the World's Fastest Panhead record. And we need your help to make our dream come alive.
Last year we took the record by storm. We learned a number of lessons and have developed an entirely new program to cheat the wind and make it hard for anyone to take the record away from the 5-Ball Racing Team.
We have received help from the industry – Our team from last year came together again for 2007 and provided an Accurate Engineering 120-inch Panhead engine and a custom U.S. Choppers, semi-board-track frame. D&D Performance Enterprises is helping with our pipes.
This support got us cooking but we still are behind in getting the program together. So we are asking the Bikernet community to come in and become part of the team and make a donation.
We have the throttle pinned in development but are running short of funds to complete the program. We still need:
- Paint – $1,500
- Powder coating – $1,500
- Bonneville Transportation – $2000
- Horsepower Tuning – $1,800
The sponsorship dollars go directly to the race program and to the trip to the International Motorcycle Speed Trials by BUB from September 2 -6.
Valerie Thompson, a professional Harley-Davidson V-Rod Destroyer class drag racer, is our salt pilot. We are modifying the frame and tins to conform to her physic and delivering an aerodynamic platform.
Your support will go directly to build and the team. Select one of the following sponsor levels to support the 2007 Bikernet Bonneville Assalt Weapon project.
- $50 Bikernet 2007 Bonneville Rider Sponsor
- Name in the racing department
- Bikernet Bonneville certificate for framing
- Signed photo of Valerie
- Name posted on Banner at Bonneville
- Team patch
- Rider Sponsor
- $100 Bikernet 2007 Bonneville Bronze Sponsor
- Name in the Bikernet racing department
- Bikernet 2006 Bonneville certificate for framing
- Patch and t-shirt,
- Autographed picture of Valerie.
- Name posted on Banner in Bonneville
- Bronze Sponsor
- $500 Bikernet 2007 Bonneville Silver Sponsor
- Mention and Logo in the Bikernet racing department
- Bikernet Bonneville certificate for framing
- T-shirt and patch
- Autograph picture of Valerie
- Logo Posted on Banner at Bonneville
- Silver Sponsor
- $1000 Bikernet 2007 Bonneville Gold Sponsor
- Bikernet Bonneville mention and logo in the racing department
- Bikernet Bonneville certificate for framing
- Patches, T-shirts and Ball caps
- Autographed picture of Valerie
- Logos on Banner at Bonneville
- Logo on Bikernet Race truck
- Gold Sponsor
- $5000 Bikernet 2007 Bonneville Platinum Sponsor
- Mention and logos in the Bikernet Bonneville racing department
- Bikernet Bonneville certificate for framing
- Patches, T-shirts and Ball caps
- Autographed picture of Valerie
- Logo on banner at Bonneville
- Large Logo on Bikernet Race truck
- Small logo on bike
- Platinum Sponsor
The 2007 Bikernet Bonneville Assalt Weapon is in production and you can follow along with our work at The Bikernet Bonneville 2007 Effort page.
Bonneville Effort 2007, Chapter 8
By Bandit | | General Posts
Chain guards are still a mystery to me and there are some LSR (Land Speed Record) rules regarding their length and coverage. By the SCTA rules, the guard must be steel, not fiberglass or even carbon fiber. Plus it must extend beyond the rear of the sprocket. So I went to work building a guard from scratch.
I grabbed some lightweight stainless and had grandiose notions of shapes and spacing, until I spoke to Rick Krost from U.S. Choppers, a 5-Ball sponsor, and the man behind TIG welding our oil bag. He looked at my notion and picked up a used H-D chain guard and said, “How about this. Might save some time.”
Of course it would save time. I stole one from his stash of old parts and went to work. I needed to extend it so that I could run Teflon pads, since the Paughco frame was stretched 6 inches in the rear. An old racer cat told me not to run a chain tensioning wheel, “It eats horsepower,” he said.
So I re-shaped some 16-guage sheet metal, made a mounting tab and machined chunks of Teflon for the bottom and top. Recently Rodan, an SCTA official of the highest order, came to the Bikernet shop and inspected our beast. He told me to raise the bottom Teflon guide. “Mount it very close to the chain,” Rodan said. He also instructed me to extend my chain guard forward.
Next, I needed to mount our new 5-pound Nitrous bottle. I wanted to mount it as close to the oil bag as possible, buffeting the air out and around the front of the frame. Again I used 16-guage sheet metal straps, welded a bottom in place and grappled with the position. I wanted it close without banging on the oil bag. It’s always a guessing game.
Note from reader: Since you already spoke with Keith Turk he may have already told you about Guy Caputo. Guy runs a nitrous Busa at Maxton and has set all the fast nitrous records at Maxton, running a best over 228 MPH, so he knows his stuff when it comes to motorcycle nitrous systems. He owns Tiger Racing and can be reached through his web site at www.tigerracingproducts.com. Probably old news since you already talked with Keith Turk but I thought I would pass it along just in case.
–Pablo
Jeremiah came up with a plan for the top of the nitrous bottle strap. It was good, but involved some machining and welding. The good Dr. Hamster showed up at the shop and came up with a different notion. When the Doctor makes a suggestion, you follow it to the T. Not sure if we’re not going to tear it off and go back to Jeremiah’s thoughts. Anything we use to strap this Nitrous bottle in place, with the Doctor’s system, will tear the hell out of the paint. Not sure that will fly. The cool factor is only superceded by aerodynamics.
Next, we jumped into modifying the tank and making the initial dash. We drew several patterns, but first we moved the gas cap back about 4 inches and rewelded it in place.
Then we went to work figuring out the AIM Sports data system speedo placement. This puppy will not only monitor our progress on the salt but display, for Valerie, the speed, RPMs, oil pressure, exhaust temps and something else. Alongside this 3.5 by 5-inch module, will be two oil-filled pressure gauges, one for fuel and the other for nitrous.
I went to work with a shitty hole-saw and lots of tapping fluid assisting the procedure and failing miserably. Finally I cut all the holes and used a template to figure the dash placement, since the AIM staff kept giving me varied measurements. Wish I had one in hand.
I spent long hours grinding and trying to fit the dash, then lean it slightly. I initially tacked it in place thinking I was going to build the cowling around it and make the cowling removable.
Then I spoke to Gard Hollinger of LA ChopRods on the phone. He needed a hand spreading the word about his myriad of bitchin products including ISR controls and brakes, billet crown gas caps, builder’s helpers, Mooneyes oil bags and Hildebrand oil filters housings. We may run his ISR handlebar controls on the Assalt Weapan, and I may run a bunch of his stuff on my Mudflap Girl bobber next year.
We were shooting the shit about his shop move and getting the word out about his products, when he asked if I needed any help. Gard’s a master fabricator, who has designed two models for Saxon Motorcycles, the Black Crown and the new Mad Jack bobber. He’s good and knows what he’s doing. So, knowing how goddamn busy he was, I mentioned the cowling and he stepped up, dropped everything and turned my bullshit endeavor into a very cool dash and shapely cowling. We’ll get to that.
Moving right along, we discussed the switch mount, and I grabbed a chunk of thin 1.5-inch angle iron and went to work mounting it to the top motor mount. I’m ignoring cooling, for the most part and focusing on the aero factor to keep the wind moving past the bike without creating turbulence. It’s a wing and a prayer without years of wind tunnel testing, but there’s the Code of the West, the notion of the wind gods and green tea. It’ll work, I swear it.
I wanted to make the switch housing accessible for Valerie and a positive aero supporter. The angle iron will hold the NOS arming switch, the ignition toggle, a starter button and the infamous kill fuse. According to Rodan I need another Kill switch on the bars that kills everything and I need a horn button on the bars for the Nitrous explosion at top speed.
As usual there’s a thousand items to consider and the NOS solenoids popped up. The instructions call for mounting them close and above the carb. Plus I wanted an aero plate to conceal the switches, protect the spark plug wires and allow the air to slip on by. We plasma cut the 16 gage material, arched the angle Iron, drilled holes and prayed for surf.
I wrestled with the plate and where the solenoids would mount. We’re running a wet system, feeding the nitrous and additional fuel into the intake track at full speed. I mounted the plate high, but didn’t have the tank (it was at LA Chop Rods) and worried about the plate hitting the tank or obstructing the petcock.
Pablo Checks in: On the Nitrous. Did you have a chance to check out the websites I emailed you awhile back???
Are you putting the nitrous nozzels directly in the heads or just in the manifold? I wouldn't put them in front of the carb or like a bolt on Edlebrock system.
Keeping it simple on electrical part of the system is important. Mainly because of the salt air, etc. Also being able to troubleshoot and fix it out there is something to adapt in your system. I would try to seal it up somehow as much as you can. Bring extra parts!!
–Pablo
I drilled another set of holes and shortened the plate. With it and all the switches in place, I messed with the NOS solenoids. The instructions call for the solenoids to be close and above the carb. Then the answer hit me like a ball peen to the side to my right temple. I’m left handed. I cut the supplied NOS mounting plates and mounted them to fit the bolt that holds the top motormount together. Perfect.
Then we headed over to LA Chop Rods to work with Gard Hollinger on the tank dash Cowling. Chris Kallas, the official 5-Ball Racing artist, met us and they both suggested that the cowling become a permanent part of the tank and the dash removable. Gard went to work with 18-gage aluminum killed sheet metal. That stuff is exceedingly malleable and easy to cut even with tin snips.
“Progress is looking good,” Chris Kallas said. “I didn't realize you were still really going to do a belly pan oil tank, I like it.And I was concerned with 3 inches of clearance.I did notice that the body, on streamliners, tend to be very low at the middle bottom point of their cigar shapes.As you know, your going to drive the tech inspectors nuts with this stuff. It will be like Burt Monroe all over again.
”Not crazy about the colors of that go daddy bike. Looks like a Kawasaki jet ski. If you use any of those colors,I'd advise sparingly, like the pin-up's dress and pin stripes and lettering.”
Gard made a rough template out of thick paperboard, then used a table sheer to cut the basic shape. We had to also consider the routing of lines to the gauges and all the wiring out the AIM sport data acquisition system dash.
Gard remade our dash, cut it lower and more sleek. He has access to a computer water jet facility. They will cut the final dash. We needed to scrape together the $800 to order the data system, so we can mount the bastard and see if it fits.
We’re headed back to Gard’s shop shortly to take more shots of the cowling. I’ll take my camera. I spoke to Berry this morning about our Accurate Engineering 120-inch monster Panhead, and it should be completed next week…
It’s the 3rd of July and my goal was to be at paint at the end of June. I’m closing on a week behind schedule. We hope to take the parts to Powder before we make the Hollister, California Run. That’s looking iffy. Hang on for our next report.
Gard also pressure tested our tank for leaks and discovered several. “Mig welding causes more slag to build up, when you stop and start welding,” Gard said. “That often causes pin holes that are difficult to fix. I TIG weld all my tanks.”
I have torches, stick and MIG welders, but not TIG. Okay, I'm working on it.
Bonneville Effort 2007, Chapter 7
By Bandit | | General Posts
We grappled and struggled with the oil bag system for months, going back and forth. I studied bags in dressers, the serpentine baffles and the notion that the pump would initially pull the oil up outta the bag like siphoning gas from mom’s sedan.
Additional thoughts from a reader regarding ground clearance:Depends on the track, spring set-up, suspension set-up, tire pressure, strategy, wedge and wheel jacking, blah, blah, blah. Might know you would ask your southern friend that question. If you are looking for ground clearance and ground effects and such go to: Yes, I know it's long. Whatever the ground clearance, make sure it can roll left and rIght (lean angle) without touching the ground. I'd say 1.750 inches ground clearance but if one of the tire goes down, we don't want the frame to get on the ground as it's going to be bad enough anyway. –Pablo
Berry Wardlaw of Accurate Engineering sent me detailed engineering drawings from the biker bar down the street, Slippery Shirley's Saloon. Seems he was road testing his performance dresser, when he ran past a cop at over 100 and kept going. He stopped at this saloon and started drinking Jack Daniels and drawing oil bag interior designs. With the bar napkin blueprints in hand he walked into the sun to board his hot rod bagger. He was met with the cop who clocked him earlier. It all went downhill from there.
I went from cutting an oxygen bottle in half to studying Jap bike bellies. We fitted our nitrous bottle, the Hamster air dam and measured twice. We shit-canned the air dam, the NASCAR theme and the earlier, smaller Nitrous bottle mount. We decided to make the bottle fit as close to the top of the oil bag as possible. Then we measured twice again and rolled to the Wilmington Iron Works shop down the street.
It’s a cool old building and we told them the width needed to be 8 inches and the depth 1¾ inches, and it needed to be 26 inches long. We carefully bent a chunk of brass rod as a guide. They cut the piece out of the 14-gauge material we provided, then their brake wouldn’t bend anything over 24 inches. They hauled it down the street and called me from the shop, “Is the angle or the width critical?”
That was a damn good question.
“The width is more critical,” I responded.
The next day, the bend was available. The width was critical. If the angle had been more severe, we would've been cool, ‘cause we had some ground clearance to play with. But they went the other way flattening out our slab of sheet metal until it wouldn’t hold a half-quart of oil.
More and more I attempt to look at blunders or obstacles as benefits. They give us more time to contemplate design, refine structure or detail construction. We reviewed our concept again and decided to run a wider oil tank to the center of the bottom frame tubes on either side. I bent another chunk of 1/8-inch brass rod and rolled over to San Pedro Sheet Metal. Art could handle the task and in a couple of days I was looking at the initial shape or our baby, except he bent it out of 18-guage. That haunted me.
Now came the difficult part. We had to devise the interior serpentine baffles without schooling or a map, placement for the fittings, an aerodynamic bow and stern, fill cap, drain plug and mounting. First, I contacted Darin at Bungking.com for fittings and rubber mounting brackets. They do a helluva job. One kit is designed specifically for oil tanks with a fill cap, and three 1/8-inch pipe bungs. Jeremiah stopped at an auto parts and scored a drain plug with an interior magnet and I made the drain bung with ½-20 threads.
The tough part was placement, but we started with the baffles to prevent all the oil from slogging forward or to the stern and out of reach of the feed inlet. Then I made a template of construction paper for the nose and cut out the sections with a plasma cutter.
I started with the nose and one baffle to ensure the shape of the 16-gauge sheet metal during construction. Heat can do strange things to metal. Next, I cut the rear of the oil bag to allow any low-flowing air to escape the undercarriage of the bike with ease. Hope I know what I’m doing. That’s an oxymoron!
With the stern “V” ground smooth I used the belly as a guide to scribe another panel of sheet metal to close in the stern.
I tested capacity, initially holding my hands over each end and Nyla poured pint measuring cups of water into the breach and we counted. We were confident that our crazed design would contain at least 2.5 quarts. We were cool. Then I added more capacity with the bow and less cutting the stern.
We positioned the bag so it would meet with the nitrous bottle. “Nitrous bottle is 17.64″ tall and 5.25″ in diameter,” Colonel Wardlaw informed me before the bottle arrived.
So the oil bag stuck out in front of the frame by about 4 inches. We rolled the dice on this design element several times. We questioned whether we should form a scoop or air dam to shove the nose down. That could become an immediate air resistor and slow the vehicle, so we went for the slippery notion. Get the air through and around the bike as comfortably as possible, and we’re hoping our design plus the shape of the nitrous bottle will accomplish just that.
Next, we wrestled with the fittings and I fucked up. There’s that adage: Measure twice cut once.
I found a perfect bung for the drain and the perfect spot. I started to weld the bung on the outside and then inspiration struck like a Corona bottle to the back of the head. I could make the overall shape even more air user-friendly by placing the bung on the inside. I did and welded it permanently, only to realize five minutes later that I was preventing all the oil from being able to drain with my ¼-inch lip on the inside. Done deal, move on.
That error was a quick reminder of the “measure twice” adage and I slowed my movements—always a good thing. Then I struggled with the feed, return and vent. I discovered that if I ran an external feed, I would be forced to run an oil line from the distant stern over the top or through my ¼-inch belly pan up around the transmission to the oil pump. Or I could run it up over the side of the oil bag on the outside, which seemed critically dangerous to have our feed line hanging out in the wind before it reached the oil pump.
Then it dawned on us that we had a very large surface on the top, free and clear of obstacles, directly below the oil pump and between the engine and the transmission. We had to make a steel tube extending from the BungKing bung to near the bottom of the oil tank for pickup. I fought with that notion, guessed and second-guessed my design. It’s like the major artery to the heart of the motorcycle. It had to be perfect. We made the steel tube extension then ground it several times and finally extended it some more. We were grappling with molding the line close to the bed but not against the sides or on the floor to pick up grit during a record breaking run on the salt.
Next, we decided to weld the return bung comfortably in front of the front motor mount just below the oil filter mount on the Accurate Engineering Panhead engine. Actually, all the mounts and bungs were perfectly accessible and convenient. Sometimes that’s a bad omen. We also mounted the fill cap right in the front, again extremely accessible—amazing. Many of these efforts were part guesswork since I didn't have my Accurate engine for oil fittings, oil pump or oil filter return line placement.
It was time to mount the beast under the frame, and again I needed four hands. I looked for possible mounting locations. Scary again. I didn’t want them too close to anything, extremely secure and so they wouldn’t interfere with the engine or tranny, terrifying. Jeremiah and I messed with this for hours. We encountered a couple of problems. The top wasn’t flat for some reason. We suspected warping and ignored it and kept moving forward. The more we worked, the more bothersome it became. Also, the frame tubes weren’t parallel, which fucked with our measurements.
Some of the distortion was caused by welding the bungs into the center of the top plate after drilling it. Then I stamped “IN” next to the feed bung so we wouldn’t fuck up the lines. That dented the top plate. There was our glitch. We removed all the tacks, detached the lid and hammered the bastard straight again—sort of against my bad, black dot code. We all try to do something right the first time and call it, done, right? Wrong.
I learned a valuable lesson from John Reed, the retired CCI master designer. He said something to me one day, while we were discussing Bonneville last year.
“I need lots of fasteners,” John said, “since I often install and remove a component hundreds of time.”
That hit me like a bolt of lightening. In other words, John tried any new component hundreds of times, before he called it finished. Now, instead of trying to plan, make and install something once or twice, I know to take long moments of reflection and do it over and over until I’m sure it’s right. Thanks, John.
This time, the top plate fit and it was flat. The bungs reached and were cool. We tacked them. The oil tank came together, and then we delivered it to Rick Krost from U.S. Choppers for final TIG welding.
In the meantime we needed Nyla back on the bike to work on the peg mounting. I needed to work on the drive chain guard and make sure Valerie’s feet would be completely clear of the chain. I used stock H-D rubber pegs and some two-inch tabs, supported by 45-degree chunks of steel I bagged from the metal fab shop next door.
I tacked the tabs then Jim Waggaman rolled into the Bikernet Headquarters to steal a ’53 Lincoln bench seat I’ve been trying to unload since our La Carrera race across Mexico. He carefully lined up both peg mounts perfectly, and then I welded them into place.
Hang on! Next, we need to make the chain guard and start to work on modifications to the gas tank. We’re burnin’ daylight!
Here’s the desired, determined schedule: We’re shooting for being ready to go to paint at the end of June, just two weeks away. I’ll be a nervous wreck until then. Then I’ll go find a white, soft sandy beach to lay on for a couple of weeks with a case of Coronas. Our goal is to be up and running by the end of July. That gives us August for tuning at Gene’s speed shop, and then we’re off to Bubs Motorcycle Speed Trials in Bonneville. Gulp!
