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Harley-Davidson Customizing
Aternative American V-Twin Manufacturers
The dedade started on a high as the two biggest bikes bashes
of the year, Daytona and Sturgis, reached their 50th anniversaries in the first years and drew record crowds to Florida and
South Dakota respectively. Just when it was almost possible to think everything that could be done with choppers had been, something altogether new would arrive on the scene. At the beginning of the Nineties the Evolution engine was proving popular and being use in the construction of traditional rigid-framed choppers and the so-called master builders
were still concentrating on long, low machines that combined elements of styling from Bay Area Low Riders and the quarter-mile strip-machines. The transition from the Eighties into the Nineties was, like that of previous
decades, a gradual one. A good indicator is that magazine feature bikes - usually the cream of the crop - of the early
Nineties still included machines which were finished with engraved parts and gold-leaf scrolled paintwork, springers and rigid frames are still to be seen. On the world stage; the various allies who formed the coalition into Saudi Arabia
in Desert Shield and later Desert storm to liberate Kuwait from the Iraqi army occupying it. The US Army and Air Force
were amongst the coalition forces, but unlike Vietnam, went in-country with public opinion solidly behind them. They
would also later come back to the 'world' to a more welcoming reception. Elsewhere the computer technology that was
being combined with lathes and milling machines was the catalyst for change within custom bike building because it enabled the widespread use of billet aluminum for the manufacture of a new range of custom components. All
of a sudden there were replacement billet parts for almost every part of a motorcycle. Brake and clutch master cylinders,
brake calipers, engine and transmission dress-up items, fender struts, wheels, twist-grips and more. One of he first
major exponents of billet parts was Arlen Ness who was also one of the builders that brought old-style choppers back to the
forefront of custom biking. He built a rigid-framed Panhead chop which was old-style in shape and silhouette but up to the moment in details including components such as disc brakes
and a number of billet alloy parts such as forward controls and master cylinders. Alongside the
steadily increasing use of billet on the Low Rider style of custom bike, the rigid-framed chop was also slowly refined. While the Evolution engines and alloy wheels had become commonplace, there were still plenty of choppers appearing with Sportster tanks. Increasing numbers of fatbobs were appearing - rigid and swing arm framed Harley chops with the large capacity old style Harley gas tank. This coincided with the massive boom in popularity
of Harley-Davidson motorcycles worldwide. The factory increased its production considerably and exported more motorcycles
to more countries than previously. This massive boom in demand had several effects. It increased demand for accessories
and custom parts and so enabled the after-market industry based on custom Harley parts to flourish and to expand quite considerably.
Manufacturers offering billet alloy parts multiplied as did those offering components such as custom fenders and handlebars.
There were two types of parts manufactured in this boom; bolt-on parts; and the components to construct complete bikes
in the chopper tradition if not the style. The bolt-ons were designed for the owners of stock new Harleys who sought to modify their
motorcycle without completely reconstructing it. An example is in the 1992 Custom Chrome catalog: Part No. 130204
Fat Bob Rear Fender Kit for FXR models. This was 'A complete Fat Bob Rear Fender Kit for all FXR models from 1982 through 1986 and 1987 through 1991 FXRTs. The rebellious unswept kick of the chopper-style rear fender is combined with our smooth, chromed steel fender struts that not only improve styling but provide improved
fender support over the original equipment parts. Accepts all of CCI's tail light kits with Fat Bob mounts, or the stock
(OEM 59993-80) tail light bracket. This kit and its components are not compatible with Original Equipment or after-market
sissy bars.' This description leaves no doubt as to which stock Harleys the kit was intended for. Another set
of parts were available to do the same jobs to other models such as 13-206 for FXST, FXSTC, and FXSTS models from 1984 through 1991. In some ways bolt-on parts such as these kits are the antithesis of the chopper mentality simply because the chopper builder will cut and shut something to fit. As as result 'Custom Chrome part No. 13-178, a Custom Fat Bob Rear Fender'
would be more suited to their bikes as it came without holes or tail light bracket, leaving the purchaser to drill it to suit
his bike. The fact that a fatbob rear fender is included in a large parts catalog at all is of interest and illustrates
how established certain fashions are within the world of chopped Harleys. The fatbob fender came about
when early builders used a front fender on the rear of their bikes in place of the original hinged rear fender. The
stock front fender on a Harley with springer forks featured and turned out rear lip which when fitter over the rear wheel
with the rear edge approximately a quarter rotation up from its original position had the effect of turning up the rear lip
of the now rear fender. In the old days this was a straightforward operation because chances are the bike was about
to become a bobber had one fitted when it was purchased. As the decades pass springer fenders become more scarce so the after-market industry
had bobbed rear fenders pressed with a cutaway for the drive chain already in place and the advantage of no holes whatsoever,
unlike a cut-down stock fender. Like other parts manufacturers, Custom Chrome Inc. was established in the early decades
of chopper building and as well as the new range of bolt-on parts described above offer components that appeal to chopper builders,
such as a rigid frame - Part No. 08-914 - for big twins with a neck rake increased by 3" to 33" and two inches extra
in the front frame down-tubes to accommodate this alteration. This was one of several variations on nine different frames
listed in 1992. That catalog also listed the service parts fundamental to keeping a Harley, stock or chopped, on the
road, including gasket sets, brake pads, and tires. In the same year Minnesota-based Drag Specialties produced a similarly
large annual catalog but concentrated more on service parts and accessories. They didn't, for example, list complete
frames. Those who were advertising as manufacturing and distributing parts in the early Nineties shows a
market increase over the earlier decades. The scale of the growing after-market parts industry and its phenomenal growth
in the early Nineties meant that eventually it was possible to build a complete motorcycle that looked like a Harley-Davidson
but used no genuine parts whatsoever. Later companies supplying complete 'American' motorcycles would appear.
Many of these followed the contemporary style established by the factory big twins but offered more potent engine packages
and custom paintwork. The factory was also pursuing nostalgia hard. The springer fork front end had been reintroduced in 1988 for the company's 85th anniversary and, in conjunction with the softail frame that looked like an old time rigid but with the advantage of rear suspension, Harley's new bikes closely resembled those of earlier decades. By the Nineties
nostalgia had become a huge market and their bikes looked like Hydra Glides, Springer Panheads, while the Wide Glides and Super Glides looked like older choppers and words like Heritage and Nostalgia appeared as model names. The Fat Boy caused a scene, looking like no other factory-built
motorcycle and with a name that was an amalgam of the name of the two bombs dropped on Japan - Fat Man and Little Boy.
Like the T-shirt says: "Two bombs weren't enough.' This was followed by the FXSTSB Bad Boy, possibly the nearest motorcycle to a Hollister-era bobber any factory could make in the last decade of the 20th century, hamstrung by laws about turn signals, noise regulations, emission
regulations and light laws. Such machines didn't meet with universal approval or acceptance. Snow and Sager writing
in Iron Horse magazine in December 1994, felt that 'Milwaukee continues to market it approximation of the outlaw
aesthetic to consumers as "genuine" when it's no more authentic than a cereal box reproduction of the Great Masters'
works. Only the individual can transform his bike into a real custom.' They went on to say of the Nineties:
"The success of the factory stunted redefinition of customization can be seen everywhere from so-called custom bike shows to the highways to the majority of Harley mags on the newsstands.'
Iron Horse magazine has had quite a mixed history but during the Nineties has stayed both unswervingly true to and
also honest about choppers and about the bikers who build and ride them.
With the factory putting springers on their production Harleys
it was almost inevitable that springer-forked choppers would see an upsurge in popularity. This was made even more likely with the fashion for a new style of custom Harley - the Luxury Liner. Basically these bikes were 'out-garbaging' the garbage wagons featuring more bodywork than a stock
factory dresser and being as far from bare bones chopper as it was possible to get without putting four wheels on. The trend sparked an equal and opposite reaction which has
seen the dramatic increase in popularity of long-forked choppers again. One major exponent of the revived style with a new twist is Pat Kennedy. He had seen the peculiar Swedish
style of choppers built in that country with enormously long telescopic front ends, and the built choppers is that style in the USA. Suddenly it seemed that in the Nineties any thing goes. Low Riders, high performance Harleys, Dressers, Luxury Liners, Garbage Wagons, choppers, nostalgia choppers and billet-adorned stockers were all to be seem. The one thing they had in common apart from V-Twin power-plants was use of high-tech components and techniques - Mig and Tig welding advanced building techniques, for example.
The truth is though that fashions go in circles and this is as true in chopper building as in anything else; in the late Nineties the custom market is drifting back into a change for change's sake situation. Oftentimes this is leading to the construction of
ostentatious bikes as well as bikes that bear no resemblance to the basic, brutal chopper. Part of this is because of the influx of people who want a Harley as a fashion accessory rather than because they're
scooter trash. The latter frequently wears a T-shirt that reads : 'It's not about riding motorcycles anymore. It's a f....ng
fashion show.' The media and law enforcement agencies remain fascinated by the 'One-Percenters'
and the major clubs face continual scrutiny. Despite these being almost half a century of chopper history, as recently as 1994 the best definition of a chopper that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police would come up with an investigation into outlaw motorcycle clubs was the following: 'Chopper - chopped or cut-down motorcycle. All unnecessary equipment is stripped off the bike including the front brake and
fenders. The wheel fork is extended and the handlebars are set high.' There is an irony in this because the type
of chopper ridden by the 'One-Percenter' of the Nineties has evolved from the basic chopper of yore. Nowadays it tends to be closer to stock but modified to a distinct style. This reflects both the need
for mobility and the distances to be covered. A significant number of club bikes can be identified at a glance.
By 1995 Chrome Specialties Inc. from Texas, itself launched in 1984 by the Kuelbs brothers, had acquired Jammer
Cycle Products and included the brand in their 760-page catalog. They weren't alone: Drag Specialties' catalog
for 1995 numbered 735 pages; Nempco had a 882-page catalog out; while the Custom Chrome Inc. edition for the same year had
768 pages. Part No. 08-914 - the Big Twin rigid frame - was still listed, proving that despite all the other trends within the Harley riding spectrum, the chopper builder still thrived thrived. Even now not everyone buys a custom frame. It's still not uncommon to see choppers based on a modified factory frames be they swing arm or rigid. While the styles of real choppers vary in detail the overall one remains one based around a rigid or a swing arm frame with a long front end and either a fatbob or Sportster tank. Types and diameters of wheels, lengths, rakes of front ends, and types of rear fenders all vary, as do the type
of hubs, brakes, gear shifts, amount of chrome and choice of paint. The latter two finishes vary according to the amount
of money the builder wishes (or has) to spend, what his bike is about - 'Chrome don't get ya home' - and what his aims are.
There are exceptions. For example, softail frames are used in choppers although some builders really don't like them because they are imitation hard-tails, i.e., they are just not real.
The biggest future threat to choppers and their riders is not of their numbers diminishing or the creativity drying up but a more bureaucratic one. The threat
is more legislated off the road. Already in some European countries it is illegal to modify a motorcycle. In others,
the laws about modifications are positively draconian and the laws about youngsters riding motorcycles and getting a license
are designed to deter rather than encourage. Helmet laws can be seen as the thin end of the wedge. Helmet Laws
Suck. Chopper Rule.
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