If you have been following the rebirth of STREET CHOPPER, then you have undoubtedly heard about Orange County Choppers in Rock Tavern, New York. Owner, Paul Teutel Sr., and son Paul Jr. have a common bond: They both love choppers. In fact, they love the bikes so much that after building bikes for everyone they know, they went into business building bikes for people they didn't know.
Business has been so good that both Paul Sr. and Jr. have been able to build bikes they like to ride around on until someone comes into the shop and absolutely, positively has to have them. While the selling of motorcycles is the basis of their business, often the Teutel's try unique styling treatments in hopes of keeping them around.
Paul Jr. wanted to build a long bike to cruise around on during Sturgis this year - a machine with enough length to grab everyone's attention yet still be fun to ride. Ultimately, his goal was to try keeping this bike for a while, but with a sketchbook full of killer ideas he wanted to try out, he doubted the bike would make it through Rally Week.
To get things started, Paul ordered an R.C. Components rigid frame. He originally wanted a frame with 4 inches of stretch in the downtubes and 2 inches in the backbone. But when it showed up, Paul realized it wouldn't do. So back it went to R.C., and a new frame with 8 inches in the downtubes and 5 inches in the backbone took its place. The rake of the big frame was set at 45 degrees, just enough to let it sit level once the R.C. Comp triple trees and the 20-inch-over fork were placed.
To roll the big bike around, Paul went back to the R.C. catalog for wheels and brakes. A 21-inch front and 18-inch rear were covered up in Avon tires - the rear being one of the new massive 250-series - and put into the chassis. The three-spoke wheels looked so good to Paul, he decided a drive-side rear brake conversion and a single front disc would be the easiest way to let everyone else see what he saw. So another box from R.C. was ordered and soon enough, Paul had a rolling chassis to start building his sheetmetal ideas on.
Usually all the sheetmetal found on an OCC bike is made in-house. If it comes from an outside source, it ends up being extremely modified before placing it onto the bike. Paul had some great ideas in mind for his long bike, but one part he was going to use was going to be left completely stock - a Pat Kennedy gas tank. Paul saw one on another bike and just knew it couldn't be made better; he saw it as a way to save some time that he could spend on fenders instead. He built a tire-hugging front fender that wraps around most of the wheel and then took that shape to the rear for another hugger, but not quite as long. When he looked at the bike, he decided the fenders needed something, so he built tubular trim pieces that added shape and a bit of extra strength for the front. It just plain looks cool on the right side of the rear too. Finally, he built a barrel oil tank with an extended section to hold the battery in place.
Realizing he was running short on time to get the bike out to the Black Hills, Paul took a shortcut on the driveline package. Paul Sr. had a 100ci Revtech motor that he had pulled apart, polished, and shaved a few fins off the cylinders. It, along with a matching six-speed, was in the back of the shop for a project he was going to build after Sturgis. Paul Jr. swiped the shiny parts and connected them with a Rivera 3-inch beltdrive. It was time to create some finishing parts to get the chopper ready for paint.