Eric Gonsalves got the idea to build a chopper after seeing a Covington's Cycle City chopper in Daytona last year. When he retuned home to Buxton, Maine, he made up his mind to start building one immediately. He had a '94 Dyna Wide Glide, and though he had done just about everything he could to it - from polishing the case and having custom wheels made, to adding every bolt-on thing in the book - it was still not as cool as the Covington machine.
Long-time friend Neil Anthony, owner of Neil's Customs, wanted to help with this project; it had been a long time since he built a chopper from the ground up. Eric laid the plans out, and with Neil's help, a long, clean big-motor chopper was about to hit the streets.
To get the big dimensions Eric wanted, he used a Covington's frame with 38 degrees of rake in the neck, 8 inches of downtube stretch, 4 inches added to the backbone, and the ability to fit a big 240 rear tire. Neil assembled a Pro One frontend using 10-over tubes and Pro One's Millennium triple-trees. On the back side, a set of Progressive Suspension adjustable shocks were bolted to the Covington swingarm. Next, Eric had Carriage Works to get a set of its Tri-Ads wheels - a 21-incher up front and an 18x8.5-inch out back - both covered in Metzeler rubber to give the bike some mobility. Eric completed the rolling chassis with Russell Pro rotors and P.M. calipers to bring this bike to a quick halt.
For power, there was a long discussion on how big to go, and in the end, Neil and Eric agreed that a TP Engineering 121ci motor was the way to go. A Mikuni 42mm carb was bolted on with a Force Winder air cleaner and a Crane Hi-4 ignition. For the exhaust, Eric went with a set of Slicksters from Martin Bros., with some small modifications to the brackets to help keep them off the ground. A five-speed trans was assembled with Andrews gears in a Delkron case with an H-D top and side cover. A Barnett clutch and a 3-inch Hi-Tech primary drive gets power to the rear wheel.
While the foundation of the chopper was going along great, the style of its sheetmetal was very important, so a WCC front fender was ordered and reshaped to fit the tire. In the rear, the look that Eric was going for was strutless, so he took a Ness Bruiser, welded the struts on the inside of the fender, and then molded it smooth. The gas tank was from Independent Gas Tank Company, and finishing out the sheetmetal was an oil bag from Pro One. At this point, the mock-up was done, and the bike was ready for paintwork.
Eric's dad, Bill Gonsalves, took the frame and sheetmetal to Joe Green (Mean Green), a good friend and long-time painter. The two started with four basecoats of House of Kolor Red, then two coats of Candy Apple Red, and lost count on the clear. When it was all done, it looked good enough to eat.
To get this bike finished and on the road, drag bars from Flanders sit in a set of risers from Accutronix, with hand controls from Joker Machine and foot controls from Performance Machine. The lighting is taken care of with a headlight from Headwinds and a taillight from Paul Yaffe. Eric topped off his chopper with a seat from Danny Gray.
Finally, the time came to fire up the chopper. Eric put some gas in the tank, hit the start button, and off he went. His first stop was the newsstand so he could pick up a copy of Street Chopper to get the address to send us some photos.
Specifications
General
Owner: Eric Gonsalves
Year/Make: '02/Custom
Fabrication: Eric Gonsalves
Assembly: Neil Customs
Build Time: Four Months
Engine
Size/Type: 121ci TP
Cases: TP
Flywheels: TP
Rods: TP
Pistons: TP
Cylinders: TP
Heads: TP
Cam: TP
Carb: Mikuni
Ignition: Crane HI-4
Pipes: Martin Bros.
Transmission
Year/Type: '02/Five-speed
Case: Delkron
Gears: Andrews
Clutch: Barnett Scorpion
Primary Drive: Hi-Tech
Frame/Suspension
Year/Type: '02/Covington's Cycle City
Rake: 38 degrees
Stretch: 8 inches
Swingarm: Covington's Cycle City
Rear Suspension: Progressive
Forks: Pro One
Extension: 10-over
Triple-Trees: Pro One
Wheels, tires, and brakes
Wheels
Front: Carriage Works
Rear: Carriage Works
Tires
Front: Metzeler
Rear: Metzeler
BRAKES
Front: P.M.
Rear: P.M.
Finish
Molding: Bill Gonsalves
Painter: Joe Green
Color: Candy Apple Red
Graphics: None
Chrome Plating and Polishing:
Moto Malano Chrome
Powdercoating: None
Accessories
Bars: Flanders
Risers: Accutronix
Hand Controls: Joker Machine
Headlight: Headwinds
Taillight: Paul Yaffe
Gauges: None
Electrical: Neil's Custom Cycles
Fuel Tank(s): Independent Gas Tank Co.Dash: None
Oil Tank: Pro One
Front Fender: WCC
Rear Fender: Neil's Custom Cycles
Fender Struts: Neil's Custom Cycles
Pegs: None
Foot Controls: P.M.
Seat: Corbin/Big Dog-Danny Gray