Having friends and having bikes are both very good things in life. Friends help you through good and bad times, and projects you never should have taken on. Bikes, new or old, are just there for you, ready to take you to the corner or across country. We all need both things in our lives to be happy.
Butch Mitchell already had four bikes in his garage, ranging from a Buell to a Springer Softail, and a '74 Shovel to an '86 Bagger. But even with that fleet of bikes, he couldn't stop thinking about a rolling chassis kit he saw advertised by Custom Cycle Creations. It was a long chopper - no, make that a real long chopper - something he had never owned before, but always wanted.
Jumping in with both feet, Butch ordered the kit before he called on his friend, Barry Cabrera, for help. The frame came in with some serious geometry involved. With the neck set at 48 degrees, the downtubes were built to come up 8 inches, and the top tube connects with an additional 10. A serious chopper stance in the frame is matched up with a 32-inch-over Tolle fork in 5-degree triple-trees.
Barry told Butch this was going to be a serious undertaking and doing the work in a shop would be best. When Butch heard that, it was all the motivation he needed to jump in and involve his old friend, Dawn Norakas, and finally open the shop he had always wanted - Stinger Custom Cycles in Cedar City, Utah.
While Butch went about getting the shop open, Barry turned his attention to building a one-off motor. First, he took a set of S&S cases and installed a set of its Shovelhead-style flywheels. Then, S&S rods, cylinders, and pistons were added to create a 93ci base before S&S 107ci heads went on. An S&S 0.630 cam, a Super G carb, a Dyna ignition, and Santee pipes rounded out the unique and potent powerplant.
When Barry showed up back at the new shop, Butch had the chassis on a lift with a long extension to support it and the new Custom Cycle Creations wire wheels. Up front sat a 21-incher with a Metzeler tire, while the 18-incher out back carried a 230 Avon - both wheels were wearing 180 spokes. To slow the long beast down, Butch installed a pair of PM single-piston calipers on a mini-Tolle rotor up front with a Tolle caliper squeezing the sprocket rotor out back.
The unique motor went in, along with a five-speed trans built from Delkron cases, Andrews gears, and Custom Chrome covers. Power transmittal is handled by a 3-inch BDL open beltdrive and clutch.
Butch and Barry turned to sheetmetal installation now. The CCC kit came with a rear fender, a gas tank, and an oil tank, but Butch wanted to make a few small adjustments before final installation. Once the pair liked the bike's stance and profile, they stripped it all down to a pile of parts so Heavenly Bodies Painting could mold and paint everything.
As the shop was sprouting new business on a daily basis, Butch's attention kept getting drawn away from finishing his dream chopper. A few days turned into a month, and before he knew it, three had passed. Finally, Butch put his head down to focus on the chopper and started the final assembly. He slid a set of White Brothers bars and Legends hand controls in place up top. Then, a Ness headlamp and Accutronix forward controls were mounted. A Taylor Engineering taillight and Kounts Kustoms seat made their way into place, and the crowning touch was the installation of a Merch oil cooler for those long summer days of riding.
As you can see from the photos, Butch and friends built a really nice chopper. But the bigger and better story around this bike is that it convinced Butch to go into the bike business and pursue a dream even bigger than his chopper.
SpecificationsGeneralOwner: Butch MitchellYear/Make: '03/Death Trap ChopperFabrication: Stinger Custom CyclesAssembly: Barry Cabrera and ownerBuild Time: Too long