When you're an established custom motorcycle manufacturer, such as Big Mike, owner of BMC Choppers in Bend, Oregon, you often have the opportunity to do some pretty cool things. When those opportunities arise, you want to make the most of them by creating a bike which will instantly catch your attention. BMC Choppers was given the opportunity to design and build a chopper using one of Indian Motorcycles' PowerPlus motors. When Big Mike began wondering how to showcase this motor, he decided to build a chopper that was reminiscent of old-school chopper styling.
To get the old-school chopper look he was after, Big Mike and his BMC crew fabricated one of its No Limits rigid frames with 6 inches of stretch in the downtubes and 38 degrees of rake in the neck. Big Mike wanted to keep some things about this project a secret, so he wouldn't reveal to us how much the backbone was stretched. The only suspension for the chopper was made up of BMC 41mm 10-inch-over tubes with Pro-One lower legs, and is secured to the neck with a set of OMP 6-degree triple-trees. To get the bike up and rolling, a set of Weld wheels were used. The front measures in at 21 inches and out back is an 18x8.5 - both are covered in Avon rubber with the rear sporting a burly 240. OMP rotors and calipers help all around to slow the bike down when necessary.
When the 100ci PowerPlus mill arrived at his shop, Big Mike looked it over and immediately knew serrated rocker boxes and round cylinders would look good on the No Limits frame. The motor was then shipped over to Dave's Place - Indian of Columbia, South Carolina. Dave Wyckoff, the owner, is also the Crew Chief for the Indian drag racing team, so he knows a thing or two about tweaking a motor to squeeze out more horsepower. Dave tore the motor apart and bored the cylinders so he could install a set of Ross pistons and rework the heads to match. Upon reassembly, Dave slid in a cam from Comp Cams and put the motor back together.
When Big Mike received the motor for the second time, he again admired the motor's styling before he secured it between the chopper's framerails. Next, a Mikuni HSR 45-carb was bolted onto the left side of the motor along with the Indian teardrop air cleaner. A set of BMC polished stainless steel pipes and a Thunderheart ignition were next. The driveline was finished off with the addition of a BMC six-speed transmission, a Primo clutch, and a 3-inch open belt primary drive.
With a bare-bones rolling chassis sitting before them, it was time for the BMC crew to add some sheetmetal to the mix. They started by covering the front and rear tires with a pair of their own radius fenders with internal struts incorporated into the rear. Big Mike wanted the fuel and oil tank for the chopper to look like they came right out of the '60s, so they fabricated an old-school peanut-style gas tank and a barrel-style tank for the oil.
Big Mike looked the bike over as he tried to come up with a paint scheme. As he walked to the left of the bike, he noticed the blue on the air cleaner element and instantly decided that he would cover the rest of the bike in a matching Candy Electric Blue basecoat. The bike was then disassembled so BMC's in-house painter, Gary, could apply some liquid luster. Not satisfied with the look of an all-blue bike, Big Mike had Gary go back into the spray booth and add some Lime-Time Green flames, outlined with orange stripes. So there wouldn't be any confusion who built the chopper, Gary finished off the paint with the BMC logo tearing out of the rear fender.