The hot topic all over the country is choppers. From television to magazines, the American public is being inundated by choppers, and they are not seeing run-of-the-mill choppers; no, they are seeing the flashiest, brightest, and most eye-catching bikes around. This is pretty cool overall, but it does tend to diminish the cool choppers that give their styling credit to years past -- old-school, that is.
When Jerry Howe decided it was time to build a new chopper, with direct lineage back to the period in time that made choppers so cool, he went straight to the source in southern Orange County: Custom Cycle Creations (CCC) in Carlsbad, California. Mark Cohen, owner and chief planner, was thrilled by Jerry's plan, and immediately outlined a way to build a bike with the best of today's parts that instantly make you think of the radical '70s machines. So, with an agreement on paper and smiles all around, the birth of Jerry's chopper was induced.
The CCC crew started by getting busy bending the tubes for a new rigid frame. It would feature a neck raked at 40 degrees and 7 inches of downtube stretch. The backbone had no additional length put in it except what it needed to meet the high neck area. Extra care was put into each weld, as they knew the frame would eventually be chromed at South Bay chrome. Next, a 12-inch-over 41mm fork was mounted in CCC 7-degree trees, and positioned as the only suspension on the chassis.
Mobility was the next order of business, so the CCC crew laced up a special set of wheels for Howe's bike. The rims and hubs were powdercoated red and connected together with stainless steel spokes. Up front, a 21-inch Metzeler, an HHI caliper, and a Ness rotor were used, and out back a 240 Metzeler and CCC sprocket/rotor assembly were put in place.
During the course of the rolling chassis assembly, Mark Cohen was busy building a motor. Using S&S cases and flywheels as a foundation, he attached Carillo rods and Ross pistons. Then, S&S cylinders and heads reworked by CCC were bolted down to give Howe 120 ci of fun. The motor is rounded out with the addition of a CCC cam, a 48mm Mikuni carb, and a Force Winder air intake, a Crane ignition, and CCC pipes. It slid into the chassis with a late-model five-speed transmission built from a Delkron case and JIMS gears behind it. A BDL Top Fuel beltdrive and clutch get hydraulic assistance from an ART setup to assure that all the power the 120 kicks out gets to the chain final drive.
Dressing up the chopper was a serious issue. The shop had to remain true to the old-school feel, but needed to assure it used metal that could hang with 120 ci of vibration. Not wanting to leave anything to chance, the CCC crew built their own. A front fender would have been nice, but wouldn't flow with the idea, so it didn't happen. The gas tank gives a nod to XL-styling, but stretches back to accentuate the frameline properly. A barrel-type oil tank only made sense on this bike, and the rear fender was designed to disappear as much as possible when viewed directly from the side.
A bit of extra attention was applied to the seat area to fill it in and make it match the tank base. And finally, the ultimate old-school accessory was fabricated: a sissybar! As quickly as possible, everything was stripped down and sent out for chrome or powdercoating.
Once the bike was back together, Hot Dog Pete paid the CCC shop a visit and pulled out his pinstriping kit. By the time he left that night, there were subtle stripes everywhere. Now the finishing details were added, so Jerry could go riding. LA Choppers bars and JayBrake hand controls were mounted in CCC risers above a small, old-school headlight.
Down below, more JayBrake controls were mounted for Jerry's feet, then a Yaffe taillight was bolted on. As the Hitech seat was mounted, Mark came up with one last cool idea. He pulled the rear wheel, measured the spacers, and fabricated a faux knock-off to add another element of cool to the bike.
To say Jerry was happy would be the understatement of the year. He loves this bike so much, he happily spit out a series of wheelies for our cameras -- again and again. After all, what else do you build a chopper for?