1959 Russian Ural M-61 - Russian Chopper

The winters are long, cold, and dark in Finland, so over the two winters Ooli worked on his ride, he rebuilt the 750cc air-cooled engine using Mazda high-compression automobile pistons, and then polished and ported the heads. Ooli wanted to use a Weber carburetor he had, so he fabricated the manifold to adapt it to the intake. He also handmade the exhaust pipes and made the handlebars with reversed "meat hook" levers. Then, he dug around and found a Bates headlight and also modified a '59 Cadillac taillight to suit his needs. For the truly unique drive system, Ooli modified and polished the driveshaft from the front U-joint off an old European Ford Cortina.

For the front wheel, Ooli used a Honda hub on a 19-inch rim; for the rear, he chromed the original Ural 16-inch rim. As for the stopping power, he opted for a front brake from a CB 125cc Honda, and for the rear he opted for the original Ural drum setup which he polished to a glimmering shine. There is no front fender, but the rear fender was modified from another Russian IC two-stroke machine and is mounted to the handmade high sissy bar. The seat is another one-off creation in white and blue that matches the metalflake blue paintjob pinstriped by a buddy in Ooli's hometown.

There are still plenty of talented builders here in the USA, but lately the scene has been getting a bit stale with so many clone choppers on display at every major event. We wanted to see if the stories we had heard about the Finns and Swedes building backstreet choppers that were totally radical by American standards were true. Take it from us: It's all true. We've seen things that some of our builders haven't even imagined yet brought to life by guys right in their own backyard shops and garages. We returned home with a new respect for the small builder who makes do with what he can get his hands on, and who finds ingenious ways to make it work. Both Finland and Sweden are tops in our book - and we've been all over the world!