Some of you might have heard the name Max Schaaf in this publication, or maybe you recognize it from some old skate video you used to watch. Maybe you saw the article they did on him in Garage Magazine and thought to yourself, "I have never heard of this guy, but I like his style." And like a lot of guys that you'll meet in your lifetime, it was a style developed out of necessity.
Max, like a lot of us, wasn't blessed with a fat bank account when he discovered bikes. And like most people who figure out how to get what they want with as little out of pocket expense as possible, what Max lacked in cash flow he more than made up for in ingenuity. So he started with a beat-up basket case bike, and with some serious horse trading skills and some natural mechanical ability, turned it into a really cool bike. It didn't take long for the "skinny skater kid" to become a familiar face at all of the bike swap meets in the Bay Area. Pretty soon he went from being known as "the skinny skater kid" to "Max with the really cool Shovelhead."
Recently we had a chance to sit down with Max and get his views on the bikes that he loves, the guys building bikes, and what's up with his blog...
SC Did growing up like you did have a lot to do with your "Do-It-Yourself" attitude?
Max No...at first I was kind of a scared kid. But as I grew older and I tried and failed and tried and succeeded, I realized that you got to check out life and figure out where it takes you and where you can take it. I then become more "do it myself."
SC It's been a while since we've crossed paths. The last time we ran into you, you were riding that blue Shovelhead with the really narrow frontend that had that killer headlight in Paso Robles. Do you still have that bike?
Max I do. I'm still tweakin' on it, and actually re-making the pipes a little bigger. Yes, they were too small. Pat yourself on the back, you were right.
SC Now, a little birdie told us that you have quite the collection of oddball headlights. Any that you would like to share publicly?
Max Just oddball stuff I come across. There are more out there. There is some chopper nerd that has 'em all figured out and is selling them on eBay with my name attached to the description. That's kinda queer. Why not just find a cool one and go that route?
SC Do you still find a lot of your parts at the bike swap meets, or now that you have become better known in the bike scene do you find a lot of people with oddball or cool old stuff seek you out?
Max I'm blessed to live up north where a lot of the cool shit comes from, so sometimes at swaps or friends of friends but no one has ever sought me out. That would be nice.
SC Now, all the average bike enthusiast has to do is take one look at most of your bikes to know that you were heavily influenced by the Bay Area bikes of the late '60s and early '70s. Do you find that there was one particular builder that inspires you, or was it the scene as a whole? Max More the scene as a whole. Arlen Ness' earlier stuff is mind blowing. I really like Sonny Barger's first bikes. Rooster's Shovel, later '60s club bikes, Dave Mann paintings of "El Forstero's" bikes just rule, and those bikes were real.
SC Do you think you have it easier than most of the guys back then did, since you have access to modern processes? Lets face it, you're not brazing anything together, you're using a TIG welder.
Max I started oxy-acetylene welding steel and brazing using a torch. So I get the old way. TIGs are great, MIGs are good the problem is sometimes they make you move too fast. I build bikes slower. I stare at 'em way too long. Maybe when they were brazing more it slowed them down, and maybe that was a good thing.
SC And another thing that not a lot of people know is that you're sort of a Jack-of-all-trades. You do everything from twist wrenches, to wiring, to your own paint. Did you learn all of that out of necessity?
Max I just learn by doing it myself. I can't learn from a book that well, and it's tough even when someone shows you. So yes, out of necessity, because that's what works for my brain. My friend Dave Riddle-he's more of a car guy-knows how to do just about everything. Any idea I ever had, he was like "you can do that" so I thank him the most for that Jack-of-all-trades deal.
SC Is there any aspect of bike building that you leave to someone else? That you're more comfortable letting someone else do?
Max I don't do the motors. To me that's an art and it needs to be passed down. I got a guy, Pat Stephenson, who does good on the older Big Twins. Maybe someday.
SC You are one of the guys who rides your bike everywhere. Is there something in your tool bag that you have found useful on more than one occasion that most people wouldn't think of?
Max Oh, like what? Illegal substances? Hose clamps are good.