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Custom Culture

The customizing of Harley-Davidson

motorcycles has grown from a relatively

lowly underground activity into a multi-

million dollar industry. Originally the exclusive

activity of extrovert individuals who,with varying

degrees of engineering knowledge and dexterity

with a hacksaw,modified their rides into personal

statements.To be an individual and stand out from

the crowd is a strong motivation in the world of

the biker,and riding a personalized, head-turning

custom Harley amongst thousands of stock bikes

produces a buzz that many riders enjoy. Never

before has there been a time when custom Harleys

were more popular, thanks to the plethora of chopper TV shows so

accessible to the public at large.

The origins of this custom phenomenon hark back to the years

immediately after the end of World War II. GIs returning home after demob

were awarded a years salary to tide them over until they found employment.

For many, the sunny climate of Southern California was a good reason to

settle in the state. Many young men who had seen action in the South Pacific

needed to find activities that excited them and many turned to motorcycle

racing or hot-rodding for their kicks. Thus, Southern California became the

Garden of Edenwhere the customization of cars and bikes originated. As a

result of the war effort and the multitude of engineering industries that

supported the USAF and Navy, there was a high concentration of skilled

engineers and fabricators who could turn their hand to anything mechanical.Many opened tuning shops,producing performance enhancing parts for Dry

Lake speed freaks or quarter mile drag racers.

There were many AMA (American Motorcycle Association) clubs that

organized competitive events such as hill climbs or dirt track racing. It was not

uncommon for amateur bike racers to ride to the

event and strip off the fenders and lights from

their machines,reducing weight in order t o further

enhance the bikes performance. Afterwards they

would reassemble their bikes and ride home.

There were those who considered this a

hassle, so their bikes were permanently modified

ready to race. These early chop downs or bob

jobs were characterized by the absence of front

fenders and lights, a severely chopped away rear

fender and definitely no screens or bags. These

bobberscut a fine dash on the street since they

were faster between stop lights than the stock

bikes of the day.This style of bike was favoured by the more rowdy element,

who formed clubs such as the Booze Fightersand Galloping Gooses. These

club members liked nothing better than to hit the bars, race in the streets and

pick a rumble with anyone who got in the way. This kind of action was usually

centred around official AMA events, Hollister 1947 being one of the most

infamous examples.

The AMA swiftly banned such rowdy clubs from their events, giving rise

to the term Outlaw Club. The cut down style of motorcycle became

associated with the hooligan element and to ride one became an anti-

establishment statement.Check out the extras and their bikes who appeared in

the background of the movieThe Wild One; Brando rode a Triumph, but the

rest of the cast rode bobbed Harleys and Indians. Note also the customized

dress of the riders,each one sporting a different combination of ex-servicegear, hats and jeans. Lee Marvins flying helmet, leather jerkin and striped

sweatshirt contrasted with Brandos peaked riding hat, leather jacket, Levis,

and engineer boots. Brandos style became formulaic rebel attire while

Marvins was true one percenterin i ts individual nature.

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For many people the most familiar Harley custom bikes are the long

forked choppers made world famous by the 1969 movie Easy Rider. T he

evolution of this radical style is somewhat shrouded in mystery.

It was common practice for each customizer to utilize forks of the

military XA because they were longer than stock springer forks.In the mid-

sixties the first biker magazines appeared and custom bikes were

photographed as special features. Von Dutch, the legendary pinstriper and

Hot Rod artist, had a theory that photographers who used wide angle lenses

from a low viewpoint often exaggerated the lines of the bike,causing the bikes

to appear much longer, due to distortion, than they actually were. Potential

customizers studied these features and built bikes to reflect what they

perceived to be the style of the day.It is an interesting theory that may explain

the development of the long fork fashion, which was hardly a performance

enhancing feature since the long forks made the bike difficult to control.Easy

Riderwas responsible for exporting the chopper style to the wider world

beyond the shores of the USA.

In the Bay area of San Francisco, a number of individuals such as Arlen

Ness, Bob Dron and Ron Sims were in the process of developing new styles

of custom Harley, including the Bay Area Low Rider, or Digger as it was

known in common parlance.

In the 1970s the custom bike show scene developed,which introduced an

element of competition.This was the time when Harley customizers entered

the realms of art. Painters such as Jeff McCann and Horst took air-brushing,

pinstriping and gold leaf work into new areas, while engravers, more used to

embellishing firearms.transferred their skills to decorating cylinder heads and

crankcases. Flames, fantasy art and gold plating, as well as bodywork

moulding,created custom bikes far removed from the early bobbers.

Exponents of the art, such as Arlen Ness, recognized an opportunity to

offer a customizing service to bikers by selling offthe shelf custom parts.And

so an industry was born and 30 years later Arlen and his son Cory remain

major influences.After a brief hiatus in the late 1980s,the Harley custom scene revitalized

with the advent of the CNC machine that could mill parts out of billet

aluminium. This new age of computer assisted design relaunched the Harley

custom scene. Pure chopper enthusiasts were not impressed by the resulting

Billet Barges that became popular, but, like it or not, that was development

and technology in action.

The early- to mid-1990s were characterized by Luxury Liners, custom

Harleys which had extensive bodywork, elaborate paint and, of course, as

many billet parts as could be fitted. Even Nesss chopper bikes had large

Taildraggerfenders fitted fore and aft. Such Luxury Liners,or Billet Barges,

were the complete antithesis of the early bobbers that were decidedly more

about go than show.

Inevitably there would be a backlash,and it came as the 1990s drew to a

close when the custom scene rediscovered the long forked chopper.Die-hard

traditionalist chopper builders such as Pat Kennedy never stopped building the

Swedish Stylechopper, but new Chopper shops sprang up all over the USA

almost overnight.The chopper renaissance was fuelled by the success of Cable

TV shows such as Biker Build Off, Southern Chopper and American Thunder.

Chopper builders became television stars, even appearing on the Jay Leno

Tonight show, watched by millions. Companies such as Bourgets Bike Works,

American Iron Horse, Extreme, Ultra, Surgical Steeds, Titan and countless

others exhibit their chopper ranges at all major biker events, each displaying

inventories worth millions of dollars. This thriving scene shows no sign of

diminishing at the present time,but in the event of an economic downturn,

casualties will be inevitable.

This mass production of so-called custom bikes has initiated a new

counter culture of individual bike builders intent on getting back to the one-

off rolling art style of custom bike.The new direction is often described as the

Old School movement,influenced by the 1940s bobbers and even the board

track racers of the 1920s.Some of these retro builders use the old knuckles

and flathead motors, but companies such as Panzer and S & S can supply

newly manufactured knuckles,pans and flatheads, which look authentic on the

outside, but employ modern technology to afford these motors a reliability

that they did not enjoy back in their heyday.There has never been a t ime when so many different custom styles co-

existed simultaneously, providing a photographer such as myself with a wealth

of fascinating material to shoot.

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Arlin Fatland, master bike builder and proprietor of 2Wheelers motorcycle shop, Denver, Colorado.

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Old School Knucklehead chopper.

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Paul Bairstow with his 45ci Flathead, London, England.

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A fine example of a Sputhe-engined chopper photographed in Swindon, England.

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Caz Carrolls classic-flamed 45 chopper, Wirral, England.

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Traildragger custom Harley from 2Wheelers custom shop of Denver, Colorado.

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Hot-Rod Kevs purple panhead.

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An immaculate example of an Old School Knucklehead chopper.

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A portrait of Scottish Charlie, hardcore chopper r ider.

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Moving metal sculpture: Simply the Best, a hi-tech German custom bike.

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Xzotic Cycles Springer.

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From the workshops of Grandeur Cycles of North Carolina, a turbocharged lowrider.

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A modern variation of a retro-chopper, courtesy of Grandeur Cycles.

Like all responsible ride

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Clive Mayes Panhead chopper.

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Sixties-style Panhead chopper.

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All the bling you could ever want Christmas Tree Glide, Hard Rock Caf, London.

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California-style Panhead built by its Danish owner, Stefan.