No Mas?!

This is the last post on this blog for a while. 

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EDR Reunion?

I've been getting quite a few random emails from people wondering about EDR 2009. The honest answer is this: We're not sure. There are some issues at the campground in San Felipe outside of our control (land issues, family squabbles, you name it) so Ruben's may not be available. If we have to change too much about the EDR, we simply won't do it. I'm not going to compromise the event and do it somewhere that doesn't provide that authentic baja vibe just to keep it going. So, it's gonna be good or it won't be. We have some trips planned down there towards the end of summer to scout things out and see what we can dig up. We'll post the results of those trips here as soon as we know what's up.

If you live anywhere near So Cal and missed the EDR this year, there is a chance to see a bunch of the bikes and dudes that rode it next weekend in Wrightwood, CA. We're throwing an event for bikes of all types, but we're really hoping for as much old iron as possible.

It's a bike show that everyone who rides in is automatically entered into for free. It's a swap meet for old parts. It's got vendors (some are even EDR sponsors). It's got punk rock; The Whitewalls, Revolution Mother and Throw Rag, all of whom give a shit about motorcycles which is cool. And, it's in the mountains so it'll be a little cooler than we're used to around here. Great mountain riding but still easy to get to.

Starts at 10:00am ends at 9:00pm.

You can get all the info here www.chopmeet.com and you can buy your arm band entry here and save $10.00 if you get your orders in before midnight tomorrow (the 10th). If not, buy 'em at the gate. No parking fees for bikes and you can ride right into the show.

See you there.

Time for a swim?

These two nutbags showed up at the hotel in Ensenada and thought it was funny to drink some of our free beers and put on some sort of gay show. Thanks to sponsor and friend Gabe, for showing them some real man love.

A few of my favorite things...

We just got a big batch of photos in from Josh Kurpius from EDR 2007.

I've posted a few of my favorites, but there are about 250 more on my flickr account.

Talk about pro stuff, Josh really nailed it.

Can't wait to see what he got from this year.

Check him out here and here. Thanks, Josh!

¡ Viva Tejas !

This is cool.

THE LOW SHOW

The unstoppable Brooks Manbeck is one of a bunch of impressive artists asked to show their skills at "Low" this Saturday. Three of Brooks photos from last year's EDR will be featured as well as tons of other stuff. Sounds like a good excuse for a ride to LA...

Black and Gold gets Silver

We first met Joe and his meticulous Triumph on last year's Gypsy Run back east. On first glance you would be excused for thinking this thing was a trailer queen. I swear it's that sano. Let me tell you, it's no trailer queen, Joe is just one dialed-in guy and so is his ride. It was no surprise this year when it nailed the second place spot on the EDR podium. Equally fitting was that the trophy was a custom painted skate deck by non other than Harpoon and Joe is a skateboarder through and through. Making it even cooler was the fact that Joe was one of the East Coast Invasion guys hailing from the Garden State. I asked the normally-quiet rider to give me some details and back-story on him and the bike and he did. Alot. Which is great. In a scene rife with people who are more beard than bike, Joe and his Trumpet are a rare find.

Here's what he had to say and some great pics of the bike:



ok - i got the bike as a basket case from a friend a couple years ago. it had been butchered by many previous owners. the things i kept from the original heap was the front frame loop, most of the motor, most of the front end & the seat pan. i found out the welded on hardtail was bent & broken early on & i was pretty overwhelmed with it being my 1st complete bike build. a guy on the JJ whom i cant remember said to me, as i was asking what the hell to do with this pile of shit, something along the lines of 'if youre ready to bail already then you really shouldnt be building a bike, sell it & buy something else. it aint easy. although, you could just hack the rear off & get a new one if you want.' thats just what i needed, a little tough love i guess.

start - i borrowed a corner in my neighbors basement garage which was a shithole & got to work. i stripped it down & hacked off the broken hardtail. i sent the motor to a pro, a cool old greybeard named smitty to get done while i did everything else. i had to grind a pound of horrible welds off the front loop to save it & reshape everything back to original specs, especially the backbone near the tank mount. looked like someone used 3 arc welding sticks within a few inches.

prelim build - from then on, i became more obsessed with it, working every night from the time i got out of work until i couldnt keep my eyes open. my friends thought i was dick, i never called or went out at all. luckily my girl was cool & came down to see what was up once in a while. i had a totally blank slate. just a bare 70 TR6C frame loop sitting on a cinder block. i then got a david bird hardtail with 4" stretch & 2.5" drop. from that point i decided to keep the 71-72 front end because i knew that was a great front brake & the neck was already converted for the later stem/trees. both wheels were trashed so i used my bicycle wheel building skills i aquired as a pedal bike mechanic to build a pair of wheels for the triumph. i used a late 60s rear hub & brake & the 71-72 conical front. i made a lowering kit out of the tubing that was in the extended fork that came with the project. the spacers that once extended the fork with old 10" (or so) over tubes now lowers the stock length tubed fork 3" under stock. i wanted the bike to sit level to keep the stock rake/trail so it would handle nicely.

tanks - the gas tank that came with the project was from an OIF bike, probably the same donor bike of the front end but it looked like shit on the 70 frame. i sold that & found a late 60s bonnie tank that looked much better. the oil tank was a semi pre-fab deal i scored on ebay that had the standpipe, inlet & outlet bungs & the cap already done & i just had to make the plumbing & mounting plates.

motor - the motor was already bastardized & im glad i had it done by a pro since i wouldnt have picked up on all the half assed things it had going on. fortunately though, the motor already had some aftermarket cams & some .030 over pistons all in good shape. the head was done & milled a little to get it flat again & bump up the compression a little. i fitted a new amal 930 & it runs great with the brand new points ignition w/ a tempannium regulator. it starts on the 1st or 2nd kick everytime & hauls ass with the 20T front sprocket. i later rebuilt the clutch with all new plates & bearings and the stator/rotor are new as well.

final build - i tore the bike down the following winter to change some things & powder the frame. i changed the rear fender by one from craig at front st cycle. i really liked the peak & wanted to go strutless. i made the trim to match the stock tank trim out of a piece of aluminum tubing. im always sweating about it falling off because it took so long to make that little stupid piece! i also changed the tires from the original dry rotted dunlops to the ever-faithful avon/firestone combo. it really rides & handles well. the peg rubbers are ground down to the metal from hammering through the corners all the time.

the paint - well this is the 4th paint job in 2 years but hopefully the last one for a while. i sketched the scallops on when the tank was bare & tried a dozen other designs but i liked these scallops the best. i knew i wanted it to be classy but not over the top so metallic black with a little gold for the bling factor. ryzart worked with me & made my vision come alive. he is one of many friends i made building this bike & we keep in touch. let him paint your stuff, the dude rules. during the build, my girl & i went to boston for a winter trip & i proposed. on the way back, stuck in traffic, with the bike on my mind of course, i look over at this giant dump truck & notice the lettering on the doors was engine turned gold leaf. i thought immediatly how cool that would look as the scallops, over black on my tank. i think it worked out well - haha

details - i wanted some funky lighting. i think the head & tail lights on custom bikes are as important as the paint when it comes to style. im surely not the 1st person to use a unity spot for the front but after looking at a ton of options, i dug the look the best. especially the small one. i found this one at a hot rod show/swap meet for 10 or 15 bux. i got the fancy flood lightbulb online & it really works well. i feel plenty confident trying to outrun my headlight at night. the tail started at a repop 37 ford deal i got at a local street rod store but the bucket was too long & looked weird to me but i liked the lense a lot. i was talking to a friend who manages the bicycle shop i used to work at who is into old schwinns & asked him if he had any old headlights, which he did. gave me one for free & i mated it up to the ford lense & bezel. they are the exact same diameter so it worked out really nicely. i had to tweak it a little & make the guts but it works great. the bulb holder inside is the bottom of a can of beans. i love beans...... the seat i had redone by my friend andy who did some nice pleats & piping with new foam. i have it on 3" springs & the hinge is a heavy duty lock hasp which works well but i wish i went with a biltwell one as its getting a little side to side play already. i made the headlight mount, taillight mount, plate mount, the battery tray & the oil tank plates. that was about all i felt confident building with my shitty welder. drilling the holes sucked since i didnt have a bench, vice or drill press. all the holes i did with a hand drill, holding the piece in a cinder block with my foot - that sucked. i skate so i used some old skateboard truck bushings & a kingpin to mount the headlight. it works awesome to soak up the vibes. a lot of folks ask 'you get any shit from the cops about that plate being mounted like that?' i dont - most of the cops who ever noticed the bike tell me how awesome they think the whole thing is. one cop pulled me over to check it out better & had me follow him to his house to see his old bonnie - very cool. i mounted it that way mainly to hide the ugle brake light switch behind it but i dig how it reminds me of flat trackers or drag bike number plates.

the shop - well living in apartments forever i never had much room for tools but managed to aquire enough to get most jobs done. when it came time to do the bike, i had the basic handtools taken care of and an angle grinder, a drill & a dremel. i also had a hundred dollar welder i got on discount. the preliminary build was in my neighbors basement garage but it was cramped so i got a car port for the driveway of my apt. i had torn the bike all apart again then the carport blew away in a storm. i loaded the mostly disassmebled bike and all my tools into my girls truck & took it to my moms garage but i couldnt get over there to work often enough so i got an 8 x 10 metal shed for my driveway which was the best shop of all. i scored a workbench, some shelves, a tiny heater, and finally a VISE! i worked throughout the winter on the final build. working in a t shirt while it was snowing outside with the little heater cranking was awesome. i had power out there via super long extension cord from the apartment. come that spring, the bike was done.

the build was really fun. it was a killer challenge & i learned a lot. really the best part was meeting so many awesome folks that helped out along the way & especially the folks ive met out riding it. i ride the hell out of it so everywhere i go folks like to talk about it. i never get pissed about being held up because im proud - its like my child. haha - meeting all the guys on the gypsy run last year and the EDR this year was the best of all. after i finish my 65 chrysler, ill probably do another bike. probably another brit, maybe another triumph but something wild. i was so inspired by the sugar bear front end on that guys pan on the EDR and also the 1st place prism tank that i feel i need to build a radical traditional chopper.


holy shit - i didnt mean to go on like that - feel free to edit it to death bill. no sweat - haha.

No way, I didn't edit a word. Thanks Joe!