Heading to Baltimore

Get there however you can.

Ride to Skate 6

More details to come...

OH SO SPECIAL '79 AKA... FOOLS GOLD!

Well, Me and Chopper Mike Mcellwee took a little trip this weekend and headed out to Oakland. That's right Oakland .....New Jersey, sorry for the let down.  I wish I could tell you a story about Me and Mike  diving around the countryside and spotted this beauty peeking out behind an old washer and dryer, But I regress. I found it the old fashioned way.  EBAY!  With a buy it now option! I could not resist ,overwhelmed with desire and wonder lust, one single click of my mouse and I had become the new owner of a completely chromed out 1979 FXR.  Upon arrival in Oakland we were greeted buy "Buy it now" Glenn and his buddy 5Q, Don't ask because I sure didn't. Two old bikers from the hills of Oakland, crazy right? He promised me a running bike, which did fire momentarily until the primary belt decided to take another direction.  The story I got was a former show bike called "FOOL'S GOLD"  I can't for the life of me figure out where that name came from, There isn't any gold on the thing. Again, don't ask I didn't. Then it sat for several years until Glenn's possession.  I was still in love, paid "Buy it now"Glenn and drug her home. The frame and front end are completely chrome plated as is the entire transmission. As for the engine, it appears to be stroked out and full of S&S goodies. Maybe that's where the GOLD is or I'm the FOOL for buying it. I'm going to take the ugly out of her and have it ready to tear up the streets of Philly this summer.

This Weekend

Good Bye old friend

Today was the end for Sir Ruger Fenton Mudd of Stanbridge .He was a good dog loyal friend and protector of Stalag 226 .You will be missed rest in peace buddy.

Liberty Vintage Cycle

http://fueltank.tv/#1727111/Liberty-Vintage-Motorcycles

Hey, I saw this cool little video on Atom and Liberty Cycle here in Philly and figured I'd throw the link up to give you all something to look at.

Issue High 5

New issue of Show Class now available.

We will be shipping next week, first class.

My personal favorite yet. Hope you bastards dig it.

Not so special 79

A little progress on the shovel . Also in the back ground is a Squirrel and a new addition to our family Shredder harcort fenton mudd of stanbridge . He is Czech border dog and keeps our family on its toes . Thanks to all who replied to my post about the stupid glide tank i found one as you can see your time was appreciated.

Another Iron Horse Classic

Flip's 1979 Shovel Jammer !

    I know what your thinking, Whats wrong with this picture? No Wassel tank, no ribbed rear fender, no Knucklehead motor?! This guy must be out of his mind!  I know , I here you..... That's all I see anymore Myself.  But you cant deny that this bike is just right. 

   This is from an old Iron Horse magazine from my collection. I love these old magazines. Its crazy, June 1997 issue 151.  Not one web address throughout the whole magazine, How did we ever get along without the web is a mystery to me.  I really dig swap meet specials.  Nothing real fancy, stripped down and straight to the point. Just a young guy with very little cash on hand but a burning desire to build a chopper and ride.

   Please, don't wait around for that next period correct piece to pop up on E Bay! Every thing will be O K no one is going to think any less of  you. Maybe just a little hazing , and they might put you in a different section at your local bike night.  But come on , your a Biker right ? Put that pile of parts in your garage together and RIDE!

Front seat mount

A little time with the drill press and porta-band

The fit was so good that it was scary

Here at the garage we have nothing but the fanciest and most expensive welding jigs

First ride

Thought i might as well keep the family theme going.This is my sons first ride on the Harlem Davison He is hooked for sure.

EPIC GOOD PARENTING PICTURE POST

Keeping it going.

Sled Head

Another fine example of proper parenting. Seems to be a recent theme here.

We got some snow the other day and the old man didn't really feel like climbing the local hill all afternoon. No problem. Some rope, the sled she got from uncle Kyle and Aunt Cailyn, and an empty parking lot later... good clean fun. She kept telling me to go faster and didn't want to stop. I told her if it was my dad he would have tried to shake me loose by whipping around some corners and aimed for the curbs. She's just lucky I like her.

Her mom didn't think it was as good of an idea as we did. No one got hurt, we got to have some fun and laughs and we will always remember it. That's a real good day in my book.

This one's for the Ax

Keep traditions alive.

Dealship Jam

I know what you're thinking. A show at a dealership... I know what to expect and I'll pass.

Well not so fast Sally. I myself am not exactly sure what to expect being their first show like this, but I know the guys putting it on and they are a down as the day is long. They're trying to mix it up a bit and do things that you wont find in the new catalog of stock factory clones. Pre-Evo chopper award? Bobber and Cafe? What kind of dealership in their right mind puts time and energy into this type of stuff instead of trying to pick your pockets to fill the register? This kind...

These guys must be a bit questionable, they were way more that cool with supporting our sleezy deal.

And I will personally give a free copy of Issue 5 of Show Class for anyone that talks Tracy into arm wrestling and doesn't lose right away. Wilmington John is disqualified though due to exceeding normal size limitations.

So, how long have you been a bad ass?...my whole life

So after reading Steve's post I was all fired up over the useless youth of today. Later on, I stumbled over some old baby pics of me and the old man when it occured to me why the youth of today is clueless in the face of challenge, unsure of identity, and somewhat fearful of reality.

I was four when I rode my first motorcycle and it wasn't a fucking video game. We dumped that bike that day and I ended up in the hospital. We were born in a time when you didn't need a five point race harness to put your child in a car. I was back on the bike in days with my pop and I haven't stopped riding since.

I was four when I shot my first rifle and learned how to handle one properly, again, it wasn't on a fucking video game either. It was real deal shit with real consequences. Kids today get to "play" around, and no one gets hurt. There are no consequences--- just hit reset. Now that can't be too much fun, no wonder they're all on meds to get through the day.

Show some Love

just got some Lovely new bits up in the Freakin store for your pleasure...

hey Jeremiah, either get some lady models or put some pants on those dudes. thanks brother

Slowly but Surely

Im not knocking it outta the park but I've steadily been checking things off the list. I was originally planning on setting this up as a comfy cruiser (pullback bars, king queen seat, etc.) but I think this is the way its gonna stay.

An evening at Q's

Q and The Axe have been slaving away on Friday nights for the past couple weeks. I went over one night to help out and offer my 2 cents. I ended up chain smoking, getting half a load on and slowing progress. I haven't been invited back since.

Ferris Bueller was right

Life moves pretty fast! Seeing these 2 pictures next to each other is a trip. 11 years in the blink of an eye.

Jonathan

 Well, I usually like to keep things motorcycle or more so chopper related but this morning I woke up to the sound of scraping shovels and about 2-3" of snow.  I often start my Saturdays off by hitting the garage early, but not today. Snow removal was first on the list because I have to push out all of the motorcycles in order to gain room to work in the shop. Bundle up grab my snow removal weapon and hit it.
  I head out front only to see some young kids playing and only one other guy out there busting his hump like me. Only the other guy was knocking door to door trying to make some cash. He was a middle aged Black gentleman fairly well groomed and polite. Only to be greeted with closed doors and ignorance. I don't know if I look at things too hard anymore but, my block is loaded with teenage kids and young adults who are more than capable of shoveling snow or helping out by assisting the elderly with their snow. I don't get it. What happened to the youth of today? If you think about it for just a second, Its really disturbing.
  I don't know where I am going with this but, back to the black guy. He finally landed a job shoveling snow for my neighbor, who by the way is younger than me but I guess to Lazy to shovel himself. The snow was pretty heavy I know from first hand experience. After he was done the neighbor came out and started breaking this guys hump. Basically "you missed a spot". Wow! needless to say I was floored. Totally felt bad for the guy. I don't know him from Adam but, he showed a quality that many people of this generation don't posses. Hard work ethic and the willingness to do any job no matter how small or for lesser of a word demeaning.
   I can kind of imaging the youth of the block looking out there windows and saying "I'm not doing that,That guy is crazy!" I really don't think I'm that far off.  I walked across the street and handed the man 5 bucks. I told him" I totally admire you for what you are doing", and asked him his name. He said "Jonathan" He was super thankful. I said "have a great day" and we went our own ways. No moral to the story or rhyme or reason. Maybe the older I get the more tuned in you become to your environment.  What was Jonathan working so hard for?  Drugs maybe? or maybe he is behind on some bills or had to put food on the table for his family. 

 The world is a cruel place for some, Others don't know how good they really have it.  I'm not saying go give all your money to the needy or help out every one in despair, Reach out every once and a while, whether friend, family or total stranger. My hat goes off to Jonathan, maybe his hard work will go to good use,and maybe he will return the gift of kindness to someone else.

Saturday Night

Real Deal

Hey not everybody has the skills or the tools to make cool parts.If your trying to bend up a sissy bar and it keeps coming out looking like a heaping pile of monkey shit head over to the Death Science site and click on Fingers Chop Shop and have him twist you up some mids or a sissy bar tall enough for you to pack up all your shit and take that trip to Neverland Ranch you've been dreaming of.

GOOD TIMES !

The swap meet was OK, I scored a cool brain bucket off of Duncan and its the exact same one as Flathead Jay's! Super excited for next summer when I wreak havoc in Jay's neighborhood wearing said helmet.  After the swap we headed to my place for some food and drinks, I wasn't expecting much but it turned out to be so much more. Its amazing when you have a good collective of friends to turn just another Sunday into a day that personally will never forget. My side still hurts from the laughter and still find myself chuckling off and on throughout the day.  Thanks to everyone who attended,  Murph, kyle and Cailyn for traveling so far to hang out. Judy and Jo for the pretzel tray. Mike Mc, Mike D,Christine, Jay,Wild Bill and Q . I love you all. Huge thanks to Michelle for the hard work and letting me get hammered. The only thing that sucked is I forgot to take pictures.    Long Live the Duke!

Moto Weekend

Friday started out with Bill,Mike D and Jay coming over drinking some beer and getting some more work done on Bill's triumph.Vander put me in touch with Bobby and I jammed up to Brooklyn on saturday.Bobby hooked me up with the glide front end,21 star hub front wheel and drum brake and a ribbed rear fender.Got home and had a package from Fingers with a set of his mids.Checked out a swap on sunday and capped it off with a get together over at Steve's.Got to see The Duke in person and it made me want to go get a triumph,super sweet.Thanks to Bobby,Vander,Fingers,and to Steve and Michelle for having us over.

Issue 5 Jam

The Lowside of the Timonium Show is coming up in a couple weeks down in Maryland. We don't get together too often so we figured why not make a thing of it. Two magazine release partys at one spot. The show should be worth the trip alone, and this is just kinda like the bonus money shot to the face.

Always a good time when we get together. This should be no exception. See you there.

THE DUKE

     There are a million stories in the naked city, This is the story of  The DUKE.  OK, I'm pretty sure we have all heard this one before, " Hey I have a friend with an old bike, I think he wants to sell it." If I followed up on every one of those quotes, I would never be home. But this one was different. He followed up by telling me " His name is The DUKE he lives in North Philly, He's the only white guy on the block"..... Interesting.......and judging by the small swazi tattoo on his hand, I thought it might be worth my while. So I grabbed his number and he told me we could probably check it out in a week or so.
      A couple weeks go by, a ton of phone calls with no answer. Then finally I get the green light for my meeting with The DUKE.  Me and his friend roll up to the house, we stood out like white socks on a black carpet, if you know what I mean. I looked at the house, Handle bars welded to the front gate, I knew I was in the right place. We get up to the door, give the special knock, and we were in!
    As we entered the house I was greeted with a prosthetic leg leaning up against the door, as I looked around the living room I saw kind of what I expected clutter, pizza boxes , news papers, clothing, well you get the picture. Upon further inspection I spyed out a set of cocktail mufflers near the steps, peanut tank on his mantle and what appears to be the silhouette of a motorcycle under a sheet in this guys living room. At this point I really think I'm on to something good. My hands were sweating heart racing thousands of thoughts running through my mind. then finally we headed out into the kitchen and sitting at his kitchen table playing solitaire was the one and only Duke.
  A brief but erie silence was in the room,the two of us staring at each other like some wild west gunfighter's at high noon. Then suddenly he spoke "You like Triumphs?" his voice sounded like his vocal chords were rotted out from years of smoking and substance abuse. I replied with a simple "Yes" after that The Duke unloaded on me about his chopper, His eyes lit up, talking with his hands, He went on for about what felt like an eterenty about all his wild times. Partying with the Rolling Stones, hanging out with Andy Warhol, all the way to selling weed to Ramona africa, hours before the standoff at the Move compound. Finally he ended with " Go get me my leg!" as he pointed out to the living room. After attaching his fake right leg we were off to the dining room to unveil The Dukes 68' Triumph Chopper! Well, what was left of it.
    The sheet came off, crusty rigid frame, dual carbs, flanders risers , Z bars all the chopper goodies! He never registered it since 69' The Duke didn't believe in that sort of thing. He started talking again but I could not here him, I was too distracted by the chopper that sat in front of me. I snapped out of it when I heard him say "And that's how I lost my leg". I'm sorry but I had to ask him to repeat the story , I knew it had to be good.
    Well it turns out The Duke needed some cash to buy a large amount of weed, and the only way to get it was to rob a nearby liquor store. The robbery went haywire when the owner of the store whipped out a shotgun and The Duke was on the business end of the barrel. No money, He bolted out the door! One shot was fired catching Duke in the leg. The Triumph was around the block. The Duke gave her one kick with shot leg ,got her running, and blasted off into the night.
   The Duke got home, In fear of the cops, him and his buddy lugged the Triumph into the living room and started to rip the bike apart. Badly wounded , The Duke layed low and tried to mend himself up. After infection set in and a trip to the E R , The Dukes Kicker leg was no more. As luck would have it, He told the Doctors he had accedently shot him self at some biker party. and never got any heat from the police. I could probably go on for hours about The Duke, but I will end it here. We struck a deal on the Triumph, collected all the parts and headed out of dodge.

  After some slight cleaning and reassembly, I bring to you The Dukes Last Ride!