60s rigid sportster chopper series#Indian Scouts and Chiefs of the time came with extravagantly large, heavily valanced fenders, nearly reaching the center of the wheel on the luxurious 1941 Indian Series 441 while racing bikes had tiny fenders or none at all. The heavily valanced fenders of the 1940 Indian 440 four.Īn early example of a bobber is the 1940 Indian Sport Scout "Bob-Job" which toured in the 1998 The Art of the Motorcycle exhibition. Two famous examples of the chopper are customised Harley-Davidsons, the " Captain America" and "Billy Bike", seen in the 1969 film Easy Rider. The " sissy bar", a set of tubes that connect the rear fender with the frame, and which are often extended several feet high, is a signature feature on many choppers. Some of the characteristic features of choppers are long front ends with extended forks often coupled with an increased rake angle, hardtail frames (frames without rear suspension), very tall "ape hanger" or very short "drag" handlebars, lengthened or stretched frames, and larger than stock front wheels. They can be built from an original motorcycle which is modified ("chopped") or built from scratch. A chopper employs radically modified steering angles and lengthened forks for a stretched-out appearance. It does not store any personal data.Peter Fonda rides a replica of the " Captain America" bike used in Easy RiderĪ chopper is a type of custom motorcycle which emerged in the US state of California in the late 1950s. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. The starting point for the bike may have been cheap, but the end result looks anything but that. Once the color finished curing, “Memphis Magnum” was crowned complete with a custom king/queen saddle from Jordan Levi Dickinson. The prism tank, flat rear fender, exhaust pipes, and air cleaner are Hank’s work, as are the modifications made to the Paughco chassis and 9-inch-over Paughco springer forks.Īfter the mocked-up machine got the go-ahead for paint, Bobby Bordeaux laid down a sweet combo plate of pearl and cool candy colors. Although Freddie labored hard on the motor work, Hank Young brought his welding skills to bear on the bike in his Young Choppers shop in Marietta, Georgia. The finished hot rod wasn’t a solo effort, however. That’s exactly what Georgia resident Freddie Arnold did with this period piece of a rigid machine he calls the “Memphis Magnum.” It’s a 1947 Flathead lower end topped with the uppers from a 1969 Ironhead Sportster. You modified your Harley-Davidson 45-inch Flathead to fit a Sportster top end to add more horsepower to wake up the engine while still being able to fit it into the tight confines of a rigid chassis. That’s why the Magnum 45 became the hot ticket for solving the problem. The downside of these motors was that you got what you paid for in performance. Well after World War II, Army surplus flatties were as cheap as the laughs in a ’50s sitcom, a bad ’50s sitcom. Stock Harley-Davidson Flatheads aren’t exactly legends of horsepower.
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