I'm Back

Back from Chicago, the QP and i had fun, got sick, ate a ton, sweated a bunch.
I'll be getting back to emails and orders over the next couple of days.

So True.

From the LA Craigslist:
Most of the shoddy built "cafe" motorcycles seen on Craigslist these days are complete jokes. These hacksaw assassins buy a well worn STOCK Honda CB500 or 550 for $1200 to $1500, about current market value. Then to make it a "cafe" they remove the front and rear fenders, the speedo and tach, the chainguard, airbox, seat and footpegs, then drill worthless holes in everything else to make it look "racer". Next is to make home made crappy looking rear sets that just look stupid, repaint the tank and bodywork flat black, or flat green, or some other lame color, and if you are real lucky it gets a cheap checkerboard sticker across the tank. The "cafe" seats look OK but the ones I've seen dont match the factory seat lock so just flop around. The low bars are OK too, no complaints there, but for the price they are asking correct clip-on's should be installed. Without the stock airbox sometimes you can get air pods, or just nothing at all, and that's just dumb. And what else will $4100 buy you besides all the stock parts removed? Will it get you new frame paint? No. Will it get you new chrome hardware? No, it still has rusty 30 year old nuts and bolts holding on the shocks, forks, wheels, and so on. Will you get new tires? No, usually not, at best a cheap pair of CS or IRC's. So really what are you paying an extra $2600 for? If you buy a $1200 motorcycle and remove $300 worth of good stock parts, replace those stock parts with $100 worth of "cafe" parts, $10 for a couple cans of rattle can flat color paint.... then you shoild have around a $1000 moto at best! If all you idiot kids, yes I said kids, want to spend your hard earned burger flipping money on a cafe, for gods sake look closely at what you are buying. TOO many motorcycle "builders" are crooks only out to rip you off. Oh yes, another thing, just because these flakes decide to name their moto, like the Destroyer or Wicked Bitch or whatever else they can think of, that will not add one cent to it's value. It's a marketing ploy to rip you off, that's all. At the end of the day you can do whatever you want with your money, it's your money, I'm just trying to help you from looking stupid. I mean you do plan on riding this thing, right? Other people will see you and say "Wow, there's that crappy overpriced death trap that was on Craigslist last week for $4100, that guy is an idiot". And no, I'm NOT a custom bike builder trying to smear other builders. If anything I'm trying to keep these old stock motos from getting cut up by morons.

ch-ch-changes

here is a sneakpeek. this bike now has something that I have always talked about, thanks to grant. and something else, that just kind of happend that way today, thanks Gabe.

RIP SKY SUNLIGHT SAXON

Sky Saxon passed away yesterday. The first real Rocknroller I ever met. Kind of like meeting Keith Richards would be, i guess. To quote lil Ennis, " A living Legend and an out of work bum look a lot alike daddy." This was about 6-7 years ago. I always dug on garage rock and cycle-delic music, but now it was real. Davie Allan had just played my chopper show and Sky Saxon was crashing out at my friend John Miners(John did the Red Planet cover art-and screenprinted the album covers!) pad in south pas. The Seeds would play Johns backyard BBQ's! and I was rolling around a '64 tbird. what a summer!

Our condolences to all Sky's Friends and Family, especially to Rik Collins.

so-cal speedshop open house

this little t-bucket caught my eye. I've always liked mettallic blue-nice to see a simple painted hot-rod. how many t's are out there, glass or not that could take to this treatment ????????????????????????????????????

I saw this pan out at the street chopper party last month, dont know whose it is but its bitchin

Inside you could see a little bit of jimmy Shines handi-work. dig this roadster windscreen frame

The Reverend himself had his latest out for all the world to see. dummy spots could have used some candy teardrops and lakes pipes would have been sweet, but the candy coated lancer caps hit the '58 spot!

and yucked into the corner was a little employee project. this sportster is going to be one sweet chopper!

Francoise Hardy

is amazing. One of my favorite subject matters for art, since choppers arent the only things out there, or are they?????

snug harbor

So Grant and I have seen this place that opens at 6am on our way to the LBC swapmeet all the time and threaten each other with stopping in for a BM. We never do, but one night just rode out there for kicks. sweet place.

R&R

Taking some long overdue time off until the end of the month. No shirts will be shipped that haven't already been paid for. have a bitchin summer.

peelin

Worms and I jammed to the deal in LA to meet up with Poon. Split after an hour, crazy crowd. Split to Anahiem to see Gabe and the HEathens, hit taco boy, and headed home.





The flying V.

Boom!

It's that time of year

This Thursday

We'll be riding up to this and DJing as well...

The Littles

Don't mess with them or get in their way! When they unite, they generate an AMAZING power.

Where the magic happens

Well, after we print your shirts we keep them in the garage amongst all the bike crap we have. This is the last thing your shirt see's before it gets packed and sent to you. Oh, we only have a couple of orders left standing, so if you've been waiting, i shipped a butt load of shirts this morning.

5 years ago this month

I had picked this 56 Clipper up about a year before with my late Grandfather George(a lifelong long-haul trucker and pillar of steel) up in Fresno. The plan was for a white pearl paintjob with deep blue candy apple over metalflake inside the trim and on the roof-rolling on raders of course. Only thing i ever did with it was driveway cruise and fill up the backseat with empty beer cans. Pulled the re-built motor to put in a hot rod-Nads style(that'll be the day) and I sold the car in June 2004 for the princely sum of $900.oo

bad

yes you've all seen the LIFE pics, but this is one of the baddest.

FIVE FEET

60-over

sunday ride

polish your bandanas and pass it on.