6/1/2023 0 Comments Sportster chopper motorcyclesIndian Scouts and Chiefs of the time came with large, heavily valanced fenders, nearly reaching the center of the wheel on the 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. With the intent of making the bike lighter and faster, the fenders would often be removed, or at least to make it look better in the eyes of a rider seeking a more minimalist ride. History The Bob-Job Era, 1946–1959 īefore there were choppers, there was the bobber, a motorcycle that had been "bobbed", or relieved of excess weight by removing parts. 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. To be considered a chopper a motorcycle frame must be cut and welded at some point. 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 wheel. They can be built from an original motorcycle which is modified ("chopped") or built from scratch. A chopper employs modified steering angles and lengthened forks for a stretched-out appearance. What’s worth noting is that the chopper is going with no reserve.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. Mecum does not provide any technical details on the two-wheeler, and it’s not venturing into making a guess as to how much it is expected to fetch. It also looks extremely fresh, thanks to the warm blue custom fuel tank (hinting to an Indian Larry build) and rear fender that complement the cold of the exposed engine, exhaust, and wheels. It’s raked build makes it look aggressive, though not as long as other bikes of the segment. The one we have here pays tribute to the custom choppers of the 1970s. Like all other Harleys, it was quickly adopted by custom shops and turned into different things entirely. Harley started making Sportsters in 1957 and launched them into the wild sporting four-stroke, V-twin engines, at first from the Ironhead family, and later on using the famed Evolution. It comprises 36 motorcycles owned by the museum’s Rick Salisbury, and the 1971 Harley-Davidson Sportster chopper seen here is one of them. One prominent such display of bikes is by the Legends Motorcycles Museum in Springville, Utah. In all, 1,750 bikes are listed for sale, either on their own or as part of collections. Before this happens, though, the year opens with the Mecum Las Vegas Motorcycle auction at the end of January.Īs usual, the auction house is flooding the market with old, vintage, rare, or custom builds. That means we’ll probably be getting all those juicy gatherings like Mama Tried, Congregation, or Born-Free again. The coming year is shaping up to mark a relative return to normalcy.
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