Hey, what can we say! We’re at Leesburg Bikefest all weekend, everyone is stoked about seeing these new shocks and asking us how to order, so we’re tellin’ ya now…just go online. These shocks are preloaded for 300 or 350 lbs each, come in powdercoated or precious metals, works wonders. As i’d told all the excited people over the weekend, i’ve riden countless years on rigids and these save my *** and back from unnecessary injury and pain. Hey, when your my age everything hurts after awhile! Anyway, check these out. You’ll see them not only on Guilty bikes, but they are making their way onto well known builders bikes across the country! Just click HERE to go to our store to see the various options and pricing.

In a recent front page article in the Orlando Sentinel it was reported that 70% of the time there was an accident with a motorcycle, the riders were at fault (this is Central Florida area statistics). Now weigh this against what we’re hearing from special interest groups and advocates, lawyers, etc and we’ve got an interesting divergence in data. In Orange County (Orlando area for those not familiar with us), most who died were on sport bikes, uninsured, younger than 45 and the only vehicle involved! In Volusia County, according to FHP figures, most who died were on cruisers, uninsured, older than 45 and collided with another vehicle! More than half (8 of 15) of those that died in Volusia County during 2006 died in March during Bike Week. Of those 8, 1 was 23 and the rest, were 44 to 65. Age, it seem plays a role in both skills, judgement etc. As a person quite a bit older than 23…i’d have to make the assumption that those dying that were over 45, were underskilled, drunk or impaired and slow on reaction to pending danger. What do you think? Click HERE to read the article and make your own judgement.

We’ve packed it up and come home. The 2007 Bikefest at Leesburg is now just a memory. Not just a memory, but an experience filled with laughter, great discussions, suprises, alot of education and great people that represent the best in this industry. This “guilty guys’” observation while attending this event (and some others): there are two schools of people that are involved in the motorcycle or custom industry that come to these events. Those that are in it only for themselves and what they can get from it; and those that are in the motorcycle industry for what they can give to it. The laters spirit of contribution comes in a variety of forms, be it artistry with paint, leather, glass or metal, air flow, electrical etc, etc. These are people from all walks of life trying to make this industry better. And not just the industry do they give to, but to the communities they involve themselves with. Leesburg, i’m sure can attest to the builders, riders, promoters, musicians that came to this city and left an indelable mark that contributed to not only the economy but the the very fabric of the community. My hats off to those that left the city better off than when they arrived. I just wish there were more like those i met and had meals and drinks with that i could say are “Friends”. Oh, and Leesburg Police officers…..great job. Your the unsung hero’s….
With the attendance this year, i’m wondering why more builders, riders, vendors, sponsors etc don’t start dropping their involvement with other events herein unnamed to protect the guilty, and come to this quaint community and see what events should be like……i know i’m not spending my time and monies next year to sit in traffic for hours, be insulted with inflated prices for gas, food and hotels and then pay for the opportunity to see “ego” builders tell me how great they are and why their way is the only way. Hopefully the Leesburg Planning committee will keep this event just a 3 day venue and one that caters to bikers, families. Take a hike Daytona; I’ll come there on my own terms while enjoying my time in Leesburg.

Well, things have gotten out of hand now. We’ve gone ahead and gotten the biking community involved with computers. Not just any computer, but those that are desktop and able to be used as work devices. Here is a company, Think Tank Computers, that can take your to a whole new level of combining work with leisure. And i thought i had the best job!

I think we can all say that some suprises mean more than others when they happen in our life. Finding out your going to have a child; finding that extra $20 bucks in your jeans or getting that winning loto ticket at Ciccle K. Such is the case for Guilty, during this year participation in the Leesburg Bikefest weekend and Rat’s Hole show. With the level of participants present this year for the competition, (there were over 150 entrants) Guilty was quick to realize that we were with the big boys. So, you can imagine our suprise when we were named this years 2nd place winner of the Bobber Class at the Rats Hold Custom Bike Show! I knew we’d done a great job on the design and build (Mike Drum you rock!!) and we captured what was the essence of the 60-70 hot rod era. But when Mike Drum and I set down to map out this build, we’d not thought about ending up on the Rat’s Hole stage with a winner! I have to commend Mike on taking my ideas/design portion and building upon it with hidden wiring concepts, clean parts fabrication and forcing me to finally admit (more than a few times) that “some things just won’t work!”. This bike has struck some memory cords of people that harkens back to a more mechanically simple, functional, rider friendly time that embodies what use to pound the pavement during the 60-70’s era. We believe you’ll enjoy it as well. Photo’s coming! We promise.

It’s called “IMAGEFUSION” where you can transfer ANY IMAGE ON ANY SHAPE of metal or alluminum. While trolling around at this weekends Leesburg Bikefest, i ran into the folks at Paradise Powder Coating out of Sarasota Florida. What an increadible product and wow, has the technology jumped a few decades. Here is the information i was able to pickup from them. Paradise Powder Coating is an exclusive licensee of the new image transfer technology patented by Kolorfusion International. This is not a decal or screen print on the surface. Images are vapor transferred right into the powder coating and become a part of the coating. Images can be transferred to any shaped object giving a brand new way to custom decorate anything made of metal (and some plastics). The images are stored in a digital file and if you ever need a replacement the exact image can be re-created just on the part needed.
It’s also a great way to do many parts with the same image. Once the original artwork is created it can be applied as often as needed without further hand work. Any high resolution image can be used for the process. Photographs, paintings and original art can be source material with respect given to copyrights. In some cases permissions for copyrighted materials can be obtained. Just think of all the possibilities we have at our finger tips? And what does this do to traditional painting?! Take your honey and put her on your bike…or replicate a design you developed while in a creative moment. What about your favorite album cover? The list is endless. After thorougly examining numerous samples and seeing how these images penetrate through the entire depth of the coating, we’re looking to have parts of our next build using this technology. For more information contact Paradise, you won’t be dissapointed.

I will attempt to update this during the course of this 3 day event so bear with me. Today, Friday, we had to get our Guilty butts up and out of Orlando in order to get to Leesburg by 6:00AM!! Not an easy task mind you! All for the expressed purpose of showing our ugly mug on local network affiliates Fox 35 and Channel 13. We had some great times being interviewed by the reporters (the only one’s name i remember is Christine Van Blokland…sorry). To be honest, we all needed coffee and food!!!!
Following this early morning forey, we were moved to the Rats Hole pavillion, to load our bikes for the show, which i have to admit, was a bit of a let down. While the intent is good that entrance fee’s benefit the local arts group, traffic is sparce to say the least, and i feel Guilty (as well as the others participating) aren’t getting in front of it’s prime market, which is the every day rider and builder. This isn’t the fault of the Rats’ Hold promotion team as much as it is the location of the art museum and it’s lack of promotional experience. With us presenting our Chopper Shox, Street Platform frame and Indian Leaf Spring we’re missing alot of opportunities to get in front of our prime market…but i’m just belly aching because it’s late at night and i’m tired.. In talking with the guys from Rats Hole, i got a good inside track that next year’s show will be alot better positioned as well as focused on getting us foot traffic!
One of the great things i appreciate about these shows is the fellow builders that are present. Their level of artistry and committment to craftsmanship. One great guy is Jeri’s Springer Front Ends. If you’ve not seen or are familiar with him, check his products out as his front ends are on some current event winners and recent published bikes (Check out Hot Bikes recent issue). Also, A-1 Cycles…Mike is a great guy from Wellington FL. You probably know him from is cover on HotBike and recent coverage of his twin engine monster “All In”….you’ve got to check out this bike…..!
Leesburg, FL. I have to admit, it’s a heck of alot better than Daytona! Granted, they expect 250k people or so coming through here over the weekend, but it still feels like a small community. Traffic moves smoothly, police are present, natives are hospitable and there is plenty of riding opportunities, vendors, and people watching. IF you haven’t made it a place to visit this weekend, you should…the Leesburg BikeFest….it’s well worth the trip. Ok, enough. We’ll update as we can. Ride safe!

Well, things are picking up now since we’re rolled out Errant, our newest “child” here at Guilty Customs. From the response, we’ve tapped into something deep inside alot of people too. Not sure if it nostalsia, or just plain hot rod mania, but we’re getting alot of “head nods” and “two thumbs up” from people. This past Sunday, we loaded her up and trucked down to Old Towne where we spent a few hours with Zing the photographer sent out from a national magazine to shoot some pic’s. Zing, who is one awesome photographer (along with a few hundred people walking through the town) couldn’t believe their eyes and expressed appreciation for what Mike (our builder) did with this bike. Granted the photo here is from Warden, so it’s not at the quality of Zing, but we’ll be posting his shortly. We’d love to hear back from people on their take on Errant here on our Blog.

As most of you know, we at Guilty are into old school bikes (we call them Retro-Mod’s) with a twist…using modern styling cues such as some billet, internal throttles, automotive parts and modern v-twin engines (whether they be production or reproductions), as well as paint that sets the tone. We were notified by some friends across the pond that the new AMD Championship results were in and wow, were we glad to see some cool rides that were away from the traditional chopper style. Take a look at these rides. Now the one we have posted here, from “Art of Racer” placed 2nd we’re still scratching our heads on how this puppy would ride!

I don’t know about you, but we read ALOT of motorcycle magazines here at Guilty. Even others such as Money, Popular Mechanics and we have to admit, even Men’s Health. But recently, I ran across a website called Zinio.com, and it suprised me that you can get almost any printed magazine right on your computer….and in most cases the actual day it’s printed. The one disappointing thing i found so far, was that the hardcore mag’s such as Cycle Source, Chopper Builder, The Horse, Iron Horse, etc, etc, were not represented, yet. Maybe ZINIO hasn’t gotten around to contacting these fine magazines or the mag’s have opted to stay away. Or no one has suggested these mag’s to Zinio. We have to admit, this seems pretty convenient as you can subscribe to a huge number of magazines that you normally read, track down back issues and articles (mine always get torn up, lost or somehow Buddy the shopdog takes a liking to them), plus save some much needed cash with their discounts. Think about it you… won’t have to wait for the stores to put them on the stands….plus, they never get lost in the mail and are always in perfect condition, no ripped covers or wet magazines on a rainy day.

To be honestly, we are sometimes confused by all the various phrases thrown around as it relates to Horse Power….so while we were bouncing around the internet we found this information which helped clear things up a bit. Someone says, “yeah, its fast, it’s got 160 brake horse power”–or how about “it’s got 140 horsepower on the back wheel”. Or how about “I’ve got 23kw” of power in this rocket”.
Funny, “brake” horsepower has nothing to do with braking (a blonde joke in here somewhere?). Often those speaking the mighty hp talk are not clear themselves. Is it the engine measurement or the actual output to the wheel considering how the gearbox, final drive and all those assisting parts cause loss of power through the whole process. The actual horsepower delivered to the driving wheel is less in measure than the raw output of the engine and so forth. Horsepower invented/discovered by James Watt, the same person whose been immortalized by the definition of Watt as a unit of power-i.e. light bulb. The Scottish engineer created this metric measure originally aiming to prove and substantiate the power of the steam engine he invented. Therefore, we ended up with a few types of measurements for hp.
bhp:Brake horsepower: net, bottom line crankshaft horsepower — the power delivered directly to and measured at the engine’s crankshaft, its minus (net) frictional losses in the transmission — gears, bearings, oil drag, wind, and so forth.

ehp or thp:Effective horsepower is the power converted to useful work. In the case of a motorcycle, it’s the power that’s been turned into forward motion on a chassis dynamometer. In its cleanest form, it’s also called “True HP” – wheel power

nhp:nominal horsepower from the size of the engine and the piston speed and is only accurate at a pressure of 7 psi

ihp:Indicated horsepower or gross horsepower (academic capability of the engine) minus frictional losses within the engine (bearings drag, rod and crankshaft windage losses, oil film drag, etc

SAE:an American standard rating measured using a blueprinted test engine running on a stand without accessories, mufflers, or emissions control devices.

As a motorcyclist we are most interested in the first two above—bhp and ehp “effective horsepower” which is in simple terms specified as wheel horsepower. In order to measure horsepower you need to hook your motorcycle engine up to a dynamometer that places a load on the engine and measures the amount of power that the engine can produce against the load. A service easily found at the track or at dealerships.
In addition, just so you know thp is generally about 10% to 20% lower than the engine’s power “bhp” ratings because of the loss experienced through the drive train, and especially the tyres. So now you know and won’t feel out of the loop when amidst one of these most common of topics for boosting and bragging in motorcycle chitchat.

Horsepower and lots of it is one of those status things amidst motorcyclists. The more you got, the better rider you’re suppose to be—apparently. A total myth. Many riders have enough, and usually it’s far more than the skills ability. There are many motorcycle riders, and competitors with under a 100 thp who’ll lap a 140thp rider any time, any place. Its ok to have it, its another being able to use it—kinda like owning a pair of high priced cowboy boots, but not being able to fit into them.
Some additional dense stuff:
Bhp defined: Horsepower is a measure of work (energy) done over time and yes it was calculated using the work of a horse. 1hp/one horsepower is 33,000 lb.-ft/minute.
Use this popular analogy– if you lifted 33,000 pounds, one foot over a period of one minute, you would be working at the rate of one horsepower—and have spent one horsepower-minute of energy. 1 (mechanical) horsepower unit is equivalent to 746 watts
So if you took this 1-horsepower horse and put it on a treadmill, it could operate a generator producing a continuous 746 watts.
One mechanical horsepower equals 745.699 watts or .746 kW (kilowatts) of electrical horsepower–and if you really want to talk hp you could refer to the 0.0268 horsepower light bulb in your lamp as opposed to the using the mundane 20-watt measurement.

While this event had it’s founding across our northern border with our friends in Canada, it’s starting to gain popularity here in the states. So for the women that read this BLOG, here’s something to get behind, besides you ol’ man. As the fastest growing market in the motorcycle industry, more and more women of all backgrounds and ages are getting pleasure from the pure enjoyment of riding a two wheeled vehicle. Providing a community where female riders can advance their rider skills and know-how – MOTORESS, run by former European female motorcycle racer Vicki Gray, has initiated a day where women are asked to hop on their motorbikes or scooters and ride to work, to school, to meet a friend or to wherever they desire. NATIONAL FEMALE RIDE DAY, now slotted each year for the first Friday in May, appeals to females who ride, own or have access to a motorcycle. Friday, May 4 asks women to get on their bikes and “JUST RIDE. “No matter what style of motorcycle — sport, cruiser, scooter, dual purpose, street, off-road or dirt — NATIONAL FEMALE RIDE DAY aims to highlight the many numbers of females currently active in motorcycling and heighten awareness of female riders, inspiring those who have not yet taken it up.

Not surprisingly to Vicki Gray, it’s founder, NATIONAL FEMALE RIDE DAY has found support among riders, dealers and manufacturers in Canada, but she was very pleased to see so much support coming from across the border. For 2007, the event remains a national event, but as intended, 2008 will include an even broader community. “The aim of the campaign is to raise female rider awareness, promote those who already ride, while simultaneously encouraging other females to take up the activity,” Gray said. “The ‘day’ places a spotlight on female riders.

In prior postings, we’ve tried to bring unique products to your attention as there seems to be a proliferation of them targed to us riders. Products such as V-Twin Wine for the more discriminating riders; Chairs that are made to be like riding a chopper, faucet’s for the bathroom, and now, the much awaited and demanded Burial Urn. That’s right, you knew something was missing from your collection of riding equipment….you’d forgotten Uncle Fester. You remember how much he’d enjoyed the numerous rides during his life and now he can enjoy them, even if he’s dead. And, oh yes, don’t forget the departed family dog, cat, farret, parrot the next time you ride. Marketed by a company out of NYC these cans go for over 350.00 each! And you have your choice of powder coated or chromed. With custom etching available. I don’t know, maybe we as a society and specifically us as motorcycle enthusiast are just too easy a target.
Hey, i’ve got an old coke bottle in the pantry that we can bead blast, paint orange and put Aunt Betty in for the next few years….and i’ll make ya a deal…for only $35.00 you can have it….(you can have an unfinished one for $55.00), but hey, what a great deal, huh?!

For those of you that come to our BLOG site regularly, remember that you can also receive RSS feeds directly to your news aggregator. See the icon’s on the right side of the BLOG page for the service you want to use. For those that don’t want that type service (or don’t know how to use), don’t worry, you can still sign up to receive updates by signing up for our newsletter (that is compiled from our BLOG), by simply giving us your email address. The sign up box is on the left side of the Guilty homepage. And don’t worry, we don’t sell or share these email addresses with anyone. So what’s keeping you from getting the most updated industry and Guilty news now? Enjoy

Michael Lichter announced his 7th annual motorcycle-themed exhibit, “One World Choppers,” to be held in Sturgis at Thunder Road during Bike Week.

“One World Choppers” was inspired by “The British Invasion” of music from 1964-1966. After R&B and early Rock & Roll made it overseas, “Beat” groups like the Beatles, Rolling Stones and the Yardbirds brought a changed Rock & Roll back to the United States; and the rest is history. In a similar way, Harley-Davidson motorcycles were exported all over the world, adapted to local means and local culture, and something new was born.

“One World Choppers” is limited to 24 foreign-born builder-artists, including some that live and work in the USA and others that will ship their bikes and art from overseas. The show will demonstrate how builders from abroad have influenced and contributed to the contemporary custom motorcycle scene in America. Foreign-born two-dimensional artists, whose work, while less known in America, is of great importance in their own countries, will provide art for the accompanying wall displays. Confirmed participants as of this release include:
Alan Lee (Gangsta Choppers, Los Angeles, CA, representing Belgium)
Chica (Chica Custom Cycles, Huntington Beach, CA, representing Japan)
Frank Pedersen (Motorcycle Works, Olathe, KS, representing Norway)
Fred Kodlin (Fred Kodlin Motorcycles, Hessen, Germany, representing Germany)
Hideya Togashi (Hide Motorcycles, Kawasaki, Japan representing Japan - bike courtesy Giovanni Valla, Milan Italy)
Hiromichi Ishihara(Satsuma Cycle Works,Yao,Osaka, Japan, representing Japan)
John Reed (Custom Chrome, Morgan Hill, CA, representing England)
Keino Sasaki (Indian Larry Legacy, Brooklyn, NY. representing Japan)
Kevin Alsop (Big Bear Choppers, Big Bear Lake, CA, representing Australia)
Manon Elder (Paintings from British Columbia, Canada)
Masa (Four Speed Garage, Tokyo, Japan, representing Japan)
Michael Knepper (Paintings from Hamburg, Germany)
Mike Tomas (Kiwi Indian Motorcycles, Riverside,CA, representing New Zealand)
Motor Marc Lacourciere (Paintings from Ontario, Canada)
Peder Johansson (Hogtech, Eskilstuna, Sweden, representing Sweden)
Piet Hofmann (Violator Motorcycles, Alblasserdam, Netherlands, representing the Netherlands)
Rikki Battastini (Battastini’s Custsoms, San Ramon, CA, representing England)
Roger Goldammer (Goldammer Cycleworks, Kelowna, representing Canada)
Russell Mitchell (Exile Cycles, North Hollywood, CA, representing England)
Thomas Habermann (Habermann Performance, Erbach-Ringingen, representing Germany)
Tom Jansson (Swede Built, Stamford, CT, representing Sweden)
Walt Siegl (Walt Seigl Customs, New York, NY, representing Austria)

The exhibition will be held inside the Thunderdome at Thunder Road, three miles east of downtown Sturgis. “One World Choppers” will open to the public Friday morning, August 3rd and will remain open through Friday, August 10th.