Well, lets try and sum up this years SmokeOut at the Franklin Drag Strip. Partly Sunny Skies. Cops. Cool Bikes. Super Builders and Vendors. Late Night Shenanigans. Sleeping Late. Turkey Legs. Cops. BYOB. Cool Bands. Great Drags. Cops. New Friends. Old Friends. Cops. Tickets. Anvil Toss. Wet T-Shirt Contest. Cops. Great Local Food. Nice locals. Super riding. Cops. Pretty much summed up this years Horse Smoke Out. Can’t say any more. Oh, did we say Cops!

At some point in a shop owners/builders life we’re faced with a hard question we have to answer: “Do we close the working/building part of the shop to the public or keep it open”. It’s a double edge sword. The reason? It’s”bro’s” that stop by to “chat” that are the same ones telling people about our shop BUT it’s these same “bro’s” that take us away from what we make our living from, which is building and repairing. Don’t get me wrong, we love the “bro” who stops by and wants a quick answer on getting something worked out. Answers are given out with a sense of pride in helping a fellow biker and is given freely. Note: Freely.

When a “brother/sister” decides to stop by a shop and spend a few hours “jawboning” with the “crew” they are taking money out of that shops pocket. Period. Cause “time equals money“. Add on top of that not purchasing something and the “brothers” are adding insult onto injury for that shop. Shops know it’s NOT malicious but it happens regularly and it’s killing them. Supporters are killing the shops they love. People don’t hang out at the local garage “talking shop” all day. So, why do it to your local bike shop, which you love?

So, what’s a guy/gal to do if they really want to support their local shop in a positive manner? Here’s some advice.

1) If you stop by your local shop frequently, buy something! Anything! It doesn’t have to be hugh. A $5 part, can of oil, clutch cable or t-shirt to help offset the time your shop owner/mechanic spent with you.

2) If you’re having a shop fix a bike, build a bike, order a part etc for you and they call and tell you it’s fixed, completed or arrived, get over there in a timely manner and pay for it! These small shops live and die on cash flow. For the most part, shops aren’t cash flow deep or bankrolled heavily (you don’t see them driving Lambo’s, Hummers etc., do ya?). So, pay your bill and take your part or bike home.

3) Quit nickel and dime’n them! If you can’t afford to pay for something when you have it made, then don’t do it. Having a part(s) made and not being timely in paying your bill promptly hurts a shop more than you know. Many shops are now being forced to have customers pay up front before they build a part simply because of this problem. It’s only fair that you pay them the agreed amount and the agreed time.

Bike builders put their life into their shop. They work 12-16 hour days trying to live their dream of having a successful shop which takes them away from their family and loved ones. The least bikers can do if they really want to support their local shop is to respect their time. Shops deserve at least that much!

Thought we’d update you on the newest build from Guilty Customs. Actually just 1 of the builds going on now. This “1/2 Pint” took shape in Guilty’s gray matter over a year ago but only got started about 90 days ago. She was supposed to have been shot for a national magazine a few weeks back, however due to some “issues”, it just didn’t work out. Anyway, Guilty is planning to formally unveiling this little dynamo at the Horse SmokeOut in NC this June. So here are some of the spec’s: The power plant comes from a donor 99′ Buell Thunderbolt, custom frame from Twisted Choppers, sheet metal work by Mike Drum, Pin Stripping by George Sedak and seat by Duane Ballard and Chopper Shox seat shocks, which makes this sweetheart a real head turner. And, yes it will stay in “raw metal” condition. If you’ve followed any of the other Guilty bikes you’ll automatically notice the trademark Mooneyes oil bag mounted up front, along with drag racing influences on this bike (note the clear fuel/oil lines and racing connectors). The bike WILL be up for sale, eventually.

As Guilty Customs has “matured” in this industry (as well as had our heads kicked in with the economy over the past year), we’ve found that while building bikes is rewarding, your money seems to run out way before the month does. And we’re not alone! Just look at the number of shops in your own hometown that have shut their doors. So what’s a small shop to do?
Well, you expand your product line and start offering them to others who 1) are builders 2) need to repair their rides or 3) people just looking for some cool stuff. As you can tell we believe in American manufacturers! We still produce products that compete in the world market. Products that are both affordable and meet the rigorous demands of the consumer. This is what has made America the leader for decades. Some people may have lost faith that America can’t produce quality products priced competitively, well, here is Guilty’s notice to those folk!
These Roadhard fenders are made using 14 gauge metal and measure 36” from point to point and are available in 8.75”, 11” and 13” rear fender width and 4.67” for fronts. Rear fenders are trimmed with 4” of skirting for customization and front fenders at 5” of skirting. Guilty is also offering two gas tank kits: the traditional “Chopper Gas Tank” (8” Tall, 12” wide and 22” long and the “Tear Drop Chopper Gas Tank”. Each made using .070 gauge metal with a 2” tunnel and holding 4.5 gallons.
All rear fenders (regardless of size) are priced at $150.00 and front fenders are $130.00 plus shipping. Gas tanks are priced at $140.00 for the Chopper Gas Tank and $209.00 for the Tear Drop Tank. All fenders and gas tanks come with a 100% money back guarantee. A $20.00 discount per fender for quantities over 4 will be offered through June.

Special Ops soldier Ash Spurlin’s “Errant” inspired chopper is now up on two wheels. Waiting to be mounted is a 4″ stretched sporty tank; one of Guilty’s Wide Glide Girder front-ends with a S&S Indian 93″ motor along with a 2″ open BDL primary to name a few things. This bike will be rockin’ the roads with Ash and his buddies by mid summer. Ash is currently leaving Hong Kong where he’s been stationed waiting to head to California to see family and friends. Later this summer he’ll be heading to the eastern seaboard to catch up with us here at Guilty so he can take delivery of his newest toy. Click HERE for Ash’s story.

Well, this Honda bobber build has been an interesting journey. From having to find different metric parts, or hand making others to having someone make the frame we’ve finally gotten this bike past just a pile of parts on the floor! Now it’s up to a cool looking roller and we’re trying to get the last parts welded and done before sending it to powder-coat and back for final assembly. Damon should have a nice little kick butt bike when we’re through with this. The paint scheme so far is a black matte finish throughout the bike and will include scallops to keep the ol’ school feel. Gotta love that!

Guilty Customs announces the release of their first “Guilty Wide Glide” girder front end. Working with Paul Durfee this girder front-end uses 4130 seamless, aircraft allow tubing and is TIG welded and heat treated. The wide glide girder embodies the spirit of the industries original girders, but using modern day technology for one of the industries highest quality and most reliable wide glide front-ends. If your not familiar with TIG welding (also known as Heli-Arc) this process is the best and strongest way of building a front end. So, if you’re looking for something alot different than the same old front ends everyone else is using, check out the “Guilty Wide Glide“. There is free shipping and expect 4-6 weeks for delivery. Call for pricing. Lengths range from 2″ under to 11″ over at present. The Guilty Wide Glide will come raw but is available in chrome (at additional cost), so contact Guilty Customs for details. The very first “Guilty Wide Glide” girder is being put on Guilty’s build for Ash Spurlin, (the Special Ops soldier) returning from Afghanistan this summer. Check out his story HERE.

As a participant in the inaugural “Limpnickie Lot” happenin’ at this years Daytona Bike Week, the “Guilty Gang” got to set up shop with some of the industries best and brightest. No ego’s, or stupid “posturing”, just guys looking to show their builds, have fun, make new or see old friends and enjoy the company of other builders. It was those of us that wanted to bring these events back to their roots….the people! So, we couldn’t think of ANY place else we’d want to be during Sturgis than with these same builders at the Limpnicki Lot at The Broken Spoke.

The Broken Spoke Saloon will bring the Limpnicki Lot to the X & Y generation by welcoming to the Broken Spoke Campground, those builders who enjoy building old school bikes, riding dirt bikes, skate boarding, flat track racing etc and all while listening to high energy music featuring alternative rock ‘n roll, punk bands, etc. “The “Limpnickie Lot” is all about generation X & Y, the two next generations of motorcyclists doing what they love to do. It’s more than just a place to hang out, it’s a place to get involved and have fun doing stuff” said Jay Allen, owner of the Broken Spoke.

“The Limpnickie Lot” will feature builders working on bikes and cool projects that are changing the industry as a whole. “There are no appearance fees here, just us, our bikes, our crew, our skateboards, our dirt bikes- just us” explains Limpnickie founder and owner of Nash Motorcycle Company Taber Nash. The “Limpnickie Lot” is located inside the Broken Spoke Campground and is taking reservations now for RV spaces, cabins and good old-fashioned camping grounds. The campground and the Biker Pool will operate from August 1 -10, 2008. Special early reservations apply, only $99 per person until June 15th. You can book now by going to RESERVATIONS or call (866) 754-2526.

It’s good news from Billy Lane at Choppers Inc. The company recently launched “The Chopper Diaries”, an Internet based broadcast that will feature a variety of free content such as videos, never before seen photos, staff bios, a message board, as well as a blog hosted by Billy. Motorcycle enthusiast (and yes other builders) will find this informative and even educational. Among the video archives you can find instructional videos, interviews and guest appearances with some of the industry’s greatest builders, and even Billy’s latest projects. Good to hear this is taking off for Billy and the crew at Choppers Inc!

In this day and time, we seem to value things such as wealth, status and adrenaline as things that give us status in life. Back in another time (not too long ago either) things were different. Things such as a days work for a days pay, your word was your bond and staying with the passion of ones life meant more and held more status than we think or even know. Such was the case with Rollie Free. If you’ve been involved with motorcycling you’ve probably seen the 48 year old Free laid out on his Vincent attempting to set a new land speed record (which he did at 150 mph) across Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats on Sept. 13 1948.

The newest book from Jerry Hatfield (he already has 13 other published books on motorcycles and motorcyclist) gives an in-depth look at the life and times of Mr. Free, and helps us understand the man behind the legend. Great reading and even Jay Leno wrote the intro for the book and the video interview with Mr. Hatfield is informative.

Seem our friends at Kiwi Motorcycle had a visit from one of our favorite musical legends, Billy Joel. Mike won’t give up much info at this point about Billy’s visit just to say that it was an honor and that they had some very good discussions on the Indian replica’s that Kiwi is known for making. We’re sure to hear more about this when thing start rolling. Also Mike just finished up a beautiful rebuild on well known evening talk show David Letterman. Letterman apparently loves Indians, but wanted something that looked more “authentic” and “period” specific. He definitely got the right person involved and from the pic you can tell Mike hit it out of the park again! Mike sure knows how to hang with the big dogs and give them first quality products! Congrat’s Mike!

If you keep up with economics (or even the current gas prices) your more than aware that times are tight. And the custom motorcycle/parts business isn’t immune to the slow down in the economy. Just take a look at the amount of shops closing over the past 2 yrs. So, part of any smart business owners plans for survival should include some form of diversification of income streams. Which is where Colleen Swartz comes into the picture. You’ve probably recognized that name as the attractive freelance motorcycle photographer who regularly contributes to magazines such as Cycle Source, The Horse, American Iron and many others. Due to her connections in the industry as well as insight into the needs of builders, Colleen has started a new business called “Master Link International” for the purposes of exporting custom motorcycle parts overseas.

The idea behind the venture is pretty simple. Builders here in the states hate shipping oversea! Especially small shop. We just don’t have the manpower, resources, time, money etc! You have to deal with shipping, taxes, tariffs, governmental regulations, insurance, language barriers, etc etc….you get the idea. So after talking with an initial group of builders (Leroy Thompson, Fab Kevin’s, Guilty Customs, Kundratic Kustoms, Matt Daniels Union Cycle, Nash Motorcycles, Walter Siegl, led Sled Customs, Cook Customs and Rich Phillips) who all expressed frustration as well as wanting ways to widen our income opportunities, Colleen teamed up with Eiji Kumagai who worked as a Harley mechanic while in the states; was from Japan and recently having returned to Japan, is working in one of Japan’s largest and well known chopper shops, Satsuma Cycle Works. Satsuma will be our exclusive dealer of “Made in the USA” parts to Japan and will be sharing space with Master Link at shows to display the parts from participating builders. So, as of March 17th 2008, the first shipment of parts left the US headed for the Joints Chopper Show in Nagoya Japan on April 20th, 2008.

Colleens plans for Master Link are to firm up relationships with dealers in Europe, New Zealand and Australia along with any other opportunities that come her way. If you would like more information on how to become part of Master Link International, you can contact them at Colleen@digitalmagicbigshots.com. Or by phone at 414-380-9005.

If you’ve been involved with cars at any point in your life, part of the care and maintenance probably consisted of washing and waxing it yourself for that “hot” friday night date. Well, now you can use the same high quality product on your favorite two-wheeled love. Motorcycle detailing no longer requires mixing different brand products with uncertain results.

Utilizing proven technology that has been reformulated for the motorcycle market, Meguiar offers six new surface care products that cover the major steps in the motorcycle detailing process, including washing, waxing, mist-and-wipe detailer, leather care, even plastic, bodywork and metal polishing. Whether you ride a sportbike, chopper or a cruiser, these products provide exceptional performance backed up by Meguiar’s industry-leading surface care technology and performance guarantee. The Meguiar’s motorcycle product line is available now at most Wal-Mart stores.

The Riders Choice Awards are unique in that the nominees and winners are chosen by everyday riders around the world, not by professional journalists. The awards reflect the judgment of the motorcycle buying public, not motorcycle industry insiders. Anyone could vote, there was no restriction on age, gender or country. Even non-riders could vote. No registration, nor email addresses were required. However, a system of storing and analyzing IP addresses was put in place to minimize duplicate voting.
MBI Riders Choice - Star Awards

- Object of Lust — Ducati Desmosedici RR
- Best Concept Motorcycle or Scooter — Honda Evo 6
- Best Manufacturer’s Website — BMW Motorrad
- Best New in 2007 Scooter — Piaggio MP3 400
- Best New in 2007 Motorcycle — Triumph Street Triple 675
- Most Environmentally Friendly Motorcycle - ElectricMoto Corporation Blade XT
- Wish We’d Thought of That — KTM Bread Toaster
- Women Riders Booster of the Year — Lois Pryce (20,000 mile solo ride, Alaska to the tip of South America on a 225cc bike)
- Thumbs Up — Ewan McGregor/Charlie Boorman ( Enhanced image of motorcycle riders)

MBI Riders Choice - Fallen Star Awards

- Most Disappointing Motorcycle - Suzuki B-King
- Thumbs Down — Loud Pipes Save Lives
- What Were They Thinking — Babecage
- Worst Manufacturer’s Website — Cycleport/Motoport

More information about MBI, its members and the complete list of nominees will be found at the MBI web site http://www.mbiweb.org/.

If your a woman (or man) that rides or is involved in the motorcycle industry, you’ve either met, read about, seen, read articles written by or heard people talk about “Katmandu” Palmer. She’s one of those true “Mid-Century Motorcycling Women”. We wanted to acknowledge her birthday (howbeit belated 28th of February). Part of the “litmus test” for the motorcycling industry is passion, commitment and longevity (as well as having to be a rider). Kat has these in spades. If your one of the very few that hasn’t read her articles in magazines (such as The Horse, Born To Ride, Cycle Source etc), then you’ve truly missed a true jewel of the industry. Her captivating “wordsmithing” is a commodity we’ve appreciated for years and unfortunately rarely see on the pages of many magazines. Our friend Keith Ball (Bikernet) has a great article written by Kat reminicing about her years in the industry. Take a browse over and send Kat a “happy B’day” email. Tell her “the Guilty Gang” sent ya!