My rst intentions were to restore the bike to factory original. After going through the 1976 FXE, I started looking at raking the frame and making it a custom chopper. After a full disassembly I ended up changing my mind again. I didn’t like how the frame looked and it didn’t t my mental picture of what I wanted. So I took the engine and started building everything from scratch. I don’t make a lot of money at my job so I am not able to spend thousands of dollars on this build. I am building everything custom so that I can keep the cost down as well as repurposing what I can to save money.
I owned a chopper about 7 years ago and unfortunately had to sell it. I have not stopped thinking of owning another one since then. My step father used to ride motorcycles in a group of friends. One of his friends Jerry wrecked his 1976 FXE in 1980. While he was in the hospital, my step father and all of his friends rebuilt the bike for him. For some reason Jerry never came back to get the bike. My stepfather would go out and start the bike regularly for a couple years but eventually he just pulled the plugs and poured oil in the cylinders around 1984. I constantly asked about the old shovelhead. I wanted to restore the bike. My step dad wouldn’t talk to Jerry for me. Then in September of 2020, My step father passed away. Jerry ended up giving me the old Harley and said hopefully I could do something with it. That’s where my journey of this build started.
Absolutely everything, the Rockers, long tubes for springer, neck, triple trees, frame, seat, handlebars and gas tank all are and will be100% build in shop. Using old school lathes and mills. Also from tire to tire it is 10’11.5″ long!!!!
I am just a welding Forman that is over a welding and fabrication shop. But what what makes my shop different is that its inside a maximum security prison. The Pendleton Correctional Facility in Indiana. The men that work for me love their job and love expanding their knowledge. I am most proud in being able to help these men further their knowledge and help toward their rehabilitation and reentry back into society one day. I mean how many people can say that they helped build a custom chopper.
Absolutely everybody loves it. They say that it is insane. Everyone comments about it needing a football eld to turn around. Everyone cant wait to see it completed.
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