Custom Chopper Show Dallas 2011

With its dual tanks, custom frame, dual rear calipers and plenty of hand-fabricated sheet metal, 'Bad Influence' impressed the judges doe top honors in the FreeStyle Class.

Round 2 of the Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Show swept into Dallas last weekend as custom motorcycle builders from around the Texas Panhandle and beyond competed for cash, prestige, and an entry into the Sturgis AMD World Championships of Custom Bike Building. A diverse mix of motorcycles had their engineering and fabricating artistry displayed on the floor of the Dallas Convention Center as the customs shared center stage with new motorcycles being introduced by the OEMs at the Dallas IMS. 

The work at Dallas ran the gamut, from a limited edition GG Quad to Dar Holdsworth’s latest interpretation of the 69 Chopper to super-powered Hayabusas with stretched swingarms. Larry Moore claimed top honors in the FreeStyle Class for his low-slung, ultra-clean 2009 Moore Custom with dual fuel tanks, but Bryan Stalcup’s “Big Hubless” created the most buzz amongst the crowd and snuck away with the “People’s Choice” award.

It took “Big Hubless” owner Stalcup 13 months to create this radical bike in his garage at home. A master plumber by trade, Stalcup had never built a custom motorcycle before but had always wanted to. “Big Hubless” created a stir with its monstrous rear tire and hubless wheel. The back end features a special rear bearing to allow for the hubless rear. Stalcup said the motorcycle pivots left and right at the rear where it links up to the frame just behind the seat. The rear tire had to be put on the bike before it was complete and can’t be removed without tearing the bike apart, so you definitely don’t want to get a flat on this baby. Almost as impressive as his hubless wheel is the fact that Stalcup built his own ground-up custom for around $9500. 

Stalcup said he has a Honda CBR600 in the works where he’s rebuilding the back end and installing hydraulics. His new build will feature a single-sided swingarm that extends outward along with a front end that does the same. He plans on using the tranny to run a hydraulic pump to power the swingarm extension. The end result will be a naked café race-style bike. 

Moore’s Freestyle Class-winning motorcycle, on the other hand, is a more conventionally styled cruiser with a low-slung custom chassis, wide-swept bars and a heavily raked front end. The custom frame houses an 80 cubic-inch Harley powerplant fed from dual fuel tanks, which allowed Moore to keep the traditional tank mounted on the backbone extremely small. “Bad Influence” has its tall front hoop set out at a healthy rake on the end of a Springer fork. The front brakes are wired through the fork tube and the internal wiring on the bars keeps the build very tidy. There’s little visible wiring in the engine area as well, adding to its clean appearance. 

(L) This 2012 Custom Concept by Big Boy Choppers is definitely Giger-esque. (M) Primer Inc. is responsible for this cool flat tracker called 'The Green 39.' (R) This 1979 Iron Head Sportster has been converted into a sporty cafe racer.

Three Two Choppers’ “AMFU” edged out Joseph Russell’s “Back in Red & Black” for first place in Hot Bike’s Modified Harley Class. This 1983 Harley FXE is a real brawler with its Shovelhead spooned tightly within a custom frame. The Shovel looks even better being fed by what looks like a Dennis Goodson air cleaner. Minimal and cool, Three Two gave it old school credentials by swapping out the battery for a Morris Magneto and by converting it to a kick start. The Narrow Glide front end sits in tight to the frame and its bars are situated like clip-ons. The rear section features a drop seat with an internal seat spring and a modified swingarm. “Bad Influence” was built by the Coen Brothers, Jimmie and JC (not to be mistaken for Ethan and Joel). 

The rear tire on 'Big Hubless' was mounted before the bike could be completed and will require some serious work if it ever needs to be replaced.

Arynn Akins improved his chances of winning the Performance Custom Class in Dallas by bringing both a customized 2009 Suzuki Hayabusa built by Syndicate Custom Sportbikes and a 2008 Yamaha YZF-R1 he built himself. The move paid off as his custom ‘Busa won took home top honors in the Performance Custom Class. “Midnight” is an appropriate name for this jet black bike with just enough shiny chrome tidbits to make it classy without being over-the-top. Akins had the rear end stretched-out with a custom extended swingarm so he could mount a fat rear tire on its backside. Its billet custom wheels are real attention-grabbers and light up at night. Grip Ace Digital Switches clean up the bars while custom hand and foot controls add to its appeal. 

Look hard and you’ll see the 1979 Iron Head Sportster at the heart of the winner of the Retro Mod Class, a bike called “Number 79.” The ‘79 Iron Head has been taken by owner Pat Kahanek and bike shop Primer Inc. Customs and converted into a cool café racer. It has a stock motor and frame, but they heavily modified the engine, swapping out its pistons, cams, and doing extensive head work. Kahanek and crew cut the back off the frame to create their own hand-built tail section with a cowling and to mount their own mono shock swingarm. They found a 1960 Benelli tank on e-Bay after drawing up a picture of the style of tank they wanted for the build. It has a GSX-R front end and looks like it’d be a blast to rip around on. 

Rick Fairless, a talented custom builder in his own right who also owns the popular biker hangout, Strokers Dallas, was one of the celebrity custom bike builders featured at the Dallas show. 

Rick Fairless of Strokers Dallas was a special guest at the Dallas Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Show.

“The Ultimate Builder show is a really cool deal and Bob Kay who is a friend of mine, runs it and asked me if I wanted to be a featured builder where I could put a couple of bikes of mine in the show. I don’t enter my bikes into bike competitions but I’m happy to have some displayed here," said Fairless. 

“One bike out there is a ‘65 Panhead chopper that I did years ago and it’s one of my favorite bikes that I have ever created," continued Fairless. "The other bike is a 1969 Triumph chopper with a coffin gas tank that we built several years ago and it came out really nice. Those are just two really beautiful bikes that belong to me and I have a lot of bikes but those are two of my favorites. You can see all my bikes that I own on display over at the Strokers Dallas store anytime."

Winners took home cash prizes and get automatic invites to the last Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Show. Held during Bike Week in Daytona Beach. the finale pits the winners of each round against one other. Bike Week will also be the time when Motorcycle USA announces the winner of its customized 2011 Honda Fury, so mark your calendars for March 8-19 and join us on the white sandy beaches of Daytona!