OverKill and nine other chopper projects may be found in Chop This! Vol. 1, a $30 CD how-to manual. For more information and to purchase: http://www.chopzone.com/cd-chopthis.htm |
Read our Review of Bicycle Builder's Bonanza, Brad's fabulous book on bike building. The book is available through the BR&K PARTS DEPARTMENT |
Brad's Website: http://atomiczombie.com |
Brad "Atomic Zombie" Graham: On the making of "OVERKILL" |
It's no secret, choppers have hit the mainstream. With the great success of the many chopper shows on TV, it's no wonder you can purchase a "chopper bicycle" at just about every store that sells bicycles. All the bike racks look the same these days - first your kids bikes, then your freestyle bikes, now a row of mountain bikes followed by the granny bikes, but now the aisle has expanded and there sits the chopper. At first it was cool to see these chrome forked extendos sitting there among the granny bikes, almost taunting them - drawing the young rider's gaze and spitting defiantly at the hardened "roadie", but after a while I felt uneasy about this new addition to the bike store. |
"Cookie cutter chopper". That phrase kept running through my mind, and after a while, every time I saw a "chopper" in a department store, it felt like a little more defiance was whittled from the ever-dwindling totem pole of non-conformity. How can you call a bike made in the thousands by little old ladies that only get a five-minute lunch break once a day a chopper? Isn't a chopper a "chopped" bicycle? Doesn't the very art of chopping involve the creation of a radical and unique vehicle from something mundane? What the hell is going on here? Those bikes cannot be choppers - they are not chopped in any way shape or form! |
I'm not saying the new Stingray isn't a sweet ride, I'm just saying that these bikes should not be referred to as choppers, no more than you would refer to a 2005 Dodge Neon fresh off the lot as a hotrod. You will never feel the same pride on a cookie cutter chop as you would on a machine built with your own ideas and hard work, especially when you head out for a ride and see a dozen other identical "choppers". It doesn't take rocket science to build a chopper, you do not need access to a machine shop nor do you need to invest a lot of money on exotic materials, you will only need the drive to create, and the ability to work your ass off to achieve your goals. |
When I see a kid roll by on a bike that was obviously hand made - cut forks legs banged together end to end, painted with what looks to be left over house paint, I can only raise my thumb to the builder and spew out a loud "right on". When I see a rich kid roll past on a $1200.00 store-bought chopper, I can only feel disappointment. Another sliver cut from the very soul of originality, another penny in the pockets of big enterprise that clearly does not understand our culture. |
I built OverKill in retaliation to the mass marketing of so called chopper bicycles. The entire bike is built using only an angle grinder, a welder and some basic tools. There are no machined parts, no expensive materials, just a few feet of department store electrical conduit and some bicycle scrap. Was this chopper hard to make? You're damn right it was hard to make pal, it kicked my ass for two days straight (putting a car tire on by hand is not that easy to do), but let me tell ya, I am just an average garage hacker, and the only skill I used to pull this off was my ability to work hard at my goals. If you want it bad enough, you can do it as well. If it was easy to do, it wouldn't be worth as much in my opinion. If you want easy, head on over to the nearest bike shop and dump a few hundred bucks on a "chopper" with a six-digit serial number. If you want original, then be prepared to get dirty, bloody and tired. Yes, it is worth it. What are you waiting for, start cutting up your sister's bike! Kudos to all garage hackers - you are my inspiration. - Brad Graham |
Smashing the center from an old chrome car rim. |
Bending 1 inch thin-walled electrical conduit with a "shoe" bender |
Visualizing the frame by laying out the tubing. |
"OverKill" a chopper with over-the-top proportions. |
Progress on the frame. Note the use of a factory elbow. |
Much of the fork is made by recycling bicycle steering parts. |
Checking front fork alignment by eye. |
A 28-hole steel hub is cut up and drilled for 56 holes. |
Beginning the spoking process using 20-inch bicycle spokes. |
First spoke every second hole, then fill in the gaps. |
It's the little details that really make a project shine. |
Plywood, foam and a bit of vinyl make up the seat |
Yes, it's as fine to ride as it looks! |
Brad's Website: http://atomiczombie.com |
Read our Review of Bicycle Builder's Bonanza, Brad's fabulous book on bike building. The book is available through the BR&K PARTS DEPARTMENT |
OverKill and nine other chopper projects may be found in Chop This! Vol. 1, a $30 CD how-to manual. For more information and to purchase: http://www.chopzone.com/cd-chopthis.htm |
