Hello everyone, this is Marty from Maui, wait, I may never say that again!  What? you say. Well, if you live under a rock and haven't heard the news Eden Choppers has now joined forces with one of the most recognizable names in U S cycling history: GT. Wait a sec, that's Gary Turner, right, and not GT, like I know a lot of you are thinking. It's a long story. Gary, the founder of GT BMX,  years ago sold GT, the bicycle company, and after spinning his wheels of a different kind  (Gary's  fanatical about drag racing) he got the wild hair to jump back in the bike biz; and did so, big time. First with a line of BMX called Alliant, then moving on to street and dirt with Axxis. Then the kustom bike scene exploded and American Legend was born . . Now a lot of you might remember me saying some inflamatory things about Gary once and you bet I wish I hadn't now, and you know I was a bit nervous to face him again, and the guys in the shop teasing me all week didn't help either, but he walked into the office with a big smile on his face and actually tried to stop me from apologizing- but didn't succeed . I'm tickled to death to be associated with the man- his initials on  like millions of bicycles throughout the world, he sponsored our Olympic team once and even owned the Schwinn corporation at one time. This is not to mention the countless championships his BMX and Mountain bike teams won over the years, wow! . Now if there is success to write about, this time around for Gary, it would be because of  Matt Goodsell: just some guy that's been dating Gary's daughter. Anyway, Matt took the reins and turned Gary's shop into a profit-making machine, and now a few different bikes are made at the Perris, CA digs, including the new chopper bike company Choppers US , cool stuff, great guys. And now, Eden Choppers. I'm elated to tell you this is my prototype bike I call the DreamSickle it's my first quality-made bike, and I'd be lucky to never work with conduit again, LOL. This is all cromoly, TIG welded by some of the most talented welders on earth. And this bike will be available soon. I have also designed front ends you'll be able to buy soon- a straight-leg, a slightly bent one and a springer. I call them front ends 'cause it's like a package with my original double-stem-style handlebars . I love 'em and I hope you do too! . For a guy like me, spending a week in Gary's shop is quite a cool experience. The guys were all a gas to work with. Funny as hell, these guys- crazy enough to jump out of airplanes and stuff, I YI YI ! It was a working vacation, you might say, and I was very busy. We had a Biker Build Off going on at CBN that I was totally ignoring, and I'll get to that soon. Thank God we got some cool members there that took care of the polls and stuff , thanks John. . I did make some cool things while in Perris, and I do need to get back soon, and that's what I mean by saying at first that I may never say that again about being from Maui. It's time for me to relocate and to start promoting the Kustom Movement in the biggest way- by taking it right to the people. I will try to make all the major west coast car, cycle, truck, whatever,  events there are this summer, as well as the Bike Expo in Vegas in October. Give up paradise for LA? I must be crazy!  Anyway, in  this column I'm not going to write about how to build bikes- sorry no hate mail, no I'm leaving it for Mr. Brain this time. But I'll be back next issue with some gas tank wanabee stuff!  . On my first day at the bike plant, I got right with it choosing material and getting it right to the chop saw; then off to the milling machine. Gosh, it would be nice to have one of these at home!  On my first day, I worked on front ends and didn't waste too much time whippin' up a springer just like on the Police bike, but no arc to it. By the third day I was on my frame, but that morning I was a bit lost.  Matt made it clear to me a bike with a seat pan was out of the question. We both wanted an entry-level frame that would not be too difficult to make. Seat pans are a pain in the butt to figure tooling. Maybe in the future, I'll dabble with this but for now, simplicity is what everyone can relate to, And I'll be honest, my seat pan frame idea from a year ago is mainly why my bikes were not produced. . So I start grabbing what I need to build a bike;  and what I used were pre-bent tubes that actually make up the Choppers US frame. The bottom of my bike is one of their fork legs, before they were bent in the middle, and there was only one in the shop I found.  I love a curvy bike like I love a curvy woman, so I went to the big press they have and Fernando helped me bend my top tube. They have a buck to bend the Aluma-Rod triangle and that's how ya get more bend in one end than in the middle. Let me tell ya, there is no way I could have jumped on this to bend it like that. On the other hand, for my down tube that is what I did , I started with a long piece propped it up on a work bench and everyone laughed while I jumped on it!  Nice easy curve- just what I wanted. On to the back of the bike: After searching the brain for ideas, then scrounging through the shop, I came by two unused loops of one inch tubing. Again, these were bent for the Choppers US frames. That's when I decided to cut one in half and add the rear fender look to the frame. Maybe the bend could have been a little tighter, but you don't just bend moly over your knee. . Now if I were smart enough to put 24-inch wheels on it, it would have looked much better. For that matter, the production bike will come with 24-inch compatibility. If you notice there are bits to the bike that are different colors these tubes were polished first to take a chrome plating right, so the gooseneck area and the bottom rear stays were part of the second loop that was left over. I pretty much had the frame tacked up by the end of that first day. It was a lot of work to get everything aligned, some tacks where busted and re-welded. This bike was assembled with no jig, all by eye, and it is a little crooked- but very little. The production bike will be perfect- something I've never done before- and is near impossible to do without a jig. And I said I wasn't going to talk about building bikes? . On my fourth day, I was hot to finish the front end for this bike.  I wanted something different than I've done before but not too "out there". A long time ago, I did something kinda similar to the Drag Bike, and put the 45-degree cut on the ends of the legs, I really like this, it looks aggressive; and, to my knowledge,  I have never seen this before on a bicycle, plus it totally balances the look with the back of the frame.  Now I have sold, worked on, and made enough bikes in my life to realize function is more important than look. Sometimes, if you want to be successful, it has to be comfortable.  I learned fast- if you place the seat lower than the height of the rear tire, it's nothing but a pain in the back. and you are not going to ride the bike much. Maybe my bike would look nicer if the seat was sitting right on top of the top tube. However, traditionally, this is how Harley did it, right? And they were fairly comfortable bikes to ride in their day . I want my bikes to be ridden into the ground, enjoyed and not so much a trophy that only gets looked at. .One thing that was important to me was retaining my double-stem fork. Awww!- Redline done went and copied me, sort of,  but my front end is still quite different. I cant see anyone wanting to put a regular single-stem neck on my bikes, but I'm sure some will and it will be possible. You'll be able to purchase the frame separately from the fork, so for those on a budget it will be easier to achieve your goal in smaller steps. Everyone I know feels this is so important to the movement- offering parts! . I never bought a complete bike as a kid- couldn't afford it. So, you would start with a frame, put all your old parts on it,  then slowly upgrade!  We have all done this!  And we all love this! . Ahhh enough about me talking about bikes. Now I want to talk about people. When I met Robert Proctor a year ago, through Chopperbicycle.net he was living in New Jersey pursuing a modeling career. We became best of friends, and every day we would think up ideas to get this movement going. None worked. It was obviously going to take time and we knew it . Now, a year late, Rob has moved to LA and things are beginning to happen for him. I wish him the best of luck. Anyway, he created a pretty cool outlet for us metal manipulators to contact one another. We are into our second Biker Build Off series now. The first one was okay, but the coolest bikes of the bunch were never finished. And to this day I have not seen the bikes finished. Ahh, I love these guys, and meant well. The next round of competition was set up a bit differently, with three rounds of eliminations-  kinda like brackets in Drag racing.  I'm still not too sure what the winner is going to get, and I don't think anyone else does either, LOL!  It's all good. Actually, I spoke with Alan Discount of Choppers US, and he's going to contribute some products to the winner. Totally cool! Thanks Alan. And if anyone else would like to contribute, please let us know. Meeting Alan and Rick of Choppers US was a pleasure. They're two incredibly smart guys who have thrown themselves into the bike business in the biggest way. Man, these guys've got it all- big ass catalog, lots of the coolest stuff: fenders, sissy bars, three different dummy tanks Hey, some don't like the fake gas tank- Brain don't, but what does he know?  I personally love 'em. Alan will you send me a few?  No, I love all accessories. Even when I was a kid, I remember walking into a JC Penny's, and there before me are motocross bicycle bars, pads and number plates. Wait a second! A fake gas tank that came with Honda stickers? Hell, I couldn't leave the store without it!. I saw the same thing on Ebay last year, and I about cried!  . No Brain, you're just going to have to conform, buddy, LOL!. Anyway, Alan and Rick are just two guys who are fun to hang out with; and you will see me promoting them as well as all the other bikes being made at Gary Turner Bicycles in SoCal. I hope to meet many of you this summer at different events and at the Interbike show in Vegas. And Please, if you like the DreamSickle, call American Legend and get on the waiting list today. Oh, and one last thing- Cranky, you're the man buddy! Thanks.

Hello everyone, this is Marty from Maui, wait, I may never say that again!  What? you say. Well, if you live under a rock and haven't heard the news Eden Choppers has now joined forces with one of the most recognizable names in U S cycling history: GT. Wait a sec, that's Gary Turner, right, and not GT, like I know a lot of you are thinking. It's a long story. Gary, the founder of GT BMX,  years ago sold GT, the bicycle company, and after spinning his wheels of a different kind  (Gary's  fanatical about drag racing) he got the wild hair to jump back in the bike biz; and did so, big time. First with a line of BMX called Alliant, then moving on to street and dirt with Axxis. Then the kustom bike scene exploded and American Legend was born . . Now a lot of you might remember me saying some inflamatory things about Gary once and you bet I wish I hadn't now, and you know I was a bit nervous to face him again, and the guys in the shop teasing me all week didn't help either, but he walked into the office with a big smile on his face and actually tried to stop me from apologizing- but didn't succeed . I'm tickled to death to be associated with the man- his initials on  like millions of bicycles throughout the world, he sponsored our Olympic team once and even owned the Schwinn corporation at one time. This is not to mention the countless championships his BMX and Mountain bike teams won over the years, wow! . Now if there is success to write about, this time around for Gary, it would be because of  Matt Goodsell: just some guy that's been dating Gary's daughter. Anyway, Matt took the reins and turned Gary's shop into a profit-making machine, and now a few different bikes are made at the Perris, CA digs, including the new chopper bike company Choppers US , cool stuff, great guys. And now, Eden Choppers. I'm elated to tell you this is my prototype bike I call the DreamSickle it's my first quality-made bike, and I'd be lucky to never work with conduit again, LOL. This is all cromoly, TIG welded by some of the most talented welders on earth. And this bike will be available soon. I have also designed front ends you'll be able to buy soon- a straight-leg, a slightly bent one and a springer. I call them front ends 'cause it's like a package with my original double-stem-style handlebars . I love 'em and I hope you do too! . For a guy like me, spending a week in Gary's shop is quite a cool experience. The guys were all a gas to work with. Funny as hell, these guys- crazy enough to jump out of airplanes and stuff, I YI YI ! It was a working vacation, you might say, and I was very busy. We had a Biker Build Off going on at CBN that I was totally ignoring, and I'll get to that soon. Thank God we got some cool members there that took care of the polls and stuff , thanks John. . I did make some cool things while in Perris, and I do need to get back soon, and that's what I mean by saying at first that I may never say that again about being from Maui. It's time for me to relocate and to start promoting the Kustom Movement in the biggest way- by taking it right to the people. I will try to make all the major west coast car, cycle, truck, whatever,  events there are this summer, as well as the Bike Expo in Vegas in October. Give up paradise for LA? I must be crazy!  Anyway, in  this column I'm not going to write about how to build bikes- sorry no hate mail, no I'm leaving it for Mr. Brain this time. But I'll be back next issue with some gas tank wanabee stuff!  . On my first day at the bike plant, I got right with it choosing material and getting it right to the chop saw; then off to the milling machine. Gosh, it would be nice to have one of these at home!  On my first day, I worked on front ends and didn't waste too much time whippin' up a springer just like on the Police bike, but no arc to it. By the third day I was on my frame, but that morning I was a bit lost.  Matt made it clear to me a bike with a seat pan was out of the question. We both wanted an entry-level frame that would not be too difficult to make. Seat pans are a pain in the butt to figure tooling. Maybe in the future, I'll dabble with this but for now, simplicity is what everyone can relate to, And I'll be honest, my seat pan frame idea from a year ago is mainly why my bikes were not produced. . So I start grabbing what I need to build a bike;  and what I used were pre-bent tubes that actually make up the Choppers US frame. The bottom of my bike is one of their fork legs, before they were bent in the middle, and there was only one in the shop I found.  I love a curvy bike like I love a curvy woman, so I went to the big press they have and Fernando helped me bend my top tube. They have a buck to bend the Aluma-Rod triangle and that's how ya get more bend in one end than in the middle. Let me tell ya, there is no way I could have jumped on this to bend it like that. On the other hand, for my down tube that is what I did , I started with a long piece propped it up on a work bench and everyone laughed while I jumped on it!  Nice easy curve- just what I wanted. On to the back of the bike: After searching the brain for ideas, then scrounging through the shop, I came by two unused loops of one inch tubing. Again, these were bent for the Choppers US frames. That's when I decided to cut one in half and add the rear fender look to the frame. Maybe the bend could have been a little tighter, but you don't just bend moly over your knee. . Now if I were smart enough to put 24-inch wheels on it, it would have looked much better. For that matter, the production bike will come with 24-inch compatibility. If you notice there are bits to the bike that are different colors these tubes were polished first to take a chrome plating right, so the gooseneck area and the bottom rear stays were part of the second loop that was left over. I pretty much had the frame tacked up by the end of that first day. It was a lot of work to get everything aligned, some tacks where busted and re-welded. This bike was assembled with no jig, all by eye, and it is a little crooked- but very little. The production bike will be perfect- something I've never done before- and is near impossible to do without a jig. And I said I wasn't going to talk about building bikes? . On my fourth day, I was hot to finish the front end for this bike.  I wanted something different than I've done before but not too "out there". A long time ago, I did something kinda similar to the Drag Bike, and put the 45-degree cut on the ends of the legs, I really like this, it looks aggressive; and, to my knowledge,  I have never seen this before on a bicycle, plus it totally balances the look with the back of the frame.  Now I have sold, worked on, and made enough bikes in my life to realize function is more important than look. Sometimes, if you want to be successful, it has to be comfortable.  I learned fast- if you place the seat lower than the height of the rear tire, it's nothing but a pain in the back. and you are not going to ride the bike much. Maybe my bike would look nicer if the seat was sitting right on top of the top tube. However, traditionally, this is how Harley did it, right? And they were fairly comfortable bikes to ride in their day . I want my bikes to be ridden into the ground, enjoyed and not so much a trophy that only gets looked at. .One thing that was important to me was retaining my double-stem fork. Awww!- Redline done went and copied me, sort of,  but my front end is still quite different. I cant see anyone wanting to put a regular single-stem neck on my bikes, but I'm sure some will and it will be possible. You'll be able to purchase the frame separately from the fork, so for those on a budget it will be easier to achieve your goal in smaller steps. Everyone I know feels this is so important to the movement- offering parts! . I never bought a complete bike as a kid- couldn't afford it. So, you would start with a frame, put all your old parts on it,  then slowly upgrade!  We have all done this!  And we all love this! . Ahhh enough about me talking about bikes. Now I want to talk about people. When I met Robert Proctor a year ago, through Chopperbicycle.net he was living in New Jersey pursuing a modeling career. We became best of friends, and every day we would think up ideas to get this movement going. None worked. It was obviously going to take time and we knew it . Now, a year late, Rob has moved to LA and things are beginning to happen for him. I wish him the best of luck. Anyway, he created a pretty cool outlet for us metal manipulators to contact one another. We are into our second Biker Build Off series now. The first one was okay, but the coolest bikes of the bunch were never finished. And to this day I have not seen the bikes finished. Ahh, I love these guys, and meant well. The next round of competition was set up a bit differently, with three rounds of eliminations-  kinda like brackets in Drag racing.  I'm still not too sure what the winner is going to get, and I don't think anyone else does either, LOL!  It's all good. Actually, I spoke with Alan Discount of Choppers US, and he's going to contribute some products to the winner. Totally cool! Thanks Alan. And if anyone else would like to contribute, please let us know. Meeting Alan and Rick of Choppers US was a pleasure. They're two incredibly smart guys who have thrown themselves into the bike business in the biggest way. Man, these guys've got it all- big ass catalog, lots of the coolest stuff: fenders, sissy bars, three different dummy tanks Hey, some don't like the fake gas tank- Brain don't, but what does he know?  I personally love 'em. Alan will you send me a few?  No, I love all accessories. Even when I was a kid, I remember walking into a JC Penny's, and there before me are motocross bicycle bars, pads and number plates. Wait a second! A fake gas tank that came with Honda stickers? Hell, I couldn't leave the store without it!. I saw the same thing on Ebay last year, and I about cried!  . No Brain, you're just going to have to conform, buddy, LOL!. Anyway, Alan and Rick are just two guys who are fun to hang out with; and you will see me promoting them as well as all the other bikes being made at Gary Turner Bicycles in SoCal. I hope to meet many of you this summer at different events and at the Interbike show in Vegas. And Please, if you like the DreamSickle, call American Legend and get on the waiting list today. Oh, and one last thing- Cranky, you're the man buddy! Thanks.

M E S S A G E   F R O M   M A U I Marty Eden

Wait just a minute, Screeeech! There has been a change of plans, I truly thought I had reached my dream; and call me an idiot, but I was so focused on this story remaining the same that I did sell off all my possessions, broke up with the one I love, and was actually ready to walk away from a well-established contracting business when I made a last phone call to Turner's shop to be told, "Sorry but if you move out here now we can't let you into the shop." Supposedly, they signed a new contract with an electric bike company and they wanted no one to see them. . Gee I could never imagine I could possibly be a threat to the electric bike industry. Man, I'm big, LOL!  Yeah just a big dumbass for believing anything they promised me again! Tell me this is a tough business, LOL!; it is a tough business.  I was told just this week they are about ready to close their doors. . I think I'll name my next bike Shame !!! It was a good story though, huh?  Why Axe It?  It was the truth. Next issue: Crazy Train, The CraZ, Drag'n Wagon and lots more crap !  Thanks everyone for your support . King Canbendanoodle The Conduit King! "I'm bent on conduit!!!!!!!"