Videography by: Levi Jacob Swann Proud new owner of a Killman Customs Independent Buildhouse Bobber: Alison Alexander
She encouraged us to do with the machine as we would, said she'd happily wait until it was finished to find out what we were going to do with her baby and we were hooked. Pretty tough to turn down carte blanche. So there you had it, we’d put together a wicked scoot and she’d let us use it for some shows and photo and video shoots, tag along to help spread the good word and even do some modelling for us. Sounded like a win-win in our books. Never underestimate karma.
Ali had sent us some pics of bobbers she liked, so going in that direction was a natural, especially considering the presence of a stock monoshock in the rear, that still left the bike with a hardtail aesthetic. After deciding on a heavy 50's Bobber influence with modern touches, some things were just have-to-haves. The black tuck and roll La Rosa Design seat with the white stitching needed something special behind it, so we asked them to also whip us up a one-off black diamond tuck p-pad with matching white stitching, to compliment the look without getting all conformist and cookie cutter about the upholstery. Shinko 777 Whitewall tires added a heady dose of clean elegance and titanium wrapped pipes with an additional slotted heat shield laid on a bit of additional charm. A gold D.I.D xring chain and new JT carbon steel sprockets made it so she’d have the looks as well as the vroom and we added a Galfer stainless steel braided brake line and Motion Pro clutch cable to help ensure things come to a stop when needed. Some sweet Stainless Steel Allen fasteners for the engine covers are going to make future life easier and a return to the stock airbox config, but with a shiny new chrome cover, took care of some reliability issues she was experiencing with her existing pods. A new ignition, gas cap and steering lock means she's able to use one key for the whole bike. The machined reaper cutout for the radiator was strictly for shits and giggles. As we found it, The back end was a bit tragic. The cuts were a couple of inches too short and uneven. When you add that to the asymmetrical frame rails on this model, you have a recipe for a ton of rescue work. We sealed off the tubes and mounted some beautiful old school bullet signal lights over them to give things a tight, clean look. Zeppelin signals up front brought some extra funk. Following our philosophy of form wedded to function, we wanted to give her a nice sleek rear end that was still capable of carrying a passenger or go-bag as needed. Enter TJ Brutal Customs and one of his powder coated sissybars. Now unfortunately the sissybar didn’t allow for enough tire clearance at the rear fender, so we spent a bit of time with our friendly neighbourhood machinist and came up with some clever but simple brackets to allow us to move the bottom sissybar mounting points up an inch and a half. Extra special low maintenance points to us for mounting everything so that the rear wheel and fender/sissybar can be removed easily and separately. We also used a tidy stack of tasty Blue Collar Bobbers parts to save on machining and engineering time. They came through in a powerful way, customizing an order to our needs and offering the benefit of their experiences over the phone as well. That took care of the rear fender, side covers, seat mount/electrical cover up top and a wicked black nickel tail light too.
Our first outing with the stunning Copper Bobber, the Om Boys Shitshow and Shine in Nanaimo, was an absolute blast. The day after the show, while getting some fresh ink, Ali’s tattoo artist told her to wear her first biker rally sunburn with pride. Obviously a wise and intuitive man. She’s going to be riding her beautiful and reliable bike for a long time to come and it should be one Hell of a Summer for her and for us. Thanks for everything Ali, you absolutely killed it and remembered the fun. You wound up in our doorway for a reason and we’re so glad you did!
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"What a first show experience!! It was a real blast to hear everyone express surprise that my bike was a Honda shadow, and then watching them point out all the parts of the shadow they recognized. Every person who stopped was blown away with the copper work. It was really interesting to hear everyone's design take on her as well, like it sparked up some inspiration and got them thinking what they would've done with the project. The la rosa seats and bag were a huge hit as well; so many people inquired as to where we found them.
Not to be missed were the Dirty Devils Rat Rod crew, all Mad Maxed to the tits, and their cars of doom! Also appreciated were the fine tunes bestowed upon us by Ecstasy Audio. Nice to have something to pour in my ear other than lost dogs, banjos and pickup trucks. Yup, a good time was most definitely had and we can't wait to head back and do it all again. Well flippin' done Om Boys, thanks for the memories!
We're hitting the road tomorrow, for the OM BOYS Shitshow and Shine in Nanaimo, but before we go we just had to let Ali see her new ride. HUGE thanks to Levi Hildebrand for filming the whole thing and being such a stellar dude to work with. Super stoked to see what you put together for us! By the way, I'm totally down with a version with all of Ali's profanity when she took the blindfold off. Mike Morash for the recommendation of another videographer when our dates didn't work out. Joshua Alexander, Ali's hubby helped me scheme out how to get her there unawares. Jo Sh swung by while we were setting up for the shoot, really appreciated the enthusiasm and the kind words dude. My amazing and beautiful fiancee Candice, without whom I would just melt into a hyperimaginative shade of the colour 7, you rock my world Babe. And last, but certainly not least, Alison, thank you for trusting us with your baby, she turned out pretty good and days like today are what makes the world go round. You're gonna ride the wheels off that badass scoot all Summer long!
Our Mexican Saddle Roll Blankets and Leather Blanket Carrier Straps page is ready for action !!!3/6/2017
Yup, time to freshen up the bellage for the new season. When you're checking out the bells, don't forget to look at both sides. a lot of them have 3D and 360 degree artwork. Grizzly prints, treasure maps, piggy snouts, you never know what's lurking back there just waiting to be awesome!
Now head on over to our Guardian & Gremlin Biker Bells page and check out all the new hotness !!
Now my must-haves when designing or bringing in new product are they have to work, they have to be comfortable, they have to look great and I have to be able to offer them at a reasonable price. After months of researching and negotiating, we've got some pretty amazeballs stuff lined for you all this year! First up, we've upgraded our Shemagh Tactical Scarfs and Bandanas. Our new Shemaghs, (pronounced Shmogs dontcha know) are whopping big now, at 42". This means you can tie the things properly to get that commando or Lawrence of Arabia look you've been dying for. That, and they're seriously killer for keeping the wind, grit, bees and rain off your neck while you're zipping around looking awesome. They're pretty fly when you're chilling on the deck getting puppy eyes from the hotties, too. Still 100% cotton, our new Trainmen bandanas are the bomb in a bunch of colours and still bring the comfort you expect from our stuff. Now I personally happen to have a big giant head, so the new large Trainmen bandanas are just the ticket for me at 27". No more fidgeting with itty bits to tie on a do rag.
For your drooling pleasure, we put Links to some of the new Goodies below!SHITSHOW & SHINE AT PARTY IN THE PARK 2017Killman Customs Independent Buildhouse is totally stoked to be donating some wicked prizes again this year! Last year's Shitshow and Shine was one of the most positive and inclusive events we've ever attended and we're seriously looking forward to heading back. Great bikes, great people and a great cause. Come on out and show us all some love! Beban Sports Fields, Nanaimo B.C. ShitShow & Shine Hours June 24th 12:00pm – 4:00pm PARTY IN THE PARK hours 12 PM - 10:30 PM Registration for the Show & Shine Bike and driver $25, includes access to concert. Motorcycles of any year are all welcome, so come out and enjoy the fun! Pacific Island Entertainment is proud to present the 2017 Party in the Park - REV IT UP! show, at Beban Park. Co-presented by Next Level Audio and Woods Lifetime Financial, this year's show will feature four time Canadian Country Music Award winner Aaron Pritchett. Aaron's new album 'The Score' is nominated for Country Album of the Year at the 2017 Juno Awards. Not enough?! Well then let's REV IT UP! with the OmBoys & Knuckleheads Supply Motorcycle Hot Rod Show + Shine!! These guys and gals know how to have fun. We will also have the Dirty Devils Rat Rod Club here!!! There will be "Best in" awards with $1,000 in cash prizes to be won, courtesy of Erndor Auto Body. Huge raffle draws, merchandise tents, and as always, this fabulous group of people donate 100% of the proceeds to Crohns & Colitis organizations. Still not enough for ya?!! Hmmm, what's missing...oh ya...food and beverage...once again we will have Original Joe's catering the VIP area. The main venue will host a number of local food artisans serving goods from around the globe, and a second beer garden for those that like to hoist a few cold ones in the summer heat. Also on stage: LION BEAR FOX EAGLE EYES COUNTERFEIT JUDDS BOONDOCK WISE YOUNGBLOOD Cassandra Smith (Nanaimo Country Idol 2017 winner) Chris Andres General Admission tickets $45 + fees and VIP $60 + fees. Hard copy tickets are available at Original Joe's Nanaimo, and Guava Apparel in Woodgrove Mall. All ages event.
We've been keeping this under wraps, meaning to bust out the updated look a little later in the Spring, but we just can't hide the awesome any longer. In addition to wrenching up a storm, and sorting out some new and improved product lines for the oncoming season, we've been busy little badgers designing a new logo. It's finally done and it's killer! Obviously, in addition to being solidly old school, it had to be bold, bright and eye catching, totally badass and unapologetically fun and funky. So we started with the Killman Customs Iron Tiger and our Aiming to Misbehave shop motto. Then we layered on a boatload of Wall Of Death carny freakshow, smoothed it out with some 60's Super Bee racing, slipped it between the sheets with a fistful of 70's groove and nailed it to the damn wall in the finest mad scientist tradition. So crazy proud and happy to have this new design repping Killman Customs Independent Buildhouse On our website, merchandise and all of our social media channels.toidery girls and I shared over 50 em Setting off our little gush-fest today, was the arrival from Michigan of Our brand stamping new embroidered patches. These are our first promotional materials with the new design and they are smoking! We shared over fifty emails back and forth with our badass embroidery goddesses, nailing down every last little detail, and they absolutely blasted it out of the park. Between the gold canvas backing and the top notch stitching, you can literally feel the quality, and my oh my, but do they ever shine in the sun! Not gonna lie, I spent a good bit of my morning running around the place, holding patches up to shirts, hoodies, vests, leathers, bikes and even the suitably impressed shop cats, ooh-ing and aah-ing like a five year old full of pop rocks. And yes, we will be offering these works of art in our online store and on the fly at events throughout the Summer. 2017 is looking to be one kickass year so far. Keep on sharing the love gang, we'll be seeing you all on the road real soon. We always love road trips and our most recent excursion to vend at the Vancouver Motorcycle Show in Abbotsford was no exception. Even with some decidedly dodgy January weather, the twin line-ups to get in on opening day stretched the length of the Tradex in both directions. So while it may not have seemed as busy as prior years, with maybe fewer vendors, there were still plenty of folks to chin wag with and lots of space to do it in. Loved seeing the new VMax over at the Yamaha display, even if the young sales rep was decidedly underwhelmed at having a model, "that's been around for twenty years" blocking the sight lines to all his shiny new couchmobiles and crotch rockets. What can I say? Vintage custom love is what we do and we appreciate a pedigree. It was Especially great to see Tim Renshaw and the gang in the back hall getting everyone hyped for this year's 3rd Annual Vintage Canyon Run!
Another nice benefit was having more time to chat with the other vendors that stopped by our booth. Several of them tell us they want to distribute our product lines, which is flattering as Hell. We work hard to produce awesome looking and comfortable Kustom gear, so it's always a good day when we hear the love. The crowd certainly seemed to dig our offerings, they damned near cleaned us out of saddle roll blankets and flip-up 3 snap bubble visors! It can be tough to find retro and custom, or alternative looking gear at an event primarily driven by the large manufacturers' mobile showrooms, but it's not all cookie cutter skulls, studs and plastic. I mean, nobody buys a bike because they want to look just like everybody else, right? Gotta have some diversity in the mix. So, if you look long and hard enough, you can still turn up some gems. There were some pretty rad armored high tops on display that would've come home with me if they had actually been on sale. Maybe 2017 is the year I finally break down and buy one of them shiny new lifts they trot out every season. They seemed pretty solid and we always try to support local and small businesses when we can. It took a while, but we finally managed to get out and find some souvenirs for ourselves on the last day. Getting service can be tough when everybody's tired and you don't look like a given vendor's demographic, but a smile and letting them know that you know what you're looking for can go a long way. We did dig ourselves up a couple of Matching leather his and hers vests, with side laces and buffalo head nickel snap covers that gave us a lot of joy. A pretty bitchin' Sugar Skull bag for Ms. Evil Overlord and a pair of armored retro brown leather gloves for Big Daddy Me rounded things off perfectly. We even managed to pick up a nice surprise piece for a client build that we're working on! Our final night in Abbotsford we decided to hit up the local Milestones for some rare prime rib and fishbowl bellinis. Service was awesome, especially considering we had come straight from the show and probably didn't look like a Stepford couple. Our server John kept the booze and the laughs flowing and we'll be sure to hit them up again the next time we're in the area. All in all, The Motorcycle Show Vancouver in Abbotsford was a solid event with plenty to see and do. It's the largest shindig of the season, and it definitely got us pumped for all the fun still to come this year. Next up is the Vintage Classic Swap & Show at the Cloverdale Agriplex on April 23rd. We'll see you there! |
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