This bike was the first Harley that I had ever bought, and originally had no plans to do anything super crazy to it. I had bought it from a guy who couldn’t shut up about how well he’d taken care of it and blah blah blah. Long story short, I put about 1000 miles on it in the first month I had it, and a lot of issues started to come to light; so many that I decided to build a chopper. I stripped the thing down and started buying and making stuff. The owner of Mehner Motorsports is a friend of mine, so when I wanted to get some welding done I went to him, and that started a two year journey to make this bike what it is. He modified the Demons Cycle strutless fender that I bought and together we built the most bitchin sissy bar I could think of. The original tanks that came with the bike were lousy with rust, so I took that as a perfect opportunity to snag an Indian Larry tank, which we modified slightly to fit the square backbone of the 2000 frame. That’s when the first version of this bike was born, with a 2 over springer front end and no king and queen seat, just a steel pan. Tried doing a paintjob in my garage that actually turned out well, but I liked the raw steel with hand grinder accents better, so we stripped it back down. That version of this bike took me to Laconia and back, and down to Florida where we both got caught in a rogue band of Hurricane Maria on a ride between St. Augustine and Flagler Beach. I still don’t know how me or the bike survived 40mph cross winds and torrential downpours on those coast roads, but somehow we did. That version served me well until I got hit off my bike in January, mangling the front end and a bunch of other parts and breaking my foot in a couple places. Had some buddies offer to come help me rebuild once all the necessary parts were purchased, so I used every spare penny I had for the first three weeks of disability to buy everything I needed to rebuild it, and with a cast still on my broken ass foot, we tore my bitch down in my garage and did about 90% of the rebuild in about 10 hours. Had the opportunity to snag those rad 16” triple Z’s from this dude Kellan Geiger on Instagram, and knew that with the new 10” fork tubes and the new king and queen seat, that it was one of those parts that would push my bike over the edge to greatness. Any time I found a cool one-off part that fit this bike or that I could make fit, I bought it. I don’t regret anything about this bike, or the sacrifices I had to make to have it become what it is today. All those nights in Mehners shop or my garage until 3am, or pulling an all-nighter for final assembly because I knew it was going to be nice out the next day and I couldn’t wait to ride it; every single tired moment and setback that had me throwing tools and cursing were worth it. Obviously, this bike isn’t a show bike; it was my first true journey into the world of custom motorcycles and building a bike the old school way, in a garage with mostly hand tools and I couldn’t be happier. This bike taught me more about myself than any teacher or school ever could have, and the friends I’ve made through the journey with this bike are among my closest. Bikes build bonds, and they never stop teaching you either. Hopefully, this is a journey that will never end for me.
Spec Sheet
Year- 2000
Make- Harley Davidson
Model- FXST
ENGINE
Year- 2000
Type- Stock (except for S&S 585G cams)
Size- 88ci
TRANSMISSION
Year- 2000
Type- Stock 5-speed
FRAME
Year/Type- 2000 Softail, modified
Rake/Stretch- Stock
SUSPENSION
Frontend- Harddrive 10 over fork tubes, stock lowers
Rear Shocks- Progessive 444
WHEELS & TIRES
Brand- Dyna solid rear wheel, V-Twin 21” spoke front wheel, with Shinko tires
Size- 21/16
Calipers- No front brake, stock rear
Rotors- Stock rear
Pulley/Sprocket- Stock rear
PAINT & PLATING
Painter- David Florence
Graphics- David Florence
Plating- none
Polishing- definitely none
Powdercoating- absolutely none
ACCESSORIES
Fairing- hell no
Front Fender- none
Rear Fender- Modified Demons Cycle strutless rear Fender
Gas Tank- Indian Larry dished 3.5 gallon tank
Dash- None
Gauges – None
Handlebars- Kellan Geiger
Grips- Seven Sins Choppers
Mirrors- V-Twin Manufacturing
Hand Controls- V-Twin Manufacturing
Foot Controls- Stock
Pegs- JP Cycles
Headlight- Auto-Zone
Taillight – JP Cycles
Turn Signals- None
License Mount- Custom made by David Florence
Crash Bar(s)- Old Bike Barn
Seat- Custom made by me, covered by Jerry’s Upholstery
ANY OTHER CUSTOM OR SPECIAL ACCESSORIES/FEATURES:
Handmade 4 ft sissy bar by Mehner Motorsports, a shift linkage by Hoodwoods Motorcycles, a custom hideaway license plate kit by David Florence, and Paughco Fishtail upswept pipes
