Article Summary

Ben Zimmerman's 1974 Norton 850 Chopper

She was a barn find and needed a complete restoration. When Ben was done, she was a Best-in-Class Winner at the 2009 Donnie Smith Bike Show in Minneapolis, MN.More about: Ben Zimmerman's 1974 Norton 850 Chopper

BMHS Bike Klub: A Voodoo Woman Named Phyllis

In 2004, Marc Mazzerolle or "Mazz" started an after school program at his school for kids labeled "At Risk" or "Introvert". At Risk can mean many things, the kids are at risk of dropping out of school, they are at risk of going to jail, they are at risk of living on the streets and at risk of suicide. "Introvert", are kids that are closed, they think inside themselves and very seldom share their ideas or put them into reality, actually seldom are they given the chance to put them into reality. Mazz created a club. Two kids became four, four became eight and before you knew it, they had a little group. In the fall of 2004 they made it legit and formed the program. They needed to give the club some sort of identity, all the kids and Mazz had a passion for Hot Rods and Nostalgia Rods so they simply changed the "C" in club to a "K" and they became "Bike Klub", to be specific, the Bernice MacNaughton High School Bike Klub of Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada.More about: BMHS Bike Klub: A Voodoo Woman named Phyllis

Introducing the Phantom Manufacturing Company's Phantom EG!

The Phantom EG is the latest motorbike from the Phantom Manufacturing Company of Cambridge, England.

We at British Chopper say "Well done, lads! Well done!" But we don't think we could tout the EG any better than Phantom Manufacturing Company's own Erasmus Thump...

Limited Edition Steve McQueen Métisse Desert Racer

Faithfully built encompassing the ideals employed by Steve McQueen all those years ago (1966). These include styled footrests made to his original design, 35mm Ceriani forks, with seven inches of travel which he found to be the optimum. The yokes are from BSA being his preference because of the handlebar position, set behind the steering stem for better control.More about: Limited Edition Steve McQueen Métisse Desert Racer

Norton Returns Home

After nearly fifteen years of US ownership, Norton, the quintessential and most famous of British motorcycle brands returns home.More about: Norton Returns Home

The Dearden Supercharged Vincent Black Lightning

The undisputed star of Bonhams' sale at the Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show in Stafford on 19 October will be the only supercharged Vincent Black Lightning ever made. Built to break the world speed record, the machine has been kept in totally original condition and is expected to sell for US $400,000-600,000, a feat, which would break records of a different kind.More about: The Dearden Supercharged Vincent Black Lightning

Roger Allmond Custom Triumph Rocket III

Bennett's Insurance UK commissioned top British Bike Builder Roger Allmond to build this Triumph Rocket III.More about: Roger Allmond Custom Triumph Rocket III

A New British Motorcycle Movie Will Be Storming Into Cinemas Across The Country From 1st February 2008. FREEBIRD

Riding into cinemas 1st February, Take a trip to www.freebirdmovie.com for cinema listings and info It's a three and a half hour journey from London to the Welsh mountains, but for Fred, Tyg and Grouch it's just about to turn into the trip of a lifetime.More about: Freebird

Norton VR880 Sprint Special

British Chopper has featured all kinds of custom British motorcycles over the years, but this featured motorcycle represents the origins of the custom Brit movement. Triumphs, Nortons, and BSAs were tweaked, tuned and stripped in order to push the bikes ever faster. Cafe racers are the soul of our movement.More about: Norton VR880 Sprint Special

Rapom V8: Nick Argyle is the man!

The Rapom V8 motorcycle, which produces over 1000 bhp, was built by British engineer Nick Argyle. It is powered by a supercharged Dodge V-8 engine. Running on alcohol, the 1000 bhp returns just four miles per gallon, and it's mileage log usually only covers the 10 mile journey to a local drag racing strip. With that sort of power available at a twist of the wrist, the monster bike requires a super long chassis end every bit of its curb weight of 1000lbs in order to stop the bike flipping under hard acceleration. More about: Rapom V8: Nick Argyle is the man!

Matt Hotch Custom Vincent

Every once in a while you see a motorcycle that just speaks to you. Beyond the aesthetics, the lines and the engineering, there is something about the bike that tugs on the heartstrings. We here at British Chopper love the resourcefulness and creativity that has defined the custom British motorcycle movement for decades. This Vincent was born out of the same spirit. More about: Matt Hotch Custom Vincent

Custom British Diesel Motorcycles

We here at British Chopper love old school as well as new school, simplicity as well as technology, and form as well as function. We have featured a broad range of bikes over the years, but this is truly a first. Ladies and gentlemen, we present our first custom diesel motorcycle. More about: Custom British Diesel Motorcycles

Rocket III SS

British Chopper ran a feature on the Rocket III earlier this year, raising the question of how best to customize this niche motorcycle. According to our poll, 33% of our members voted for a Hooligan style Rocket III, and another 15% voted for a hot rod Rocket. We passed this information on to the boys at Hooligan Brothers, who happened to be working on a few custom Rockets already. We were able to snap a few quick pics of one of the Rockets near completion, as it was being prepped for an upcoming magazine feature. More about: Rocket III SS

Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's Rick Fairless!

Rick Fairless makes it look easy to customize a vintage Triumph. So often, scrutiny of a customized 650 or Bonneville reveals the frustration we have all encountered trying to integrate all the "sourced" parts we have acquired for our build. Not so with Rick. This is the second full custom Triumph we have seen from Mr. Fairless. The amazing thing is that he does not build custom Brits on a regular basis. Instead, he draws on years and years of experience building V-Twins, and applies the same ingenuity and artistry to the infrequent custom Trumpet he creates. More about: Rick Fairless Triumph Chopper

The Secret Identity of the Rocket III

The Rocket III is like nothing else. As a power cruiser, it occupies a class that has historically emphasized muscle over styling. The bike is built around a massive 2300cc engine that will propel you down the road much faster than you need to go. More about: The Secret Identity of the Rocket III

What does it for you?

Highlander and JOK3R, owners of British Chopper, are motorcycle enthusiasts in the truest sense. We have owned or ridden or worked pit crew for V-Twins, super bikes, dirt bikes, adventure bikes, choppers, bobbers, classic bikes, new bikes and just plain beaters. It is difficult to pick a single favorite, as each class has its own merit. It is our opinion, therefore, that the custom British motorcycle movement should guard against monotony. More about: What does it for you?

Builder Bio-Rick Fairless, Strokers Dallas

We had just talked with the good folks at Triumph about sponsoring a special edition of Biker Buildoff featuring Triumph Bonnevilles (they said no for now...) when all of a sudden Rick Fairless of Strokers Dallas builds a Triumph chopper for the Biker Buildoff episode against Matt Hotch of Hot Match Cycles in Fullerton, CA. We are fans of Matt, with his innovative ideas and skill to back it up, but as soon as we saw Rick building around a Triumph motor, we went nuts. More about: Builder Bio-Rick Fairless, Strokers Dallas

Triumph's Custom Street Tracker for the 2004 International Motorcycle Show

So, here we are after years of promoting custom British motorcycles, when much to our surprise, Triumph has a custom bike on tour with their exhibit at the 2004 International Motorcycle Show. It was invigorating to think that Triumph was starting to understand the need for factory recognition of custom motorcycles (like the Bonneville pictured above). The builder applied some cool touches, like the exposed drive sprocket, race suspension and engine mods, but ultimately, I think Triumph missed an opportunity. More about: Triumph's Custom Street Tracker for the 2004 International Motorcycle Show

First Customized in 1932!

This motorcycle, an English Douglas motorcycle, was customized in 1932 in preparation for a global motorcycle ride. If you think custom parts are hard to come up with now, imagine what owner Robert Fulton was up against. Check out an editorial review of the book, "One Man Caravan" about Robert's adventure. More about: First Customized in 1932!

Rebirth of the Norton

If you are examining this new Norton for all the new features of the 2004 factory model, you will be looking for a while. This is not the new factory Norton, this is a custom Norton built by Colorado Norton Works. Matt Rambow spends 250 hours on each Norton rebuild, and the results are stunning. More about: Rebirth of the Norton

The Revival of The British Legacy

British motorycles dominated the scene until the Japanese and American makers edged in on the action in the mid sixties. The stronghold of the British motorcycle empire was eventually reduced to ashes as all the major UK bike makers went bankrupt or ceased production of motorcycles. More about: The Revival of The British Legacy

The Passing of Indian Larry

I was saddened to hear of the death of Indian Larry. We here at British Chopper are fans of Larry and his art, and felt a connection with the style he crafted over his many years in the biker lifestyle. Larry combined old school simplicity with hot rod muscle to create a truly unique signature look. More about: The Passing of Indian Larry

The Rocket III

So...the Rocket III is premiering this summer. Propaganda from the Triumph factory would have you believe that this motorcycle is the embodiment of motorcycle perfection. Its styling is certainly bold, and its horsepower claims are even bolder. More about: The Rocket III

The Origin of British Chopper

British Chopper was formed as a solution to the lack of support for custom British motorcycles. We could not find a shop that was exclusively dedicated to custom British bike parts. We encountered criticism from the mom and pop British shops for modifying British motorcycles. The occasional custom parts we found were very low quality, or they were a V-twin part that someone was trying to shoehorn into a British bike-yeah, like a square peg in a round hole. More about: The Origin of British Chopper

Encounter with the Sheriff

The other day I decided to install an led taillight on my '68 TR6. I had been riding my new Triumph most recently, so I didn't even know if the old one would fire up. I thought it would be best to start it up and take it around the block a few times just to get it warmed up. More about: Encounter with the Sheriff

Before You Build...

Would you absolutely have to have Dunlop K-80/81 "tyres" for that authentic riding experience, or would you install cheap Chinese imitations? Would you use a tire constructed of space-age compounds that gives you the performance edge, or one designed to outlast its competitors? Most people choose a specific style for their custom bike, but it is also important to choose a quality level. More about: Before You Build...

Why Do We Ride?

I attended a holiday social with family last night, and my uncle had a genuine question for me: Why do I ride? He had seen a couple of bikers on the freeway the other day who were bundled head to toe in leathers and we obviously very cold. After following them for a while, my uncle and his daughter intuitively said at the same time, "Don't they look uncomfortable?" More about: Why Do We Ride?

VW's and Triumphs

When I was 16, my parents bought me my first car-a 1968 Volkswagen Bug. It didn't cost much and needed a lot of work, and it seemed like a small enough project for me to handle. I quickly became acquainted with the local VW shop and familiarized myself with everything they had in stock-and it was a lot. My '68 was not my last Beetle. More about: VW's and Triumphs

Survival of the Motorcycle

Let's be honest. Poor business decisions and a shift in consumer focus made the 1970's a difficult time for British Motorcycles. In the end, Triumph was about the last to squeeze out a meager production. Norton, Vincent, Ariel, BSA, Royal Enfield, Brough-Superior and Triumph, mainstays of the British motorcycle industry, had called it quits along the way. Back on the mainland, their American counterparts were struggling as well. More about: Survival of the Motorcycle

The British Motorcycle - A True Original

The coolest thing about British motorcycles is that they are the true original, and as such, owe nothing to their famous American counterparts. The American motorcycle was not the star of early motorcycle propaganda. Lawrence of Arabia rode a British motorcycle, and Marlin Brando starred opposite a Triumph in "The Wild Ones." Steve McQueen rode a Triumph in "The Great Escape" and countless others, from Clint Eastwood to Antonio Banderas have been filmed on Triumphs. The Triumph legacy with the media is alive and strong, having been recently filmed in "Mission Impossible II" and "Daredevil." More about: The British Motorcycle - A True Original

The Birth of The Little Hooligan

The first time I saw my Triumph, little more than a shadow in the corner of a friend's garage, I fell in love with it. It was not for the hulking motor hanging out of it, nor was it the incredible shine of show chrome-this bike had character. It is parked in my garage at this moment-it is a 1968 TR6C. When I bought it, it had been retired from a history of abuse, desert racing in Death Valley. More about: The Birth of The Little Hooligan