Visting Chopper Dave

Every time Sideburn takes a trip to the US we try to visit a few different shops or garages. Earlier in the year we visited the new Brat Style outpost and Suicide Machine Co in Long Beach. This time, while we were out for the US Superprestigio/ Superhooligan and LA-Barstow-Vegas, we called at long-time supporter of Sideburn, Chopper Dave's  in Hawaiian Gardens. 

He was the first American to buy Sideburn issue 1; his race-ready street tracker featured in Sideburn 5; his Born Free turbo street tracker was in Sideburn 15. 

In a entirely forgettable trading estate, and behind a plain door, without a sign or clue to what's inside was the scene above.

Some of the most influential Harleys of recent years were parked or in parts.

A whole swap meet of tanks on the stairs.

Dave casts a load of great-looking parts: filters; footpegs; car club plaques; ignition covers; belt buckles. See more at Chopper Dave's Casting Co.

Wax to be melted to start the shaping process of casting.

Great hauler with FTWCo's 'Support Your Local Racetrack' order

Dave!

Dave giving us directions to Roland Sands' place. His fingers read H-O-L-D F-A-S-T. When Dave chopped the end of his little finger off at work, he added C-H-O-P S-A-W.
Thanks for showing us around Dave. G

Newbold's Motorbike Shop

I had the opportunity to visit racer, friend and poet, Travis Newbold and his motorcycle shop in Wheat Ridge, Denver last week. This is what I found...

That's Travis and his junkyard XS650 that he is going to ride off-road from LA to Barstow next Spring. He has monoshocked it with an old YZ back end. I think the front end is YZ too. Seat and plastics are Kawasaki (from a junk yard, like the YZ bits).

 Tools and stickers...

Helmets and trophies.

 More stickers

A Monkey.

 About 10% of Travis's trophy haul.

 A few more trophies.

 Travis's favourite trophies in a glass case - from Pikes Peak and his Dirt Quake II number board.

 His first race gloves.

 Hondasaki project.

This is how Travis and his dog Baja travel the few miles to work most days. Baja has ridden with Travis since she was a pup. A woman in a car pulled up next to Travis and started threatening to ring the police and report him for animal cruelty. Travis explained that the dog had more sense than him and her put together and if she didn't want to get on the bike she wouldn't. That shut her up.

Newbold's Motorbike Shop stocks Sideburn.

La Ruche Moderne

A short trip to San Sebastien in Northern Spain, for work last month, meant I had to fly into Biarritz then drive the 40 mins to the Spanish town. Knowing I'd have a little while before I had to be in Spain I contacted Vincent of Bixente Moto to see if I could visit the workshop I'd heard about, in Anglet, the town next to Biarritz. Vincent gave me the address, but it turned out it was to his new place, La Ruche Moderne. Still, I wasn't complaining.

The painting on the outside was done by ex-pat American Steven Burke who works under the name, Lucky Left Hand.

La Ruche Moderne (LRM) is a multi-purpose building. It has a bar and canteen area, with a BSA desert sled parked in the middle. The canteen hosts corporate events and parties, with enough room for a band to play and a wall for films to be projected onto.

At the back is a small display for Vincent and his wife's men's underwear brand - Hemen Biarritz.
Mrs Inman is stood in the middle, helping give scale. The car in the top left corner helps too.

Also at the back is Vincent's wife's collection of Polaroid cameras. They all still work, he says.

 Above the rusty bar is a store area for Vincent's hoard of old stuff...

 Ancient mini-bikes...

Prehistoric skateboards...

1960 and 1970s Schwinn and Raleigh choppers

 Next to the canteen is a long workshop and bike storage area and garage.

Old Harley, JD, I think.           Old Indian

 Vincent and Ronald.

Vincent's daily rider BSA is always evolving. It raced at Dirt Quake II and thrashes around Wheels and Waves annually.

Read more about this great fella and his bike, in a previous guise, in Sideburn 16 (see below). G

MV Airgusta

Our good friend Jason has celebrated news of the UK coming out of recession by fitting a spare MV Agusta F4 wheel to the workshop wall to keep his airhose tidy. Recycling, the sensible thing to do. G

GI needs help

I regularly work for Performance Bikes and they're always looking for cool garages to photograph. One I featured recently was Geoff Co-Built's. I visit with a photographer, and he shoots it in this funky way. We're very careful not to give the location of your lair away.
If you're in the UK and have a garage or workshop you think might be worth featuring please get in touch. It can be large or tiny, but as long as it's got some interesting things going on we could be interested. It doesn't have to be as awesome as Co-Built HQ.
Thanks for your help. G

Geoff Co-Built in PB

Geoff's secret Co-Built lair gets the 360 Degree Garage treatment in this month's Performance Bikes (June 2012), on sale for a week or so more. I've been in a lot of cool garages and Geoff's blew me away. Lots of great ideas and tips to pinch.

Also available mail order through the Magazine Man.

Photograph: Paul Bryant, Kinetic Images. G