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ASSEMBLY REQUIRED: Putting together a chopper piece by piece |
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STORY: Eric Thiessen
PHOTOGRAPHY: Douglas Little
To the average custom vehicle fan, the art of fabrication
and customization may seem like an unattainable peak. English
wheels, torches, sanders, drills, welders, the list of expensive
equipment and tools needed to create even the most rudimentary
custom piece is endless. Hours spent agonizing over the most
miniscule detail, fabrications gone wrong and the art of trial-and-error
being taken to new heights can be intimidating to all but
the most seasoned. But the idea that you have to have a master-artisan's
garage worth of tools and eye for fabrication to have a wicked
ride is one that Steve Dubois is showing isn't necessarily
true.
"I am a bike assembler," Dubois said, making the
distinction between himself and those more involved in raw
fabrication of their vehicles. "There's a difference
between bike builders and assemblers like me. I get the way
I want the bike to look and I'm able to get these guys to
help me out."
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With Dubois' 2004 Pro-One chopper, his fourth bike, being the
end result of his assembly abilities, not many could argue with
the way he went about creating one of Winnipeg's most recognizable
choppers. "Everyone's got Harleys now," the longtime
motorcycle enthusiast said. "I just wanted something different."
Cars and motorcycles have surrounded Dubois his entire life.
Coming from a family line that includes a grandfather in the
Automotive Hall of Fame, a father who owned two car dealerships
in Winnipeg and a brother who is a Corvette builder in Florida
and a former record-holding drag racer, horsepower has always
been in Dubois' blood.
A lifetime spent around vehicles and race tracks has resulted
in Dubois having a keen eye for what looks great on a chopper,
but he said there is always one overriding concern when creating
your own custom.
"One of the challenges is to make it look like the old
choppers, but keep it street legal," he said, adding there
are other challenges that arise when driving a bike as unwieldy
as a chopper can sometimes be. "It rides like a Cadillac,
but at speed, I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me nervous.
Over 100 miles per hour it doesn't give you a lot of confidence."
Adding to the self-described introvert's problems has been the
reaction of people on Winnipeg streets. "People seem to
like it. I didn't expect it to get the attention that it did,"
he said. "Sometimes it was uncomfortable, but I've met
a lot of great people too that I would've never met. There are
a lot of great people into motorcycles."
Already, Dubois is planning his next project. Several trips
to motorcycle shows in Canada and the US have given him the
ideas needed to begin creating templates for the yet-to-be-assembled
bike, and an image is already beginning to take shape in his
mind. "Longer and lower," he said, comparing his new
project to his current chopper. "I want to go to a 10-inch
over-front end, and the down-tubes will be four inches lower."
Comparing these hypothetical specifications to Dubois' current
five-inch backbone and six-inch down-tubes creates an image
of a bike stretched to the maximum.
"With this bike, I can make a U-turn on Corydon, but with
this new one, forget it," he laughed.
While Dubois said the new project would incorporate more metal
fabrication and an overall smoother appearance, he insisted
that he is still going to stick to his assembler roots.
MOD LIST
DRIVE TRAIN
Show polished TP Engineering Pro Series 107ci motor
11/2" primary offset spacer kit
Chrome oil filter mount
Custom oil line kit with AN fittings
Chrome oil pressure gauge
Polished 6 speed transmission with chrome covers
Chain drive primary kit with chrome inner and outer primary
housing
Chrome Spyke hi-torque starter
Crane hi 4-ignition with single fire coil
Spyke charging system with chrome regulator
Harley Davidson battery
Pro One Millennium style chrome billet wire harness with key
switch
FRAME
250 Pro Quad Chopper Frame (6" down tube stretch, 5"
back bone stretch, 38 degree rake)
Legends air ride suspension
Arlen Ness kick stand
Custom steel gas tank with pop up gas cap
Pingel fuel valve
Braided gas tank cross over line
Custom fitted oil tank with chrome cover
Russ Wernimont steel front fender and strutless steel rear
fender
Stainless steel rock guard
Pro One Scimitar chrome billet forward controls
Chrome shift linkage and rod ends
Pro One 3 degree raked Millennium thin tires with turn signals
Extended chrome fork boots
Smooth Pro One round leg and tube set
Polished hidden internal fork stop kit
Fork bearing and race set
Chrome billet 21" Pro One Gothic front wheel with hub
Chrome billet 18" Pro One Gothic rear wheel with hub
Avon front and rear tire
Chrome billet Gothic 70 tooth pulley
Two piece 11.5 Gothic front & rear brake rotors
Chrome billet 4 piston front & rear brake calipers
Dayco rear billet
Chome billet slim line side mount horizontal license plate
kit with taillight
Fred Kodlin custom handle bars
Chrome billet 5 3/4 headlight
Passenger pegs with mounting hardware to match forward controls
Leather padded seat with fiberglass seat pan by High End Seats
ACCESSORIES
Drag Specialties chrome hand controls and switches
Arlen Ness Torpedo grips
Joker chrome pistol grip lever blade set
Yankee Engineuity billet motor mount and coil cover with chrome
hardware
Dakota Digitial 2 1/16" mini speedo
Ness Torpedo Bullet speedo mount
Vance & Hines exhaust
Chrome exhaust flange kit
Braided clear plastic coated clutch, brake and throttle cables
Stainless Russell brake lines
Chrome engine case protector
Fred Kodlin air cleaner
Defiant Customs paint
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