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Feature Bikes

Cupcake

Article By: Jimmy Frizzell

Photos By: Mark Velazquez

Originally Published In The April 2016 Issue Of Cycle Source Magazine

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Choppers, a time honored tradition in the deviation from standard design in a pursuit for excessive simplicity. And while it may not be the reinvention of the wheel, it damn well is a celebration in the exploration of perfection. The ability to follow through with the completion of what was once only inspiration is never an achievement of weaker men. Inspiration, to some, can prove to be a slippery slope that may in fact bring a person to the edge of insanity. It’s rarely planned and never appreciated for the double edged sword it can tend to be. Nick Beaulieu is a man not to be taken lightly; he appreciates the simple well planned details without losing sight of the broader picture and will stop at nothing to see his vision through. Highly invested in the on goings of his shop Forever Two Wheels in Windham, Maine he was already elbow deep in a customer build when his invite to Artistry in Iron came in. He knew whole heartedly that his entry had to be second to none and in order to meet the deadline everything would have to move seamlessly. As Forever Two Wheels hummed along in the daily grind of customer builds Nick began to collect anything he could find and quickly started a stockpile of chopper guts on the side.

Like any gearhead, Nick has a roving inventory of locally available projects and parts cataloged in his head and without delay decided to reach out to John Lafirira about a ‘63 Panhead with a four speed tranny he had stashed away. Now knowing that the Pan would be the soul of the build he made the rounds collecting the 21” spool from Bob’s Cycle Supply and 39mm trees from Bling Cycles. The J&P Cycles clearance tent supplied the belt drive and Troy at Evo Cycles in New Hampshire hooked him up with the lower legs. But the true vision and direction of the build wasn’t truly achieved until he purchased a set of purple velocity stacks from Bare Knuckle Choppers, once in hand Nick began to see the colors, design, and general tone of the entire build. With the old motor and now a firm grasp on a direction he reached out to a local named Justin Bar to make him a one off tail light with a purple swirl and to accent, a custom shift knob with an orange highlight to go along with a must have purple lensed headlight he just had to have.

With inspiration well ingrained in his mind and all other shop projects off to paint Nick left Maine for a previously scheduled 2 week obligation in Sturgis. Knowing that time waits for no man, the trip would leave only a 5-6 week window for Nick to get the Pan project done in time for the show, so he already made plans to use his trip to hook up with his buddy, Wayne Alquist, and construct a one of a kind wishbone loop tail frame that Wayne affectionately titled the “Nick Boner” frame. Between the completion of daily builds and the onslaught of pressure the Pan started to incur, Nick realized that Forever Two Wheels may, if only for a brief period of time, have to become more than a one man show. While Nick finished final assembly on the bread and butter of the shop he relied on close friend Ray Tourigny to create the tank, mounts, tail and side panels. Nick laid the burden of the extensive engraving to the trusted hands of guru John Huff. Bare Bones leather wasted no time completing a hand tooled two-tone leather saddle for Nick. Leaving Darryl of Kandyman Kustoms to tie everything together by laying down the intense voodoo violet and tangerine orange candy over a heavily flaked base creating a visual cadence between the paint, leather, chrome, and design.

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Nick promptly sent all the new parts as they were finished to a new polisher that he was using for the first time. Only to have them returned riddled in buffed scratches and swirl. With only a hand full of days left until the final assembly. Ray came to the rescue and spent countless hours repolishing every piece as best he could. Countless phone calls to retrieve the still missing Pan cases from the failed shiner remained unanswered only to have them left at the doorstep 24 hours before deadline, untouched and in need of major attention. A quick gamble with powder coating the pieces fell short of Nick’s standards and just that quick, he was forced to miss Artistry in Iron…

Nick didn’t want to show a bike that didn’t reflect his vision in its entirety. The bike was once again torn down and all the metal was sent out to his original polisher Tristan Smith, Tristan attacked each piece giving it the attention and time needed to ensure flawless accent to the build. The time crunch of meeting the Artistry and Iron Show had pushed FTW to the brink of financial chaos and without a Hollywood budget the bike would take the back burner to the amazing customers of Forever Two Wheels. He set a new goal of making the International Motorcycle Show at the Javits Center in NYC in mid December. The added time allowed more pieces to be engraved and gave some well deserved breathing room to the build.

He had to remake some crucial pieces that the original polisher never returned and Tristan continued pumping out mirror finished perfection. John Huff was able to produce some laser pieces for the gas tank and hand delivered them just in time for IMS. The new deadline proved to be just the kick and breathing room needed for Nick to coordinate a perfect bike. He found it difficult not to share his progress on the chopper but felt the impact of the entire motorcycle was completely worth it. What almost crushed Forever Two Wheels proved to be possibly the greatest thing to ever happen. The result of an amazing Panhead being revived through such pressure is a tale for the ages. Photos of the extremely classic pan have popped up everywhere and its prepubescent legacy is sure to help build a firm foundation of the quality Nick puts into every Forever Two Wheels build. While Nick has fondly named this two wheeled vixen “Cupcake” it’s clear that is was “Baked in Hate” and in the clear and unwavering words of its builder Nick Beaulieu “if you don’t like it…..EAT IT.”

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Cupcake Tech Sheet

Owner: Nick Beaulieu

City: Windham, ME

Fabrication By: Forever Two Wheels

Year: 2015

Model: Panhead Chopper

Time: 3 Months

ENGINE

Year: 1963

Model: Panhead

Builder: HD/Forever Two Wheels

Ignition: Morris Magneto

Displacement: 74”

Pistons: .40 Over

Heads: Stock

Cam(s): Stock

Carb: S&S Super B

Air Cleaner: Bare Knuckle Choppers

Exhaust: Forever Two Wheels

Primary: Rivera Primo

Transmission

Year: 1965

Make: Harley Davidson

Shifting: 4 Speed Hand Shift

FRAME

Model: 2015

Make: ACME “Nick Boner”

Rake: 30”

Stretch: 2”

Forks

Type: 39mm

Make: Showa/ Forever Two Wheels

Extension: Stock

Triple trees: Bling Cycles

WHEELS

Front Wheel: Bob Cycle Supply “Groovy”

Size: 21”

Front Tire: Avon Speed Master

Front brake: Nada

Rear Wheel: Harley Davidson

Size: 16”

Rear Tire: Shinko

Rear Brake: Dual Brembo/FTW Mounts

PAINT

Painter: Kandyman Kustom Paint

Color: Voodoo Violet, Tangerine Orange

Type: House Of Kolor

Engraving: John Huff

Molding: Ray Tourigny

Chroming: Coyote Chrome

Polishing: Tristaen Smith

ACCESSORIES

Bars: Forever Two Wheels

Risers: Forever Two Wheels

Hand controls: FTW Grips/Kustom Tec M/C

Fuel tank: Ray Tourigny

Front fender: None

Rear fender: Bare Knuckle Choppers

Seat: Bare Bones Leather

Foot Conttols: Forever Two Wheels

Oil Tank: Forever Two Wheels

Headlight: Throttle Addiction/Justin Bar Glass

Taillight: Justin Bar Glass/FTW

Speedo: None

Photographer: Mark Velazquez

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