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Feature Bikes

Hanky Panky

Article By: Matt Reel

Photos By: Kerri Schindler

Originally Published In The December 2014 Issue Of Cycle Source Magazine

Feature 2a

omething people may not know about motorcycle builders is a lot of them don’t have personal bikes. If they do often it’s not some fancy show quality chopper with all kinds of hand fabbed pieces. Instead it’s a fairly stock bike usually needing its oil changed or some new rubber installed. Why is this you ask, well, it’s usually a time thing. All of their time is spent in the shop working on customer’s rides, filling orders, and getting ready for the next show. There just isn’t any time. Let’s take Daniel Donley for example. Daniel hasn’t had a bike of his own since 2006. With things going full swing at Pandemonium Custom Choppers it hasn’t been in the cards for him. Now, Daniel knew he had to build himself a new ride eventually and had been putting aside a little extra money and storing ideas in his head. Finally everything aligned and it was time to start a build. Now if you have ever seen one of Daniel’s Pandemonium builds then you know they are loaded with trick touches and fine detail. This bike would be no different in that aspect but it would involve one more special thing….. Family.

To start things off an original XS frame was found. Now this wasn’t your typical clean it and use it frame. This frame had been laying outside for quite a while and had remnants of a prior hard tail attempt. So, along with his dad, Daniel set to cleaning up the frame and putting on a quality Pandemonium hard tail with 4 inches of stretch. With the frame ready to go it was on to getting it rolling. A stock XS front end was smoothed and the drain holes welded up. A SR 500 top triple tree was used because of its unique design. The SR 500 top is stepped so it actually gives a little drop to the front end. This top tree allowed Daniel to use a 23 inch front wheel and still have some suspension travel. A cast rear wheel was used with the addition of a set of Buick hub caps. For braking duties a Brembo rear caliper was mounted to one of Pandemonium’s new brackets (watch the Pandemonium web site for these brackets for XS’ and Harleys).

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You can’t talk XS engines without talking about Hugh of Hugh’s Handbuilt. Daniel and Hugh have been friends for quite a while, sharing parts and tricks building XS’s. So prior to doing his own engine Daniel traveled to Hugh’s shop and spent a week learning the delicate art of doing a 277* rephase. With his newly found knowledge Daniel returned to his shop to build his own 277* XS engine. Daniel did a complete build including a port and polish job on the head. A hot rod 256 cam was rephased by Hugh at his shop due to the special tooling required to do the job and sent to Daniel for his engine. With things coming together Daniel fabbed up a gas tank with a Moon Eyes cap. A Led Sled fender was cut down to cover the rear tire, held in place by a sissy bar bent up by Daniels friend Big John. A Pandemonium E-Bomb tank was then added to hide all the electric components. Daniel contacted Jay at Jump Street Customs in Michigan to weld up the handle bars.

As it started to take physical shape Daniel began adding personal touches. He grooved and stepped the valve covers, and bungs. Speed holes were then drilled in the rear fender and the clutch cover. Daniel then machined
off the square corners of the engine fins to give a smooth round appearance. As the project neared its end it was time for Daniel to decide on a finish. A natural finish was decided upon with items like the frame and engine being glass bead blasted. Joe Schindler, brother of Daniels girl Kerri, then put the shine on parts like the gas tank, fender, and E-Bomb tank. It needs to be noted that this was Joe’s first time polishing, take a look at that shine.

So, are you wondering where the name “Hanky Panky” came from? Well, personal bikes get worked on when the customer’s bikes are done. Seems this one kept calling Daniel away from the customer
rides to work on her. Getting into a little “Hanky Panky” in the shop. With the help of friends and family Daniel was finally able to get back in the seat of his own bike once again. Hanky Panky was finished up in time for Mt. Fest in West Virginia where Daniel took it out on its first shake down run and then entered it in the bike show, where it justifiably won Best of Show. It also recently took an award at Hogs and Heifers during Vegas bike week. So, if you happen to see Daniel riding a bike with a shine so bright all you can see is a giant smile then you’ll know
he is up to a little “Hanky Panky”.

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Hanky Panky Tech Sheet

Owner: Daniel Donley

City: Defiance, OH

Fabrication By: Pandemonium Custom Choppers

Year: 1981

Model: XS650

Time: Spare Time

ENGINE

Year: 1981

Model: XS650

Builder: Daniel Donley

Ignition: Pamco 277

Displacement: 650cc

Pistons: Stock

Heads: Ported & Polished Stock

Cam(s): XS-1 Hughs handbuilt 277 Rephase

Carb: BS34

Air Cleaner: UNI Pods

Exhaust: Pandemonium Custom Choppers

Primary:

TRANSMISSION

Year: 1981

Make: Yamaha

Shifting: 5th Gear Overdrive

FRAME

Year: 1981

Make: Pandemonium Hardtail

Rake: Stock

Stretch: 4” Rear

Forks

Type: Shaved 35mm

Builder: Daniel Donley

Rake:

Extension: Stock

Triple Trees: Stock

WHEELS

Front Wheel: 40 Spoke Spool

Size: 23”

Tire: Avon

Front Brake: Nope

Rear Wheel: Yamaha Mag w/ Hub Caps

Size: 16”

Tire: Avon

Rear Brake: Pandemonium/Brembo

PAINT

Polisher: Joe Schindler

Color: Polished Raw Steel

Type:

Graphics:

ACCESSORIES

Bars: JumpStreet Customs

Risers: Yamaha

Hand Controls: Pandemonium

Gas Tank(s): Pandemonium

Front fender: Hell No

Rear fender: Led Sled/Pandemonium-

Seat: Pandemonium

Foot Controls: Pandemonium

Oil Tank: None, Electronic Tank, Pandemonium

E-Bomb

Headlight: ‘Throttle Addiction

Tailight: Pandemonium

Speedo: Finger In The Wind

Photographer: Kerri Schindler

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