Iron Panther

November 2, 2016

Article By: Jimmy Frizzell

Photos By: Chris Callen

Originally Published In The May 2016 Issue Of Cycle Source Magazine

When it comes right down to it there is nothing like the unbridled evil of an Ironhead. Every full kick is flirting with the last complete motion your knee may ever take and the success of getting one to fire for the first time without a trip to the orthopedist is a story worth telling the grandchildren. In the bountiful kingdom of Big Twins, a proper Ironhead can easily be compared to a chimp with a cocaine addiction, docile, unassuming, and underestimated, but if you dare to rev that primate up, you might just risk getting your damn face torn off. And with the tenacity of a drunken house wife they crave all of your free time and attention, just asking to get beat on. But whether you love Ironheads or despise them, there is no denying that Frankie Bowman’s homage to the Zero Engineering style of building is truly a work of art. Bowman’s grandfather was a master sheet metal shaper hailing from Budapest Hungary. Upon his passing Frankie took it upon himself to learn all he possibly could about his elder’s chosen profession and began teaching himself the tools of the trade. His efforts didn’t go unnoticed and quickly gained the attention of other professional coach builders that took him under their wing answering all his questions, filling in the gaps and making it possible to hone his skills. At the age of nineteen he was already working on turn of the century automobiles, high dollar hot rods, as well as aluminum bodied European race cars. This was the birth of Bowman Coach Works. Bowman Coach Works had an impressive and successful fourteen year run but as the case would be for many, the recession started to needle its way into the pockets of his clients and the “replacement over repair” mentality forced Bowman to adjust his skill set towards the less cumbersome art of custom motorcycle parts. Soon the shop space would be cut almost in half and the all too common obsession of vintage parts filling the shelves became the norm and as the custom pieces started walking out the door Bowman Motorcycles was born. The Iron Panther has been and ongoing two-year tribute to the Bowman legacy. With a die hard obsession to the Ironhead power plant Bowman Frankensteined a high compression kick only motor from a collection of parts scavenged from ‘76, ‘69, and ‘57 Ironheads straight off Frankie’s dusty shelves all brought to life with the lightening from a vintage Fairbanks magneto and cradled lovingly in remnants of a 52 K model frame skillfully blended with a hardtail section from another donor bike.

Bowman is completely dedicated to the art of the build. The Panther proves to be the perfect example of form over function and by all extensive logic appears to be virtually unridable. The frame has been radically goose necked 100% by eye, the vintage springer front end has been chopped to please and the rest of the frame gently massaged to achieve a ride height of only 26”. The Firestone 500’s hug a pair of sixteen inch rims bringing the limited ground clearance to only 3”. With the extreme rake and limited scrape clearance your normal everyday road obstructions can prove to be a constant exercise in extreme counter maneuverability. Let’s keep in mind Florida State common practice for speed humps is between 3”-3.5” and we haven’t even begun to lean into turns yet. Frankie makes no excuses for his masterpiece’s low drag and bulldozer stance. There is nothing that hasn’t been altered to exactly where he wants it. He relied on his chosen profession to hand cut and form in a panel beaters bag and finished with an English wheel to achieve the low slung tank and matching headlight fairing. The proof of the craftsmanship laid into all of the sheet metal is the simple fact that both tank and fairing wear only a thin layer of gun oil to protect the bare metal from the stagnant Florida humidity. Everything was made in house from the shortened cables to the custom seat. Frankie wanted full control over his vision and takes great pride in saying so. He followed his dream and his love for the Ironhead to create an amazing piece of art. The Florida west coast is an unforgiving environment for such a piece of machinery to exist. And perhaps the Iron Panther is a little out of it’s element and it takes a rider with a steal set of stones to harness the full capability this bike has to offer. Sometimes bike building falls powerless to the underlying rules of engagement and sometimes you have to be able to see past all that to make it all work. Frankie Bowman knew what he wanted when he started this journey and saw it to the end without fail, proving once again that rules are merely just suggestions……