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Spic-N-Span Shovel

July 1, 2011

Article By: Jeremiah Levendusky
Photos By: Jeff Cochran www.speedkingphoto.com

Perfection and precision are accomplished only by practice and persistence. Nothing or no one holds more true to that than my good buddies at Papa Clutch Customs. I have been lucky enough to witness another excellently executed build by these cats from Ainsworth, Iowa.

I would guess if you are a regular reader of Cycle Source, you have seen one or two creations from these guys over the last few years.

They now have a new Web site with a badass parts’ line which includes a bolt-on hardtail for 1958- 1984 HD frames. Not to mention a wicked set of trees more narrow than you have ever seen; no joke you need to check these things out. You might be wondering what they could possibly do to top their previous accomplishments. Well, they managed to out do themselves again with their latest Shovel build, Spic ‘n’ Span.

The machine was built over the course of three stress filled weeks. Not only were they building two bikes for Daytona but throw a pile of obstacles in the way, personal and professional, you will find a new respect for these dudes. “Between planning a trip to Vegas for my daughter’s wedding, the V-Twin Expo in Cincy and only 3 weeks left until we would unveil Spic ‘n’ Span, we would have to say we had our hands full and our work cut out for us,” said Tim Anding. The crew at Papa Clutch really knows how to cut it close. Even though they’re burning the candle at both ends, they still seem to come out smelling of success, smokes, Diet Mt. Dew, and oh yeah, Four Corners Pizza. They know a deadline all too well; that’s really how their build “Dead Liner” came about. Tim remarked, “But really, once we got our bearings and started fabbing and building, it was all downhill from there.”

Tim and crew busted ass only stopping for the other activities that filled the hours and days prior to Daytona. Tim made it clear he couldn’t take all the credit, a couple of his boys showed up with a few leather goodies and a handful of help. “We would like to thank Relic Kustoms, Jeremy and Jordan with Union Speed and Style, as they were with us the last 24 hours of this build. Spic ‘n’ Span only put us 18 hrs. behind schedule on the trip to Daytona. The best way to describe it is that after building Spic ‘n’ Span, we got to Daytona and had a blast of good times with great friends. That’s what it is all about: building bikes, relationships, and parting them out when it’s all done. Once again, my wife stepped up and pushed us along and got our asses in gear,” Tim explained.

The bike may lack a long story due to the fact it was such a short build time, but the components, bits, and pieces hold a sentimental value with Papa Clutch and Tim personally. The engine is a 1969, 74” Pan/Shovel 74 inch with S&S Pistons, Andrews’ cams, Mallory ignition, BDL Primary, and a ‘69 HD 4 speed equipped with a Baker N1 shift drum which was originally developed for drag racers. The N1 shift pattern (neutral-1-2-3-4-5-6) was designed to prevent false neutrals between 1st and 2nd by positioning neutral under 1st. This drag racer trick also eliminates all room for error in finding neutral on a jockey shift bike. As you roll up to the stoplight, you tap all the way down with your left hand and you are guaranteed neutral because it is the last stop on the shift pattern. Tim says it’s bad as hell and real easy to install. This bike also happens to be the same year Tim was brought into this world, kicking and screaming. The ‘69 has been a bit of a whore, slutting around the likes of four different bikes built by Papa Clutch. You may remember “Forty Acres” a few issues ago; yep, same motor. Not only does the engine hold the hearts of the guys, but all the Papa Clutch parts this bike showcases represents a ton of hard work and passion from the last few years.

Starting with the frontend, which was a killer addition to the lineup of products, Tim and crew have countless hours pulling together the HD legs, 2 under – 33 mm forks and the Spool Bob’s little spool hub in combinations, and of course the Papa Clutch narrow trees were used to create the skinniest frontend this side of the Mississippi. Oh and let’s not forget the set of Handcuff bars stacked with LA Chops’ internal throttle and a Fab Kevin oil tank to seal the deal. Then there’s the custom banana style tank, hand built in- house, and painted by Underground Art Studios using House of Kolor paint creating the Mexican blanket stylings. The chroming was done by a killer local shop, The Chrome Shop, making a real sleek machine and even slicker ticket.

Jeff’s Big Rig shifter, foot clutch, and brake set-up are a few of the other goodies this little thing has to offer. You can’t find better products for stopping, shifting, and drifting your bike down the back gravels of Iowa!!! “Basically we wanted to build a bike to take to Daytona and various shows this summer to show off what Papa Clutch Customs has to offer. We pulled out all the stops on this one trying to put as much of Papa as we could in this thing. And it seems to be a great way to advertise what we got. The Web site is blowing up weekly with orders for our hardtails and we’re getting tons of emails inquiring about other products,” explained Tim. This is what we all like to hear considering the state of this country and its economic situation, plus American built, bud.

I was fortunate enough to be floating around the shop during the moments before their long road trip to Florida and got to see Spic ‘n’ Span unfold and come to fruition. It was great to watch a really amazing bike, with such a short lived build time, fire up virtually minutes before loading up for the road south. You find a new respect when you see such a stressful deal bring three amigos together in unison to obtain an almost unthinkable feat. It’s actually pretty rad.

This is what makes Papa Clutch Customs one-in-a- million. They’re just some small town white boys trying to make ends meet, building killer parts, punching out bitchin’ bikes, and showing a few of us how it should go down. Thanks Tim, Jeff, and Kev for building this little Mex Machine.