Free -N- Easy

February 3, 2017

0Points

Article And Photos By: Mark Velazquez

Originally Published In The July 2016 Issue Of Cycle Source Magazine

Jack Deagazio is like many of us who love to ride. Building bikes (bicycles) since he was a kid with his buddies was really what most boys did back then when life was truly all about baseball, apple pie and maybe a little bit of Hendrix. Of course these young men had bigger dreams, and of course they all involved the power of the V-Twin and maybe one of Charlie’s Angels on the back for the ride! Jack has been building bikes at his shop, Suicide Jack’s, in Syracuse NY for a little over ten years now. As you can with the bike that is gracing these pages J Jack decided to go back to a special time in his life, he wanted to truly pay tribute to an era of time when the bikes were long, chopped, and made by hand. For these were the bikes he rode. Mind you, the start of this build did not begin in Syracuse, it actually started right where the images you see before you where taken, good old Daytona.

As the story goes, Jack was down in Daytona hanging out with Peter Penzenstadler and his wife Anita of Penz Custom Bikes when Jack tells Peter how he has been dying to build a Swedish style chopper. With that said, Peter says he has to build the frame! Now, most of us know that Penz is based in Austria which was a concern for Jack but Peter would not take no for an answer and that night they sketched out the frame that would be the anchor and building block for this ride. Once the frame was done and in the states Peter and Jack got in touch Bill Holland of Executive Choppers and requested a Harman Girder fork. One of possibly 3 that were built that year was built and given to Jack. So, with a frame with a rake of 42 degrees over 4 and the fork with a 26” extension I would say we have a chopper in the works! Now keeping things in the tradition of Old School 70’s of course the engine would have to follow suit. Luck would have it that Jack just happened to have a ‘76 shovel which was taken out of a Super Glide, a perfect fit. With engine in hand, a longtime friend, Randy Meisenhelder, was called in to help rebuild the shovel. Randy is known as one of the best and a true secret. There was no other in mind when it came to this build and the fact that these two were buddies helped to make this throw back come full circle. To top it off, as if you could not get a more perfect engine, Hernan D’Aloia of Engrave It Inc. put the finishing touches on this shovel with art of engraving that cannot be match!

Since we are on the topic of art, on a referral from Warren Lane, Jack was introduced to Mo Diaz of Mo’s Image Custom. Jack gave Mo free range on the paint design with the one exception of anything but green. The results, well its safe to say Mo makes a bike look good! What a work of art and yet again Jack had no idea what the final outcome would be. Truly a one of a kind. Adding to the list of one offs are a Haifley Brothers seat, Battistinis forward controls with 2” custom extensions, a killer sissy bar by D Twist, Paughco Fish Tails, and some original Invader wheels made by Scotty himself! All together true and classic perfection. I suggest you take a peek at this spec sheet and become inspired. The inspiration for this killer ride was pulled right out of the past for Jack. Taken from a time when things were simpler and there was more free and open road to ride. An old school bike built on old school tradition. This bike was built as a tribute to his buddies who are no longer around to take that ride through the Adirondacks on a brisk fall morning or to just sit around on a cold winters night and talk about that next build. Keeping the history of this era has always been important and the response Jack gets as he rides or takes her to shows makes him feel that his efforts with the new and next generation of riders is not in vain. A special thank you goes out to the guys at Al’s Cycle Shop, without the help of Lyle and Al we may have never seen this bike in Daytona this year. Also its with a heavy heart that we say good-bye to Randy Meisenhelder, as Jack lost a great friend this past March. This was Randy’s last engine build and we are grateful that Randy did get to see this project and his hard work complete and on the road. I think it would be safe to say that Randy will forever be by Jack’s side on the road keeping an eye on him. Free N Easy is her name and with this bike Jack has once again made his presence known in the chopper world yet again.