BREAKING

Feature Bikes

Bones Trike, A True Survivor

Featured In The April 2015 Issue Of Cycle Source Magazine

Article & Photos By: Steve Kelly

Feature 1a

This was the first unrestored period correct custom vehicle that I shot built by Paul Ponkow of the increasingly famous Bones Legacy, based in Las Vegas, Nevada. For a number of reasons, it has taken a little longer than anticipated to get published, and in the meantime, a whole host of other Bones Legacy projects have been published around the world. Choppers, bobbers and diggers, Paul’s considerable talents enable him to tackle them all, no matter what the genre, but, they all have one key thread in common, they are all 1960’s and 70’s inspired, and I have been lucky enough to shoot them all. Looking at the condition of some of the dusty, rusty, oil covered time-capsule projects that arrive at Bones Legacy, it is amazing to see how Paul can transform them back into their original form, or in many cases, into something that is much better than when they originally hit the streets, back in the age of Flower Power, flared jeans, free love, slugged fork legs, dodgy rake angles and copious hits of acid. Talent is, of course, the prime reason, but Paul is also aided by today’s availability of superior custom paint and technicians, reliable chrome platers, engravers and polishers, not to mention a burgeoning custom parts industry that is heavily geared in favor of parts specifically targeted at Harley-Davidson based endeavors. As far as I know, Paul is in a pretty unique position within the custom industry, in-so-much-as, all of the bikes and trikes that he builds are, all destined for the same customer. A persnickety, famous graffiti artist, who insists on perfection, a man who is passionately outspoken when he thinks that something has been overlooked or undervalued; I witnessed an explosion of this passion over the choice of a single fastener, so it should come as no surprise that no expense is spared bringing each project to gleaming fruition, something that I’m sure you can immediately appreciate and see just by glancing at the images contained within this feature. Eye popping yellow paint also helps this trike stand out from any crowd, well, that coupled with vast swathes of brilliant and flawless chrome that leaves you squinting in the sunlight and reaching for your darkest shades. Knuckleheads such as this one, came into production in 1936 when they replaced the Flathead, and continued to be produced until 1947 when they themselves were replaced by the Harley-Davidson Panhead. This particular Knucklehead is a 1946, which means that it is a 74 cubic-inch model. Paul tells me that the builder of this trike, a guy called Bones, who sadly passed away in 2005, was a happy go lucky, care free type of biker who liked to spread his friendship and good feelings wherever he went. This trike was actually built for his wife, as a similar match to a yellow Pan/Shovel chopper that he had built for himself. In all, this trike took two years to complete, hitting the road for the first time in 1978. The sharper minded reader, will by now, have been able to figure out where Paul’s company name comes from. I really like Paul Ponkow; he is the kind of bike builder that is just happy being left alone to do his own thing. He is clearly an ardent fan of the retro custom bike scene and he is a rider to boot. Every Bones Legacy vehicle that I’ve shot, he has ridden for me to enable me to get more than the standard static shots. I’ve been to a couple of custom shows with him too over the past couple of years, and without fail, you will always hear someone claim that his bikes or trikes are unrideable, one guy, after being shown a magazine that disproved what he was saying, even went as far as claiming that I had used Photoshop to make it appear that Paul was riding in the feature. Sad but true, you get dumbass people even within our biker community!

Feature 1b

Paul fervently explained his great friendship with Bones to me; it seems that, the guy kindly took Paul under his wing and passed on his considerable custom bike building knowledge to this keen-as-mustard younger biker. Paul went on to tell me, that you always hear about the so-called big name custom builders from back in the 1970’s, but there were other guys such as Bones, who on their own, built choppers and other customs that are more functional, and in some ways, were in essence, probably a better piece of machinery than some of the more famous radical over engraved, supercharged bikes, that had busy paint schemes that hit the magazines of that time. Paul believes that this trike is a perfect example of such a custom, that through all of its changes, it retains a beauty and most importantly of all, it remains safe and enjoyable to ride for the person who owns it. Paul has retained his friendship with Bones’ widow since his passing, and after a long time, when she decided in 2011 that it was time to let this trike go, Paul was given first refusal. There is a huge demand for these ‘survivor custom vehicles,’ especially in the US and Japan, so everything on this trike is the same as it was when it was finished in 1978. Unlike a lot of the bikes awaiting Paul’s attention at Bones Legacy HQ, the trike was in fabulous original condition, with pristine paint and chrome, even after all of these years. So, to Paul’s mind, this is a true survivor, not a rust bucket, non-runner, with cracked and chipped paint that has sat in the back of a shed for 40-years. Paul can’t get his head around the fashion of buying, and then riding around on a rust bucket survivor, to him, these are nothing more than original chopped rat bikes. He can appreciate that it is cool for these aging creations to see the light of day once more, but is left scratching his head when they are not restored back to their full potential. However, in this particular case,the trike needs nothing more, and still wins custom bike shows after 36-years. The fact that the trike can still go home with the silverware almost four decades after completion is attributed to Bones’ flare for doing things right! Bones undertook all of the fabrication; the frame for example has been made from a 1960’s Harley-Davidson Panhead front section and a 1940’s Servi-Car rear section. Bones didn’t just pay attention to detail for the parts that you could see either; it was his goal to build the best riding experience as well as a wild custom creation. With that in mind, the crank was sent to Edelbrock for balancing and the heads have been CC’d. Of course, the ever-so-long fishtail pipes were handmade to flow just as he envisaged in his mind. The transmission is a 3-speed, which has been re-geared for higher speeds, and comes with factory reverse. In the first year that H-D released their Servi-Car, it didn’t come with a reverse gear as they had cobbled it together with a stock three speed trannie out of the R solo model Knucklehead. They took care of this oversight the following year, with all 1933 Servi-Cars coming with reverse. It took the factory a staggering further thirty-one years to offer an electric starter, but in so doing, making the Servi-Car the first Harley to come with such a contraption, a whole year before it was debut on the Electra Glide. No matter where you look, be it the luggage rack, or the cable-operated rear brakes, everything is chromed flawlessly. While chrome might not get you home, good maintenance and engineering will, and this trike was built to be ridden! Bones was an avid collector of NOS (New Old Stock) parts, and if you eyeball some of the pieces, you will find choice selections, such as the factory primary with original dimpled inspection cover and bird derby cover. Better than that, how about the stock air cleaner and original Knuckle dash cover, or the factory tank shift that clamps to the frame? Even the coil is original! Watch this space, you are going to be seeing and hearing a lot more about Paul Ponkow in the near future.

Feature 1c

BONES TRIKE TECH SHEET
Owner: Bones Legacy
City: Las Vegas, NV
Fabrication By: Bones
Year: 1960/2014
Make: Harley Davidson
Model: EL
Value: Build One Now and You’ll Know
Time: 12 months
ENGINE
Year: 1946
Model: EL Knucklehead
Builder: Bones
Ignition:
Displacement:
Pistons: Wiseco
Heads: Knucklehead CC’d
Cam(s): Crane Custom Grind
Carb: Linkert M74B
Air Cleaner: Stock Knucklehead
Exhaust: Bones
Primary: Final Drive
TRANSMISSION
Year: 1951
Make: Harley Davidson
Gears: 3 Speed With Reverse
FRAME
Frame: 40 Front Section, 60 Front Section
Rake: 1”
Stretch: 5”
FRONT END
Type: Wide Glide 20 Over
Builder: Paughco: Harley Davidson
Extension:
Triple Trees: 55 Harley Davidson
WHEELS
Front Wheel: Hub, Spokes
Size: 18”
Front Tire: Avon
Front brake: Harley Davidson
Rear Wheel: Hub, Spokes
Size: 15”
Rear Tire: Avon Elan
Rear Brake: 40 Harley Davidson
PAINT
Painter: Bones
Color: Yellow Toner / Green
Type: PPG
Chroming: Industrial Plating Las Vegas
ACCESSORIES
Bars: Harley Davidson
Hand Controls: Barnett
Gas Tank(s): 40 Knuckle
Seat:
Forward Controls: Knuckle Running Board, Lees Suicide Clutch
Oil Tank: Knuckle
Headlight: K-D Bates
Taillight: Cats Eye
Photographer: Steve Kelly

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