Article By: Randall Noldge
Photos By: Milwaukee Mike
Originally Published In The February 2012 Issue Of Cycle Source Magazine
There are a few life-altering moments that leave a permanent mark on your brain; something that sculpts your decisions in the future and scars your memories. For me, it was in the early nineties when I saw a deraked bike in Easyriders that looked like nothing else at the time. Growing up in St. Louis, I had occasionally seen deraked bikes around the area, but I had no idea this was a Midwestern style. They were usually piloted by a salty, patch holder and built for hard riding and lots of miles. However, this magazine spread was different. This scoot was gorgeous. The architecture of this bike was both abrasive and beautiful. I knew this was the style for me. After reading the tech sheet, l o w – T Article By: Randall Noldge Photos By: Milwaukee Mike and-behold, I discovered that the bike was built only a few miles from home at a shop called Roadworthy Cycles. I immediately headed over to the shop to see if any more of these types of bikes existed. As I entered the door, I was greeted by a surly looking crew who made it clear that if you didn’t ride, you didn’t belong. I was just a wide-eyed kid looking for pieces of art in a paint and chrome museum. I knew I was out of my element. Fast-forward 20 years and I’d ditched my Jap bike, got a couple builds under my belt, slowed down my lifestyle, and came to call Roadworthy home. It’s not my day job, but on my days off, it’s my sanctuary of parts, knowledge, and old timers who lived it. Sometimes I’ll work on my bike, sometimes on others, and sometimes, I’ll just sit on a stool and listen to greybeards tell tales of old, back when sex was safe and choppers were dangerous. This is where I find inspiration.
Last year, I came across a pair of 18 over forks on Craigslist and decided to finally build the bike that had already been b u i l t in my mind a thousand times over; a combination of style and parts that salutes the area and the chopper jockeys that came before. All of the resources were right here at my fingertips. I told Wubbzey, the owner of Roadworthy, my tale of the infamous derake that was tattooed in my mind and he darted off to the office. A few minutes later, he reappeared with a bunch of photographs of that very bike. After reminiscing a bit, he said, “Let’s get to work.” I hung the old photos up for inspiration, and three hours later, my ‘84 FX was stripped to the frame. Being 6’ 5”, I wanted my bike to match my stature. I’d heard Jason at Just Hawgs had a tall frame jig, so over we went. He strapped my old frame down in the jig and asked, “How high ya wanna go?” I knew I wanted to run clip-on bars, so risers wouldn’t pose a visibility problem. I told him, ‘Take it to the top.’ We ended up with 19” stretched up and it fits me like a glove. When Jason finished making sparks, I sent it over to Roadworthy wiz kid, Tony, for molding. We then painted the frame with a rattle can. Now we can touch it up anywhere in the country. Nothing wrong with looking good, but you gotta ride ‘em.
Meanwhile, I took an angle grinder to all the tins and powdercoated them clear. Then I hauled them over to Darren, the genius at Liquid Illusions, who applied the gold leaf, lettering, and came up with the “chocolate drizzle” pinstriping. I can’t say enough about this guy’s talent. Multi-talented Rich Phillips covered the seat and did a custom triple tree cover to crown the top. Shortly thereafter, Squatty, from Squatty’s Speed Shop in Desoto, MO. finished up the motor rebuild. Back it all came to Roadworthy for reassembly. A collection of old parts and pieces started to appear from the dark corners of the shop. My favorite is the rear wheel/sprocket /rotor assembly that came off a Dick Allen bike from back in the day. If you don’t know about him and what the did with choppers, you need to Google him kids. Wubbzey at Roadworthy said I could “borrow” that wheel for the build if I started a blog for the shop. You can check out more of the build, as well as other stuff, at www.roadworthycycles.blogspot.com
Slaying Mantis Tech Sheet
Owner: Randall Noldge
City: St Louis, MO
Fabrication By: Roadworthy Cycles – Owner
Year: 1984
Model: Derake
Time: 6 Months
Value: A Hill Of Beans
ENGINE
Year: 1984
Model: Shovel
Builder: Squatty’s Speed Shop
Ignition: Crane Hi-4
Displacement: .040 Over 80” – You Do The Math
Pistons: Wiseco 10.5 to 1
Heads: H-D
Cam(s): Andrews A-B
Carb: S&S Super E
Air Cleaner: Cast Brass
Primary: H-D
TRANSMISSION
Year: 1984
Make: H-D
Shifting: Big Toe
FRAME
Year: 1984
Make: HD
Rake: 31 Degrees
Stretch: 19” Down Tubes – 14” Top Tube
FRONT END
Type: Long
Builder: Forking By Frank
Extension: 18 Over
Triple Trees: HD
WHEELS
Front Wheel: 80 Spoke
Size: 21”
Tire: Avon Speedmaster
Brakes: Roadworthy Stash
Rear Wheel: Dick Allen – Fabbed in “70s
Size: 15”
Tire: Dunlop
Brakes: Roadworthy Stash
PAINT
Painter: Liquid Illusions
Type: House of Color
Color: Clear
Molding:
Graphics: N/A
Chroming: N/A
ACCESSORIES
Bars: Sportbike Clip-Ons Sleeved In Brass
Risers: None
Hand Controls: Roadworthy Stash
Gas Tank(s): Paughco – Indian Larry
Front Fender: None
Rear Fender: Bobbed Stock
Seat: Rich Phillips
Foot Controls: Roadworthy Stash / HD Pegs
Oil Tank: Roadworthy Stash
Taillight: Roadworthy Stash
Headlight: Roadworthy Stash
Speedo: I Would Look Terrible In One
Photographer: Milwaukee Mike