Two Wheeled Paramour

February 10, 2019

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Article By: Jimmy Frizzell

Photos By: Mad Stork Ken Geiger

Originally Published In The September 2018 Issue Of Cycle Source Magazine

Sometimes being your own harshest critic is a blessing in disguise and when you won’t let yourself settle for second best you can only expect to fully be satisfied with the finished product. Dennis Fauerbach is the perfect example of such a paradox. Dennis’ love for two wheels found him on the wrong side of a bad wreck that would permanently take the wind from any man’s sails without question. But instead of hanging up his helmet he started trolling Craigslist to find his next obsession. A post hailing from Savannah, Georgia for a bone stock 1980 Superglide caught his attention, the perfect foundation for a simple yet respectable chopper. Always looking for an excuse to visit Georgia’s oldest city a deal was struck over the phone and Dennis was off crutches in hand. Recently out of neck surgery and leg still in a cast the bike was picked up and put into storage until Dennis was a little more road worthy and a vague sense of a plan was devised. The bike was slated for a simple hardtail and with a tight, clean look, nothing fancy just simple and reliable, nothing more nothing less. The Superglide was stripped, the motor was pulled, and the frame was quickly delivered to Jamie Elswick in California for a more suitable rear. During the process, sketches were sent back and forth to hone in on the perfect tail section. The finished product that Jaime designed was perfection. A precise piece of sheet metal that mounted to the frame and accepted the Xian Leather seat designed by Christian Marsh without showing any unnecessary hardware fitting together like a puzzle

When Dennis acquired the Shovelhead it appeared to be a solid running motor, it was still registered and only had 12k on the odometer. It was showing some obvious age and needed to be cleaned up with possibly a quick once over to prevent future issues, but nothing is ever as simple as it seems. The motor was delivered to East Coast Superbikes in Long Island. The motor was soon discovered to be in dire need of attention, and a complete rebuild was the only remedy. With the motor well on it’s way to being bulletproof Dennis decided to have the trans redone as well just to be safe. This was starting to become more than just a simple, cheap build. While all this was going on Fauerbach recruited his good friend Derek Seiber to shave some 39mm legs and fabricate a beautiful set of narrow trees for the bike. Derek would also later on in the build be involved in the final assembly of the Superglide. Dennis couldn’t find any controls that fell into his vision. The two of them found a set designed by another company that would get them close but still wouldn’t fit the build. Dennis took the leap and purchased a set for mock up where they were promptly reverse-engineered to design a set that would fit the bill. Derek also fabricated a smooth shift linkage set up for the fresh transmission that Dennis says works better than any other he’s had. By this point the prospect of a simple budget build was so far from reality Dennis just decided to lay it all down. If it wasn’t exactly what he wanted it would have to be built. He tried out numerous tanks, yet nothing flowed with the frame and tail section. Jay Roche was the next hand to be brought into the kitchen. He built the tank on the frame so it would match flawlessly, and of course, it does.

Dennis Fauerbach knows what he wants and sticks with the same people with all of his builds so when it came down to paint there was only one person to use. Shawn Long at Imperial House had already painted three of Dennis’ bikes and was now onto his fourth. Dennis had two requests. First he wanted the bike to be white, and second, it needed flames, the rest was entirely in the hands of the artist. The result is flawless, adding just the right amount of color to a bulldog of a chopper. Not overwhelming the build just completely blending into it. Dennis made the journey out to Ohio for a weekend for final assembly and to help Derek thin out his beer overpopulation. With the final product, exactly the opposite of what it was initially supposed to be the final step was to have all the pieces working in scientific harmony; final tuning was done at Standard Cycle in Berkley Heights, New Jersey. The result is perfection. The shovelhead named Paramour took every show it entered in Sturgis and never fails to demand attention wherever it sits. Dennis’ builds involve craftsmen scattered across this country that demand the same perfection beyond what anyone would expect and it shows. None of his builds take the easy way out, there’s a method to his madness, and you have to respect his passion…