Readers of Hot Bike are no doubt familiar with the road tests we perform on a monthly basis. Normally we focus on a single bike as we run it through its paces over a 30-day trial and pass it along to various staff members to get their opinions. This month we are going to change things up a bit from the norm. Instead of giving you insight on just one bike, we've decided to present to our readers a pair of bikes cut out of a similar mold. The beginning of the new year has our offices brimming with some great motorcycles that would be of interest to our readers, so we decided to run these two bikes concurrently in the same article.
The industry has, over the last year, become inundated with what many manufacturers are calling "bobbers." While we take issue with that term, which we feel is being tossed around far too flagrantly these days (see the article "Got Bob?" in the Mar. '06 issue of HOT BIKE, p. 76), we do love all the cool little stripped-down motorcycles being manufactured under that moniker.
The thought of simple motorcycles wearing tires in the sub-200mm category and powered by smaller-displacement engines than much of what we are seeing these days is definitely refreshing. Many of these bikes have the ability to bring us back to a time that was less complicated. A lot of riders will no doubt be reminded of some of their first rides back in their younger days.
The two bikes we are testing this month are built by Covington Cycle City of Woodward, OK, and BMC (Big Mike's Choppers) out of Bend, OR. The fact that we are running the two bikes in the same article should in no way be construed as a comparison of one bike to the other, but rather as a look at a couple of different ways of tackling a particular style of bike. While the bikes are similar, they do have their differences-read on.
BMC Bobber
For the past few years, BMC has operated out of two different facilities: one in Bend, OR, and the other in Santa Cruz, CA. In September 2005 operations were consolidated at the Bend plant, which boasts 10,000 square feet of shop space housing various CNC and other machines that allow BMC to manufacture frames, sheetmetal, and billet components. An additional 15,000 square feet houses the bike-building portion of the business, where BMC produces its line of six different models, which are available through any of its 31 dealers located in 43 states.
Mike's idea for this bike came as he talked to quite a few old-timers, picking their brains about the style of bikes from the '40s and '50s. The concept was to keep the bike simple, reliable, and fun to ride, all while ensuring it was 50-state legal. The little red rigid on these pages is the result of Mike's efforts.
The foundation for the bike is one of BMC's own wishbone-style frames manufactured in-house using 1-1/2-inch and 1-1/8-inch DOM American-made steel tubing. Heavy gusseting is used to reinforce the 32-degree neck as a direct response to Mike's riding style. Mike likes to ride hard-make that real hard. Over the years HOT BIKE has displayed images of Mike performing wheelies on just about every model he sells. So with that in mind, the bike had to be tough enough to stand up to that kind of abuse. A pair of black-anodized BMC triple-trees set in a wide configuration secure 41mm, 2-inch-under fork tubes and chrome lowers.
What's a bobber without spoked wheels, you ask? Nothing! DNA 60-spoke chrome wheels accent the front and rear of the bike as they anchor a 100/90/19 up front and a 130/90/16 out back, both wide whitewalls. Brakes on the bike are second to none, with a four-piston Brembo caliper and 11-1/2-inch Russell rotor picking up most of the braking chores on the narrow front wheel, while a single Brembo takes care of things in the back.
Considering that the bike only weighs 500 lbs, Mike's motor of choice was a Gen III RevTech 88-incher. The motor comes with some serious backing from the factory in the form of a three-year/30,000-mile warranty. Likewise, the RevTech five-speed transmission comes with an almost unheard-of five-year/50,000-mile warranty. A wet-chain primary connects the two, while a full-width belt is used to spin the rear pulley. Completing the motor is a two-into-two Santee baffled exhaust system, a Mikuni 42mm carb, and a RevTech ignition. The crew at BMC came up with an electrical box with built-in diagnostics connected to the wiring harness. If and when an electrical problem pops up in the system, the diagnostics help a technician isolate the cause.
Controls on the bike consist of billet forwards and CCI chrome hand controls on a set of somewhat flat bars fashioned to 2-inch urethane bushed risers. Completing the bars is a small Auto Meter speedo with resettable odometer, and a pair of small round mirrors.