Aside from being a top party spot, the main draw of the tour is the giveaway bikes. The four builders each have to build a bike specifically for the tour, and at each stop rally attendees can sign up for a chance to win one of the bikes, which will be given away at the last stop. But here's the best part: The one person who's lucky enough to have his or her name drawn gets to pick which one of the four bikes he or she wants. It's kind of like winning the lottery, except that instead of only one grand prize, you get to pick from four grand prizes. This year's four HRRHT builders are Aaron Greene of Paramount Custom Cycles, Gard Hollinger of L.A. Chop Rods, Paul Cox and Keino of Indian Larry Legacy, and of course Eric Gorges of Voodoo Choppers. Over the next couple of issues we'll be featuring the other three bikes, giving you the 411 on how the partying went down at the various stops, along with the grand finale wrap-up and giveaway at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, FL. But now let's get back to Eric and his "Gold Digger."
Eric says most of his bikes follow the low-slung digger look, a style that was heavy with guys such as Arlen Ness and Ron Simms in the NorCal area back in the '70s. The bike Eric built for the tour is his modern version of what would have been built back in those days: stretched backbone, raked neck, tight to the ground, and a minimalist narrowed profile with very little molding.
Coming up with the basis for the bike was a matter of Eric cutting, bending, and welding some steel tubing together to create one of his own digger-style frames. Highlighted by a double-barrel downtube, gradually arched backbone, and some drilled gusset accents, the rigid frame sets the bike up with a sleek stance, ready to run red to red against anything on the block. Eric used a re-popped 45 Springer frontend from V-Twin MFG to serve as the only form of suspension on the bike. A modern edge was added with set of aluminum-forged wheels from PM: a 19x3.25 front and 16x3.5 rear. Keeping with the streamlined digger style, no excess rubber was harmed in the building of this bike. The front and rear Metzeler tires combined don't even add up to the width of a 250.
The powertain Eric used is a combination of older style with modern tech. "I picked up a 96ci shovel from S&S. But rather than just tossing it in the frame, I decided to split the rocker boxes, machining away as much material as possible between each and rounding off the edges for a clean, split look." The motor and Baker six-speed trans were tied together with one of PM's Contour open belt-drive systems.
Eric really enjoys every aspect of metalworking. In fact, he often holds classes at his shop and teaches people with little to no experience how to bend, shape, and weld. By looking at all the beautifully handcrafted parts on this bike, Eric must be a pretty good instructor. From the vintage dirt-style handle bars, stretched and tapered gas tank, and tire-hugging rear fender with drilled brace to the two-into-two exhaust, machined foot controls and foot pegs, and dual oil tanks (that's right-the bike has two tanks for oil), it's evident his skills are a combination of mastered techniques and modern machinery. When asked about the two oil tanks, Eric replied, "The space between the bottom of the seat pan and the back of the primary was too small. I could only fit about 1-1/2 quarts under the seat, so I fabricated another 1-1/2-quart tank under the trans and then ran oil lines between the two."