Bikes, Babes and Airbrush — Part 2
Saturday, July 15, 2006 / Day 1 (officially). Part 2 of our 2006 LA Calendar post brings much more; more bikes, more babes, and lots more incredible airbrush. What a combination. Take that and mix it with incredible weather, a beautiful view across the bay, the Queen Mary within eye shot, and you have an incredible combination.
Enough with the words already. Let’s get to the pics of some of the most colorful bikes I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing up close. So, with that my first real stop revealed a ton of incredible airbrush art on display. Motorcycle tanks and fenders ready to go - Kenny Morris style…
Kenny’s shop Hot Rods-N-Hogs, specializing in custom paint and fabrication, made for an impressive display of sheet metal and bikes.
They feature several different paint schemes and styles in their display. The one thing they all have in common is quality.
Whether it be hot red flames and skulls…
Screamin’ fast contemporary graphics,…
…or you want to tag a brand - These guys have your style down. And after you’ve seen all their stuff…
…check it out - more cool custom sheet metal! These guys clearly stay busy.
I especially like the old skewl Harley - not that you see many in this condition.
… complete with custom shifter. Really though - these flames, like a classic bike, will never go out of style.
Ya, they got you covered when it comes to paint… Old skewl kewl to techno-cool, and pretty much everything in between. Want to see more? Check them out at Hot Rods-N-Hogs in Stanton, California or online here.
From my old stompin’ grounds (well, sort of…) comes Ascroft Motorcycles. These came all the way from Salem, Oregon to show their stuff. these bikes are beautifully detailed with just tastes of ultra cool pinstriping hand-laid by Mitch Kim out of Portland. I know of Kim’s work well. In fact, he’s striped a couple of my personal bikes a few years back. He’s a Northwest Legend with a reputation for laying lines long and straight…
and he clearly does a nice job with the fancy stuff too. This guy is focused.
Anyway, not to digress as I focus on the pinstripes, because these bikes would rock without the fine touch of a smooth brush. The art is just icing on the cake. It draws your eye nicely to the louvers on the tank, or long lines running parallel along the frame. Deemed “The Flyer”, Ashcroft himself says this bike was designed as a canvas for Mitch Kim’s artwork.
Ironically, somehow I missed getting more shots of this bike. Click here to see more of this retro bike reflecting early “Hot Rod” influences at their web site.
Okay, here’s a chance to redeem myself for my lack of Ascroft pics…
Rocky Felix, owner and builder at Rocky’s Pure Kustom is sick - real sick… and it shows. He’s built one of those bikes that demands a second look… and a third even. This bike is a fine tuned tuned machine created from passion. Rocky tells me that did it all; design, build, paint, seat - the works! Believe it or not, this is also his first build.
The Pure Custom looks great from any angle.
I kept coming back to this bike. It’s beautiful lines… the paint - it’s all there! This thing is outrageous to say the least.
The front of this bike is about as sleek as they come…
…and this rolling sculpture is art from just about any angle.
Speaking of angles… this would have to be my favorite - engine running and gears engaged.
Rocky is also a master motorcycle seat fabricator. Click here to check out his work online. Kudos to you Rocky. We can’t wait to see your second attempt at bike building.
So, we’ve seen cool and old skewl, and you’re a fan of wicked. Fear not - Wicked Brothers’ 2005 Pro Builder Class winning bike “Lethal Strike” was on display, and more often than not, it was a hard bike to see up close.
I had to swing by several times to get some clean shots of this one. Seems that whenever I tried to get close, it was already buried with a crowd of fans.
Patience prevailed and I was fortunate to get some great shots and look at this bike up close.
Lethal Strike is a seriously wicked bike, complete with a real rattle snake as part of its design.
The subtle pinstripes set everything off nicely.
Click here to get Wicked online.
Joe Guzman and the crew from LA’s original Cycle Studio were on hand. These guys are regulars at several of the shows we attended this year. Even so, each time our paths have crossed, they’ve managed to bring out fresh goods to please the crowds…
…like this trick truck with some smooth flames.
…or hot baggers ready for the long haul. Joe paints it all.
Hmmm. Nice business card holder.
We showcased some of Joe’s work on our Laughlin post or… check out his site for more.
The distressed look is new. I saw this look on a couple bikes at the show, but this trick ride built by JIMS is well executed.
A closer look gives you an idea of what could be the next big trend in paint. I noticed Nubbs painted a “distressed bike” for Bill Murray on American Chopper. The Caddy Shack theme-bike was built by Orange County Choppers and aired Monday August 14, 2006 TLC. Anyway, it’s an interesting look when done right.
DreamCraft…
While this bike is a bit lean on airbrush paint…
… it more than makes up for in innovation and cool. I couldn’t not share it with you.
Keeping with tradition, there is never a shortage of beautiful ladies at these shows. Remember, this is “The Calendar Show”. With that, we’ll call this post finished, but stay tuned for our next LA Calendar post — we’ll reveal the The Crypt (an outrageous bike built of bones), some Bourgets bikes full of color and accessorized with beautiful ladies, a couple theme bikes from Stones Choppers out of Las Vegas, some trick stuff from Mercury Customs, and an insane quantity of cool shots of some of the wildest airbrush art of two-wheels anywhere…
Until then, we’ll leave you with this…
…because as these guys know; bikes, babes, and airbrush. Life is good.
Cheers for now —
A.D.
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February 20th, 2007 23:37
[…] Ron Simms was just one of a dozen custom bike builders present at the L.A. Calendar show. There was so much to see there, we had to spread it out over two posts. Read Part 1 - Read Part 2 […]