So how do you decide what to build after taking over three decades off? “It’s the bike I always wanted to build. It was always in my head,” said Russ. “It’s a combination of 60s, 70s, and rolls clear on up to the present.” The basis for this bike was Russ’s love of the custom Edward Bohlin silver saddles he saw his western movie idols riding in the Rose Parade when he was a kid. “I didn’t want to do paint; I wanted it to be more of a giant parade saddle,” said Russ. “It’s just a real typical, belt buckle, Texas-looking thing.”
Starting with a Redneck Engineering frame, Russ modified it to have an Old School chopper look ending up with 6” up and 6” out. Redneck also supplied the long chromed springer, which reaches out to a brakeless front wheel in true Old School tradition. The CCB Signature Series wheel by Tight Customs features a cactus design and is as skinny as the rear wheel is fat. Avon provided the wheel protectors and an Exile Cycles Sprotor is the only brake in town. An Ultima 113” engine offers ample motivation and looks good doing it, especially more so now that Russ has added matching silverwork to the heads since these pictures were taken. An air cleaner made from a Ford Model A horn and CCB’s Dust Blower exhausts cap it off nicely. The six-speed LSD tranny is jockey shifted with the help of a Grandeur Cycle Super Auto clutch.
The star of this build is the finish on the Hess-built bodywork. After making an arching tank, an extremely pointed air dam, and seat encasing rear fender, Russ’s dream of making a two-wheeled parade saddle came to be. Silversmith Sammy Ruddy was called on for his part of the build. “There are two layers of silver, the first one is flat, the second is filigreed and engraved and cut with a coping saw, one at a time and silver soldered. Next the gold bead work and flowers are added and then the ruby stones are set,” said Russ. “It’s all polished and painted black, then we polish it all off leaving a black background. The design came from the Professional Bull Riders Association World Cup, it’s gorgeous.” According to Russ, it took 500 hours just to do the silverwork, not counting the new additions to the heads and springer. All of this was laid over a Jet Black basecoat and the look of a Bohlin saddle became a motorized 21st century entity.
Even with all the elaborate ruby and gold adorned silverwork, the dramatically sweeping handlebars stand out on their own and provide one more use of an alternative material in this build. “The handlebars needed to look like a set of bullhorns,” said Russ. “The wood overlay was something that just had to happen. They’re something from the Sixties, back when Shelbys first came out with wooden steering wheels and Grant GT steering wheels had riveted wood overlays. I like the feel of wood, I like the look of wood.” Keeping this bike tactilely interesting are the set of leather grips by fellow Texan, Daniel Uptmor of Uptmor Saddlery, in Waco, who can make anything in leather for you, your horse, your house, or your bike, in the best western tradition. A bike based on a parade saddle obviously needs a special saddle of its own and the drop seat saddle he made is adorned with an oak leaf and acorns and securely cradles the rider in place when he grabs this bull by the horns.
Perusing the spec sheet, it’s a CCB Old School build fest. “Everything on this bike was built by us, we don’t buy anything if we can make it,” said Russ.
Builder: Russ Hess
Cowboy Custom Bikes
The old cliché, “you can never go home again,” apparently does not apply to Russ Hess. After painting cars in high school, Russ built hot rods, and later low riders, in his spare time with his ’41 Willys gracing the cover of Rod & Custom and the centerfold of Hot Rod Magazine. His first custom bike, a ’68 Sportster, was on the cover of the first AEE Choppers catalog in 1971. Russ stopped building bikes in 1976 because of family obligations, but couldn’t stay away and opened CCB two years ago. Today, he builds one-off customer bikes starting at $25,000 and has a line of parts available. “At this point, I’m 61 and I’ve got a good twenty years left. I can build some radical stuff in twenty years,” said Russ. Get your CCB bike or parts with a Texas twist at www.cowboycustombikes.com or call 940-567-3027.
This bike feature originally appeared in Barnett’s Magazine issue #56, July 2007.
SPECIFICATIONS: | |
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Owner: | Russ Hess |
Year / Make: | 2006 Old School w/ No Rules |
Fabrication/ Assembly: | Cowboy Custom Bikes |
Build time: | 8 months |
Engine: | 113″ Ultima |
Pistons: | Mahle 10.2:1 |
Cam: | Ultima .625 lift |
Ignition: | Crane |
Carb: | S&S |
Pipes: | CCB Dust Blowers |
Air Cleaner: | CCB |
Transmission: | Unlimited Accessories 6-speed LSD |
Primary: | BDL 3″ belt/CCB |
Clutch: | Grandeur Cycle Super Auto |
Frame: | Redneck Engineering/ CCB |
Rake: | 48-degrees |
Stretch: | 6″ up/ 6″ out |
Forks: | Redneck Engineering |
Wheels: | CCB Signature Series/ Tight Customs |
Front Tire: | 90×21 Avon |
Rear Tire: | 300×18 Avon |
Rear Brake: | Exile Sprotor |
Fuel Tank: | CCB |
Oil Tank: | CCB sidemount |
Fenders: | CCB |
Handlebars: | CCB |
Headlight: | CCB |
Taillight: | CCB |
Hand Controls: | CCB |
Grips: | Uptmor Saddlery |
Foot Controls: | CCB |
Chroming: | Advance Chrome |
Painter: | CCB/ SEM Horizon Colors |
Color: | Jet Black |
Seat: | Daniel Uptmor/Uptmor Saddlery |
Special thanks to: | Debby, Danielle, Tommy, and the CCB crew |