Dar is only one half of the story; the other is three-time Top Fuel World Champion and legendary frame builder, Sam Wills of Racing Innovations. Sam’s been building frames for racers and custom builders for years and had a shop that Dar frequented. Dar wanted to build his own custom bike and “harassed” Sam constantly to show him how to build it. Sam finally caved and worked with Dar showing him the ropes and Dar’s had his first custom, but wanted more. He went into partnership with Sam, using Sam’s expertise and equipment and his business knowledge, and began to produce a line of bobbers called Brass Balls Bobbers, which feature bike The Mutt is based on.
Obviously, a Racing Innovations frame was used. Dar says, “Sam makes them out of thicker tubing than they need to be. Not only does it make the bike stronger and safer, but it tends to dampen vibration.” Sporting a 36-degree rake with no stretch, the bobber profile is firmly established, but that’s not the first thing you notice on this bike. It’s the engine, the attractively different 100” Indian Power Plus engine of Gilroy Indian fame boldly dares you not to notice it. The round heads and cylinders look different, but not oddly so. Incorporating the latest updates for reliability, the Indian motor powers this lightweight bobber quite nicely. “The engine is fantastic, it has such a distinct sound and the power and the torque, it’s amazing,” said Dar. “I like things that are different than other people have. This engine fit the mold.” The S&S Super E carb, left side mounted in true Indian style, breathes through a finned teardrop Crime Scene Choppers Speed Line air cleaner. Sam fabbed a set of race-tuned stepped pipes that were ceramic coated and given a brushed finish. Simple, classic, and effective, both design and performance-wise. Dar chose an enclosed Harley primary for a clean look and connected that to a RevTech LSD 5-speed tranny, which spins a chain to the rear wheel. With Sam’s adherence to keeping it a traditional bobber style as possible, I doubt he’d approve of a belt.
Speaking of traditional bobber style, the DNA black springer fork looks period correct while holding a 40-spoke 21” Harley wheel with Dunlop rubber encasing it. Performance Machine gave up a single-piston disc brake system to help reign in the 100” fun. Another 40 spoke H-D wheel with a fat-for-the-time 150-16 Dunlop gracing the rear and a serious 4-piston PM brake adorns this wheel. Rear suspension? On a true bobber? You gotta be kidding. That’s what the leather covered sprung saddle by West Eagle is for.
The Brass Balls custom drag bar sits on four-inch risers giving a Dennis Hopper not Peter Fonda position. Performance Machine supplied both the hand and foot controls adding known reliability and style to this ride. What’s a bobber without a sissybar? A simple chrome-tubing sissybar acts as the fender strut and also gives something to tie camping gear to. An antique-style headlight helps to set camp and a Trucker Girl taillight from Mammoth Choppers adds classic bling.
The bodywork is minimal as it should be with a pre-1974 Sportster-style tank sitting high on the top-tube at an angle that gives a look of motion. The flat rear-only stamped fender you’ve seen before, no surprises there, and good choice. A classic three-quart round oil tank fills in the frame space properly and looks the part too. Aaron Glen of Airwerks Anonymous was called in to paint a black finish with Old School white hot rod flames and red pinstriping. This bike has a kinda original orange peel effect to it by a method Aaron uses that involves a chemical wash that take away the glossy finish and gives the paint a satiny/shiny surface.
But that’s not the real story here. This bike was built for a gentleman named Rick Reynolds who just so happens to be Dar’s adoptive dad, who along with his wife were the people Dar relates to as his real parents. They were school teachers struggling to get by with two kids of their own when the took in Dar and made him feel the love of a family for the first time. After buying Rick a Sporty, which Dar says he rode constantly, to replace the tales of all the bikes his dad had after getting back from Vietnam and before he had a family, Dar decided that he would build this bike for him. The number 85 on the oil tank celebrates the year Dar became part of Rick’s family and got his chance to evolve and survive.
Builder: Dar Holdsworth
Darwin Custom Cycles
Dar Holdsworth is new to the custom world, but you’d never know it by speaking with him. His enthusiasm and determination to succeed where others have tried and failed is contagious. A lackluster high school student interested in bikes with more dreams than money, he ended up joining the Air Force where he served in Desert Storm and got a college degree during his service stint. Success in business finally allowed him to satisfy his custom motorcycle cravings by hooking up with Sam Wills of Racing Innovations and forming a new business dedicated to custom and production motorcycles. Dar’s got the business acumen and a passion for motorcycles that’s unbridled. Why else would someone work so hard in a profession where few builders ever succeed? Sam brings credibility to the business and Dar honestly admits, “If it weren’t for Sam, I’d just be a wannabe.” Honesty is something that goes a long way with bikers. Check out www.darwincustomcycles or call Dar at 405-388-8883.
Darwin Custom Cycles and Brass Balls Bobbers
There’s one more shrimp on the barbie with the cool Brass Balls Bobber hitting the market at a time when everybody’s saying it’s shrinking. That doesn’t deter Dar Holdsworth as he feels he’s in the right price ballpark with a quality product that’s undeniably attractive. With an option list as long as your arm, the BBB offers you a chance to make a production bike that’s uniquely yours. Starting with an Indian, Harley Evo, or S&S Shovelhead motor, you can make choices on just about every piece of this bike. The Evo bike starts at $16,900 for the single-color bike with a five-speed RevTech tranny, 3” belt drive, spoke wheels, etc., and upgrades from there. Dar says, “I made the website where the customer can virtually build their own bike, price it, and adjust it if more is spent on options than they want.” Maybe you can’t actually build your own bobber, but you can at www.darwincustomcycles.com or call 405-388-8883.
This bike feature originally appeared in Barnett’s Magazine issue #52, Nov-Dec 2006.
SPECIFICATIONS | |
---|---|
Bike Name: | The Mutt |
Owner: | Rick Reynolds |
Year / Make: | 2006 Brass Balls Bobber |
Fabrication: | Sam Wills, Shawn Norris, Dar Holdsworth |
Assembly: | Darwin Motorcycles |
Build time: | Two months |
Engine: | Indian Power Plus 100″ |
Cases: | Indian |
Flywheels: | Indian |
Rods: | Indian |
Pistons: | Indian |
Cylinders: | Indian |
Heads: | Indian |
Cam: | S&S 561 |
Ignition: | Thunder Heart w/special 5 mm wires |
Carb: | S&S Super E |
Pipes: | Sam Wills Race-tuned Step Pipes |
Air Cleaner: | Crime Scene Choppers- Speed line |
Transmission: | Rev-Tech 5-speed |
Primary: | Harley-Davidson enclosed |
Clutch: | Harley |
Frame: | Darwin Motorcycles/ Racing Innovations |
Rake: | 36-degrees |
Stretch: | 0 |
Forks: | DNA springer |
Rear Suspension: | Rigid |
Front Wheel: | Harley 40-spoke |
Rear Wheel: | Harley 40-spoke |
Front Tire: | Dunlop 21 x 3 |
Rear Tire: | Dunlop 150 x16 |
Front Brakes: | PM single-piston |
Rear Brakes: | PM 4-piston |
Fuel Tank: | Pre ’74 Sporty-style |
Oil Tank: | 3-quart round |
Fenders: | stamped steel 6″ rear |
Handlebars: | Brass Balls Custom Drag |
Risers: | 4″ round |
Sissy Bar: | Brass Balls Custom Sissy |
Headlight: | 4″ custom |
Taillight: | Trucker Girl/Mammoth Choppers |
Hand Controls: | PM |
Foot Controls: | PM |
Electrical: | 32-amp charging system head light and tail light only |
Chroming: | Peerless Platin |
Painter: | Aaron Glen/ Airwerks Anonymous |
Color: | black/PPG |
Graphics: | Old School hot rod white flames/ red stripping |
Polishing: | none |
Molding: | none |
Seat: | 9″ West Eagle |
Special thanks to: | Sam Wills |