So when I asked Bruiser’s creator, Justin Collier, how he came up with the name, I wasn’t surprised by his response. “I got it from sitting on the bike for the first time and thinking to myself, ‘This is just going to hurt to ride. The bike looks cool but it’s going to be painful!’ ” admitted Justin. He went on to swear that, “I actually like leaning forward and reaching for the bars. Other than the pipe being a little warm on your right leg, it’s really very easy to ride. But then again I wouldn’t want to put a novice rider on it.”
And what about the inevitable force feedings of road sludge served up by the fenderless front-end? “Yeah, it seems like every bike I’ve built for myself I don’t put a front fender on, and then the first time I run through the tiniest puddle I start chewing myself out going ‘How many more bikes do you hafta build before you put a front fender on?’ I actually made three different types of front fenders, but they always looked completely out of place and carried more visual weight than the back tire or gas tank. You gotta sacrifice something sometimes.”
Creature comforts aside, for a guy who’s still looking ahead to his 30th birthday, Justin has convinced me that he has the vision and skill to be a fresh new force in driving the custom scene forward. Bruiser’s clean and lean looks belie the thoughtfulness that went into achieving them. “The hardest part was making it appear simple, which of course complicates things for me as a builder.” For instance, “Everything is parallel to the ground. I like things symmetrical. I think it brings a look of speed.”
“Experimenting with Bruiser’s design was a way for me to go ‘alright, I could put it here like I’ve always done’, or say, ‘I’m not going to do that, I have to make it work some other way’.”
Justin isn’t afraid to swim against the tide of jumbo tires and powerplants either. After years of large displacement engines he feels that, intimidation factor aside, they vibrate, get hot, and “you could never really use the power on a chopper anyway.” Collier prefers the reliable 88 which offers plenty of power, especially huffing through the velocity stacks of a dual-throat Dellorto carb, and exhaling through custom pipes, like those of the funny cars he admired in his youth.
Simple, short, and straight describes the trick, slick, and lever-free handlebars. Justin chose an open twist clutch rather than a foot clutch because of the awkwardness of using the latter on hills. “I want everybody to see everything, but have it not be in the place where it normally is. It’s all there. It’s not like it’s hidden behind a bunch of sheet metal.” That doesn’t mean you won’t have to look closely to find things, like the ignition switch at the end of the left handlebar.
This game of hide and seek isn’t just about trying to be clever. For instance, the chin fairing/oil bag serves the practical purpose of carrying four quarts of oil while positioned in the breeze, with the oil cooler running between the downtubes. Or the battery from a touring Beemer for its long thin shape and cranking power tucked out of sight beneath the Indian transmission. Or best of all, according to Justin’s line of thinking, if the wheels are such a critical (and expensive) component of a bike’s look, then why cover them up with brakes? While the front wheel simply goes without, Frisco-style, unless you’re a board track racer, or Fred Flintstone, at some point you’re gonna need some pinchers. That’s where HHI’s 4-caliper “sprotor” comes in. Collier says he’s “blown away with how good it stops.
Even the paint scheme was kept to a restrained minimum complimenting the straightforward, functional, retro feel of the bike with a basic non-metallic hot rod blue applied to the frame, and a trip to the chromer for just about everything else.
I’m deeply impressed that such a young fella was able to take this award wining custom from concept to completion in just 16 working days. Bruiser is an honest, soulful, elegant fusion of form and function that manages to “Wow!” you without resorting to cheap parlor tricks like supersized components, tacked on doodads, or bucketfuls of House of Kolor. Heck, lots of builders spend more money on their paint jobs than Justin sells his bikes for! Perhaps the highest praise that I can offer young Mr. Collier is that he displays a preternatural maturity in his taste, values, and philosophies and possesses the self-confidence to stand behind them.
Builder: Justin Collier
Colliers Custom Cycle
“I don’t think I had a choice of what I was going to do.” Born with the motor-sports gene, Justin was visiting the race track with his dad at age three, and drag racing at the ripe old age of eight. He wrenched on dirtbikes, mopeds, and racecars with his dad, but the day they started to build up an old Shovelhead was the day Justin knew he wanted to build bikes. Over the next few years he honed his skills on everything from a tricked out Sportster for his Mom, to a fat tired Honda chopper that landed him his first magazine feature at the age of sixteen.
Collier admires Jesse James’ philosophy of staying true to your roots and building bikes you love regardless of trends or criticism. “I used to build a bunch of bikes that are, you know, really fully molded and really stretched, kinda radical bikes. And I’m kinda gettin’ away from that. It’s not what I’m wanting to do anymore. I wanna build a basic, true, aggressive, streetable motorcycle.”
Justin’s shop, Colliers Custom Cycles in Tempe, Arizona, plans to offer a production model of Bruiser for just $15,000 in turn-key form. For more info see www.c-3chops.com or call 480-966-0536.
This bike feature originally appeared in Barnett’s Magazine issue #57, September 2007.
SPECIFICATIONS | |
---|---|
Owner: | Justin Collier |
Year/Make: | 2006 Colliers Custom Cycle |
Fabrication/ Assembly: | Justin Collier/CCC |
Build time: | Three weeks |
Engine: | 88″ H-D crate motor |
Cases: | H-D |
Flywheels: | H-D |
Rods: | H-D |
Pistons: | H-D |
Cylinders: | H-D |
Heads: | H-D |
Cam: | H-D |
Ignition: | TWIN TEC |
Carb: | Dual Dellorto |
Pipes: | CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW??? CCC |
Air Cleaner: | Dual velocity stacks |
Transmission: | Indian 5-speed |
Primary: | Roadmax 3″ open polished |
Clutch: | Roadmax/ CCC twist clutch |
Frame: | CCC Bruiser |
Rake: | 50-degrees |
Stretch: | 3″ out/ 3″ down |
Forks: | 1.5″ lowered 39mm H-D |
Rear Suspension: | Sidewall of the tire- Rigids Rule!! |
Front Wheel: | 21×2.15 chromed spoked |
Rear Wheel: | 18×5.5 chromed spoked |
Front Tire: | 80/90×21 Metzeler |
Rear Tire: | 180/55×18 Metzeler |
Front Brakes: | Who needs them? |
Rear Brakes: | HHI 4-piston sprocket brake |
Fuel Tank: | CCC Bruiser |
Oil Tank: | 4-quart chin mount |
Fender: | More like a shirt saver than a fender |
Handlebars: | CCC Bruisers |
Risers: | Built in |
Sissy Bar: | No thanks, I don’t drink. |
Headlight: | 4″ dual element Poor-Boy Parts |
Taillight: | Poor-Boy Parts Retro |
Hand Controls: | CCC twist clutch and throttle |
Foot Controls: | CCC mid-mounts |
Electrical: | Bet you can’t find it |
Chroming: | Space Coast Plating |
Painter: | Justin Collier |
Color: | PPG Hot Rod Blue |
Graphics: | Chrome |
Molding: | Justin Collier |
Seat: | CCC |
Special thanks to: | My beautiful wife Kristin, my dad “Wild” Bill, “Too-Tall Nick,” and Space Coast Plating |