Duane Barnett, a Dallas resident, was looking for an interesting way to promote his commercial and highway construction material business, SSI. “One of Duane’s warehouses is down the road from Strokers. Every once in awhile he’d stop by the shop, have a beer and look at bikes. Eventually he asked me if I’d build him a bike that was unmistakably associated with SSI,” Rick said.
Not one to pass up an opportunity to help a friend, Rick agreed. They discussed Duane’s ideas and sketched out what the bike would look like, and worked out the details as they talked. Rick even took a trip over to the SSI facility and took a couple items, and a few ideas, from the warehouse to make the bike unique. After about a week they decided on a custom RFSD rigid chopper frame and they built it with a wide rear tire, 45-degrees of neck rake, downtubes stretched eight-inches and four-inches added to the backbone. A Rolling Thunder wide springer front end was built eight-inches over to compensate for the large rake angle and tall downtubes. Custom machined wheels were designed specifically for the bike. The three-spoke wheels feature an oval containing the SSI logo on each spoke, the 21×3.5” front wheel was machined for the front axle and a meaty 18×12” wheel was attached to the rigid rear end. A large 300mm Metzeler tire was wrapped around the rear wheel with a much skinnier and taller version encircling the front. There’s no front brake system whatsoever, and that helped keep the front end clean by eliminating any need for brake lines and one less hand control. Lastly, the rear wheel hub received a combination pulley/rotor squeezed by an HHI caliper.
As with most of his custom builds, Rick recommended using a TP Engineering 121” crate motor for the bike. “Tom Peron, a good friend (and fellow Hamster brother), suggested that I use his 121” motor. When he suggests a motor, I listen. It’s the standard motor in all our custom bike builds,” Rick said. RFSD bolted an S&S E carburetor to the manifold and a set of Samson “Gone Down” exhaust pipes to the heads. Partially covered by the pipes is a BAKER right-side-drive 6-speed transmission that receives power through a BDL three-inch wide, open-belt primary.
The sheet metal is where RFSD made the bike unmistakably SSI property without going too far. The shop made a couple of cylindrical gas tanks mounted side by side on the backbone and designed to look like two oversized tubes of caulk. What appears to be a forklift piled high with a miniature 55-gallon barrel is actually a housing for the oil. The rear wheel received a stubby Russ Wernimont Design fender that the RFSD fabricators trimmed down to cover a small portion of the massive tire. RFSD’s Texas Tee handlebars were bolted to the top of the springer and an RFSD seat was positioned at the base of the backbone tube. Other Side Customs handled painting the frame, handlebars, and rear leg of the front end black. Then they gave the fender, oil tank, gas tanks, wheels, and front legs a thick coat of specially-formulated color called SSI orange and added a pin-up girl air-brushed onto the rear fender.
RFSD reassembled the painted parts and bolted on the accessories and details of the build. After the essentials were secured to the frame like the PM hand and foot controls, Headwinds headlight, and RFSD taillight, they moved on to the slightly unconventional (for a motorcycle). A number of concrete-cutting saw blades were attached to the primary belt cover. Nipples were placed at the ends of the gas tanks, and styled to look like two tubes of silicone caulk.
“Duane was very involved with the build process; he really loves the bike. He actually rides it around town every once in awhile, but it’s mostly used for showing off the bike for SSI promotions,” Rick said.
Up Close: Headwinds Headlight
Headwinds claims that their 5.75” CONCOURS BULLET headlight, similar to the light seen on Silicone Sally, was the first totally smooth headlight in the custom aftermarket. The secret to its unblemished surface is its spun billet- aluminum housing, completely machined with a non-wavy, mirrored finish. The recessed lamp, combined with a screw-in bezel and locking feature, creates a flawless look that denotes a level of quality unmatched by the knock-off artists in the industry. Engineered with common sense, the housing fits all SAE lamps and they recommend their pigtail connector kit 8-0902A for use on Harleys. All of Headwinds’ parts are available in any combination of polished aluminum, chrome plated, and/or brass plated. Lamps, mounting blocks, and bolts are sold separately and made in the USA.
Diversity in parts is paramount at Headwinds and they have multiple pages of different lamps available. There’s a variety of lamps and lights for every size housing, replacement bulbs and exotic lamps, standard 100/55watt lamps to a halogen headlamp with convex lens. They even have super bright Xenon lamps. Generally, any combination of housing, style, size, groove pattern, mount, and finish is available and are as easy to get as asking for them.
Since 1992, Headwinds has offered quality lighting to motorcycle builders. They’ve pioneered motorcycle lighting with innovations that do away with exposed rivets, bolts, flanges with threaded housings, screw-in bezels, and billet brackets with hidden fasteners. Headwinds has over 100 different models, including carbon fiber, and offer headlight housings in 7″, 5.75″, 4.5″ and 2″ models.
Custom applications are a Headwinds tradition, so don’t hesitate to visit them at www.headwinds.com or call them at 626-359-8044 about your project.
Builder: Rick Fairless Strokers of Dallas
Rick Fairless, obviously the owner of Rick Fairless’ Strokers Dallas, just might be the hardest working man in the H-D motorcycle industry. “One of my proudest achievements, still, is the fact that I have never missed a day of work. I worked for Glidden (a paint manufacturer) for 20 years and I NEVER MISSED A DAY OF WORK. That’s right all you young people. In 20 years of service to Glidden, I never called in sick and in over 10 years of owning this business I’m proud to say that record still stands,” Rick said. His life is testament to the fact that hard work eventually pays off as his longevity and success show.
Since he opened Strokers in 1996, his humble bike shop has grown into a biker oasis. Amongst the visual entertainment, riders at Strokers can also take a peek into the custom fabrication shop. Here, Rick creates one-off custom bikes and oversees a group of welders and fabricators who hand stretch, bend, and mold custom tanks and fenders to create one-of-a-kind machines. He personally designs about a dozen custom bikes a year for celebrities, executives, and passionate riders.
On the subject of bikes, riders at Strokers can take their pick of exotic and trendy eye-candy all over the two-acre lot. There are all kinds of motorcycles for sale, from original Rick Fairless custom machines to production customs such as Big Dog and Victory motorcycles. Strokers also stock all kinds of riding gear including leathers, T-shirts, and other accessories. They’ve got an enormous parts department and they service a number of different motorcycle makes. The newest addition to the Strokers Compound is the Strokers Ink Tattoo & Piercing Parlor, but don’t forget about Strokers Ice House’s great burgers and beer.
Strokers Dallas has expanded considerably over the years, but Rick stays as unassuming as ever, “I’m a lucky chump from Texas and I’m happy just to be here.”
This bike feature originally appeared in Barnett’s Magazine issue #67, January-March 2009.
SPECIFICATIONS | |
---|---|
Owner: | Duane Barnett |
Year/Make: | ’07 Rick Fairless’ Strokers Dallas Custom |
Fabrication: | Rick Fairless’ Strokers Dallas (RFSD) |
Assembly: | RFSD |
Build time: | 6-months |
Engine: | 121″ TP Engineering |
Cases/Flywheels: | TP |
Rods/Pistons: | TP |
Cylinders/Heads: | TP |
Cam: | TP |
Ignition: | TP |
Carb: | S&S Super E |
Pipes: | Samson Motorcycle Products Inc. |
Air Cleaner: | Velocity Stack |
Transmission: | BAKER 6-speed |
Primary: | BDL 3″ Open Belt |
Clutch: | BDL |
Frame: | RFSD |
Rake: | 45-degrees |
Stretch: | 8″ up and 4″ out |
Forks: | Rolling Thunder Springer 8″ over |
Front Wheel: | 21×3.5″ RFSD |
Rear Wheel: | 18×12″ RFSD |
Front Tire: | Metzeler 120/70V21 |
Rear Tire: | Metzeler 300/35R18 |
Rear Brakes: | Hawg Halters Inc. |
Fuel Tank: | RFSD |
Oil Tank: | RFSD |
Fender: | RFSD |
Handlebars: | RFSD Texas Tees |
Risers: | RFSD |
Headlight: | Headwinds |
Taillight: | RFSD |
Hand Controls: | PM |
Foot Controls: | PM/RFSD |
Electrical: | RFSD |
Chroming: | Meclec |
Painter: | Other Side Customs |
Color: | SSI Orange |
Graphics: | Gary Queen |
Polishing: | RFSD |
Molding: | Other Side Customs |
Seat: | RFSD |
Special thanks to: | Duane Barnett for coming to us to build this bike for SSI. |