It only took 500 hours for El Pasoans Ruben Ayala, Edgar Rodriguez, Eddie Huff, and Dorian Rodriguez to build Hell’s Belle, Ruben’s Old School bar hopper and favorite ride.
In the beginning, the idea was to have a real clean bobber with only the required accessories: one headlight, one stoplight, one mirror, lots of chrome and custom accents to personalize the bike. But things change. “We started with a stock ’73 Sportster Ironhead,” Ruben said. “Burnt the clutch, got it repaired many times. Had it running for a while till BOOM! It blew a piston. This is the moment that started the rebuild.”
Along with upgrades to the heads, cylinders, rods, pistons, and new transmission gears, Ruben said the frame “got hard tailed” and lowered four inches, as well as a stretch of four inches added to the rear. “Although the bike wasn’t equipped with a front end, we landed a donor Paughco 24” Springer front end, which we refurbished with a black finish and new chrome,” he said. “The bike started to take the shape of an Old School bobber. We spent countless hours — about five-hundred — to work on the details which included forward controls, custom shifting pegs, polishing, re-chrome manufacturing, and paint. I tore up the parts catalog and fabbed up custom parts like the oil tank, battery tray, and pegs.”
Ruben said they ran into many problems with parts and modifications. “The rear fender is a good example. We must have gone through five fenders to find the right one. Sometimes we needed to modify as we went along in order to make parts work.”
The guys completed the bike with a custom shorty exhaust, PM front brake kit, 14” apes, new risers, and painted tins with airbrushed graphics. “It’s a long list,” Ruben said. “It took time, blood, sweat, and tears. It was a commitment that I underestimated. It took about seven months to get this one on the street. I knew the potential this old Sporty had and with lots of help from Old School gear heads and friends, I ended up with a one-of-a-kind scooter. It became a cool lil’ bar hopper riding a solo seat.”
As for how the bike handles, Ruben said, “I like to call it a death trap! Reverse control set up with a rigid frame and a 24” Springer, not to mention 14” apes and solo seat. The bike rumps beautiful and handles like a bobber should — stiff, fast, and loud!”
With no speedo, Ruben said he has “no clue!” how many miles he’s got on Hell’s Belle. “If I had to guess I’d say a couple thousand,” he said.
Ruben’s favorite aspect of the bike? “I would have to say most of the custom accessories are what made this bike. My favorite aspects are the springer front end, oil tank, and the variation of small details which allow the bike to speak for itself. The bike turned out better than I expected and after all the drive train upgrades, it turns heads left and right.”
So what’s up next for the guys? “We’re always ready to build anything,” Ruben said. “There are a couple of projects that have had us thinking outside the box. Right now, we’re working on a Virago, which will be turned into an awesome bobber.”