The Art of John Shope’s Sinister Dirty Money
Story by Wendy Manning
Photos by J. Josh Placa
Videos by Morton Photographic
Looking at the radical bikes we come across from time to time, Dirty Money, built by John Shope of Sinister Industries (formerly Sinister Choppers), of Arizona, has got to be up there with craziest of the crazed. But then, true art always is.
You might know John after he beat several big name builders when the public voted him Master Builder on CMT’s Chopper Challenge. Or you might know him from his Captain Morgan Rum Runner bike, or any of the countless other works of two-wheeled art he’s cranked out since the year 2000. He’s a wild man for sure, and unforgettable.
Dirty Money started out as a ’97 H-D Road Glide, but John turned the bike right around. Literally. Those pipes you see exiting out the front? They’re on fire. “When you push a button it shoots ten-foot flames out the pipes,” John said, laughing. It’s really something to see. Thanks to automotive photographer and videographer Morton Photographic it’s all captured on video, so be sure and click on the video at the top of the story.
Obviously that’s no showroom-stock frame as John’s been a busy boy with his cutting tools and it definitely shows. “The total rake is 44-degrees,” John said. “I cut the frame and stretched it two-inches in the neck, and then I raked it six-inches, and I put nine-degree triple trees on.” For handlebars, John had to look no further than his own parts inventory and used Sinister Industries’ Wicked Road Glide Bars.
As for bodywork, “We started out with the Harley Road Glide tank and that’s what came out of it,” he said. “We took all the gauges and everything out of the fairing and that strip on the side is the fuel gauge. That clear line tells you how much fuel’s there. The volts and oil pressure are the other two gauges.” B’COOL made the front fender for that super tall 26” front wheel. “I gave them the dimensions and they cut it how I wanted it,” he said. “The rear fender is mine, I made it.” With a bike this wild in every aspect, John was not about to settle for some old extensions on a set factory flip-top bags. Take a gander at the cool Sinister Industries’ rear entry bags, especially the pics of them open. The unexpected interior lining features one of his favorite prints, a leopard skin print that John also has on his boat.
The old 1340cc engine that came stock from the factory just wouldn’t do for a fire-breathing special, so John turned to a 113” S&S engine and then upped the ante even more. “The heads have been ported, it’s got the big cam in it and it’s all balanced and everything,” he said. Nixing an air cleaner on the Edelbrock carb, John used a PM velocity stack, “and then I modified it,” he said. “I just made manifolds for it and changed the screens in it.” John took a Hitech open primary and custom made all the bel
t drive covers. With the available power, he wisely bolted in one of Bert Baker’s bombproof 6-speed transmissions to transfer that power to the rear wheel and he couldn’t leave that last final drive detail stock either. “It’s chain drive; we took away the belt
and put a chain on it,” he said.
You won’t see any chrome on Dirty Money. John had Affordable Powder Coating Co. do the preliminary work, and Shawn Wilken at Airtite Art finished up with the painting and airbrushed the graphics. The graphics include rolled-up hundred-dollar bills and a stripper on one side. “The bike’s called Dirty Money, so we did a bunch of stuff that’s like, dirty. We made it all look like tattoos,” said John.
“The coil is all hidden and the coil wires run up through the frame and come out of the frame underneath the gas tank. Everything about that bike is crazy. It was fun to build,” he admits. “We just wanted to show everybody what could be done with one of these bikes. That thing won a lot at the Easyriders Show. It’s got Air Ride front and rear, so it sits on the ground. We let the air out the front and back, the whole thing sits down like an inch off the ground. It’s got a Kenwood radio and TV in the fairing.” [To see a YouTube video of Jay Leno sitting on Dirty Money and commenting on the TV, click here.]
While you’re clicking around watching videos of John making peace sign burnouts and riding down the street standing on the bike and threatening to set himself on fire, be sure and check out his website for all the choppers, baggers, and cool parts and accessories Sinister Industries makes. You’ll find a wide variety of Sinister front and rear fenders, bag accents, stretched tanks, dash kits, paintable windshields, fairing caps, bars, license plate frames, their famous Gnarly Floorboards, fork cans, exhaust tips, those Wicked Glide Bars, and … oh my God, just go over there and take a look. You’ll find them at www.ssinisterchoppers.com.
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