When I asked Todd if he thought he’d still turn a profit on Olive given the current economic climate, he confidently replied, “Hell no! I basically plan on if I get my money back out of it I’ll be OK. A lot of times when we’re building a bike we come up with new products and new ideas. I wanted to do a new project that reflected what we’re doing here for promotion purposes.”
Discussing the Mikuni-aspirated engine, Todd says, “We used the S&S 113” builder’s kit motor, so it comes to us un-assembled and we go through and do whatever finishes we want on it and Scotch-Brite everything.” He proceeded to port the motor himself, and add a choke relocation carb kit, a BAKER Torque Box, fabbed himself an air cleaner. Todd picked primary, clutch, and foot controls from his alma mater, Performance Machine. He describes the high and tight, dirt-bike inspired, 2-into-1 pipes as almost an afterthought, “I just used a stainless pipe, brushed it and ran it. I liked the raw look so we kept it simple.”
The brushed aluminum metalwork lends some visual mass to the gas can, and especially the fat and stubby fender. According to Todd, “The aluminum tank and fender are all handmade. We built the oil tank into the rear fender, which gives it more volume and actually cools better because of the air running through the tire. Fitting the rear fender was kind of a task, because we had to mount it through the oil tank, make a bung that went all the way through, and weld it on both sides for strength. But it leaves us room under the seat to do what we want, either run exhaust, or in this case use a Marzocchi shock underneath to cushion the seat.”
Todd believes that when it comes to customs, “It’s still gotta function. We put a lot of ride height into Olive so you can corner normally. I can’t stand dragging stuff when I ride my bikes.” He has developed a solid working relationship with a reliable partner, Chassis Design for his frames. “We designed this billet- aluminum axle drop out which allows us to do whatever texture or finish we want, and we don’t have to deal with paint chipping when you’re adjusting the chain or taking the wheel in or out.”
The custom bars and risers sport Magura hand controls with grips and reservoirs also crafted by Todd. A set of exotic Marzocchi inverted superbike forks tipped with PM radial-mount brakes guide the way. “I like to ride hard and fast, and sometimes you have to stop fast,” he said. “I’ve done some bikes without the front brake and I don’t like it. It’s not me. I don’t pay enough attention to what I’m doing, so if I need to bail out, it’s right there.”
Todd believes that his “look kewl but ride for real style” is what the masses want, “This is kind of the future because people are riding more, and farther, and they want stuff that stops and goes, and you can turn and not just go straight or swing wide because you’ve got a two-foot-over stretched front end. More performance inspired people are going for this style…even though it’s a V-twin, air-cooled, rigid! (laughs) …but hey, it’s got a Marzocchi shock under the seat! (more laughter)”
As I was lugging camera gear from the photo shoot back to the car, Todd’s voice called out, asking if I wanted to take Olive for a quick spin before we left. He didn’t have to ask twice. Little did I know that I would be cruising aboard the future Metzeler 2009 “Best of Show” bike. Raw, mechanical and intimately connected to the rider by a pulsing umbilical cord, I piloted Olive around the industrial park with an ear-to-ear grin. If El Hefe ever accidentally adds a few zeroes to my paycheck so I can afford a Silicato custom build, I promise to keep my lips zipped, his suggestion box empty, and just let Todd do what he does so well.
Up Close: Marzocchi Forks
Racing has always influenced motorcycles whether it’s simply for squidly impersonating the style of a race bike or the actual advantages that race derived parts can offer to a street rider. In American V-twin customs, integrating race parts has usually been limited to the drivetrain and improving power output until lately. Handling and braking, two of the most important aspects of a racing machine have not played much of a part in custom design. Most people enjoy a roadside good chat about the bazillion horsepower their V-twin is now supposedly producing, but it’s often been of little real world use other than doing smoky burn outs or rapping the throttle and terrorizing people in cars at red lights.
With the advent of a return to bikes that are meant to ride and be able to be ridden hard other than extremely short bursts in a straight line, the importance of handling and braking has started to show up in suspension and brakes like the bikes featured in this performance issue have as standard equipment. For example, the mechanically stunning set of Marzocchi inverted forks Todd Silicato used not only give a performance look, but provide real world attributes that you can only get from a high tech piece of engineering like these Italian beauties. The massive tubes provide steering precision a set of mid glides can only dream of. They’re adjustable for compression (13 settings) and rebound (32 settings) and provide handling and ride comfort unheard of in normal factory forks. Different rate springs are available to accommodate the weight of rider and machine and riding style while Titanium Nitride coated tubes and hard-anodized sliders keep it functioning perfectly under tough conditions.
See www.marzocchi.com for more info.
Builder: Todd Silicatop Todd’s Cycles
Todd Silicato can hardly remember a time before he rode motorcycles. “When I was six, I had a Honda 50 that my Dad modified because my feet couldn’t reach the ground. We built a dirt track in the back yard, then I raced motocross when I got older. My parents were gearheads into drag racing cars, jet skis, bikes, go-carts, whatever, so it came naturally.”
Todd’s passion for pistons led him to Answer Products where he spent six years mentoring under Jerry Hall, doing R&D. “That’s where all my welding and fabbing and machining skills came from. Jerry was an engineer and he was methodical about everything. If you built a pipe and were off by a millimeter he’d be like, ‘throw it away and start all over’.”
Next stop for Todd was another R&D gig working ten years for Roland Sands building his race bikes. “That’s actually how I got into Harleys. You can ride these things without doing wheelies at 80mph on on-ramps and getting in trouble. You can cruise and have a good time without getting too serious cause the bike kinda stops you from getting in over your head. They’re a little archaic as far as design and stuff but I think that’s part of what makes it cool. Roland builds very nice stuff.”
Based out of Huntington Beach, California, Todd’s aesthetic is, “Kinda modern yet not overdone. We don’t do a lot of molding or paneling. I’m not into hiding stuff. The gas cap is right there, the brake lines are out in the open. I try to keep it light. I don’t want a bunch of extra gaudy stuff on it. If there’s some material you can take out, get rid of it.”
Visit www.toddscycle.com or call 714-901-4516 for more info.
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