Ultra Customs
Todd Van Emburgh’s “Cops and Robbers”
Built by Joe Palermo of World Class Customs
Story by Mark Barnett, Photos by Todd Van Emburgh
Working out of a one-and-one-half car garage in the Daytona Beach area, custom bike builder Joe Palermo builds one-offs which have won some of the biggest shows in the world like the Rat’s Hole and the Boardwalk shows. Joe’s son named this bike, “Cops and Robbers.” Besides the real pistol, pistol grip on the shifter, the license plate holder is made from a police ticket book, there’s a billy club along the springer forks, handcuff controls, a money bag battery holder, and host of other law enforcement motifs on the bike. This bike took Joe roughly a year to complete and a careful examination shows why. The handlebars and the long intake runner are both made from handcrafted carbon fiber. The transmission brake as well as the front rim disc are one-offs, the latter made with the help of Hank Young.
Some nods to rideability were made like using a Grandeur Auto Clutch. This makes the hand shifter a thousand times easier to deal with than a standard foot clutch. When the revs die down, the clutch automatically disengages, making it possible for the rider to pull up to a light without using his foot to push in the clutch manually or his hand to put the transmission into neutral. He can then take off by gently raising the revs, again without having to deal with the clutch or shifter. Joe also put in a 127” Ultima engine in which has proven to be a good street motor. Legend air shocks give some cushy movement under that tough-looking Crime Scene Choppers aluminum seat and allow the bike to be slammed to the ground for parking. And that big front brake is a real, hard stopping binder.
Some scrounging was done to find some cool old parts to add. The headlight is off a 1920 Indian and the air cleaner covering the end of the Mikuni carburetor is a 75-year-old piece. This is a bike that takes at least half an hour to look at as you just keep seeing more and more details the closer you examine it. The 300mm rear tire keeps the “Cops and Robbers” bike up-to-date in the custom world. Joe builds bikes for himself and rides them and shows them until someone just has to have it and takes it away from him. New owner Todd Van Emburgh couldn’t be happier with the bike. He used to live near South Beach, Florida and said there would be a crowd around the bike each time he parked it anywhere. His opinion of Joe Palermo couldn’t be higher. In his words, “He’s the most talented builder out there. He’s a great guy and I wish he’d start building bikes full time so we could all see more of his creations.” Well said, Todd. You can see another of Joe’s bikes on his web site, www.worldclass-customs.com.
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