How To Build Your Own Chopper Bike

Custom bicycles have become a cult phenomena, with enthusiasts forming clubs all over the world. Custom bike fans ride their homemade pieces of art, which are often put together using spare parts from several spare bikes. Some custom bicycle fans find their bike parts in dumpsters or at flea markets, while others purchase parts from high-end custom bike shops. Highly polished chrome and elaborate paint jobs are typical on custom bikes, while the wilder ones include electronic features and more off-beat decorations.
The basic custom bicycle is usually a 揷hopper.?Chopper bicycles feature a front tire that extends from the front of the bike at a low angle. These bikes also sometimes have taller handlebars and longer seats to imitate the popular chopper style motorcycles. Building a chopper bicycle is a fun and easy way to enter the world of modified bicycles. You don抰 have to be a mechanic to alter a regular bicycle and turn it into a unique masterpiece. You may need to weld, however, so if you don抰 know how to use a blow-torch, you may want to enlist the help of someone who does.
To build a chopper bicycle, you抣l need two bikes: your future chopper plus a donor bike for parts. You抣l also need a small bike tire. You抣l be extending the front fork of the bike, so a smaller front tire will be necessary to keep the bike riding low. First, remove the front tire of both bikes and saw the tubes off of each bike抯 fork. The fork is part of the bike that the front tire attaches to. Saw the tubes off just below the point where they join the fork. Next, saw the bottom part off of the donor tubes. Weld the two sets of tubes together and make sure they are the same length before welding them back onto the fork of your chopper bicycle. For extra support, weld an additional bar across the tubes, perpendicular to the fork. If you don抰 know how to weld and don抰 know anyone else who can, you can buy pre-made chopper forks at custom bike shops. In lieu of using the fork of a donor bike, you can use metal tubing bought at a local hardware store. The area of the fork above where the tubes split off has to withstand a lot of pressure, so it抯 important for beginners to extend the fork below where the tubes meet. Extending the fork above this point can weaken the frame considerably and cause serious injury if it breaks while you抮e riding it. Finally, attach the small tire to the front of your chopper.
Riding your creation will take some practice, though. With the longer frame and smaller front tire, steering will be especially difficult. But after putting all that effort into building the bike, you should have no problem learning to ride it. And since custom bicycle enthusiasts almost always name their creations, don抰 forget to think of a fancy moniker for new toy before taking it out for a spin.