Riding a West Coast Chopper and meeting Jesse James

If there was one bike I didn’t want to crash, then it had to be this one. I don’t like crashing bikes at the best of times but when a motorcycle has taken 12 months of planning and building, it’s totally one of a kind and the only one in the world plus the builder just happens to be built like a brick sh*t house and has a ‘Pay up Sucker’ tattoo, you know no to upset him.

As I strolled into West Coast Choppers in Long Beach California, there was one thing apparent right from the off and that was everything was huge. The workshops were enormous, the cars and bikes being built were grand to say the least and the area dedicated to Jesse’s toys was impressive.

There are around 50 employees throughout the business, 5 sheet metal, 3 painters, 4 motorcycle assemblers, 5 frame/fenders (mud-guards for us Brits) and pipes, 4 CNC operators,  4 designers, 2 engineers, 1 laser cutter and then there is shipping, apparel, admin the list goes on.  All sections are set out in what is really a whole block or around 80,000 square feet in downtown Long Beach and are heavily guarded by a huge iron gates which would not look out of place in a prison.

As I was escorted to Jesse’s office area, I was trying to take it all in as I walked passed cool graffiti walls and several neon signs, the one that stuck in my mind the most was the one saying ‘F*ck Off Mother F*cker’ just outside his door, hardly the greeting I was hoping. The large chained up dog which looked at me like I was a piece of succulent chicken, made me look for hiding places nearby in case I had to run.

So, now I was getting worried and a little apprehensive as come on, I’m just a wee man from the hills of Yorkshire and now I was about to be introduced to Jesse James, a descendant of the original outlaw and by the looks of things so far, he’s bad.

Once in his office, Jesse arose from his large chair and towered above me, I wished at that point I’d eaten Shredded Wheat for breakfast and done some push ups. His hand came out and as it did, I was just hoping I wasn’t going to get one of those state side multiple hit, slide, and knuckle handshakes as I can’t do them.

Luckily for me I just got a good old regular firm handshake that cracked every knuckle, but I smiled through it and sat down rubbing my hand.

It was without a doubt an impressive and large operation at West Coast Choppers as they have a separate frame building area where frames are jigged and welded so neatly they look like they were done by the welding angels. A polishing department that when items leave here, they don’t shine they sparkle.  A paint dept that makes sure every customer gets something very unique and is finished off immaculately. A separate production area for his TV stuff and as mentioned a huge workshop to build the custom bikes and cars.

“So then, what you want to do?” said Jesse after showing me around his extraordinary establishment. “Well, I want to ride one of your bikes” I said, OK it was blunt but it was the truth as I really wanted to find out what one of his custom Choppers really felt like to ride. I knew if he did let me it was special as he never let journalists ride his bikes; the only protocol is you order, you pay, you wait patiently while WCC do their stuff and then you get to ride one.

Jesse was a great sport the whole time and within seconds I was standing by a beautiful looking custom bike worth $150,000 and told I could take her for a cruise.

Soon my nerves turned to excitement as it is only when you are really close to one of Jesse’s bikes that you start to realise just how special they really are. Every last detail on the bike has been well thought out, planned and executed exactly to Jesse’s standard and that standard is very high indeed.

The El Diablo 2 frame is hand-built, welded, polished, welded, polished and then polished again just to be sure; the frame alone takes 1 month of solid work to build, there is no imperfections and immaculate when finished. The unique frame design makes it look like a hard tail but don’t be fooled as it has full rear suspension.  Most of the parts on the bike are one off’s, made purely for that motorcycle. In fact the only parts they buy in are the tyres, chain, callipers and suspension, the rest of the motorcycle is custom built. One of my favourite parts were the ‘Jesse James 44 Magnum bullets’ which were pressed into the handle bar clamps, apparently you can’t buy this item. It comes only on a West Coast Choppers that are built from the ground up, full custom jobs only. They are awesome and I want some badly.

Once aboard the Chopper you’ve got to be ready for just how different a motorcycle like this is going to feel compared to a regular bike. I mean it’s not every day you ride a bike with the wheel base of a car. Plus I’m used to moving the wheel base back and forth mm in racing, now I was riding something which was feet longer than anything I’d ridden before.

The meaty 124 cubic inch S&S motor purred hard and let of a feisty bark as you twisted back the custom metal handle bar grips and gave you a feeling that she meant business. As I engaged gear and dropped the clutch, I was a bit wobbly to say the least for the first mile or so, the two consecutive tight right handers didn’t help matters as the long rake made steering somewhat of a challenge.

From the first set of lights I pulled up at the bike got immediate attention. Never before have I had so many people look at a bike. While I sat at the traffic lights I was popular for a change and I kind of liked it.

The bike screams ‘Look at me’ and on the big wide opens roads, I really started to get into it and began to cruise. A few people even did a ‘cool’ hand signal in respect of it, I tried to give them back but after a few disastrous attempts, I opted just too just stick my thumb up instead.

As the miles clicked by, I soon began to get used to the West Coast Chopper’s unique riding position and with the sun on my back, heading down the coast road sat on a totally one of a kind motorcycle, I just leaned back and enjoyed the ride. The Chopper wasn’t difficult to ride, just different and my only moment came when I tried to make a foot up U-turn and got into a wobble. A quick flash back to the ‘Pay up Sucker’ tattoo quickly had me concentrating and determined not to drop it.

Riding a chopper is very unique and maybe not to everyone’s liking, but I am a fan. This machine was an absolutely work of art, the attention to detail and workmanship that had gone into it was something else. It rode well in a straight line and through gentle corners. It was good in traffic and getting by other road users with a motor as powerful as the S&S was never an issue. Yeah, yeah so OK, tight corners are not one of its strongest points, but if that was your main ‘beef’ then you won’t buy a chopper, you’d get a smaller more nimble machine.

I finally made it back to Jesse’s place in one piece and without a mark on the bike; the only thing I’d broken was my chopper virginity and you could say, I’d done it in style. I dread to think what might of happened to me if I had of crashed it and wheeled her in all bent. I reckon that if it had come back with anything looking like a mark on it, I’d now have a high pitched voice and Jesse’s dog Cisco would be chewing on my balls.

THE END

Copy and Photos by Jamie Robinson