Slimmy 7/2010

Bob McKay has been building ground-up customs for a long time. It seems that every year, we hear a rumor that Bob is going to retire. He then surprises us by building yet another magazine-worthy bike. Since Bob is from the Great White North, he doesn’t get the same respect as his American contemporaries do. Bob should be mentioned along with Arlen, Donnie and Dave because he is that talented. Who else but Bob could prove that an Ironhead Sportster can still be relevant today?

The Ironhead Sportster was not considered to be one of Harley’s greatest achievements, but a number of people learned how to ride on one, or it was their first Harley. The only thing left over from the original 1977 XL is the powertrain. Bob’s goal was to build a bar hopper using the parts he had laying around his shop. With the exception of the frame and brakes, he succeeded. Bob’s philosophy is that a low-cost custom doesn’t need to look like a rat rod.

Bob rebuilt the 1000cc motor himself. The internals are all from the factory, with the exception of pistons and cylinders from Tedd Cycle and cams from Andrews. The carburetor is a Bendix with a McKay’s Cycle Creations air cleaner and exhaust. Bob even used points instead of switching to an electronic ignition. The current configuration boasts 61 horsepower and 52 ft.-lbs. of torque. If you remember these bikes, that is a substantial increase in power. The transmission is stock but Bob converted it to hand shift with a cable operated clutch.

The rigid frame is from Maximum Motorcycles and features a neck rake of 32°. The AEE Choppers Banana Tank has been in Bob’s shop since 1970. The front fork is off a H-D Night Train project that was never completed. The wheels are take offs from an ’87 Sportster and were also collecting dust. Bob chose DNA for the front caliper and rotor. DNA was also the choice for the rear sprocket/rotor combo. The handlebars were made in-house at McKay’s. The grips are from Harley, as is the internal throttle, circa 1971. Bob sprayed the Viper Orange and silver paint job while Rollie Guertin hand striped and lettered Slimmy.

I don’t know what Bob has invested in Slimmy, but I guarantee he won’t sell the bike for that amount. Hopefully Bob will be showing the young guns the proper way to build cool customs for a long time to come!

For more information on McKay’s Cycle Creations, visit www.mckayscyclecreations.com.

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