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An Advancement Associated With The Chopper

Numerous Americans who fought in World War II remained faithful to the Harley Davidson brand but they were not satisfied with the new motorcycles. They had seen motorcycles in Europe which were more exciting and lightweight. Since many realized what it took to develop great cars and motorcycles, they wanted to make changes to the Harley Davidson motorcycles. They started shortening the fenders or doing away with them altogether to make the bikes lighter. Generally the front fender was removed, but the rear one was only shortened to keep the passenger protected from mud and water thrown up by the rear tire.

The name bobber resulted from this, and the chopper was born as riders continued to customize their bikes by making more changes. The objective would be to use these customized motorcycles for dirt bike racing. Any part that the riders felt were unnecessary was chopped off, and this process of chopping is where the term chopper came from. Parts that were often chopped off consist of big seats, crash bars, windshields, headlights and front fenders. The motorcycles became lighter due to the fact fuel tanks got smaller and large footrests were taken out and replaced with forward-mounted foot pegs.

The next alteration that came to the motorcycle was raking the front side end, which reduced the angle of the fork to the ground, increasing the wheelbase. The handlebars were also raised and then they termed them ape hangers. Every rider was making a bike that was uniquely their own by making modifications and improvements where necessary. The front tire became smaller and the rear tire became fat. Several riders began to make and sell custom made bikes as a business. The popularity of choppers continued to go up while more and more were being made.

The fad for choppers slowed down for many years, but fairly recently it seems to have made a comeback. Many people happen to be after choppers that are custom built by the world's top designers. The chopper started to be extremely popular after it was noticed in the film Easy Rider. The Shovelhead FX Super Glide created by Harely Davidson was a response to the popularity of the chopper. The chopper is a lot more than just looks since the raked front end actually does improve performance. At high speeds, these motorcycles possess a more steady feel than the original factory suspensions, but there is also a drawback. Around curves and low speeds, it is much heavier and much less responsive.

If you want a custom developed motorcycle, then you will want to look into obtaining a hand-crafted chopper. While they are probably not easy to ride in particular situations, they do look very impressive. The low-rider style having its low frame to ground clearance, is one particular look that is becoming more popular.

Sources:Fuel Efficient SUV / Fuel Efficient SUV on YouTube