Gerean's Moder n Day Frankenstein

there’s a fine line between opportunity and a cruel joke; it’s what you’re capable of that eventually defines the difference. For several years, Tom Gerean had been assisting a club called the Fez Monkeys fulfill their Bonneville itch. Year after year he watched as their bikes run the paces of one of the most anticipated and iconic motorcycle speed events. Finally, in 2017, he was informed that his services would no longer be needed for the following year because in 2018 he would be running his own.

Soon after receiving the news of his newest endeavor Tom would visit the home of Morto, a fellow Fez Monkey. Morto’s place is the resting place of a few hundred motorcycles and the proper picking grounds of any two-wheeled deviant. But on that day there would be no adventures in window shopping, Morto already had Tom’s quest at hand, a challenge beyond the weak minded. Morto planned on sponsoring Tom’s Bonneville adventure and in a pile laid the key elements of the build, a pile of parts with no rhyme or reason, just expectations of speed. In the pile was found a 1952 AJS model 18cs motor, the twin to the Matchless, the four-speed trans of a 1957 Norton, and a 1956 Triumph pre-unit frame. The challenge was graciously accepted.

The next ten months were spent by Tom grafting the random strangers together fabricating almost every mount and hunting relentlessly for every part. Tom

would soon realize that the names for the parts he needed would differ from region to region dependant upon where he looked. He would be forced to have faith in his research for the rare parts and most of all have faith in intercontinental postal services. Nothing would be delivered promptly, and one mistake could set him back greatly. Tom was building a bike that was never intended to exist; there was no map, there was no guide.

The girder front end was cut down from it’s original 48” and taken to a mere 23”. To accomplish this, the triple trees were handmade by Gerean over three or four weeks. The 21” front wheel came with the pile of parts, and a matching 21” front wheel was repurposed to the rear with a custom forty tooth sprocket and rear disc. The pad was pulled from the solo seat, and a simple strip of leather was attached. The frame was refitted with the new motor, and trans mounts with a slightly modified Lowbrow tank received a more appropriate tunnel.

The motor was only a bare shell accompanied with only a connecting rod and crank. Tom had to locate the rest and hope they would all fit. In the end all of his hunting paid off, and

Rick Bargholz was able to assemble the single piston motor in only a few days. This was a junk pile build as Tom refers to it, none of these parts were intended to share space in the same frame let alone move forward. When it was time, all the machining was done by Peter Bean.

Once complete, the mutant of Bonneville was tested in limited fashion on the residential streets of Spokane Washington with only enough speed to comfortably run through the gears. It wouldn’t see any strain until it arrived at Bonneville. It tends to echo in

Owner: Tom Gerean City/State: Spokane WA Builder: Tom Gerean Year: 1952 Model:Junk Value: Pricelss Time: 1 Year

ENGINE Year: 1952 Model: AJS Model 18cs Builder: Rick Bargholz Ignition: Lucas N1 Mag Displacement: 500cc Pistons: Heads: Stock Alloy Carb: PWK Cam: Stock Competition Air Cleaner: One Off Velocity Stack Exhaust: Stock Primary: TRANSMISSION Year: 1957 Make: Norton AMC Shifting: 4 Speed

FRAME Year: 1956 Model: 500/650 Twin Rake: Stock Stretch: Aftermarket Hardtail

Forks Builder: Tom Gerean Type: Girder Triple Trees: Homemade Extension: WHEELS Front Wheel: Aftermarket Size:21 Tire: Front Brake: None Rear Wheel: Aftermarket Front HD Type Size: 21 Tire: Rear Brake: Brembo Disc

PAINT Painter: Tom Gerean Color: Gray Type: Rust-Oleum Graphics: Patina Chroming: ACCESSORIES Bars: Handmade Risers: Hand Controls: Foot Controls: Gas Tank(s):Lowbrow Oil Tank: Triumph Front fender: None Rear Fender: Aftermarket Seat: vintage Aftermarket Headlight: None Tail light: None Speedo: None your head that every piece has been modified, handcrafted, or replaced on a motorcycle that wasn’t supposed to be as you are accelerating into that first mile a mechanical virgin second from uncertainty, but once you’re into the second mile of open class it’s all out there for public record. Tom managed to put in seven or eight runs that week. His first pass landed him just a hair over 82 mph. It wasn’t until his fifth pass that he would hit his top speed, pending ratification, a record 82.46 mph; forcing him to gladly pull the motor so that officials could verify the junk piles bore and stroke.

A modern-day Frankenstein’s monster showed what determination and drive looked like. Tom Gerean took the impossible to the next level in legendary stride all the way to Bonneville and back for what I hope won’t be the last time. Tom’s junk pile, from garbage to glory.