Cry Baby Cycles' Metal Masterpiece Panhead

There have been a few times in my life when I’ve had a master craftsman living in my midst, and it took a while to meet them. Josh Allison is one of those craftsmen. I don’t throw that term around a lot. The reason being that I have master craftsmen, painters, photographers and visionary artists in my life, and they never call themselves that. It takes a true eye for detail to be a master at anything and an uncompromising ethic for everything to be perfect, balanced and produced by your own hands. Josh Allison says he is a metal shaper, but he is truly a master craftsman with a commitment to metal shaping and form that is backed up by decades of experience and a wealth of formal metalshaping education.

Josh grew up in a household with bikes. His dad had a few shovelheads, and Josh started riding when he was five. He took a shine to BMX and would always take his bikes apart, customizing and painting to make them his own. That morphed into motocross, where Josh could hone his mechanical aptitude and also customize his bikes for optimal performance. He raced for several years and did freestyle motocross until he got hurt a bunch, and decided he’d hang it up to pursue an education at Wyotech. Wyotech showed him all the potential, in terms of metal shaping and customizing, and added some breadth to the paint shop he had started. He built a gas tank at Wyotech, and that solidified his need to learn more, get better at everything from fabrication to welding, and his passion was ignited. He got great opportunities with some of the best local automotive fabrication shops and soaked up everything he could. He wound up at Born in the Forge, owned by Mike Detweiler. He perfected his craft there, typically doing mostly automotive fabrication during the day and motorcycles after hours. He was approached by

the guys at Born Free and asked if he wanted to build a bike, and Dead Pan was born.

The 1951 Pan was an exercise in how much Josh could build himself, by hand. He describes himself as an organic builder, meaning he has a general idea of where he wants to go with each build but is open to what might come up in the process to influence certain design elements. He started with a basically stock ’51 pan and kept only the motor, tranny, and frame. He’s very thoughtful about when and how he uses certain materials. Typically, paint and finishes are something figured out at the end of a build, but for Josh his finishes are what make him stand out in the crowd. As he says, “I left paint behind a few years ago” and now

focuses on the combination of how metal finishes play off each other and the overall effect produced. Having a naked bike with no paint allows for no error. Everything is out in the open, and, for people who know bikes, we’re aware of how hard it is to get every cut, contour, weld and hole exactly right. When you take in Dead Pan front to back the first thing that catches the trained builder’s eye is the amount of time and effort that was required to custom-make a springer front end. It’s not just about getting everything aesthetically correct—it has to be properly engineered and handle well. It’s the totality of the endeavor that makes it a work of art.

With Dead Pan, the metal joins perfectly and sets itself apart on its own. The gas tank is handhammered, and, as the process was winding down, Josh realized there was an opportunity to hide the gas cap with a custom hinged panel. Details like this made things more

Owner: Mike Detweiler City: Fort Collins, CO Fabrication By: Cry Baby Cycles Year: 1951 Model: Panhead Value: $45K Time: 8 Months

ENGINE

Year: 1951 Model: Harley-Davidson Panhead Builder: Cry Baby Cycles Ignition: Morris Magneto Displacement: 80” Pistons: Wiseco Heads: Harley-Davidson Cam(s): Andrews Carb: M74 Linkert Air Cleaner: Cry Baby Cycles Exhaust: Cry Baby Cycles Primary: Open BDL Transmission

Year: 1951 Make: Harley-Davidson Shifting: 4 Speed Ratchet Top FRAME

Year: 1951 Model:Harley-Davidson Wishbone Rake: Stock Stretch: Stock

Front end Type: Springer Builder: Cry Baby Cycles Extension: 4 Under Triple Trees: Cry Baby Cycles WHEELS

Front Wheel: Spool Size: 21” Front Tire: Allstate Front brake: None Rear Wheel: Star Hub Size: 16” Rear Tire: Allstate Rear Brake: Panhead Mechanical

PAINT Painter:Cry Baby Cycles Color:Antique Copper Plated Type:Patina Graphics:None chroming:None

ACCESSORIES bars: Cry Baby Cycles risers: Cry Baby Cycles hand Controls: Cry Baby Cycles foot Controls: Cry Baby Cycles Fuel tank: Cry Baby Cycles oil tank: Cry Baby Cycles Front fender: None rear fender: Cry Baby Cycles Seat: Cry Baby Cycles Headlight: Panic Cycles Taillight: After Hours Choppers Speedo: None

difficult, but it also set the bike apart from anything else. The result is a stunning display of craftsmanship and a balanced finish.

I could write about all the details with this bike, but it’s more fun to discover it all your own—everything, from the rear axle plates to the exhaust endcaps, is handmade and worth looking at carefully. Josh has now struck out on his own, opening Crybaby Cycles, where he can focus on motorcycles, custom builds and producing his stunning custom springer frontends. You can be assured that every part and build has been well thought out by this master craftsman. See more at www.crybabycycles.com.

yep, 1700 Babes, ladies of all ages, types, and their motos - from choppers, to scooters, baggers, Sportsters, Triumphs, vintage smaller cc imports, dirt bikes and everything in between all rolled up Hwy 62 a little past Joshua Tree to be a part of the largest all women’s motorcycle event ever. This event is a little bit Born Free, a little bit Sturgis and a little bit Coachella. It

Article By: Savannah Rose

has evolved from 50 girls camping on a dry lake bed to a massive undertaking. How do I know? I’m one of the original 50 girls who rode out to a little Instagram organized event called Babes in Borrego. We rode in two large groups to meet up and all ride a washy sand road to hang out by a campfire, chat and drink some beer. Now, there are all sorts of things to do and learn at BRO (I know, ironic acronym, right!? Go ahead, I’ll give you a minute to giggle, I’ll wait.)

This year, Anya and Ashmore, the original organizers, have stepped up their game. The event has bigname sponsors, from Triumph and Progressive Mc insurance to S&S Cycle (whom I run the social media for!) and Biltwell, along with Sailor Jerry and 805 Beer. Real Deal hosts workshops, including MIG welding lessons from the one and only Jessi

Combs, blacksmithing basics, an airbrush and pinstripe class, and even leatherwork. Progressive prints photos as they are tagged on Instagram, and numerous women-owned businesses and artists contribute. Moto Fam, a moto charity for downed riders, runs a raffle. All the money earned is donated to bikers whose lives have been severely impacted by accidents.

Every morning, all the bikes start up and roll out of camp to go on various rides, from Joshua Tree National Park for a leisurely cruise to Big Bear mountain, Idyllwild Highway, Salvation Mountain, and of course, Pappy and Harriet’s Saloon, a well-known pioneer town style stop in the desert. I personally chose to get my break in miles on my freshly rebuilt Sporty chop by cruising around the park with a rad group of women.

By evening, groups of bikes rumble back into camp. S&S set up a mobile pop up garage to help the ladies having bike trouble (the desert, with high heat and wind, can do a number on motorcycles) - and most of all to teach the ladies more about their bikes. We teach how to do safety checks - tires, leaks, and evaluating everything

so you can be as safe as possible on the road. A few ladies rolled in for help while the rest got ready for the party. There was Karaoke, the Biltwell Brodeo (a mechanical bull!), tattoos, food trucks, workshops, and of course some kick ass music from female fronted bands like Dorothy, and the duo Larkin Poe (CHECK THEM OUT. You won’t regret it)

Now I’m sure some of you are cracking rude jokes, we’re supposed to be in the kitchen, right? Oh, aren’t you creative? Well, so you know, I chopped my Sportster in my kitchen. Yes, in the kitchen. Yep. Oh, wait... Girls can build bikes, you say? Yes! In fact, some of these women built their own bikes. Go on, have any other jokes? Forget them. It won’t work. Some of these gals rode over 2500 miles, across the country just to come to Babes. One lady, Tracy, rode her shovel all the way down from Canada! After seeing the sheer determination of these women to overcome obstacles like those jokes, the disadvantages you face as a girl in a male-dominated hobby, and just plain being told forever how “pretty you look on the backseat” - I know damn well anything you can do, we can do.. and quite possibly better. I mean, how many events have you been to where everyone is polite, the porta johns are squeaky clean, and you can relax and have fun?

Yep. I said it. Clean bathrooms. I have never seen such clean bathrooms at a rally. As Jacqui Van Ham said, this is the most polite rally either of us has ever been to. And we attend all the rallies!

Say what you want about Babes, but every lady leaves this event with new friends, great memories, a ton of dirt in their hair, and a relaxing weekend away from you guys!

Forget manicures and girls’ night out; it’s all about a weekend in the dirt and on the road on two wheels with the ladies. For more info on Babes Ride Out, check out their Facebook and Instagram: @babesrideout Real Deal @i.am.the.real.deal Moto Fam @moto_fam And of course, follow S&S Cycle at @sscycle And I’m @themouseandthemoto on IG!