Kathi and I were out puttin' around on the Harley last year, heading north on SR 1 north of Spencerville. Got into St. Joe, Indiana, a place we don't really go on the bicycle routes.

Hang a right and down the main drag. Just looking around when, on the left, BAM. Choppers! Three, custom, chopped-bicycles anyways. Well, I had to stop to check this out.

That's them over there on the right. The three fabricators were hanging out and came right over to talk about their creations.

According to the guys, one of the fathers helped welding a couple of the bikes, but these guys did weld one of them.

Kathy Boling says they're now welding everything themselves, and they come in all the time looking for accessories. The bikes were pretty cool actually, especially if you start looking at the details. One had a springer-type fork, and a drum brake on the front wheel from somewhere.One had three cross-section to stiffen the forks. One started life as a BMX bike.

This guy seems to be the leader of the crew. I didn't get any of their names, but I'm sure they wouldn't be hard to find if you're interested in a custom chop. Just head down the main drag and look to the left.

I thought the whole thing was pretty wild. Ever hear of Jesse James? Not the outlaw, but one of his relatives, the guy on Monster Garage, who also builds some beautiful custom motorcycles. Yes? Well, he started out building chopped bicycles too.

So keep an eye out on the Discovery Channel. You may see St. Joe Choppers before you know it.

That's it. Cool stuff.

says Michael Heyes