HBB: What about these three? There's got to be a story behind those.
JD: Yes, there is. Those are Hoppy Hopkins' things. He was the first guy-American guy-to make a stir on the European motocross circuit in the '50s. The helmets are from 1968. The full-face helmet and tank are both from his Montesa racer and painted by Von Dutch. And then the little pink helmet was his open-face motocross helmet, also painted by Von Dutch.
HBB: You better not let Bill Dodge see that Montesa tank!
JD: Oh, he'll want it, huh?
HBB: Yeah. I mean, hell, you can't blame him ...
JD: He'd had to build that one for the boss, because the boss would be the only one who would come up with the money I'd want to get rid of it. Got some new, old stock racing tires. Also, this XLR60. Looks like a Sportster ... it's not! ... Pure race bike.
HBB: What year?
JD: 1960; it's got a Jim Baland frame. Everything on it's Italian with the exception of the motor, but it's a full needle bearing race bike.
It's basically a Sportster motor, you know what I mean; that's essentially what it is, but there are barely any interchangeable parts with a Sportster at all. Full race one. This was set up for drag racing. They were killer drag racers. Some of those records, you know, that they set out at Bonneville were on bikes like that. There was a pair of XLR motors put into a streamliner that set a record.
This is neat. This is a 1959 T100R Triumph, and they were only sold through JoMo in California. Johnson Motor Company, and they only made 50 of them in '59 and another 50 from '57, I believe. The only difference on this one, the '59, is the port, the intake, the carburetor port, came out at an angle, so your manifold came straight out at an angle. The other one just came out straight.
At that point, the tape ran out, my brain was full, I had miles to cover and it was time to go. I can't wait until next time. I hope you enjoyed this brief look into Jeff's home/studio, some of the projects he is working on and some of the bikes that inspire him. Thanks for everything, Jeff.