went to get my bike MOT'd and while I was waiting I got a chance to have a look at an exile cycle machine that a guy had brought and shipped over from the states. Looks very nice black and brushed metal BUT it cost the guy around £70K its now going to cost him at least a £1000 to get it road legal for the UK plus the £70 SVA test. The bike is basic as are all Exile cycles machines and I'd say it was worth no more than £20,000( mechanic reckons its worth even less)

These guys are building this stuff for the rich, so I guess they feel they can charge what they like. To me it's no different than paying for desinger label stuff.

I'm just jealous I can't afford them!

after seeing one close up I wouldnt bother, you could make a virtually identical bike from most catalogs for a third of the price if that

Yeah you could Gordy, but you and I know that the majority of the riders these days don't/can't wrench on thier own and only ride as part of a status thing.

Your right twinsporty just gets my goat the prices people charge but hell if I could get away with it I wouldnt complain :laugh :D

I was a bit disappointed with the quality of the bike tho

Hey he's a fellow brit. Maybe his time in the states has caused him to become more capitalistic :devileek and increased his profit margin

lol you could be right :laugh

God bless the guys at Exile if they can find someone dumb enough to make them rich too. Thats the American way, rags to richs and all. I'm proud of the guys at Exile and the other "custom" companies because they have found a way to make a killer living doing what they love.

But there ain't no stinking way I'd consider paying that much for one of their bikes either. You can buy a lot of tools & parts for $50,000 and take a lot of time off from work for another $50,000.

Gary

I think someone can ride for the love of riding and the love of a good machine. I do not think having someone work on your bike that is better than you means you only ride for the status of riding a Harley. Somethings I do on my bike, some I have done. Unfortunately, I don't think my status improved when I bought my bike but my love of life sure did.

Safe and Happy riding everyone,

Nothing burns me more than having some dude walk up to me when I'm on the bike and say "nice toy". My bike is transportation, a way to get to work and back. It's not always showroom clean, it's got a scratch or two (that's what touch up paint is for), and it gets ridden daily, not only on the weekend for a couple hours of show time.


Cutom bikes are nice, and here in Dallas we've some of the best builders. But, no way can I pluck down 50g on a bike. Won't even do it though I can afford it. See these customs all the time, with the riders in their designer clothes. Makes me puke....:madhead

Nothing burns me more than having some dude walk up to me when I'm on the bike and say "nice toy".

Both my car an d bike are my "toys" because I love wrenching and playing with them...

I think the entire "choppers" on TV have rediculously inflated the prices of these things. Like look at WCC, his bikes were at about $40k the first show, then $60k the second show. Not they're about $100K. Retarded...And that's probably what Exile is dooing as well. They were on TV what like 3 times already? so the price can triple what it was originally...

ahhh the American way...no substance just advertising ...the wannabee factor....if it's been on TV it must be good

The sad news will come when he goes to sell it. .

I think he builds some great bare bones bikes. I have one of them as wallpaper on my laptop here. http://www.exilecycles.com/index2.html

These 'fads' come and go....same with all this TV bike crap....with the exception of Indian Larry...RIP....As for me I walk right pass those high dollar bikes and head over to check out the 'HOME BUILTS'. Ole Skool Harleys, Brit Bikes, and Jap bikes are more interesting to me. Next to riding, I like wrenching on my bikes. Some of these guys would be better off taking some of that $50,000+ and buy themselves some tools, manuals and How-to books and take a crack at building their own rides....hell they'll probably save a good amount of money and learn a lot in the process and have a ride they can genuinely be proud of. Hrdly

I like the twist clutch. Other than that the bikes are so simple I find them a bit boring and uninspired. Flat black and spokes does not make a 60K bike. Plus the guy is an absolute obnoxious ahole. Full of himself and has his twenty year old mech do all the work. Hard to be impressed but if I had the money I would probably have an expensive chopper too, just because I could. I just would not be an occ or exile. I do like the Jesse James stuff though.

Some of the Sporty's we've seen here must cost close to $60k anyway. The difference is the personal touch (wrenchin' on our own). You can own a bike. Or you can ride a bike. I've seen too many of the former.

For me it has always boiled down to one point: you love what you ride, you ride what you love. If it takes $60k or $100k, or if it takes $7k, so be it. We're always gonna have label chasers: big boats, big cars, perceived to be better because they spent more. Let 'em ride. We're label chasers, too. Spell it S-P-O-R-T-S-T-E-R!

:luvsport

:horseride Not me, I'm not chaceing labels. I'm chaceing wind mills.

The sad news will come when he goes to sell it. .
I agree, times and hobbies come and go. Not a good investment, but a nice toy nonetheless.

Others:
If you think he should have bought the materials and tools to build it, remember what the buyers time is worth. I remember the old adage "if Bill Gates stops to pick up a one hundred dollar bill he finds on the street - he loses money". Not particularly accurate, but how much money is your time worth?

Mine: *1.72 USD it seems, but:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.

A buck 380

Hey he's a fellow brit. Maybe his time in the states has caused him to become more capitalistic :devileek and increased his profit margin


I've seen how he works on a Bike Build off on the Discovery channel. He does hardly any custom fab work. He basically assembles the bikes from of the shelf stock. Although I like his bikes, big and muscular, He's getting way too much for them. But to paraphrase W.C. Fields : You know it's almost immoral to let a sucker keep his money. :laugh :laugh :laugh

for $50000 I could build a shop and make bikes like that myself . as far as just assembling parts from the shelf all bike builders do that but they build one or two custom pieces to make it unique , if I were to build a bike complitly by myself (exept motor and trans) it would cost the customer more than 50,000 but I'm talking building the frame the tank the seat the fenders you know everything . using some off the shelf parts lower the cost of the build , raising the profits , and thats what we all want , right ?

I do like some of his ideas but not enough to pay that much for them. I am not a big modern chopper fan. I consider them more art motorcycles for the want-a-be. You can get a nice kit bike for $15,000 (US) here in the States that will only need a paint job. Then weld on your art.

I like retro's and bobbers but most builders are trying to get a name. I am starting to see an end of this chopper and big V-Twin movement. Should have a 100 year supply of use choppers and big V-twins on the market very soon. I am starting to see Café starting to make a dent in the market. Darn, I love my Sportster, it can be all of them, more, and uncharted.

I like Russell's attitude about all the candy coated choppers of now. Like in the World Biker build off (which I've seen bits and pieces of) he says something like "they're all shiny and colourful, but no one seems to care that they look like a tart's handbag...they're not manly at all" or "If I were to paint this bike in blue metalflake, I'm sure to win this buildoff...but I'm not."

But I really don't like the big giant tire he puts on the front of some of his bikes. They're cool, though. If I had money like Chris Cornell (Soundgarden, Audio Slave), I'd buy one from him (like he did, featured in IronWorks mag). But for now, I'll stick with my XL... :wonderlan

Yeah, I love the badass 40's-50's bobber look he gives his bikes and the beefy front tires. Although on some models it *is* a bit much :rolleyes: I like a beefy front tire but I don't need one off of a 747 .

[QUOTE=engine]I like Russell's attitude about all the candy coated choppers of now. Like in the World Biker build off (which I've seen bits and pieces of) he says something like "they're all shiny and colourful, but no one seems to care that they look like a tart's handbag...they're not manly at all" or "If I were to paint this bike in blue metalflake, I'm sure to win this buildoff...but I'm not."

LOL yeah, the one I saw he said they "looked like rolling easter eggs" :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh And hell ya, if I had the money I'd prolly buy one too.

Yea I call them "Planet F'n Hollywood" bikes....check out Chica or Zero Engeneering on the web if you like the retro Bobber look, Chica's doin some cool stuff with Shovels Pans and Knuckles, not sure if he's workin w/ sporty's yet or at all, and there's a couple more of biulders goin against the grain of the "Rolling easter Egg Scene" (to quote Deasertfox), a motorcycle should be a motorcycle...not a monument!!!......Mike

Amen, UFAF & Dahawk

...check out Chica or Zero Engeneering on the web...

I totaly agree. These guys realy know what building a chopper is all about. They are not some parts asembly plant just pounding out chep biks at high profit margent to get rich quick. But, that is just my openion.

My bike is still in the planning stages and quite frankly I cant decide if it is going to be a cafe bike or a chopper, or some strange combonation of the two! I guess I will just have to wait and see just like evryone else.

It's gonna be interesting when the fad grinds to a standstill (and it will). Those guys that paid all that outrgeous money for that unusable driveway ar twill have a motor and tranny that might bring a few grand, wheels that may bring a few bucks more and the rest will fetch about 17 cents a pound on the hook.

Had a chance to compare an exile, Big Dog, and chica against some European custom machines and the quality of the European machines seemed to be higher, probably due to the stringent TuV standards in Europe. Of the three American bikes I checked out the Big Dog was probably the worst of the bunch, finish quality was appalling (paint worked pulled off with lo tack tape!)

These machines looked great from a distance and fabulous in the bike magazines but I was disappointed by the quality of all three .. Of course there are good and bad all over the place but concidering these are three of the better known bike builders I was surprised.

i 've had my hog
since new 94xlh883
and has been a never ending rolling work in progress .
i work on it and change somthing every winter (faster ,lighter ,and cooler, well at least in my mind anyway :) ) and make most of the stuff my self
runs low 12 in the 1/4 no bar street tires

It's gonna be interesting when the fad grinds to a standstill (and it will). Those guys that paid all that outrgeous money for that unusable driveway ar twill have a motor and tranny that might bring a few grand, wheels that may bring a few bucks more and the rest will fetch about 17 cents a pound on the hook. There are already a lot of high dollar custom choppers for sale used with 2500 miles or so on them :)
yes my thoughts exactly, in fact the whole biker thing... Once the yuppies get tired of bikes and move on to the next big thing, we will all have a bunch of great low miles bikes to pick from. In fact look around and I'm sure you will see quite a few 2004s that have only been down once, waiting for a caring hand to fix/customize/rebuild! I'm thinking the yuppies will discover that motorcycling is serious & dangerous business soon enough, and there will plenty for sale!

There are already a lot of high dollar custom choppers for sale used with 2500 miles or so on them :)
yes my thoughts exactly, in fact the whole biker thing... Once the yuppies get tired of bikes and move on to the next big thing, we will all have a bunch of great low miles bikes to pick from. In fact look around and I'm sure you will see quite a few 2004s that have only been down once, waiting for a caring hand to fix/customize/rebuild! I'm thinking the yuppies will discover that motorcycling is serious & dangerous business soon enough, and there will plenty for sale! i hope youre right! :smoke

Sure seems to be alot of hostility on this post......

I PERSONALLY like all bikes, and would love to have any of them. Not gonna lie, I think the best color for a chopper is black, the tins and frame should be gloss black. I like a natural finish on the motor, but all cases, covers etc. chromed. I prefer spoke wheels, and like all polished stuff chrome plated, as I get tired of the constant polishing (whine, whine, yea I know!!!). When I heard Russell say the "rolling easter egg" stuff on T.V. I knew exactly what he was talking about, but when I went to Sturgis for the first time last August, I personally found Arlen Ness's "easter eggs" absolutely stunning!! Some of the other shops may be cutting corners, but Ness dosen't. Also, I got an up close look at the Snap On Tools bike that OCC built, that's a really nice bike!!!

Just my .02 from the F.N.G.!!!

joe

Using off-the shelf parts & a little bit of my own custom painting of some parts, I have personally created a Sportster that is as unique as any of the high-dollar builder's bikes, but no one knows who I am & I don't care.
Quite frankly, if I was successful enough to be able to afford one of those bikes, you can bet I wouldn't hesitiate to buy one. But I'm not. So I'll continue being jealous of those who can.
Some of them are posers, but many of them are guys who have ridden for a long time & love bikes. They are just at a point in their lives where, instead of buying a fancy car, boat or cottage, they choose to buy a unique motorcycle. Don't begrudge them this.
The builders are only charging what the market will bear. It's all good for our hobby/sport, whatever you want to call it.

I think folks that rag on wanna-be's and yuppies riding expensive toys need to check themselves a bit (not speaking to anyone specifically posting here). These folks *might* indeed be riding such expensive toys for their ego, but my experience has been that folks that bash them badly are experiencing an ego issue of their own. "They aren't a TRUE biker like me", etc. I like the tone of this thread for the most part because there have been comments about how some of the folks buying these bikes ARE enthusiasts and shouldn't be assumed to be fad followers. Perhaps personal success allows them to indulge where most simply can't (or smartly for their situation, don't). Others have readily admitted that they'd buy a custom if they could afford it.

I *almost* bought the Exile Silver Bullet which I still think is the finest looking motorcycle I've ever seen. The fellow that owned it admitted it was on display sort of in his living room (or something like that) and rarely was it ridden. It would have been easy to have chuckled about that and I'm glad I didn't jump to any conclusions about him. He bought it before Exile was ever on TV and I found out from later discussion that his son races in SuperMoto, I even saw him on TV. This guy was a motorcycle enthusiast and we chatted about riding in general for a while. Yuppie or not . . .. I couldn't tell you. Kinda didn't matter, we had a common interest and that's what we chatted about.

I agree with a lot of what has been said here. I just wanted to toss in my comments specifically about Exile and custom bikes in general since I did a little component pricing myself. Many of the parts that Exile uses, they are the only US distributor for (at least as far as I could find) and other parts are their own design, like the rear disc/sprocket combo. They actually price out the entire bike, you can download the listings of parts and labor for fab work. Once you hit a price point, they do a discount of the entire total. Folks just overpricing based on their reputation won't usually price out something component by component. You can't HIDE anything doing it that way. (Just a note though, that may not be the case when they finally crank up their new website)

If you bought these exact parts from Exile (or equivalent from someone else), I think you'd find that building a bike with custom parts is just freakin' expensive even when you provide the wrench. It would cost me more to try to duplicate the Silver Bullet than to have them build one EVEN if I already had all of the tools I needed, welder, machine equipment, etc. They pay wholesale for the parts and are willing to give a discount when buying an entire bike (plus there is likely negotiation room in there). Buying these pieces without a dealer pricing structure, it'd be ridiculous.

Personally, I doubt Exile has been successful just building bikes. The American Chopper guys run a steel shop I think (and of course have the TV show). Martin Brothers sell pipe or something like that. Almost all the ones that seem to be successful are making money either with some other business AND/OR by selling parts (Ness, Yaffe, WCC, Exile, etc). I wouldn't be surprised if a few of these guys make more in one year on Tshirts and the like than they make for one bike. It's the parts in my opinion that make these things so expensive and for the most part I don't think that is unreasonable for the builders or parts vendors or parts designers and manufacturers.

I've thought about the finances of it and I would NOT want to be a custom bike builder. How much would you have to sell your bikes for if you have $20k invested in parts and you know you'll have to paint or pay for paint, supply the labor, possibly some kind of warranty, etc? You might have to pay for a few employees, purchase and maintain equipment (some machine equip costs are ridiculous), lease a shop, etc. You'd probably have to sell a lot of bikes to break even each year.

Exile has a different approach and they contract the precision machine work out and actually they take a ragging because of that (bike "assembly" vs bike building, etc). In the end, it could be cheaper for the customer that way. You either maintain equipment or have to hire talent, or you pay someone that already does all that. I think Mitchell ALWAYS ends up with an expert doing each job and for that I'd give him a lot of credit. Someone trying to do it all in-house isn't necessarily doing what's best for the buyer. I think specifically Exiles prices are fair, BUT we'll see if they remain so.

When the trend reverses (and these things generally do) you might find you'll have to pay a ton for inferior parts because of lack of competition. If Exile Cycles has produced a superior product then I WANT them to make money. Seems to me, if you want a custom bike that is well made, with engineered components, then it's just going to cost a ton of money. At least the current market supports folks making high quality stuff so I prefer it be a thriving market. There will always be folks selling junk but hopefully they will not last and if you do some research you can avoid them.

I could have bought the Silver Bullet for just a tad under $30K which is lower than Mitchell would probably sell one for now that he's good and "famous". It was and is my favorite bike period, and it was a good deal in the current market. In the end, I simply couldn't justify it and I gotta say I am 95% as happy with my Sportster for a fraction of the cost. I didn't make that choice because I felt the bike wasn't worth it, it just wasn't worth it to me with my current situation. I can't say that about someone else's financial situation or their desire to own something unique, etc. To someone else $30k was a great deal, to me it might be a great deal 3 years down the road. But it wasn't at the time.

If I am blessed down the road financially AND I still have the desire for that look, I'd reconsider something like the Silver Bullet but for now I own my sporty outright and I can spend a little here and there making it what I want. I may find I am happiest with a true one-of-a-kind that I piece together over the next couple of years anyway.

WOW! Sorry for rambling like that! I love the attitudes in here and look forward to spending some more time in the forums. Next time, I'll just read . . promise ;-)

I think folks that rag on wanna-be's and yuppies riding expensive toys need to check themselves a bit (not speaking to anyone specifically posting here). These folks *might* indeed be riding such expensive toys for their ego, but my experience has been that folks that bash them badly are experiencing an ego issue of their own. "They aren't a TRUE biker like me", etc. I like the tone of this thread for the most part because there have been comments about how some of the folks buying these bikes ARE enthusiasts and shouldn't be assumed to be fad followers. Perhaps personal success allows them to indulge where most simply can't (or smartly for their situation, don't). Others have readily admitted that they'd buy a custom if they could afford it.

I *almost* bought the Exile Silver Bullet which I still think is the finest looking motorcycle I've ever seen. The fellow that owned it admitted it was on display sort of in his living room (or something like that) and rarely was it ridden. It would have been easy to have chuckled about that and I'm glad I didn't jump to any conclusions about him. He bought it before Exile was ever on TV and I found out from later discussion that his son races in SuperMoto, I even saw him on TV. This guy was a motorcycle enthusiast and we chatted about riding in general for a while. Yuppie or not . . .. I couldn't tell you. Kinda didn't matter, we had a common interest and that's what we chatted about.

I agree with a lot of what has been said here. I just wanted to toss in my comments specifically about Exile and custom bikes in general since I did a little component pricing myself. Many of the parts that Exile uses, they are the only US distributor for (at least as far as I could find) and other parts are their own design, like the rear disc/sprocket combo. They actually price out the entire bike, you can download the listings of parts and labor for fab work. Once you hit a price point, they do a discount of the entire total. Folks just overpricing based on their reputation won't usually price out something component by component. You can't HIDE anything doing it that way. (Just a note though, that may not be the case when they finally crank up their new website)

If you bought these exact parts from Exile (or equivalent from someone else), I think you'd find that building a bike with custom parts is just freakin' expensive even when you provide the wrench. It would cost me more to try to duplicate the Silver Bullet than to have them build one EVEN if I already had all of the tools I needed, welder, machine equipment, etc. They pay wholesale for the parts and are willing to give a discount when buying an entire bike (plus there is likely negotiation room in there). Buying these pieces without a dealer pricing structure, it'd be ridiculous.

Personally, I doubt Exile has been successful just building bikes. The American Chopper guys run a steel shop I think (and of course have the TV show). Martin Brothers sell pipe or something like that. Almost all the ones that seem to be successful are making money either with some other business AND/OR by selling parts (Ness, Yaffe, WCC, Exile, etc). I wouldn't be surprised if a few of these guys make more in one year on Tshirts and the like than they make for one bike. It's the parts in my opinion that make these things so expensive and for the most part I don't think that is unreasonable for the builders or parts vendors or parts designers and manufacturers.

WOW! Sorry for rambling like that! I love the attitudes in here and look forward to spending some more time in the forums. Next time, I'll just read . . promise ;-)
I hear ya. I saw exile choppers in a glossy back in the late nineties. I thought, eh that's alright, nothing to get excited about but not bad. I happened to haul a load right next door to their shop just last year and I spotted the owner out back with a bike and customer/new owner... they fired it up and I'm like a moth to fire when it comes to hearing a bike. I got an up close and personal look at that machine and let me tell you- Exile choppers are bad mother f**kers! Everybody and their brother thinks they could do a better job if they just had the money but the fact is if people could do a better job they would have the money! Personally I'd rather ride what I have but only because it's mine and not because I have any delusions about pro built bikes being inferior. They're not, they're just less personal. It's kinda like the difference between restoring a 69 Camaro or going down and buying a brand new Vette or something. What's better? Depends on who you ask and what you're looking for... It's all relative and it's all good.

You might have to pay for a few employees, purchase and maintain equipment (some machine equip costs are ridiculous), lease a shop, etc. You'd probably have to sell a lot of bikes to break even each year.




Most of these builders have a mainstay business that really pays the bills. OCC has their Iron Works (iron fenciing and railing), Arlen Ness, Jesse James, Russel Mitchell, have a huge parts department that actually pays the rent. The bikes are built on razor thin proffit margins and are usually labors of love rather that put food on the table. You could easily spend 25K putting one of these things together yourself. And you would have to spend three or four years doing it. As for Exile in particular, I think they are some of the most reasonably priced customs around. As compared say to an OCC 150K chrome and billet sled. I agree with Mitchell on one thing . When he says that most American Customs look "like a tarts handbag".

I think folks that rag on wanna-be's and yuppies riding expensive toys need to check themselves a bit (not speaking to anyone specifically posting here). These folks *might* indeed be riding such expensive toys for their ego, but my experience has been that folks that bash them badly are experiencing an ego issue of their own. "They aren't a TRUE biker like me", etc. I like the tone of this thread for the most part because there have been comments about how some of the folks buying these bikes ARE enthusiasts and shouldn't be assumed to be fad followers. Perhaps personal success allows them to indulge where most simply can't (or smartly for their situation, don't). Others have readily admitted that they'd buy a custom if they could afford it.

I *almost* bought the Exile Silver Bullet which I still think is the finest looking motorcycle I've ever seen. The fellow that owned it admitted it was on display sort of in his living room (or something like that) and rarely was it ridden. It would have been easy to have chuckled about that and I'm glad I didn't jump to any conclusions about him. He bought it before Exile was ever on TV and I found out from later discussion that his son races in SuperMoto, I even saw him on TV. This guy was a motorcycle enthusiast and we chatted about riding in general for a while. Yuppie or not . . .. I couldn't tell you. Kinda didn't matter, we had a common interest and that's what we chatted about.

I agree with a lot of what has been said here. I just wanted to toss in my comments specifically about Exile and custom bikes in general since I did a little component pricing myself. Many of the parts that Exile uses, they are the only US distributor for (at least as far as I could find) and other parts are their own design, like the rear disc/sprocket combo. They actually price out the entire bike, you can download the listings of parts and labor for fab work. Once you hit a price point, they do a discount of the entire total. Folks just overpricing based on their reputation won't usually price out something component by component. You can't HIDE anything doing it that way. (Just a note though, that may not be the case when they finally crank up their new website)

If you bought these exact parts from Exile (or equivalent from someone else), I think you'd find that building a bike with custom parts is just freakin' expensive even when you provide the wrench. It would cost me more to try to duplicate the Silver Bullet than to have them build one EVEN if I already had all of the tools I needed, welder, machine equipment, etc. They pay wholesale for the parts and are willing to give a discount when buying an entire bike (plus there is likely negotiation room in there). Buying these pieces without a dealer pricing structure, it'd be ridiculous.

Personally, I doubt Exile has been successful just building bikes. The American Chopper guys run a steel shop I think (and of course have the TV show). Martin Brothers sell pipe or something like that. Almost all the ones that seem to be successful are making money either with some other business AND/OR by selling parts (Ness, Yaffe, WCC, Exile, etc). I wouldn't be surprised if a few of these guys make more in one year on Tshirts and the like than they make for one bike. It's the parts in my opinion that make these things so expensive and for the most part I don't think that is unreasonable for the builders or parts vendors or parts designers and manufacturers.

I've thought about the finances of it and I would NOT want to be a custom bike builder. How much would you have to sell your bikes for if you have $20k invested in parts and you know you'll have to paint or pay for paint, supply the labor, possibly some kind of warranty, etc? You might have to pay for a few employees, purchase and maintain equipment (some machine equip costs are ridiculous), lease a shop, etc. You'd probably have to sell a lot of bikes to break even each year.

Exile has a different approach and they contract the precision machine work out and actually they take a ragging because of that (bike "assembly" vs bike building, etc). In the end, it could be cheaper for the customer that way. You either maintain equipment or have to hire talent, or you pay someone that already does all that. I think Mitchell ALWAYS ends up with an expert doing each job and for that I'd give him a lot of credit. Someone trying to do it all in-house isn't necessarily doing what's best for the buyer. I think specifically Exiles prices are fair, BUT we'll see if they remain so.

When the trend reverses (and these things generally do) you might find you'll have to pay a ton for inferior parts because of lack of competition. If Exile Cycles has produced a superior product then I WANT them to make money. Seems to me, if you want a custom bike that is well made, with engineered components, then it's just going to cost a ton of money. At least the current market supports folks making high quality stuff so I prefer it be a thriving market. There will always be folks selling junk but hopefully they will not last and if you do some research you can avoid them.

I could have bought the Silver Bullet for just a tad under $30K which is lower than Mitchell would probably sell one for now that he's good and "famous". It was and is my favorite bike period, and it was a good deal in the current market. In the end, I simply couldn't justify it and I gotta say I am 95% as happy with my Sportster for a fraction of the cost. I didn't make that choice because I felt the bike wasn't worth it, it just wasn't worth it to me with my current situation. I can't say that about someone else's financial situation or their desire to own something unique, etc. To someone else $30k was a great deal, to me it might be a great deal 3 years down the road. But it wasn't at the time.

If I am blessed down the road financially AND I still have the desire for that look, I'd reconsider something like the Silver Bullet but for now I own my sporty outright and I can spend a little here and there making it what I want. I may find I am happiest with a true one-of-a-kind that I piece together over the next couple of years anyway.

WOW! Sorry for rambling like that! I love the attitudes in here and look forward to spending some more time in the forums. Next time, I'll just read . . promise ;-)

Great first post!!! That has got to be a record or something. By the way welcome, from Guam!!:tour

That's Kpreese's first and only post in a year. Something tells me he doesn't visit us much anymore.

My opinion is the customer is the one that determines the price of a custom. If someone wants to pay 50 grand for a bike they will ride a couple of times a year, who am I to argue. And yes, it does screw up everything for the rest of us that may want an Exile bike but think of the deal you'll get when the fad is over.


Ultimately:

choppers are built, not bought.

I love Exile Bikes. If I had the money I would buy one in a hurry. I guess its one of those "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" type things. Maybe when all this fad is over I can afford one then.

Get a can of flat back and you can have one.

well...
Takes more than a can of flat black paint to make an Exile. The look, design etc. is what makes the Exile bikes unique. It takes a long look to really see all the work and custom touches that go into Exile's bikes. There is a lot of hand work that goes into them. The fact that an Exile bike can stand out in a crowd without fancy paint says a lot.

The other thing people tend to miss is that he was building and selling these bikes 10 years ago and much of what is now mainstream was cutting edge back then. Much of their parts they now have manufactured for them but 10 years ago they did it all themselves. When someone says he likes an Exile style bike, you know what they mean.

Exile's prices are very reasonable compared to many other "master" builders. Although I can't see myself paying 50 - 100K for a motorcycle (not many sell at that price) - start pricing out the costs of building a comparable bike that is sold by a Jesse James, etc. before commenting about what a ripoff they are. I am glad that you can build a bike in your garage (that's where I did mine) but don't fool yourself into thinking it is the same as what comes out of WCC or Exile. Few people have the skills and craftsmanship to do that.

If I make a 150K a year, why not pay 60K for a bike. A lot of guys tooling around in new cars that they have paid 30k for that only make that a year.

Sample build list:

Frame - 2500 - 5000
Front end - 2300
Bars (with controls) - 2000 - 4000
Tank - 1300
Seat - 700
Wheels (custom cut) - 8000
Paint - 8000 - 10000
Tires - 1000
Fenders - 1500
Exhaust - 800
Engine - 10000
Transmission - 2500
Belt Drive - 2500
Starter - 800
Foot Controls - 1500

50+K - for parts and paint, add a little for labor and you have a 55 - 60K ride.
A typical Exile runs 30K, assembled and delivered to your door. Same price as my mini van.

I don't know but sounds like a lot of penis envy to me.

Kong

IMOH, it's ok to spend that kinda doe on a bike, AS LONG AS YOU RIDE IT.
If it's to be a trailer queen, then it is a complete waist of money.
Like a 1971 Hemi Cuda or a 1969 Camaro Z/28, having one that is never driven is a waist.
They were meant to be driven, and that bike was built to be ridden.

Just an opinion.

I don't think I'd feel comfortable riding an OCC bike or an Exile. Just not my style.....Maybe a sporty and extended front end and a fancy paint job, but that's about all my personality would allow. Couldn't imagine riding to a bar on one. Another thing....When those builders on the Discovery Channel ride their customs for any distance, they usually break down. I don't have any buddies that would be willing to follow me around in a 'chase vehicle'. When American Chopper first came on, I watched it for about 6 shows. Senior would take the bike out for a short test ride, and that was it. The bikes were pushed around after that until the day of the shows they participated in. Probably afraid the chromed cob webs on the 'spider man' bike would vibrate off. And to top it off, you still gotta buy insurance for it.....Can't imagine how much that would be.....

Popularity boosts prices. Once these guys get on tv, the sky is the limit. Discovery has made these guys rich! There are people out there just waiting to throw money at their new display. Just look on ebay and look at the low milage customs that are up for sale. I know a lot of people buy these bikes to ride, but to others it's all about the name of who built it. Whatever sells the bikes and more power to the builders! I wish them all luck. This custom bike thing is just a fad and many of the custom bike shops in this area have shut down. The ones that will make it are the ones with a side income, be it parts, metal sales or whatever. I like the looks of the Exile bikes and I'm sure the guys that afford and own them love them. Russell stays true to his style, and I respect him for that. For the rest of us that can't, or won't, pay that much for a ride, we'll just have to ride on!

Is any bike worth 40+K??? That thing better be plated in gold! Not chrome! INSANE!! They look nice but I do not see how someone could ride them long distances. When ever I see a biker build off and those guys supposedly riding across the country on them?!?! The only one that looked comfy was Indian Larry (RIP). We complain about the stock sporty seat...imagine riding a jesse james or billy lane custom. Either those guys have iron butts or they trailer most of the way.

How are they on component parts? such as twist controls?

no levers would be cool.

My dad built his own bikes, he rode the shit out of em and didn't care for a flashy bike, I was 6 when he died and never knew him. I did'n't even live with him, but biker is in my blood. for years I couldn't afford a fukn 50cc scooter let alone a hog, but I got to know the local riders and couldn't wait to own my own. I found a virago 1100 painted it and rode it, never happy because it wasn't a hog but I knew once i got on one I wouldn't want to get off, and it was recently sold on ebay to allow me to buy an old 74 ironhead project bike. It didn't run when I got it, it was apart, it was covered in snow, but my dick got rock hard and i plopped down 2k and brought the sun of a bitch home. I'm now exstatic over finally owning a harley and my dad rode ironheads, an ironhead is all i ever wanted in the first place, I don't know much of anything about working on them, but I ain' t taking this bike out on a long trip until I do, i've already figured out the wiring, ran new fuel lines, slapped on the tanks and fenders, and am pulling the primary off 2nite. I 2 get pissed off at older guys even in my club, that are preps by day, and play dressup at the meets. I'm fortunate enuff to own my own company. I sell hot rods over the net, I will take my bike 2 as many places as I can and ride i near daily once it is up and running, anyone that says an old sporty can't go from here to sturgis can kiss my ass ! It has a paughco rigid frame and apes and is balls to the wall, and I'll ride the sun of bitch anywhere I can go, i don't plan on trailering a god damn thing. But with exile and the rest, they are making a killing, I wish I could, but i bet those bikes can be built for well under 10k, why be greedy, just be needy. Later guys.

Hillbilly