This is a seat set that i made for a customer who was building a bike themed around a tribute for the

WWII P-40 Flying Tiger Pilots. The whole project was a lot of fun, and i used some new ideas to make the seats come out as great as possible. Ostrich paneling on the seats, and a panel of black alligator on the spade backrest, the the brushed stainless steel trim-ring and stainless hardware, a custom shaped X-bones seat pan, and all the custom color-work to match the P-40 and symbols to the actual WWII colors made this seat set come out absolutely great. This is one of my favorite seat sets that I've done.

Enjoy the pictures.

-Spike

This is a bobber style front seat, made on one of my OE replacement harley crossbones seat pans, and an OE fit back seat, as well as an OE mounting sissy bar and pad. I made all this stuff to bolt directly to my customer's crossbones.

I never thought it would be as hard as it was to tool guns. I figured all straight angles and geometric shapes would make it easy... wrong. Hours of tooling in details in the grips and rails later, I realized how much more painstaking it was to get all the little geometric details just right so that the gun had symmetry. Making something look like a machine in a material that really wants to make organic shapes and design is much more difficult than I first imagined. The side panels are brought to life with black ostrich panels and black lacing around the edges.

There were a few hiccups, and the seat took much longer than I anticipated to make as well as I ended up making the front seat and rear seat TWICE, because FedEx destroyed the first set in shipping.

All well worth it for a man willing to give his all for freedom.

Enjoy.

-Spike

I have set up a vendor account and can accept all major credit card plans directly.  No more hassling with the slimey paypal payment system, or the complicated google checkout system.
In person, i swipe ypur card normally.  For long distance orders, just call in and i can take your payment and order right over the phone.
I know i know, its so much hassle to actually pick up the phone, dial the number and *talk* to someone, but i'm sure you can manage.  And a little human contact away from the computer couldnt hurt.  Ordering custom work and getting something this cool shouldn't happen by the click of the mouse, anyway.  Afterall, youfr not buying a machine made piece, your buying a handcrafted piece... so talk to the owner of the hands.

Happy shopping,
Spike

Here it is... my secret weapon... well, one of them, anyway...

CARBON FIBER.

Now you may think, "but Spike, i see carbon fiber all the time."

Not like this, you havn't.

This isn't a carbon fiber seatpan, or headlight, or accent piece... this is woven carbon fiber used like material and actually used in the seat.

It is incredibly strong and durable, beautiful... and expensive (yikes!). My trick is how i prep and make the carbon fiber material ready to be used in a seat. It is not the hard plastic looking material you're used to seeing in motorcycle and automotive parts... its still a cloth like material, and is soft and flexible.

Combine that with some kick-ass leather tooling, elegant lacing, and an exotic hide like alligator and you've got one AMAZING seat!

Enjoy the pics of this seat i made back in August 2009.
Later,
SPiKE

Today's blog post is another perfect example of how *my* example... can be a *bad* example.

Sometimes you have a moment when you are nothing but pissed off at the world; brooding over everything that is going wrong at the moment, be it a philandering deceitful girlfriend, finances not being what you want, customers that make you angry... or anything that is wrong in your world.  These moments happen. It's normal it's human... get over it.

The point here i can not stress enough here is this: While this is going on, don't decide to operate machinery.  especially not something with sharp spinning bits.  Like, oh let's say for example... a drill press... and i would further go on to state that while drilling holes for mounting brackets on seat pans with a 9/16" bit is an even worse time to be distracted and worrying about everything else in the world.

fingermovie3 This is the beautiful thing that happens, when while you are too busy worrying about how crappy people have treated you, and the violent daydreams about what you could do to them if you had a chance... your workpiece catches on the bit and spins your finger into the very sharp almost brand new bit.

Granted... all the pictures i have are all after i got it to stop bleeding as much as i could.  I bet it would have looked hilarious if someone were watching when it happened.  Imagine me scrambling around a crowded shop with one arm over my head and blood running down my arm looking for some paper towels and something to use like a tourniquet (the tightly wrapped blue tape).

After i could throw a couple paper towels on it, i grabbed my trusty blue masking tape, quickly tore off a foot or so, and wrapped my finger as tightly as i could.  Bleeding stopped quickly.  Then i went into the house and started to clean it... which is when i thought, "i should share this with the world." because everyone should share in my unhappiness about having a giant gash in my finger now.   And so i grabbed my camera and took some pics.  since i had already washed it a bit, the pics aren't nearly as gory as i would like.  You've been spared for now.

I was lucky, in that the little flaps of skin that had been sliced into by the sharp hardened flutes of the drill bit were still somewhat attached, and allowed me to have a sort of 'built in' cover to glue it all back together with. Like i said, lucky me. Of course at this point, i was no longer distracted by any outside force, and was completely focused on the task at hand.  Funny how that works out?  If you set off with the wrong mind-set, you end up getting into the correct frame of mind one way or another.

and if you're wondering now, "Why Spike, you got it to stop bleeding... but how do you close a huge gash without going to the hospital for stitches?"

That's a good question... and it's been my experience that hospitals don't use stitches anymore.  They use Super Glue.  Of course they can't just go and *call* it super glue... because then they couldn't charge you $100 for it.  But rest assured, it's the same cyano-acrylate glue labeled as super-glue, crazy glue, or (my favorite) loctite super-glue that you can buy at wal-mart for $2.

So, after a good couple cleanings with some antibacterial soap and  douse of hydrogen peroxide, i was ready to dry and apply my glue.

Look ma... now i'm my own craft project.

And here's the finished product.  Skin flap glued back down into place.  You can clearly see the 'C' shape of the edge of the flap in the pic.  I imagine this will dry up and have to be removed soon... perhaps more pics? just because i love you so much. haha.

Just remember folks... do as i *don't* do on this one.  When approaching machinery that can potentially maim or mangle you or your precious appendages, always clear your mind.  stay focused, and be alert.

Metalwork is a joy. Usually beating shapes into sheetmetal, making gastanks, frames, seatpans and the like puts me into a zen-like state of meditation, where i am centered mentally and unhindered by the world outside of my little shop.  Obviously  not the case this time.

Later,

SPiKE

But not to worry, as the site is back up and running for everyone to look at and love.

Enjoy!

SPiKE

This was made on a stock style softail seatpan that was fitted to a custom softail bike. The pan was re-foamed with high density memory foam for much more comfort and sleeker style.
The tooling is skulls on flame backgrounds, and then the “DEADMAN'S HAND” banner that wraps around the deadman hand (Ace's and Eights) all accented in a deep gunmetal metallic silver. If you don't know the story, it comes from the wild west. This is the hand that Wild Bill Hickok was holding when he was shot and murdered, the last card is face down because he was shot before the last card was dealt... dead mans hand.
I picked the alligator side panels because they just look so frickin' nice on an all black tooled seat. The black lacing with chrome eyelets just accents perfect with the bright chrome bullets.

Enjoy,
SPiKE

“JackAss” Custom Bobber Seat and Solo Sidebag

This was a fun project i just finished up in October of '08. It's a seat and solo sidebag for a custom chopper that was done in a "Jack Daniel's" theme. It all came out very nice.

This seat was a bit of a departure for me, because there was no black material on it. It was a quick change of pace, as i get a lot of "all black" tooling seats, or seats with a lot of black in them because all black seats are something that not many seat builders can make look good. Like in paint, black shows every mistake.

It also challenged my design ability... how to make a donkey look cool.

The matching bag came out very well.

I ran aluminum bar around the inside to give the bag support and keep it from loosing shape when it was empty, and keep it from sagging or flopping when it was full.

Heavy duty straps tie everything together (1/4" thick leather) so they won't wear out, tear, or break no matter what. I made it so that it will fit most all softails and custom hardtails.

Enjoy,

SPiKE

Hey folks.

You know, sometimes i just want to be a better photographer. Taking pictures of this seat is one of those times. I just couldn't figure out the lighting/camera settings to make the metallic colors pop out... instead they just look lighter or like they're reflecting light...

This is a seat a made for a custom softail. I matched the colors and design to the paint job itself, which happened to be a metallic flake paint. The really cool part of this seat is that when i color matched the paints, i also matched the metallic. Since i end up mixing almost all of my own colors, i can mix in stuff like metallics and pearl.

I asked for a paint swatch or painted test panel with the colors of his bike on them, so that I could colormatch... Instead he sent me his whole finished and painted fender, so that I could not only color match the seat, but also match the flame design and bright blue pinstripe from his paint job.

After tooling and dying, the super shiny tooled leather got paired with alligator panels, and lacing to make one very nice custom seat. The blue pinstripes were no easy trick to pull off, either. Since leather is already browish color, non-opaque colors like blonde, yellows, and blues are very tricky to mix and color correctly so that they come out how you want them too on the seat.

Enjoy the Pics,

SPiKE

not everything i do has to be completely insane. This is a perfect example of how simple, clean lines and make a top-notch seat.

The honey colored alligator material laced with the black material with chrome eyelets gives this seat a subtle, yet amazing look.

This is a bobber seat that i built up for a customer on his CFL seatpan and CFL frame.

His bike was being painted a metallic pewter color and black, so i mixed my own metallic dyes and painted the letters with a silver and pewter metallic colors.

It's hard to get a good picture of shiny dyes like that, and they end up looking like they're gray in the photos. lol... maybe if i actually knew about lighting and cameras and crap i could do it.

Enjoy the pics.

SPiKE

he told me that he wanted crossed pistons and maybe some fire coming off the top of them, and he wanted it to say DRONES on the seat. all in black.

This is what i came up with. His very own, very custom 'reach' seat. when he got it the seat fit like a glove. All his buddies swore that i had the bike here to make it fit... but i made it work from across the country without ever laying a hand on the bike. :nice:

Enjoy,
SPiKE

Here's a seat i did around March '09 ago for a guy and his '82 Sportster. It was a little bit of a new trick in my bag, combining the tooling and embossed stitching like this. Usually the tooling is the centerpiece, not the stitching, but it works out pretty good like this, too.

From this seat I got set up for ready made sportster seats for sale. You don't need to have an existing seat to re-cover, you can get the whole thing from me ready to bolt in place of the stock seat!

Enjoy the Pics!

Later,

SPiKE

Alright, here's an new old-school trick from me. This was an FXD solo seat that I did a custom re-cover on. It also got a custom foam treatment. It's a 3” reach seat, and I shaved down the nose foam to make it more comfortable and keep the seat from pushing against the insides of the customers legs. (a prevalent problem for stock Harley seats, they are too 'pillowy' in the nose.)

It's old school done in a new way. Vintage pleats and piping. This seat came out better than i thought it would. I had my doubts about the "cool factor" of pleats and piping when i started the project, but in the end i was quite happy with the result. It's a charcoal gray pleated area, and black sides.

Enjoy the pics!

Here's a little pillion pad that a customer ordered from me a long while back. He sent me a picture of a wailing banshee, and said that he wanted that on his seat. He sent me some pictures of his custom front seat and it had flame stitching and braiding.

So, this little pillion pad has a ton of tricks in it's bag. leather braiding, embossed flame stitching/overlay, memory foam padding that tapers from 2 inches in front to 3/4" or so in the back, and the incredibly detailed tooling on the face. I had to invent a new way to tool so that i could get all the detail into the face in such a small space. i especially like the way the eyes turned out.

Enjoy,

SPiKE

Here's a seat i made for a customer who had a "drop in" style seat that sat inside of the bodywork of his frame. hence... it's small.

It's all black on black for a nice subtle look that isn't too flashy. this keeps the seat from detracting from the rest of the bike. so from a distance it's a nice clean black seat... and as you get closer you see more and more detail in the tooling and design.

Enjoy,

SPiKE

This is an alligator bobber seat that i made for a customer back in 2008. he was a bigger kind of guy, and wanted a bobber seat... but it needed to be bigger. so this one is about 4 inches longer and 4 inches wider than my standard bobber seats. Like all my seatpans, it's handformed sheetmetal, not pressed or stamped. I hammer out, english wheel, & planninsh every pan by hand.

I just like this seat because it was so big, and the three alligator panels have a nice look to them. Maybe I should make one of these seats in a normal size to sell in my store.

What do you think?

Enjoy,

SPiKE

This is a beautiful seat that i did around September '08 for a custom softail. The pictures really speak for themselves, this seat came out beautiful.

The symbol in the middle of the seat is a pendant that everyone in his family wears. Originally it was going to be an all black seat, but at the last minute i decided to throw some very dark metallic silver onto the design work to really set it off. I added the very clean custom lacing and black alligator around the edges to really polish it off.

I was very happy with the results... as was my customer.

Enjoy,

SPiKE

"DEVIL GIRL" Custom Softail Seat

Hey,

Here's another seat I finished up back in October '08.

It's tooled inserts on the top and in the seat area with black alligator panels.

This seat took a lot longer than i originally thought it would because of family issues, and this customer was a great guy and understood that i needed to be around my family and be there for them during this time.

As a result, his seat was delayed, but he never gripped once. and for that i put extra tooling and alligator in there as a small token of appreciation. He never said anything negative, only that the seat was awesome.

When a customer can appreciate that I am a person too, with my own aggravations and setbacks like everyone else, I will go the extra mile for them.

Good mannered, and appreciative customers are what make this job worth doing sometimes.

Enjoy the pics,

SPiKE

“Queen of Spades” Bobber Seat

Hey Guys,

Here's a new bobber seat that i made just for the hellavit. It's a new pinup design that I've worked out. I was planning on making one type of pinup seat for each suit of cards, this one is the Queen of Spades. Not sure if i'll do clubs or diamonds next.

This bobber / chopper seat has a hand tooled leather top, with filigree in the background. The filigree is actually dyed a dark gunmetal shade metallic color ( I still don't think anyone has figured out how to make a metallic dye but me ). The edges are laced, and the edges have ostrich panels sewn in as well. Like all my seats it has memory foam padding, with my new and improved seatpans that also accept all the standard hardware (nose brackets and springs) that are on the market, making it much easier to install on your custom build. An upholstered seat bottom finish off the look for one sweet looking seat.

I love it. Pinup girls are definitely on my favorites list of things i enjoy making.

This seat is not a “one-off” and special order for a customer, it will be available for purchase in my online store - Online Store -->"Queen of Spades" B

obber Seat

And without further ado, i give you more pictures!

Later,

SpiKE

It for a 300 series tire rigid frame build with a HUGE drop seat. The seat was very large, and allowed me to really really work on the detail.

The top is all tooled leather, with black alligator tear-out overlays stitched in and black sides.

he's a big guy, and his drop seat kind of squished him a bit, so he wanted to be raised up a few inches to get out of the pocket a little.
So it's all foamed up with high density memory foam, and there's a layer of gel-impregnated foam on top for a little bit of initial 'squish' when you plop down.

Hope you enjoy the pics!
Later,
SPiKE