Mix Of Tricks Chopper

In a former feature I introduced you to JC and Jimmie Lee Coen the 2 brothers of Three Two Choppers out of Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. They focus all their efforts in unusual solutions with for objective to set new trends in motorcycle design. And AMFU, name of this creation, shows that they are very serious about shaping a new style of customs. In it, innovative fabrication and technical solutions are so abundant that I asked the 2 bros to walk you through some of their thoughts process to help you notice in the featured pictures the most interesting details.

“We created a drop seat chassis with a single seat rail, but on a stock Harley Shovelhead chassis rather than a custom built one.  To create this design, we knew we had to stretch the swingarm to allow for the drop seat and to make room for the wheels from Thomason Performance.  Instead of using the original square swing-arm, we found a 1958 casting early round style swingarm.

The next part was designing the drop seat. We decided to use a single seat rail instead of two rails.  We had engineered a similar design in an earlier build and thought it would work perfectly with this chassis as well.  We brought the single seat rail in between the two rear frame/seat posts.  We bent some tubing that would allow these two vertical supports to roll into the single seat rail.  The single seat rail ended up sticking out the back side of these two rear supports. This design was done on purpose because we had plans to utilize it for our seat.  To test our seat plans we actually built a model of what we wanted to do and tested it to make sure it worked before cutting into the frame.  Once the model proved to work we went ahead and chucked the frame in the mill and carved out the key hole in the top of the single seat rail. The next step was to build a bearing system the seat would rotate on.  The rotation needed to be on bearing for smooth operation.  After we machined the parts and cut out the seat bracket, we were ready for mock-up.  We fit all the pieces together, slid the spring in the back of the single seat post, hooked up the inner rod and set the preload.  We were excited because we had actually completed a seat that would ride on an internal seat spring.   Without a rider on the bike the seat sits forward un-sprung.

The thought all along on this build was to make the once shock sprung rear end into a rigid.  We accomplished this by designing two Stainless Steel plates, one for each side that would mount to the stock mounts on the frame and to the swing arm.  These plates are ½” thick and were designed with three holes cut into them from front to back with the larger hole in the front and smaller holes as they worked their way back.  The holes were put there for three reasons, looks, weight and functionality.

We wanted to keep the pipes narrow to the motor and chassis and route them to dump out each large hole in the strut like an old Hot Rod.  We were able to accomplish this look b/c of the choice to run a Morris Magneto and the oil tank hung to the side Three Two Style.  With the front cylinder pipe running along the left side of the bike and the rear cylinder pipe running under the drop seat we were able to route them as planned which created a real tight, clean look for an old bike.

For the tank we decided to keep the stock 3.5 gallon split tanks.  The first idea was to keep them split but section them for a leaner look.  Once we sectioned the tanks (not a square section, rather a tapered or pie shaped section) the plan came into view.  We not only sectioned the stock tanks but also narrowed them and turned them into a single tank. A great deal of metal work went into the tank so the bottom side (not seen) had an even balanced look once joined.  There are so many other features such as brake and oil line keepers, the remote fuel valve, clip-on handlebars, remote pull hydraulic clutch,  M5 Morris Magneto, Buell XB9-r high beam guts used in a TTC machined housing, LED billet tail light machined by TTC, 4-piece TTC Moon Eyes oil tank brackets, Goodson air cleaner, brass kick pedal, TTC/Jay Brake forward controls, and others. Three Two Choppers (pictures copyright Frank Sander and courtesy AMD Championship)

Name of bike: AMFU. Owner: Three Two Choppers. Fabrication & Assembly: Three Two Choppers. Build time: 1 year. Engine:  Harley Davidson Shovelhead. Cases: HD. Rods:  S&S. Pistons:  S&S. Cylinders:  S&S. Heads: S&S. Cam: S&S. Ignition: Morris Magneto M5. Carb: S&S Super E. Pipes: Three Two Choppers. Air Cleaner: Goodson. Transmission:  Rev Tech 5 in a 4, kick only. Clutch: Pro Clutch. Primary: Primo Brute IV. Clutch Actuation: Kustom Tech Cable to Hydraulic. Frame: HD Swing Arm. Rake: 32 degrees. Trees: Kustom Tech. Legs: Shaved Sportster. Rear Suspension: None. Rear Shocks: None. Front wheel: 21×2.15 Raven Star by Thomason Performance. Rear wheel: 18×4 Raven Star by Thomason Performance. Front Tire: Avon Cobra. Rear Tire:  Avon Cobra. Front Brake: None. Rear Brake: PM 2-Piston (Bracket by Three Two) Fuel Tank: Modified 3.5 gal. Oil Tank: Moon Eyes Side Mount. Fender: FXE 19”. Handlebars: Clip-Ons. Risers: None. Hand Controls: Kustom Tech. Grips: Avon. Foot Controls: Three Two Choppers. Pegs: Jay Brake. Headlight: Buell XB9-r High Beam. Taillight: LED by Three Two Choppers. Painter: “OSC” Other Side Customs. Color: Silver Flake/Black. Graphics: OSC. Powdercoating: DFW PC. Electrical: Three Two Choppers. Seat:  Three Two Choppers

30 Responses to “Mix Of Tricks Chopper”


  1. 1 Rick Bopre Nov 28th, 2011 at 9:10 am

    Very nice.

  2. 2 Larry R Nov 28th, 2011 at 10:22 am

    Wicked, innovative, great work, guys! I love it.

  3. 3 Brett Nov 28th, 2011 at 10:24 am

    Kewl work!

  4. 4 hk Nov 28th, 2011 at 11:02 am

    other than the fact it has no front brakes i think its near perfect .great build and even better to see the modifications done starting with a stock frame

  5. 5 hk Nov 28th, 2011 at 11:16 am

    so many details pop out at you its definately a very cool build

  6. 6 AFT Customs Nov 28th, 2011 at 11:59 am

    Nice job Jimmy Lee Saw this bike in Sturgis. Really liked it. He has a cool style. Ck out his bike in Dec. issue of Barnetts.

  7. 7 cafesportytc Nov 28th, 2011 at 1:23 pm

    i understand its a show bike…. whats with the seats that are only barely able to hold one ass cheek lately??? other than that i think its awesome!

  8. 8 Laurence Zankowski Nov 28th, 2011 at 1:55 pm

    Cyril,

    Somebody has gone back to the drawing board, getting their head wrapped around “simple, elegant, passionate”.

    Good job J.C. , and Jimmy Lee, with a few mods I can see a regular rider out if this.

    Laurence

  9. 9 Doc Robinson Nov 28th, 2011 at 3:04 pm

    I crawled all over this bike at the AMD Show in Sturgis and it is very sweet indeed with excellent engineering. And for those who might be sceptical regarding the seat, it supported my 220lbs just fine.

  10. 10 EscaladeSteve Nov 28th, 2011 at 4:21 pm

    Three Two always kicks out the sweetest bikes… great job guys!

  11. 11 ChopperKulture Nov 28th, 2011 at 7:53 pm

    Very nice bike!….And hk there are brakes you just need to know were to look i guess!!!!

  12. 12 Tropical Willie Nov 28th, 2011 at 8:08 pm

    VERY COOL FABRICATION BUILD ,this was a very cool build .

  13. 13 Grip Ace Hidden Switch System Nov 28th, 2011 at 9:00 pm

    A build from the heart. Nice workmanship.

  14. 14 Ron at Vision Nov 28th, 2011 at 9:17 pm

    Typical 32 choppers build – and by “Typical” I mean: Original, handcrafted and full of style and attitude just like a custom motorcycle should be. Great job guys!

  15. 15 hk Nov 28th, 2011 at 10:30 pm

    @chopperkulture. Unless its the smallest front hub brake in existance I don’t see any front brakes

  16. 16 steveb Nov 28th, 2011 at 11:32 pm

    The brothers Coen rock, it was a treat meeting them and shooting this machine behind the AMD tent this past Sturgis.. and they even showed up on time- a class act and the bike is a detailed out monster!

  17. 17 Nobody Nov 29th, 2011 at 12:27 am

    Not crazy about the seat, but still a sweet looking sled

  18. 18 Rocket Pete Nov 29th, 2011 at 2:41 am

    Just a stunning piece of work from an inspirational builder. Deserved way higher in the AMD, especially when compare the actual build details !!

    Congrats fellas on yet another killer bike 😉

  19. 19 mack Nov 29th, 2011 at 8:04 am

    AWSOME!

  20. 20 OEMThelma Nov 29th, 2011 at 9:10 am

    Ever watch any Coen Brothers films? ” No Country for Old Men” is one example.The Coen Brothers bike builders are similar in bike building, especially in the mix of tricks” AMFU”. I volunteer to ride it!

  21. 21 Mrs. Coen Nov 29th, 2011 at 9:55 am

    I see first hand the hard work, banged up hands, blood, sweat and raw pictures that goes into each and every build. I couldn’t be more proud and excited for what’s next. Outatanding job Three Two Choppers the AMFU is bad a$$!!!!

  22. 22 Three Two Nov 29th, 2011 at 3:35 pm

    Thank you all for the kind words we appreciate it. Also, thanks Cyril for the continued support.
    Keep an eye on us b/c more great builds are getting ready to come out of the shop.

  23. 23 10377586 Nov 29th, 2011 at 6:11 pm

    The seat doesn’t do much for me either but I really like the rest of it, nice work.

  24. 24 burnout Nov 29th, 2011 at 7:02 pm

    I wanna ride it! peace

  25. 25 nuno maroco Nov 29th, 2011 at 8:53 pm

    Top bike, radical look.

  26. 26 James McBride Nov 30th, 2011 at 6:04 am

    Love this bike but that seat is making me a little uncomfortable…

  27. 27 Bill Nov 30th, 2011 at 1:15 pm

    If you are in the Dallas/Fort Worth area this weekend, get to the International Motorcycle Show to see AMFU in person and meet JC and Jimmie Lee. These guys continue to live up to their slogan “Contribute to the culture”.

  28. 28 Kustoms and Choppers Magazine Nov 30th, 2011 at 6:56 pm

    Not bad, it has a more modern look to it which it looks good

  29. 29 ger Dec 1st, 2011 at 5:18 pm

    saw this in sturgis.spent a lot of time going over it..love it, top class build
    and daysent lads as well jc and jl..

  30. 30 Bill Dec 5th, 2011 at 2:37 pm

    Congrats on the win last weekend.

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Cyril Huze