Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/693447
66 nJuly 2016n www.thunderpress.net THUNDER PRESS by Robert Filla Brandon Cooper is not your typ- ical biker. Clean shaven, devoid of earring, Mohawk or tattoos, Brandon would appear at fi rst glance to be a professional, a salesman or possibly someone in the medical fi eld. And while Brandon Cooper is a profes- sional, thankfully he chose neither of those careers. Brandon Cooper is a mechanical engineer. And Brandon loves to tinker. I met Cooper at the Editor's Choice Bike Show in Daytona this March where he had several bikes entered in the competition. He ended up walking away with two trophies that day, one from THUNDER PRESS for this 1959 Panhead and another for his handcrafted 1959 45 c.i. fl attie from a second magazine. Taking two wins in any show is impressive. What was more impressive was to fi nd out that not only was this the fi rst time Brandon had ever entered a build in any bike show, this was also his fi rst time to ever attend Daytona Bike Week. But don't think Mr. Cooper is a rookie builder experiencing rookie success—by no means. He's been tin- kering with and cobbling together all manner of two-wheeled contraptions most of his life, as he explained. "It all started with a 5-horsepower Tecumseh engine a friend and I found on a rototiller in a junk yard. We were about 11 years old so it was only nat- ural to mount it on a Stingray bicycle with one of those banana seats. We also found a real big pulley that we managed to lock onto the bike's rear wheel. No clutch, no brakes, had to run alongside to get going and drag your feet to stop. Got yelled at a lot about wearing out my shoes." Brandon Cooper seems to special- ize in taking on projects that repur- pose items, using the old or mundane and breathing new life into them— when completed, the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. This build took the better part of one win- ter and utilizes a 1959 Panhead engine coupled with a 1965 frame (originally a swingarm but remodeled into a hardtail by Cooper). The transmission is a stock 4-speed Harley unit. Both the engine and tranny were rebuilt by Brandon with no major performance upgrades. As he elaborated, "A bike this light, it has plenty of power stock." The bike receives fuel via a S&S Super E that sits behind a modifi ed air fi lter assembly because… "Well, everyone runs those dang teardrop covers," answered Cooper. One of the most unique features is the off-the-wall oil tank, a mon- strous 8-quart wedge-shaped vessel that incorporates fi ve 1" diameter through-holes that serve as a natural cooler. The tank houses an Anti- Gravity battery and utilizes an exter- nal oil fi lter mounted up front that was totally reengineered by Cooper (he is a mechanical engineer with a fi lter company in Michigan). Despite its size, the oil tank fi ts the bike's aesthetics perfectly and is quite ele- gant. The Sporty-style gas tank was modifi ed to accept a one-off gas cap assembly produced by his good friend Kirk Brown with Crafty-B, a manu- facturer renowned for producing the fi nest hand-cast, master-crafted hot rod gas caps in the industry. Although Cooper is a fully qualifi ed machinist, the mid-controls are hand forged—as in a furnace of angry-red coals, a big-ass hammer and stout anvil hand forged—totally mastering his blacksmithing passion EDITOR'S CHOICE BIKE SHOW A Tinker's trade Long northern winters equal success in Florida A hand-cast hot rod gas cap came from the builder's associate at Crafty-B Light and fast, this is the normal view most other riders see All paint and pinstriping were completed by the builder First time to attend Daytona Bike Week, Brandon Cooper will return