and now a Big Twin restoration update...

Here are some shots of Big Twin reunited with it's original custom girder front end. Big Twin was originally built with a springer front end but the weight of the 5 wheeler became too much so Dave Brackett came up with this girder instead. Fortunately the girder had stayed with Big Twin all these years though a different front end (an abortion if there ever was one) was on it when found. Below is also a picture of a fully re-chromed Big Twin engine ready for install some day soon. You can follow the build on the Bones Legacy Facebook page. Bones Legacy is the builder in Las Vegas who is doing the restoration of Big Twin....check them out!

Dave Brackett's newest creation is on the loose!

Here is the latest from Dave Brackett engineer and designer at AEE Choppers. It's called 8STR8 for the straight 8 engine (2 -4cylinder Suzuki motors). Go read all about it and see more pictures of this most inventive guy's newest (also see more of Dave's creations) at:

http://www.bikerhotline.com/guestcolumnists/dbrackett/

I GIVE YOU 8STR8  !!!!

Wild Rose

Here is a shot of Rose McMullen (prior to marrying Tom) racing her Vette...rare shot.....she also drove Tom's 32 many times street racing as she was a very good driver.....pretty good company sharing the page with Stone, Woods and Cook!

Tom's 32 before he owned it

Here is actor Nick Adams of the TV series "The Rebel" with what would be come Tom McMullen's flamed 32......

One Day's work with Dave Brackett of AEE fame

Went up to Dave's place this past weekend...very long drive both ways but so worth it. In the picture is what we put together in one day.....nearly all original AEE parts...frame (by Dave), sissy bar, seats, shift peg, mirror, risers, light bracket, square glide front end , mini drum (not on bike in pic). I swear another day or two and it would have been running! Amazing to work with Dave again and see what is possible in a short amount of time.

McMullen roadster going up for sale and here is video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8pfyEGmih4&feature=youtube_gdata

Fans of Tom and his 32 will love this......

AEE girder going up for sale...MEGA RARE!

I've decided to let my AEE girder go. I'll be putting it up on Ebay in a day or two. It's very rare and in great condition, so narrow and thin its hard to believe. As always AEE went its own way, a single leg girder. another amazing piece designed by Dave Brackett.
...be on the look out and spread the word...I need the money! Take a look:

sorry!

sorry for no posts, dealing with a serious family issue. I'll be back soon with more AEE posts and pictures, stuff you have never seen before!

Avionic Structures

One of the most important vendors AEE used way back in the day was Avionic Structures of Anaheim. They made and bent many of our tubing items for us to our design and specification. I also believe they did some of our flame cutting work too. At any rate they were a very important vendor of raw pieces to us. Dave Brackett was the guy that found them and worked with them to produce our parts. I recently tried to run down the owner and see if he had any AEE plans left and sadly I was bit late on the draw as the owner shut down in 2010 and all the records and tooling are gone.

All manufacturers use suppliers and vendors to some extent. There is one frame shop right now making a great many of the finished frames that others are selling under their own name as if it was their part. AEE had some items we did not make but they did not get relabeled by us as our part with one or two minor instances. If it was ours and we made the finished product we said so.

I no sooner posted this and Dave chimed in with this:

Brent, the owner of Avionics Structures  and I graduated high school together, that is why I went to him for help. He had a great fab shop. We talk every couple months.

Dave

Cool stuff!

Big Twin link

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.139664372818040.26911.136657089785435&type=1

follow along as the guys at Bones Legacy restore this iconic AEE Choppers 5 wheeler......

AEE Weber manifold

Here are some shots of a manifold that showed up on Ebay. The early versions of these that we sold did not have the AEE logo on them. I'm pretty sure we were originally getting them from Magnuson as he is the guy that came up with the Weber to Ironhead/Shovelhead manifold. Someone wants this bad as they have a bid on it WAY too high for its value.

I'm back and Paul JR. knows nothing!

Just got back from a 90 mile backpack in the High Sierras so I will post and catch up here soon.

Meanwhile I got this from Paul at Bones Legacy Choppers:

I was flicking through the tv today,,OCC was on ,Jr, was building a 5 wheel trike,,he claimed it was the only one in the world ever built,  i cant believe what an idiot he is,, the BIG TWIN is so well known,,i cant believe they aired what he said.

BIG TWIN was the first 5 wheeler (and twin engined auto trans)!!! Kid doesn't know his chopper history at all.

Panhead covers for sale

As promised here is a link to the AEE panhead covers for sale:

 Bornlosermc.blogspot.com

AEE Panhead covers

Our buddy Panhead Dave sent us these photos of some AEE panhead covers he may be selling. You don't see these very often and this set is in great shape. If I hear where he will be selling them I'll try to post it. Meanwhile enjoy some more AEE goodness.....

BIG TWIN UPDATE

Here is the latest: The original girder front end designed and built by Dave Brackett (just like the rest of Big Twin) has been mounted back up to it for the first time in years. Pictures aren't real clear but enjoy...its slowly coming together at Bones Legacy in Las Vegas.

AEE seats in my stash

I'll get back to the first issue of Street Chopper soon but I happened to be cleaning up the garage and shot these pictures of my current stock of AEE seats (I have two others that are mounted up currently).

The cobra style tuck and roll seat is for a swing arm HD, all three King and Queen seats are for rigid frames, the two pads go on anything. The diamond pattern seat is almost with flaws which is amazing after 40 years. However the cobra seat is perfect, zero flaws AND it still has the AEE part number tag on it! I just need enough more chops to build to use these all up...not to mention money and time!

Street Chopper January 1969

Here are the first 6 pages of the very first issue of Street Chopper. Read the editorial and you will see even in 1969 AEE was trying to tell everyone it isn't all about Harley's! Chop what ya got! The cover of course is the Mindbender and the Corvair Trike. In 1969 there was only 4 issues and my intenet is to post all of each issue.  hang with us this is very labor intensive and I have a chopper I'm building so I must choose my battles.

McMullen roadster model

I don't think I posted this before but this is a video of Tom's roadster  as a model from Danbury Mint.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BCj9SRMPsY

AEE sportster frame

here is the first ad for the AEE Sportster rigid frame. Designed and built by Dave Brackett our designer, engineer and all around craftsman and inventor! We sold a lot of these along the way as did Dave on his own. High quality and well thought out. This is from the August 1970 Street Chopper which means they were in production earlier in the year.

"New" AEE seat

I sent an AEE seat over to the Haifley Brothers in Phoenix for them to renew it. Came back looking perfect! I highly recommend them, great work and good guys, they went the extra mile to match up the stitching to the original that was falling apart.......check it out.

The Inheritance

This is for my friend Lenny and his bro Steve.....

more Supersport

Sadly very few color pictures exist of most of the AEE bikes. At that time most things were published in black and white so it's hard to find much. Also the shots that I do have are in the catalogs and Street Chopper's of the time and they are now over 40 years old. very delicate and tough to scan them without wrecking the publication. However here are a couple more shots....and the Molly paint on this and the Shovelhead were unreal. The red and gold and striping and design were spot on. I wish I had taken some shots when I worked there but when you are around something every day you don't think much about it.

Sportsters

I thought I should bring up the whole subject of Sportsters. These days they get looked down upon as a "girls" bike. The reality is back in the day they were the hot rod of the HD line. Probably more Sportsters got chopped than anything else. They were fast, light and compact and lots of chopper parts became available for them. The first (and our only) kit bike we ever produced was a Sportster. We actually did the kit idea a couple times over the years in Street Chopper magazine and it was always a Sportster. Our racing side of the business had Leo Payne on the Turnip Eater, fastest Sporty in the world for a long time. Of course our most famous Sportster was our bike called "Supersport shown here with Tom McMullen aboard. Designed and built by Dave Brackett. So I'd prevail upon everyone to take a second look at all sportsters, not jsut the old Ironheads as a very viable option. Remember in the dawn of choppers we chopped everything not just Hogs.....light and fast was the word...Sportys, Triumphs, Hondas and so on.

A taste of AEE goodness

More EBAY rant!

I've said it before but this is ridiculous...out of 49 items listed today as AEE exactly ONE is!!!!!!
Buyer beware please, and to all of you out there trading on AEE's good name go the hell away.

Street Digger

This innovative chopper was built after both Dave Brackett and I left AEE. As you can see they threw everything at it, AEE parts, supercharger, digger style body and so on. As you can see in the picture Lenny our parts manager and friend (standing next to Rose McMullen) look shighly skeptical. he was right. As you will see in the pictures somehow the rear disc got chromed. Tom hops on for the first ride, and since he wasn't known for being discrete, he hammers this blown 74....grabs for the brake and nothing! that chrome disc didn't slow him at all, he proceeded across the street and plowed up the field according to Lenny! The location of this AEE chopper is unknown like all of the rest except for Big Twin which is undergoing a very slow restoration.