Hi-Bond Modified founder Rico Fodrey is a Harley mechanic and bike builder of global repute. A respected crowd favorite among lovers of old American motorcycles on three continents, Rico has been elbows deep in old knuckles for over half his life. Given his H-D pedigree, why does the man cyber jockeys call Father Fury cruise the countryside on a janky CB750 chop? His answers will surprise you.

"I paid eleven-hundred dollars for this thing. When I first saw it I considering picking it up for my friends Kutty and Bones, but when I rode it I said, 'Fuck them' and kept it for myself!

"The dude who sold it to me rode across the border from mainland Mexico. He didn't want to sign it over because he thought the US government had satelites that could shoot his signature from outer space and report him to Immigration. Crazy.

"All I've done is add oil and gas. I've got Harleys, but this thing's the most comfortable bike I own. Nobody notices, but it's got shocks behind the saddle bags. A swingarm chopper with a girder front end, and no one can ID the thing.

"I've put over 10,000 miles on the clicker. Two cross-country road trips, one trip to Sturgis, another to the Carolinas, San Francisco twice. Seven or eight electrical breakdowns have slowed her down, but nothing can kill it. One time it broke down in Orange County on a ride with Duane Ballard. I hopped on the back of Duane's white bike and we took Ortega Highway over the mountains back to Elsinore. That fucker was getting loose hauling our fat asses, and at one point Duane turned wide and we bounced off the guard rail. I'm not afraid of dying on a motorcycle, but I don't want to be riding bitch if it happens.

"Check at the ghetto engineering on the tank tabs. Two bolts and two flat metal plates are the only things holding it down. I cleaned up the back mount a little, but said 'fuck it' on the other one. It hasn't fallen off yet, and I ride the shit outta this thing.

"Nothing on this thing is straight. The bar clamps are crooked, the top tree is drilled wrong, the handlebars are bent, it's a mess. Point it down the road and it rides great. Go figure."

A great-riding, low-maintenance motorcycle for around a grand. If you can't see the attraction in that, you're into motorcycles for all the wrong reasons. Thanks for the lesson in practicality, Father Fury.