Sava’s Mean Machine Rigid Chopper

SAVA’S chopper is putting out almost 140 horsepower so it’s not all show, there’s a lot of go there too. It’s one hell of a mean machine. Powerful and loud — “Especially in the middle of the night doing a big burnout,” laughs Sava.

Sava started with a standard rigid 250 frame but then chopped the seat section out and welded the rear guard directly to the frame. 

“I just got a bit carried away and started making a drop saddle and then one thing led to another,” said Sava. 

He then put the oil tank into the rear guard and ran the brake lines through the frame to keep it looking clean. 

You won’t buy many of the parts, like the handlebars and petrol tank, on this bike anywhere — they’re all hand fabricated. 

“It had a standard petrol tank on it and we started fabricating another, and you can’t have standard handlebars on it — you need something extreme — so we made the handlebars.”

Sava didn’t want a basic paint job on his bike so he got Stuart, the painter, to weave tribal skulls into the candy apple red.

The wiring on Sava’s chopper is the tidiest we’ve ever seen. You’ll have to look closely to find the battery, coil and the electrics; everything is tucked away nicely.

Yes, the seat is ostrich skin. Sava made the seat base and gave it to Precise Auto Trimming on the Gold Coast for the natural ostrich skin finish.

Even though the chopper is rigid, it rides and handles beautifully. 

“You would be surprised at how good it is,” said Sava. “I can ride it all day, no problems at all. It’s a rideable, everyday sort of a bike.”

The Mean Machine has won a few trophies since it first hit the roads. It’s won Best Rigid at every show it’s been in; and it’s always in the top five overall. Not bad for a bike that was put together in six weeks.

pics by Walter Wall