Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128208
MOB Choppers Sick of nlaking money for "The Man, " the guys at MOB Choppers set out to do it their way STORY AND PHOTOS BY STEVE Cox "I believe in America. America has made my fortune." - Salvatore Corsitto's character, Amerigo Bonasera, taken from the movie, The Godfather. M OB Choppers is a So Cal chopper shop founded behind the idea that you shouldn't have to be rich to ride a custom chopper. At the helm is Matt Peel man, who, still on the teen-age side of 20 years old, became sick of working by other people's rules, so about four months ago, he started MOB. "It stands for Money Over Bitches," Peelman said. "I got it from that rap song, and it just went from there. In fact, right after I started this company, I was at the bank, depositing a check, and like this 65-year-old lady behind the counter who always helps me, she says, 'Matt, what's MOB mean?' I was like, 'Uhh, Matt On a Bike?' I didn't have the heart to tell her what it was! (laughs) But I just like the Mob theme, you know? Everyone asks what it means. 'Nothin',' 'Men On Bikes. tll The MOB crew specializes in making custom choppers, but they don't 46 APRIL 9, 2003' cue I e usually have any completed bikes on site - since they're made to the buyer's specifications, the bikes are gone as soon as they're finished. MOB doesn't just make choppers, though. At least not yet. MOB also has a complete service shop, where it is prepared and capable of working on any Harley-Davidson around and also provides Harley customizing making stock "cookie-cutter" Harleys into individual works of art. However, MOB's heart is in building custom choppers from the ground up. "We've built 11 bikes now out of here," Peelman said. "I'm just trying to make custom shit for young people, to tell you the truth. V-Twin City, all of their bikes are like 40, 45 grand, and Harley-Davidson, all of their bikes are exactly the same carbon copies of each other. I actually wanted to build this place and sell bikes for like 25, 30, 35 grand something more people can afford. "I want a younger crowd. Don't get me wrong; doctors, lawyers, and those guys are nice because they can just plop down a gold card, and it's done. But if I can sell to a lot of the young guys that I ride to Hooters with, that's way more fun." Just because Peelman's a pup in n _ vv s comparison to his business peers doesn't mean he doesn't know bikes. "I worked for Pomona Valley Harley-Davidson for four years," he said, "and after there I went to V-Twin City for three and a half years: We sold bikes there to like Easy Rider, Hot Bikes - real custom shit... No more, I'm doing my own thing." At first, the guys were just excited to have their own shop and do their own thing. "I really wanted to stay small, to tell you the truth," Peelman said. '" wanted to stay small and exclusive. , wanted to be not on Discovery Channel and not charging 70 grand for bikes. I want to be engineering some of the coolest parts." One of the parts he engineered is pictured (D). '" just built a prototype for singleside drive - which is your pully and disc on the same side of the wheel," he said. "In the books, they charge $ 1500 for this kind of kit. So I made this bracket and had it CNCed, and I designed it, and it holds your rotor and your pulley, and now your sidemount license plate is the bracket that holds your brake caliper. It's superclean, and I'll only charge like 500 bucks for it." Basically, Peelman didn't understand the point in paying $ 15,000$20,000 on a motorcycle and then dumping even more money into it in order to make it "unique." "Forso long, me and my buddies would buy Harleys, and then we'd have to go down and spend 8, 10 grand to make it look nice," he said. "And all the parts have been overthought by some old guy with a machine shop and too much money way too intricate, and way too expensive. So I said, 'The hell with this. Let's make parts that work just as well, are more clean and more simple.' That's the thing. We don't want to build bikes with radios on 'em and plush rides and stuff. We want to build something that rides good and looks bitchin' when you ride up at Hooters or a bar." Despite Peelman's original desire to stay small, he's already growing MOB Choppers at an almost alarming rate. "I'm opening a store right now in