News

A new home for Chopperdaddy!! Yep, that's right Jackman Custom Cycle is moving to Frederick MD! The construction is finished, with "green" lighting and heat! We are waiting for final inspections, then it will be time to move. We have hit a small bump in the road, the water fountail has to meet ADA specifications but then it is too low for the electrical requirements. I really hope we can work this out fast.  We are ready! This place is so big, I wonder how it will look when all the equipment gets moved in. Jerry is packing up the old shop. This is going to be a great move for Jackman's, Frederick has so much to offer, great roads to ride, totally cool night life, 1st Saturday's, and now The Hottest Custom Bike Shop on the East Coast! Come by and check out our new location:

Jackman Custom Cycle    1539 Tilco Dr. Unit 103    Frederick, MD 21704

From Hot Bike Magazine May 5- June 2, 2009. Reprinted by permission.

As I See It

What Will Happen?

It has been a long time since I have been given a page to rant a bit, and it’s good to be here. Most of the time this page is for us to talk about anything going on, or anything we need to vent about. One thing on my mind has to do with Wal-Mart. When Wal-Mart moves into town it forces the smaller, “mom and pop” shops to scale down, if not close their doors. Having been across this country and at as many shops as I’ve visited, I can’t help but hear and see the same thing going on with all of them. I always ask to find out how they are doing and if there’s anything new going on and it’s usually the same story, “times are hard right now and the business is just not there.” Some of them feel that they are not getting the needed support of their customers. More guys are doing the work at home like the oil changes, which is a good thing but not if you are ordering your parts online to save a couple of bucks. Even if they are not doing the service, selling the parts still brings money in.

Everyone wants and needs to save a buck and eBay can be a good thing, but if you don’t support the little shop owners, soon they might be gone and then what are you going to do? The only places that will be available are the big dealerships, which can be costly. Which brings me to my next point about the big dealerships and the small shops. Sure the big dealerships are good for certain things, but most of the time many of them won’t even touch a pre-Evo motor, which is what a lot of the smaller shops specialize in. So if all that’s left is the large corporate dealerships, you vintage bike guys, probably won’t be able to get the help you’d need from them. So show your support to the smaller shops and keep them in business.

Thanks,

Ernie “B.W.F.”
ernie.lopez@sorc.com

www.hotbikeweb.com