Catalog Cobras

Catalog Cobras

CUSTOM CRUISERS, BY THE NUMBER

IN THE PAST, KEN BOYKO HAS been happy to put shirts on your back and mufflers on your bike. Now, he wants to dress up your Shadows, Vulcans, Intruders and Viragos.

Boyko, 43, is the driving force behind Turn One motorcycle T-shirts and Cobra Engineering, makers of Boulevard cruiser mufflers and the F1 line of sportbike slip-ons. Cobra’s latest venture is a complete line of aftermarket boitons for Japanese cruisers. “We’re just trying to give cruiser riders the same customizing options HarleyDavidson owners have enjoyed for years,” says Boyko.

The Shadow ACE and Vulcan 1500 shown here are rolling billboards for the company’s products. Where the Denny Bergbuilt Intruder 1400 chopper is a full-on custom well beyond the skills of most owners, these two bikes should be relatively simple affairs completed in a few weekends’ time.

“Everything is a true bolt-on, using the stock fasteners. When new hardware is needed, it’s included in the kit,” claims Berg, who is engineering most of the components for Cobra. Boyko says all parts will be American-made.

While Cobra (4760 E. Bryson St., Anaheim, CA 92807; 714/779-7798) plans to stock add-ons for almost all Japanese cruisers, the big Shadows and Vulcans-which respond well to nostalgic customizing-will have the most comprehensive array. Components will include valanced fenders, floorboards, wide handlebars, spotlights and “Horn Relocation Kits” designed to look like round Harley air-cleaner covers. Dress-up items include brake-reservoir caps, handlebar-clamp covers and oldstyle taillights. Seats, fork-lowering kits and made-to-order Works Performance shocks will also be in the catalog.