Siksika: 1956 Panhead Trophy Winner

Organic Build

Siksika, Algonquian for 'Black Foot,' is one detailed 1956 Panhead built by Caleb Owens of Cro Customs. Racking up the awards, Owens' trophy-winning chopper demands a closer look. While a lot of attention was paid to the individual parts, Owens wanted the “bike to be organic, with the details speaking as...part of a bigger statement.” 

Personal Restraint

Owens admits he does not care for over-the-top show bikes. The biggest challenge for Owens was restraint, or “knowing when to say, OK that is too much.” Where Owens did not hold back was with the actual fabrication. On Siksika everything is personal, “All the components are either handmade or heavily modified via free-form machining and elbow grease.” 

Deceptive Design

Siksika might be a work of mechanical art, but it is no static gallery piece. Owens said, “The idea of sitting all day and [just] looking at my bike makes me anxious...it will be ridden.” From the beginning, Siksika was meant to be deceptive. “At a distance, it looks like any another bike, but at close inspection, you find things you could easily miss.” 

Riding High

The inspiration for the Panhead build started out right in the front. Owens remarked, “The idea for the twenty-three-inch wheel...was sort of a goof.” Realizing it worked, Owens narrowed an FL Big Twin Springer to house a Speedway rim. An eighteen-inch Akront rim in the rear levels Siksika's stance. A slightly modified 1955 Harley-Davidson Straight Leg frame serves as the Panhead's foundation. 

Exquisite Intentional

Siksika's black paint was not chosen by default. Owens wanted to contrast the exquisite engraving of gunsmith Mark Cooper of Mark Cooper Engraving. Speaking to Cooper's talent, Owens said, “I outlined exactly what I was looking for, subtle and balanced, and [Cooper] did an incredible job.” Muscle car fans will quickly spot 'Mr. Horsepower' engraved on the derby cover. 

In the Clear

The gas tank is a narrowed Wassell that was tunneled and Frisco mounted. The tank's paint is far from ordinary. Owens explained that he had previously made a tank for his brother and they “explored the idea of etching the clear coat, kind of like etching glass.” Owens continued, “The custom designs were complex to produce, but appear deceivingly simple.”

Image courtesy of Hot Bike

Collected Pan

It takes years of dedication at swap meets to collect all the right parts. The rebuilt 74 cubic-inch Panhead motor is something of a hybrid. The stock 1956 bottom end holds factory flywheels and connecting rods. Seated on the top are original 1948 jugs and heads with early Cycle Engineering rocker covers. The whole rotating mass is hooked to a 1949 transmission with a jockey shift. 

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Family Ties

Topping the jockey shift is a wooden knob with a special touch. Working with scraps of walnut, Owens turned the shifter knob on a lathe. Owens then took an old photo of his father from the early 1950s and glazed it to the knob. “Now the old man is riding with me. I think the old man would have loved this bike.” 

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Ice-O-Mat

Feeding gas to the put-together Panhead engine is a genuine S&S Super B carburetor with an accelerator pump. Acting like some sort of air cleaner, or at least just keeping things icy fresh, is a circa 1940s Ice-O-Mat ice crusher top with a custom mount —all engraved by Mark Cooper. 

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Not Baffled

Ejecting the spent exhaust is a set of modified Paughco up-sweeps. Using a Biltwell Builder's Exhaust Pipe Kit, Owens wove the pipes through the rear leg of the Panhead's frame and achieved a tight custom look that complements the overall skinny appearance. The build sheet wryly claims that Siksika's mufflers are “rolled up car windows.” 

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Taillight Talk

The taillight is a modified 1948 Webster microphone that houses a bank of LEDs. Owens' obsession for detail, and getting custom touches to function correctly, is evident in this interesting lighting solution. However, sometimes things come easy. Owens stated, “I didn't have to do much work to it. I laid in two LED grids and cut out an old lens to fit.” 

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Packard Black

Siksika's headlight is a vintage Packard unit. Painted black to contrast the ample chrome, the headlight is fed electricity from a generator controlled by a Cycle Electric Regulator. The rest of the battery-less system is governed by a Morris Magneto that delivers the all-important sparks to the engine. The handlebars, crossbar, and stem nut were all handmade. 

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Positive Work

Response to Owens' Siksika has been overwhelmingly positive. Acknowledgment from his peers came at Born Free 3 where Siksika took first place in the Invited Builders category. It should also come as no surprise that Siksika made an appearance at The Brooklyn Invitational. Hard work pays off, as Owens stated, “Although maybe not obvious, I have thousands of hours in the build.” 

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