Thunder Roads Magazine Louisiana November 2016 | Page 10
S P E C I F I C AT I O N S
GENERAL:
Owner/Builder: William J. Cronin Jr.
City/State: Franklin, IN
Fabrication & Assembly: By Owner
Build Time: 7 years
PAINT AND GRAPHICS:
Color: Black Textured Moonlit Copper
Graphics: By Owner
Leather work: By Owner
Fabrications: By Owner
Moldings: By Owner
ENGINE:
127 C.I.
140 HP
140 FTLB Torque
Exhaust: Fab by Owner
Ignition: Ultima
BILL
CRONIN’S
POW MIA BIKE
TRANSMISSION:
Ultima 6 Speed
Black and Chrome
Primary Drive:
3.35” Drag Style Belt Drive
FRAME:
Ultima
Type: Rigid
Stretch: 4” Down Tube
Rake: 34 Degrees
Modifications: Many by Owner
FRONT END:
Ultima 58mm Inverted and 5 degree rake, Blind Trees
WHEELS:
Front: Sturgis Wheel 16 x 3.5
Rear: Sturgis Wheel 15 x 7
My love of motorcycles must have started when I
was 6 or 7, watching the men across the street working on and riding their bikes. Actually, they were only
teenagers, but, they looked like men to me at the time.
The first bike I ever built was when I was 13. I was
the only one in the neighborhood that had a Schwinn
bicycle with a Briggs and Stratton motor! But my Dad
was not happy when he got home and saw what I had
done to his lawn mower. He made me put the engine
back on the mower. But for the better part of one day,
I had a motorcycle!
Fast forward to 1997. I was working in Cumberland,
IN, at a cycle repair shop. Repairing everyone else’s
motorcycle but mine. I did not own one at the time.
One of the customers had financial trouble and could
not pick up all the parts he had ordered. The owner
just wanted to get these parts gone. So, he asked if
I would be interested in any of them. This is when I
purchased the rear tire and oil tank. They went into
my closet for several years. And I kept adding more
and more parts along the way. There were more parts
than clothes in my closet.
In 2008, I ordered a frame, front end, gas tank and
3 fender blanks. This is when I started building this
motorcycle. Almost 80% of the parts that I purchased,
I had to fabricate myself to fit the frame that I had
changed. In 2010 I purchased the motor, transmission
and drive side.
The bike was all I did whenever I had any spare time.
Evenings, weekends you name it, I was in my garage.
This is when I decided, being a Viet Nam veteran, I
wanted to dedicate this bike to all veterans, past and
present. Including POW’s, MIA’s and nurses. I did not
want any of them to be forgotten like we were when we
came home from the war.
Before I moved to where I am now, I was retired and
living on a fixed income. Anything I needed to buy or
have done, I had to save my money till I had what was
needed. Parts kept going up faster than I could earn
the money. After I moved here, I was side lined with
health problems. I had a quadruple heart bypass done.
Then about a year later I had to have an artificial heart
valve replacement.
I am now 71 years of age and feeling very healthy
and happy. I thank the Lord every day for everything
He has shown and taught me. I am able to work out
every other day with my weights and exercise equipment. The Lord not only gave me my health, but, the
talent to build this bike. It has been a labor of love.
-Bill Cronin
Photographer: Mark Freeland, Mark Freeland Photography,,
317-507-0193, [email protected]
8 THUNDER ROADS MAGAZINE LOUISIANA
BRAKES:
Front: 6 Piston Performance Machine
Rear: 2 – 4 Piston Performance Machine
TIRES:
Front: Avon MT-90H16-AM 21 Black
Rear: Avon 230/6H15-AM 21 Black
FENDERS:
Front: Fab by Owner
Rear: Fab by Owner
ACCESSORIES
Headlights: 2 - Paughco
Handlebars: HD
Handlebar Controls: Ultima
Grips: Soft HD
Risers: HD
Clock and Thermometer on Risers: Merlin
Pegs: Chrome Horse
License Bracket: Dennis Kirk
Mirrors: HD
Tachometer: Auto Meter
Oil Pressure Gauge: Auto Meter
Oil Cooler: Ultima
Tail Lights: Fab by Owner - LED
Fuel Tank: 6 Gallon Fab by Owner
Oil Bag: HD Horseshoe type
Seat: Fab by Owner – Covered by Rick’s Trim Shop
Sissy Bar: Fab by Owner
Speedometer: VDO
Turn Signals: Fab by Owner – Front and Rear - LED