THE UP-AND-COMER
Suzy Pilaczynski
Photos courtesy of Suzy Pilaczynski
For over the last 15 years , Suzy Pilaczynski had been steeped in the arguably less glamorous side of the motorcycle business – helping operate California ’ s Old-Stf Cycles and making custom and replacement parts that are often overlooked by the uninformed public . Parts and products that include oil lines , air cleaners , gaskets , seals , voltage regulators and belt drives that keep early-model Harley-Davidsons alive and kicking .
But that all changed last year when , on a whim , Pilaczynski entered Biltwell ’ s People ’ s Champ competition at the Born Free show , never having built a bike before . It all worked out for her as she took home the Born Free award and is currently building her second bike for Born Free 12 , which is slated for late June . ( Hopefully all this corona madness is behind us by then and people can freely get weird in the Southern California sunshine .)
Pilaczynski ’ s creative process can best be defined as ongoing and evolving , especially as the bike takes shape and she redesigns parts or creates new ones to get everything as close to perfect as possible , a tall order when it comes to any custom build .
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I KINDA FLY BY THE SEAT OF MY PANTS , USUALLY IN SEVERAL DIRECTIONS AT ONCE .
“ I kinda fly by the seat of my pants ,” she told Thunder Press , “ usually in several directions at once . I always have a lot of ideas , so usually I have to try to narrow down my options first .”
Pilaczynski taught herself how to use 3D CAD software to visualize those ideas and combine elements . And she finds ideas in the most random places ; everything from home hardware , fashion accessories , graphic design , vintage bikes and more have influenced the design of her parts and the bikes ’ aesthetics . She is drawn by bold colors , unique color palettes and geometric shapes . ’ 70s , ’ 80s and Art Deco also play a factor .
Her first build graced the cover of our April , 2020 issue , and it ’ ll be interesting to see what comes of her second one , Pilaczynski ’ s take on a 1940 Harley-Davidson UL 74 Flathead .
56 | MAY 2020 | THUNDERPRESS . NET