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Billy Lane: Chop Fiction: It's Not A Motorcycle Baby, It's A Chopper

Billy Lane: Chop Fiction: It's Not A Motorcycle Baby, It's A ChopperAuthor: Billy Lane
Publisher: Motorbooks
Category: Book

List Price: $26.95
Buy New: $17.79
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Seller: Amazon.com
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars 9 reviews
Sales Rank: 513506

Media: Hardcover
Edition: First
Pages: 176
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.3
Dimensions (in): 10.7 x 8.6 x 1

ISBN: 076032011X
Dewey Decimal Number: 629.2275092
UPC: 752748320116
EAN: 9780760320112
ASIN: 076032011X

Publication Date: November 21, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Billy Lane, owner of Choppers Inc., lives, eats, and breathes choppers. Since securing a secret cache of Easyriders magazines as a young boy, Billy has equated choppers with freedom. By the time he earned an engineering degree from Florida State University in Tallahassee, he had already established himself as a promising young chopper builder. An appearance on the very first episode of Discovery Channel’s Monster Garage led to a starring role in Biker Build-Off and growing fame as a chopper builder with both artistic vision and technological innovation.

In this autobiography, Billy shares his life story, from running with gangsters in Miami as a younger man to becoming a celebrity chopper builder who is mobbed by fans everywhere he goes. Inside stories on his most famed bikes are included, as well as Billy’s thoughts on those who inspired and helped him on the road to becoming a famed chopper artist and television star. The book is full-color, giving ample room for the reader to view Billy’s incredible creations, featured in stunning photography by Michael Lichter. Billy’s bikes are works of art on multiple levels, combining the fine art of sculpture with the pop art of incorporating found objects into the work. But they are also technological tours de force, featuring engineering that is nothing short of astounding.

But there’s more to life than just choppers, according to Billy. There are women, too. There’s no doubt about it - the sexy lines of an old school chopper, its curvy hips, narrow waist, and voluptuous torso, are the same lines found on a beautiful woman. In addition to stories of his great bikes, the self-professed "Ladies’ Man" of chopper builders shares behind-the-scenes stories and photos of his other true love, whether they were long-time girlfriends, strippers, other colorful characters in his life, or the fans who demand his autograph on their body parts at biker shows throughout the U.S.

Billy Lane is the ultimate insider’s look at the lifestyle and artistry behind one of the most famous chopper builders in the world.


Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 9



5 out of 5 stars Party with Billy Lane   May 12, 2008
Vic 'Preacher' Shurtz (northern California)
Billy Lane is an ICON in the world of Choppers. His bikes have been featured in Motorcycle publications around the world. This book gives us an inside look at the man behind those custom built Choppers; his friends, his family, his work ethic, and his party till you drop attitude. You'll like the photo's, and His idea of the perfect ride is one I agree with; 500 lbs of good Milwaukee steel, me, and a hundred pounder on the back.
Good job Billy





4 out of 5 stars Who's this longhair?   December 12, 2005
Nicholas Gomez (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Who's this longhair, you ask? Well, this is an alternative to Jesse James, who's currently riding the wave as being the most recognised chopper builder in the world, taking over where Arlen Ness and the rest left off. Billy Lane's autobiography is an interesting read, an insight into a guy who loves what he does, and builds interesting, artistic bikes.

The hubless rear wheel he pioneered is probably his greatest achievements, and it appears that he allowed Jesse James to use his six-gun design too. I guess behind the scenes certain ideas are shared freely between friends.

Overall a nice book to have if you're into Choppers. Nice to read and with all full colour photos on high quality paper.



5 out of 5 stars ...worth making space on your bookshelf for this one...   October 26, 2005
Norman Repacholi (Melbourne, Australia)
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

The first thing that struck me about Billy Lane when I saw him on TV the first time was that he looked like a normal bloke, doing what he loved to do...party and build choppers. Billy's book confirms my initial impression.

It's a fascinating read, learning how he arrived at the place he's in today; learning about his family, friends, his business and his choppers. The style is very laid back and honest, it's not like some other biographies where you struggle to `get into' the book and find yourself just reading it to pass time. When I started reading this book, I didn't have huge expectations, but was pleasantly surprised by how well the book was structured and written. After finishing the book, you are still left with a few questions, but at the end of the day, if you're thinking about a book after you've read it then it must have been a pretty good book to read in the first place.

Aside from what's been written, the photography is also excellent, and captures all the small details of Billy's bikes that set them apart from all the other builders at the moment. I've made space for this book - which I like to get out fairly often and look at the pictures and read a chapter here and there -next to `Art of the Chopper' which is also an excellent book on a similar topic.

If you enjoy watching choppers take shape on TV and learning more about one of the more distinctive builders then this honest, well written biography is definitely worth purchasing.



3 out of 5 stars Short read picture book   October 12, 2005
P. Musgrave (Heartland)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Kinda disapointed with this book. His views, a few short stories and alot of pics. Nothing really deep.


5 out of 5 stars An honest autobiography..   June 29, 2005
luzelucy (New York City)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

I do not read many autobiographies. Those I have read seemed way too polished to be true and accurate. Chop Fiction, thankfully, comes across as a sincere and honest account. I truly enjoyed reading it and looking at the photos and parking tickets.
I would recommend it to anyone just starting out or at a crossroad in life.


Showing reviews 1-5 of 9




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