The State
MAKERS
Get Your Motor Runnin’
Custom cycle producer in OKC specializes in high-end, timeless creations.
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with a chuckle. “Russia, Estonia, South Afor Dar Holdsworth, the art of building customized motorcycles rica, Australia … we also have them all over the place in the U.S.” began as a stress-relieving Brass Balls Cycles builds custom motorcyhobby. cles from the ground up, as well as customiza“I had a corporate job, and tions for existing bikes. Depending on the custhis was an outlet for nights and weekends,” tomer’s wishes, prices can range from $26,000 he says. “Eventually, that phased out because to $80,000. Holdsworth says a custom bike this – this is where my passion is.” The passion also translates as talent because typically costs about $40,000 because “we use high end components that last. People can Holdsworth has also won the World Champitake these bikes around the racetrack or across onship for Custom/Production Bike Building the country and have no two years in a problems.” row. “We create bikes that When describing the Just a stone’s looked good 10 years bikes he builds, Holdthrow from sworth carefully conveys downtown Oklaago, and they’ll look these bikes, while homa City, Brass good 10 years from now.” that maintaining a unique Balls Cycles has look, are not takes on trendy fads. produced unique, customized motorcycles for “We create timeless bikes,” he says. “We almost 10 years. These timeless pieces have create bikes that looked good 10 years ago, drawn customers from all over the world, including actor Tim Allen and entertainer Usher. and they’ll look good 10 years from now.” Each cycle is assembled by hand, as op“I can’t even name all the places all over posed to an assembly line. The shop has four the world we have bikes in,” Holdsworth says
lifts, so they can accommodate four bikes at any given time. Currently, all of his lifts are full and it is possible that they could be full for at least a little while; when customers bring in their bikes, depending on the intensity of the customization, they could look at anywhere from two weeks to six months of production. It’s also a first-come, first-served basis. Brass Balls Cycles is owned and operated by Holdsworth and his wife. He enjoys when people call the shop with questions and request to speak with him instead of his wife when she answers the phone and end up discovering his wife is also a motorcycle expert. “She is very knowledgable about this stuff,” he says. “She knows more than probably most of the people that call up here. She can answer almost any question anyone has about these bikes; she knows all about it.” Another area growing in his business, Holdsworth says, is customizing existing motorcycles. Custom wheels, tires, brakes, grips, handlebars, foot pegs and seats are just a few of the parts that customers request for their bikes. When asked if he ever takes his bike cross country, the longing in his voice is palpable: “Oh yeah, of course. No email, no cellphone; it’s great. I should do it again soon.” SAMANTHA ALEXANDER
DAR HOLDSWORTH HAS RUN BRASS BALLS CYCLES FOR NEARLY A DECADE. PHOTO BY BRENT FUCHS
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OKLAHOMA MAGAZINE | JANUARY 2017