Golden Request Nets Artful Panhead Exhibition

Stretched Show

It is not everyday that opportunity knocks with an exclusive invite and a forty-over frontend. Built by Clinton Wallace of Cleveland, Texas, and christened 'Gold Dust Woman' after the Fleetwood Mac song, this stretched 1952 Panhead was on show at Passion Built – Garage to Gallery, the 2018 rendition of Motorcycles As Art at the Buffalo Chip in Sturgis, South Dakota.

Photos courtesy of Michael Lichter Photography.

Rolling Job

Curator and renowned photographer Michael Lichter approached Wallace a year before the exhibition at the Lone Star Rally in Galveston, Texas. The upcoming show's theme focused on part-time builders, who create rolling works of art outside of their day job. A Cycle Source Magazine feature described Wallace as “completely caught off guard” by the invitation.

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Challenging Timeline

With a number of dialed builds to his credit, an enclosed carport as a shop, and a few essential tools, Wallace was the perfect candidate. From experience, he knew that 'Gold Dust Woman' would challenging and come right down to the wire. As he considered his timeline, Wallace realized that the front end would have to be outsourced.

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Push Forward

Wallace contacted Mick Evangelista, owner of Mick’s Chop Shop in Riverside, California in hopes of scoring one of his custom-built Springer frontends. Evangelista offered Wallace the only frontend he had on hand—a forty-inch-over stock frontend. Mulling over his options for a few days, it was his wife, Bobbi, who gave Wallace the final push he needed to move forward.

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California Crate

Even before the long frontend was shipped, Wallace got to work cutting a fifty-degree rake into a Paughco donor frame based on measurements that Evangelista had supplied. Wallace figured he had a pretty good grasp on things, given that the frontend was only eighteen inches longer than on his last build. That changed when the crate arrived from California.

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Game Perfection

Wallace described the front end as a chrome giant that towered two feet above his head—he knew in an instant that it was going to be a game-changer. A friend donated a 1952 Panhead motor, but the seventy-four cubic-inch motor was in need of a complete rebuild. That task was completed to perfection by DC Choppers in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

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Intoxicating Base

Knowing that chrome plating can consume valuable build time, Wallace opted to make all the small parts from stainless steel, knowing he could polish them at a later date. When it came time to paint, there was only one choice—Scott Hoepker of Chemical Candy Customs in Dallas, Texas. The end result was an intoxicating gold base, overlaid with ghosted flames.

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Dream Support

Wallace admitted that he had doubts about the color direction, but in the end, he realized there was no other choice. Three Speed Demon Custom headlights complement the lengthy and overpowering frontend. With his wife's support, Wallace was able to finish the build in just over seven months. He reports that Gold Dust Woman handles like a dream.

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