A Classic Triumph Build from Beaver County
“I bought a brand new skateboard two months ago, and I haven’t even touched it yet,” Brian Petronchak mentioned while we photographed his stunning Triumph TR6 at Brady’s Run Skate Park in Beaver County. Balancing between building bikes, his job at a custom car shop, and his family can get tricky—especially now that he is a new father. We got together only a few miles down the road from his home and garage shop, Revelry Custom Cycles, where he likes to spend what limited time he has wrenching on bikes. This space also happens to be the underlying reason he and his wife decided on this particular house when purchasing a new home. The selling point was the 30’ x 40’ heated garage with enough room for motorcycle lifts and his many tools.
Brian first fell in love with custom choppers during his frequent visits to Daytona Beach Bike Week in Florida, an event you may be familiar with. Taking place the first week of March every year, the rally lasts roughly ten days with attendance hovering close to half a million riders and enthusiasts. He explains, “I worked with a couple of sport bikes when I was younger—race replicas and bikes like that. Eventually I bought a Triumph Speed Triple and tore it all apart in order to paint everything. Most of my friends had Harleys, so I figured I’d get a Street Bob just to ride around. The first time I went to Daytona was for Biketoberfest to see my buddy who was really into custom choppers. That was the moment I was truly introduced to the chopper scene, and I was blown away. I thought the bikes were so fucking cool. The simpler, the better. Ever since then I was hooked. I came home, bought a tig welder, and sat in the garage every day for months until I taught myself how to weld. The first things I made were handlebars and an exhaust for my Street Bob. After that it was on.”
The long days and nights in the garage paid off. His 1966 Triumph TR6 hardtail has been featured in Cycle Source magazine and was selected for this past year’s Fuel Cleveland show, an exclusive custom motorcycle event. Brian used a narrower front end off of a pre-unit Triumph and shaved the triple tree for an all-around clean look. To achieve the desired stance, he fitted a 21 inch spool hub front wheel and a Harley-Davidson 16 inch rear rim that was laced to a stock Triumph hub. The elegant paint job was the work of Steve Hennis of FlameThrower Customs in Doylestown, Ohio. A few of the little details Brian pointed out were the bolt caps, rubber mounts, and brass elements he made entirely in his garage.
"I bought a tig welder and sat in the garage every day for months until I taught myself how to weld."
When asked why he focused mostly on Triumphs, he replied, “There’s really no particular reason, but I guess I’ve always loved the vintage Triumphs for being simple, clean, and timeless. They’re just less expensive, too.” He hopes to have his next Triumph build done very soon— another 650 with a 1968 Bonneville head and dual carbs. The goal is to have it completed in time for Fuel Cleveland in late July 2018.
