Got an email from Rick with a real one of a kind Honda CMT400 Bobber with a comic strip theme going to it. If you haven’t seen Rick in a few days he’s probably knee deep in hot rods and rat rods in the back of his place, but he decided to take a step away from the cages and walk towards the light. Check this out.
bM: What’s your name, what’s your story?
Rick: I’m Rick Wickham. I live near Rose Hill, a small town near Wichita, Kansas. I’m 54 years old and I’ve been a farrier (horseshoer) for 20 years or so. I make a living with my hands and art with the same, my art just happens to be metal and loud.
bM: Speaking of metal and loud, what’s the bike?
Rick: The bike is a 1981 Honda CM400T. I built the frame from the ground up. Its stretched 7in. and lowered 4in. than stock. Painted flat black.
bM: What’d you do with it?
Rick: I bought my bars and lights from TC Bros. I handmade the tank and fender from 16ga steel. I mocked up the first tank but it was too small, the second one is the one I went with, I think its perfect.
bM: Where did the concept come from?
Rick: I decided to do the graphics to look like old comic strip. So I sprayed them flat white, then drew the graphics freehand with pencil and ink, then clear.
bM: Any favorite modifications? Interesting stories from the build process? Reactions you got from people? Other fun facts and tidbits to share? The more the merrier.
Rick: The # plates on some of the bikes in the drawings are birthdates of my son his wife, my daughter
and my grandkids, Kenlee and Asher.
bM: Nice! The paint looks good. Got orange?
Rick: The motor is painted hot rod orange, just a favorite color of mine.
bM: I see a whole lot of cars in the background just waiting to be turned into hot rods. Have you done any hot rod builds? Do you have any plans for those old whips?
Rick: I’ve built several hot rods, rat rods but this is my first bike I’ve built, but not my last. I have lots of projects as you can see in the back ground of some of my pictures. Everyone knows where to find me.
bM: What’s next?
Rick: I try to build stuff cool but safe… mostly cool.
bM: Is there anyone out there you’d like to give a shout to?
Rick: I would like to say hey to my brother Bill, he backs me even when he knows I’m wrong. Also my friends, and my dog Chubs.
Cheers Rick, keep up the great work brother.
Have you ever seen anything like Rick’s comic strip paint job?
Leave a comment and let us know what you think.
Get the best of bikerMetric directly in your inbox, once a week, every week.