It’s hard to know where exactly to draw the line between Club Style and streetfighters, urban trackers, cafe racers and other types of high-performance customisation.
In his Hardnine Choppers shop, Swiss bike builder Danny Schneider offers us a highly distinctive version of the Scout Rogue, which keeps to a set of standards all its own.
As a former professional freestyle motocross rider – and despite the name of his shop – Danny is more focused on performance than on long-fork choppers.
That could be done on any base – but in this case, the model is a vintage 1931 Indian Scout, the very bike that introduced him to the legendary brand in the first place. He began by stripping down the machine in his own fashion before transforming it into something worthy of the Wall of Death. The launch of the Indian FTR was a tipping point: Schneider became a firm fan of Indians; in addition to the look, there was now the power of the engine, too. The same was true of the Scout Rogue, which he fell in love with right from its launch.
The tweaks Danny made to the bike to suit his taste began with the suspension, fitting top-of the range Öhlins gear. The fork crowns were re-machined to accommodate inverted stanchions and topped with ProTaper handlebars that were slightly higher than the original. The standard small fairing was also adjusted to accommodate this new layout. Roland Sands, another Indian Motorcycle aficionado, supplied RSD Performance Tracker hubs, on which stock discs are held in place by Beringer calipers. And in another mod designed to lighten the machine, Danny Schneider replaced the pipes with a Jekill & Hyde 2-in-1 exhaust: not only is this efficient, it also sounds great! With a paint job directly inspired by the Indian Challengers competing in King of the Baggers races, a saddle that provides good lower back support during acceleration and no front mudguard, this Scout Rogue is just as striking as the very best Club Style chops – in its own special way.
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