"TO CHOP OR NOT, THAT IS THE VINCENT" OR "SACRILEGE IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER" . . . . THERE ARE A SHITLOAD OF UNWRITTEN LAWS IN LIFE, NOBODY SAYS A THING UNTIL YOU BREAK ONE . . . . TWELVE SLOTTERS ON A HOLDEN, BOWTIE IN A BLUE OVAL, BUYING A FORTY EIGHT, DATING YOUR BEST MATE'S EX, DRINKING HARD LIQUOR AT AN 'AA' MEETING . . . . CHOPPING THE PRIDE OF STEVENAGE . . . .

One of those unwritten, never spoken of until it's been transgressed laws, has always been, never, ever, fucking ever, chop up a Vincent . . . . or utilise the big Pommy powerhouse for the purposes of speedway outfits when it entails hacking the gearbox off the beautiful unit construction cases . . . . the latter has been done time and time again over the last forty years but not that many Vinnies have been chopped and dropped for all the world to see and all the Vincent/HRD purists to pour scorn and derision on . . . . so powerful and secretive is this international band of naysayers and period correct arbiters of what shall and shall not be . . . . lest the Stevenage Secret Style Police visit pain most horrid upon your sacrilegious arse. 

I posted a spiel about a beautifully presented, modern day chop interpretation of the Vincent a while back, it wasn't necessarily my speed but fuck, it was done well, as was the incredibly gorgeous, salt flat/Rollie Free inspired Decker doodad of a few or so years back, my favourite Vincent ever as I raved in another post . . . . after reading about Kiyo's recent acquisition of a legit Black Shadow on several sites lately I was prompted to contemplate once more just how many guys out there have been brave/foolhardy enough to give the ultimate one fingered salute to the superior Guardians of the Grail and chop em up old school style . . . . a bit like the ultra staunch Ducatista, I've seen these donkeys at work in the past at swap meets and rallies where they sometimes congregate and their ability to put shit on even incorrect fasteners and ferules is second to fucking none . . . . how dare anyone present a Vincent in less than factory stock fettle !!!! Me, as Aussie rockers Supernaut once sang in the seventies, I like it both ways, providing it's lookin cool.

I searched all over PooTube, nada, not a sausage to be found, then went on Google patrol and bingo, fuck all in fact, I did manage to track down these examples care of http://www.thevincent.com/ blog, which I'm sure have been included for nothing more than novelty/ammusement value . . . . my guess is all three versions are from the UK, and, to be really blunt, I don't mind them at all, the bottom one, with the possibly faux Black Shadow cases, what appears to be original swing arm and frame, extended girder front end ain't too bad, the middle jigger sporting the Rapide motorvator looks kinda tough as well . . . . but the model in the top two, grainy old shots is flat out cool in my books, way cool rear tire to guard setup is phat, phunky and tough as, frame geometry is nicely balanced, what seems to be a fatglide front end works aesthetically, two insanely lengthy inlet tubes with carbs hangin out in the breeze, paintjob is cool enough too, basically, a fucking chill thing . . . . and the thing they all share in common is cocking a collective snoot at the purist brigade . . . . wise up Vincent Mafia, it's just another bike !!!