After American soldiers returned home from World War II, they seemed dissatisfied with the motorcycles that were available to them from Harley-Davidson and Indian.
They remembered the machines they had seen in Europe that were lighter in weight and seemed to have more excitement. They soon decided that their motorcycles needed changes.
First, they either removed or shortened (bobbed) the fenders on their bikes. This reduced the weight and made the bikes look better in their eyes. These bikes began to be called bobbers.
Changes kept occurring but it wasn't until the late 60's and early 70's that the bobbers gave way to the choppers. After release of the seminal movie Easy Rider in 1969, a whole new movement began.
Riders wanted a bike like the one ridden by Peter Fonda in the movie. They wanted a chopper.
Like the bobber, the chopper is created by removing or chopping off unnecessary components from the bike.
Bikers started raking the front end so the angle of the fork to the ground began decreasing allowing for a greatly increased wheelbase.
Handlebars were raised high and called ape hangers. The front tire was made small and the rear tire was made fat. Some bikers even removed the battery and used a magneto to reduce weight.
The gas tank became small as was the headlight. Anything deemed to be unnecessary was removed.
Arlen Ness was one of the first designers.
Six time Tour De France winner, cyclist Lance Armstrong receives a custom built chopper from Paul Teutel, Sr. (L) and Paul Teutel Jr. (R) on 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' at the NBC Studios on September 1, 2004 in Burbank, California.
Photograph: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
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