Legendary customisers join forces to create unique Indian Chief

Hot on the heels of the production version of the Indian Chief, the American firm have released the first of three customs.

The first one, seen here, is known as the Cox-Keino Chief as it’s been built by Paul Cox and Keino Sasaki – two well-regarded customisers.

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The pair have not worked together for over 15 years, since they built a bike as a tribute to Indian Larry, one of the world’s finest custom builders, following his untimely death.

“The Chief was already a little bit retro, but with modern touches that would make a cool version of an early chopper,” says Cox. “When Keino and I first spoke about the project, we already knew how the other thinks and works, so it only took about five minutes of brainstorming to basically design the entire bike.

“I sat down and sketched the profile, working out some geometry issues along the way. From that point, we chose specific tasks to take on and got to work. Keino wanted to handle the gas tank fabrication and exhaust, and I chose to build a custom front-end.”

The front end has been replaced with one of Cox’s Girdraulic forks with a steering damper added for increased stability. To enhance the classic look the clutch lever was swapped for a pedal.

The front brake (and lever) were removed at the same time, while the remaining controls were added to a drag bar set up. To lower the rear to match the front, a swingarm mounted mudguard was added, along with reworked struts.

This gave the customisers room to streamline the electronics, tucking everything, along with a smaller Antigravity battery, under the seat. All that remained was the paint and final touches.

“I painted the bike, including Keino’s handmade gas tank, in my custom Soylent Green metal flake and hand tooled a leather saddle for the bike, complementing the paint with the black rimmed wheels,” adds Cox.

“With the bike being built at my shop, we handled miscellaneous wiring, plumbing, controls, concealment, and final assembly there.”

The two other custom Chiefs, built by former MX pro Carey Hart and customiser Go Takamine will be released later this year.

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Watch a walk around video of the 2021 Indian Chief below: