By Antonio Bici

If you want to take your lowrider bike building skills up a notch, think about adding airbrushing skills to your abilities so that you can make some truly awesome bikes. Add a skull, some flames, an eagle... anything to make your bike stand out from the rest of the lowrider bikes on the street.

All it takes to get started in working with paint, is to be curious about it and be motivated to expand your skills. With practice, you can learn some airbrushing techniques that can go a long way to making your ride match the vision you have for it in your mind.

Paint is a massively flexible medium. With some imagination and some skills, a good quality paint job can take your lowrider bike to the next level. Instead of going out and spending a lot of money on various custom built parts and equipment (hey, if you got the money, thats ok too) look into investing some money into airbrushing equipment and go out and learn a new skill. Not only will you be able to build better lowrider bikes, once you've acquired this new skill, you'll be able to apply it to other projects as well. Put on your thinking cap and ask yourself what else you can do with airbrushing. You can work on cars, lowrider bikes, help friends out, airbrush designs on t-shirts and so on. You will be able to do all kinds of different things. Not only that, but once you've developed your skills a bit, you can actually go out and make some money with these new skills and equipment.

Now if you're thinking that it will take forever to good and using an airbrush, stop right there. Yes, it may take a while to get good at it... Sorry to give you a reality check, but becoming proficient at something generally takes time. The thing to keep in mind though is that you'll be improving your expertise as a lowrider bike designer.

There are a few short cuts that will allow you to jazz up the bike even though you aren't an expert yet. You can do this with stencils. This is a great way to start out. There are all kids of different stencils that will work on your lowrider bike. Experiment with them. Try them out on various surfaces that you feel comfortable practicing on. Once you've refined the technique your practicing, then you can move to putting it on your lowrider bike.

Get yourself motivated. Next time you're at a show, pay special attention to the cars and bikes that have airbrushed designs on them. See what really stands out. Try to get some ideas from what other artists do. Use these to get your own creative juices going. Better yet, take pictures of the work that really impresses you. Print these out and place them around your garage or workshop. When you're ready to learn airbrushing, you'll be able to look at these pictures for motivation.

Good luck with your lowrider bike. Have fun and always try to learn more. Acquiring new skills and knowledge can last a lifetime and be applied to other parts of your life.

By Sarah Freeland

Lowrider bikes were originally fashioned after the lowrider cars of the 1960s. They were called by many names from lowriders to dragsters to cruisers to pimp bikes. As their name suggests their body was low to the ground. These bikes also had a long curved banana seat, they had apehanger handlebars and a sissy bar.

Schwinn was the first bicycle manufacturer to come out with a lowrider bicycle. Their lowrider was called the Sting Ray. George Barin modified a Schwinn Sting Ray for Eddie Munster for the hit television series the Munsters. After its appearance on this popular cult classic sitcom, lowrider bike popularity skyrocketed. Unfortunately this popularity was short lived, because the lowriders were overshadowed by a new bike fad the BMX bike. However, a resurge of lowrider popularity developed again in the 1970s when Mexicano kids began to customize their bikes to be lowriders. Bike manufacturers noticed this trend and began to manufacture lowriders again.

One popular variation of the lowrider bicycle is the lowrider tricycle. This variation was popular because it allowed designers to lower the frame so that it was closer to the ground, while not sacrificing performance. The tricycle configuration also allowed a second seat to be installed between the back wheels. Other options included putting a storage rack between the back two wheels or installing a boom box in that space instead.

There are a lot of ways that a lowrider bike can be customized. For example, twisted metal can be added to the spokes and handlebars of the bike, a sissy bar can be installed, or the bike can be fleshed out by adding decorative metal tanks and skirting. Custom wheels and paint jobs can also add to the uniqueness of lowrider bikes.

By Alastair Hamilton

A low rider bike is also known as chopper bicycle and is a highly customized bike. It is a very popular bike and its styling is inspired by both low rider cars and chopper motorcycles (that’s how the name comes). Bikers take it as a pride to ride a low rider bike. They have long, curved banana seat with a sissy bar and long upward-swept handlebars known as apehangers.

Who Ride These Bikes:

Low rider bike is not just a bike; it represents an urban culture of those people who want to be a part of it. These bikes are preferred for the fact that people ride them to relax themselves after a long day work. As a result, you will see a large number of such bikes over the weekends or public holidays, when a lot of people take them out for enjoyment and refreshment. These bikes are made in such a way so that it keeps a low profile.

It’s not just the boys who like to ride low riders; ladies also love to take a ride on low riders. Girls are often attracted towards these beautiful low riders and form a substantial percentage of total riders riding low riding bikes.

Main Attraction of Low Rider Bikes:

It can be personalized in any imaginable way for instance the frames can be twisted, wheels, spokes, peddlers can be painted etc.

The suspension fitted can be either Air Bag suspension or Hydraulic suspension, which allows the rider to alter the ride hide at will.

The most interesting aspect of low rider is its capability to fit sound system, boom boxes, I-pod, mobile phone and even the neon lights.

Latest Information about Low Rider Bikes:

The best selling bikes are: 20-inch original w/logo Low rider Bike w/Bent Fork and 20-inch classic Low rider Bike. The stock bicycles are mostly popular among makers of low riders and the most popular of these are:

* American produced- Schwinn Stingray.
* British produced- Raleigh Chopper.

The new trends in low rider bikes are also related to Cruiser or Beach Cruiser style bikes.

By Alastair Hamilton

I was just a little kid in the late 1960s, when the TV show The Munsters was on the air in Prime Time TV, young enough to feel that Eddie Munster (the werewolf son) was my favorite character on the show. I don't remember him riding the "converted Schwinn Stingray" which was apparently the first lowrider bike featured on TV, and which started the craze for the lowriders during the late 60s and 70s.

I do remember that I wanted to sleep in a bureau drawer as he did - I felt that would be nice and snug!

What I most remember about the show, in the technology department, was the car they drove - the converted hearse. Now that was a car!

Anyway, that's just a bit of historical interest. Most kids today have never even heard of the Munsters - or if they have it's the remake done in the 1980s which had none of the charm of the original - give me Fred Gwynne, Yvonne DeCarlo and Al Lewis any day of the week!

It wasn't a TV show that brought the lowrider back into favor in the late 1980s, however, but merely the concerted creativity of people in the Chicano neighborhoods of Los Angeles, who began exercising their creativity by tricking out their bikes with chrome, paint, and all sorts of accessories. The hobby caught on and has spread through urban areas throughout the United States.

Lowrider bikes are not built for speed - they are built for leisurely rides along the beach (hence the fat tires), or through the neighborhood. The riders want to "see and be seen in style."

Lowriders are usually considered to be among the most comfortable of bikes. The "apehanger" handlebars extend up so high that riders are perforce forced to sit up straight - reducing the stress on the back which is one of the chief causes of biking discomfort. The tires are cushiony, the seat, whether banana or some other kind, are roomy and comfortable. Most of them have only one speed and a simple coaster break, so they don't break down that often.

With the new space age materials of which bikes are made, these bikes aren't as heavy as you might think, so if you're thinking of getting a new bike, and like to indulge in your creativity, you might want to consider getting a low rider. (Even if you don't want to trick it out, or "pimp it" as the slang goes, it is still a classic "retro" design and a fun ride.)

But if you do want to trick it out (a term I prefer to "pimp" frankly, as I would think that word would have unpleasant connotations) there are plenty of stores, both bricks and mortar and online, where you can purchase practically any accessory you can think of - from gold and chrome mirrors, rims and spokes, to hand-painted murals on the frame, to rows of mirrors on each side, to a baby spare tire mounted on the back!

So check out
your local store or surf the web, and have some fun!

By Antonio Bici

If you want to take your lowrider bike building skills up a notch, think about adding airbrushing skills to your abilities so that you can make some truly awesome bikes. Add a skull, some flames, an eagle... anything to make your bike stand out from the rest of the lowrider bikes on the street.

All it takes to get started in working with paint, is to be curious about it and be motivated to expand your skills. With practice, you can learn some airbrushing techniques that can go a long way to making your ride match the vision you have for it in your mind.

Paint is a massively flexible medium. With some imagination and some skills, a good quality paint job can take your lowrider bike to the next level. Instead of going out and spending a lot of money on various custom built parts and equipment (hey, if you got the money, thats ok too) look into investing some money into airbrushing equipment and go out and learn a new skill. Not only will you be able to build better lowrider bikes, once you've acquired this new skill, you'll be able to apply it to other projects as well. Put on your thinking cap and ask yourself what else you can do with airbrushing. You can work on cars, lowrider bikes, help friends out, airbrush designs on t-shirts and so on. You will be able to do all kinds of different things. Not only that, but once you've developed your skills a bit, you can actually go out and make some money with these new skills and equipment.

Now if you're thinking that it will take forever to good and using an airbrush, stop right there. Yes, it may take a while to get good at it... Sorry to give you a reality check, but becoming proficient at something generally takes time. The thing to keep in mind though is that you'll be improving your expertise as a lowrider bike designer.

There are a few short cuts that will allow you to jazz up the bike even though you aren't an expert yet. You can do this with stencils. This is a great way to start out. There are all kids of different stencils that will work on your lowrider bike. Experiment with them. Try them out on various surfaces that you feel comfortable practicing on. Once you've refined the technique your practicing, then you can move to putting it on your lowrider bike.

Get yourself motivated. Next time you're at a show, pay special attention to the cars and bikes that have airbrushed designs on them. See what really stands out. Try to get some ideas from what other artists do. Use these to get your own creative juices going. Better yet, take pictures of the work that really impresses you. Print these out and place them around your garage or workshop. When you're ready to learn airbrushing, you'll be able to look at these pictures for motivation.

Good luck with your lowrider bike. Have fun and always try to learn more. Acquiring new skills and knowledge can last a lifetime and be applied to other parts of your life.

By Alastair Hamilton

Most people buy bikes in order to get around - or to have fun biking cross-country or downhill. However, there's a new rage on the scene, people who like to trick out their bikes - bikes called low riders - and then display them.

The lowrider bike looks exactly as you think it would from the name - the seat is set low to the ground and the handlebars are typically higher than the head, indeed they can remind you of "chopper" motorcycles - indeed some are decorated to look exactly like a motorcycle - right down to the faux gas tank. The imagination is the limit when creating a lowrider.

When I say it's a rage, I mean just that. People have been known to spend thousands of dollars on their lowrider, adding sound systems, hand painted murals, and even hydraulics. They delight in using excessive chrome, overspoked wheels and even fur. They put two mirrors on each side of the handlebars, spare tires on the back...oh, all kinds of things.

To get an idea of what a lowrider looks like, visit the web, as there are many sites that display these creations. lowrider.com was one of the first on the scene, as you can tell from the domain name. There are many more including lovelylowrider.com and streetlowrider.com

The TV character Eddie Munster, from the 1960s TV show "The Munsters" is generally regarded as the "founder" of the lowrider bike craze. He rode a George Barris customized Schwinn Stingray. (George Barris is most famous for his car customasations - he created the 1960s Batmobile, for example.) However, these types of bikes fell out of fashion in the 1980s, when the BMX and mountain bikes came into use.

Lowriders came back into favor in the 1990s, when Chicano neighborhoods in California revived the hobby, and it quickly caught on in the urban areas of the country.

Lowrider Lingo
As with any other hobby, the enthusiasts have devised their own terminology for their bikes. Those tall upward-swept handlebars are known as apehangers. When you're creating your bike you're either "tricking it out" or "pimping it." "Pimped to the max" means there's absolutely nothing more you can add to it.

The future of the hobby
Lowriding is still pretty much a neighborhood thing - or enthusiasts might gather where there is a local car show, but there has yet to be an annual competition or major venue where lowriders can exhibit their bikes to the general public.