I came across Cleverson Maniglia's build through Instagram and was immediately impressed with his craftsmanship. Another perk is that the bike is a Honda, and we all know I have a special place in my heart for those power plants. ChopCult member Cleverson aka Tupode lives in Brazil and struggled with many of their laws building the bike. He jumped through many hoops and produced a sweet piece of machinery. I'm thrilled he allowed me to feature his bike and wish him plenty of open roads ahead! - Lisa

Owner name, location: Cleverson Maniglia - São Paulo - Brazil Chop

Cult Member profile: Tupode

Bike name: Vida Dura

Engine, year and make, model, modifications: 2001 Honda Shadow VT600

Frame: Neck of the original frame, chassis hardtail

Fork: Original Honda Shadow vt600

Chassis mods: Hardtailed, with all the parts and mounting accessories manufactured by my friend Fernando Cintra

Tire/wheel size and style: The front is 21" with original VT600 hub and disc brake with XT600 spokes and imported wheel hub and a Harley Mh90b21 tire. The rear is the original 15" VT600 wheel with a juice drum and a car tire used on Volkswagen Beetles.

Next modification will be: I'll let the natural wear and tear change her, I want her to look, thirty years from now, like she was used a lot and has been an old roadmate.

Favorite thing about this bike: I firmly believe that every handmade custom bike reflects what the owner lives and thinks. This bike is exactly the reflection of how I conduct my life, work, and spirituality. The exhausts, that look like fishtails, were made based on the format of my own hands to remind me of the energy that comes and goes.

The suicide shift is a candlestick bought on the internet that was probably used by someone when praying, sending, and asking for positive vibrations.

There is a picture of my grandma on the tank that represents all the spiritual work that she did in life. She taught and still teaches me a lot.

The sissy bar was made with twisted iron symbolizing the good and evil present in our lives. It has a cross in the middle showing once again the spirituality on the bike.

Other mods, accessories, cool parts, etc.: Harley peanut tank, sorry Harley, this tank is gorgeous. Bumper, metal king and queen seat, the round metal box below the seat with electrical, wires, and fuses. Headlight support, battery support, tensioner with skateboard wheel for the chain not to hit the frame, handlebars, welds, all produced by Fernando Cintra. Chrome bike made by (CSL Chromeation) Accelerator material purchased from Lucky Parts, Brazil. All painting of the frame and parts of the bike by Erick Pinaffi. Seat cover made by Renato Virgulino and finished in a tapestry in the city of Arujá. Arrows supports, electrical parts all redone by Borg Motos Sibelis. Detail from inside the handlebar handle (1 Real coin) represents Brazil and is also true. Metal toilet exhaust cover made by myself at home.

Any building or riding story or info you'd like to include: I have been skating since 1998 and always saw the Kustom Kulture scene connected in some way with the skateboard. I bought this bike in 2013. After three months of riding a standard Honda Shadow, I decided to customize it. The first modification, that included changing the soft frame to a hardtail frame, took six months to complete. I chose this HONDA VT600 SHADOW engine because of the quality. When compared with Harley-Davidson, I feel like it gives me the same quality at a lower price.

When I bought this bike, I had just been fired from a company. I often thought it was not a good idea to buy a bike and spend money customizing it without a job. My wife also did not like the idea, and many times tried to convince me that it was not a good idea to spend money without having a job. But it was a dream. To make my dream come true, I photographed all of the original parts and sold them on the internet. Even the back part of the standard frame that I believed that no one would be interested in, I sold to make money and invest in this bike. With the money that I made selling the standard parts, I could pay for ~70% of the investment in the new project, which was built by Sophile Chopper and paid in 10 installments.

After convincing my wife, I had to deal with the Brazilian legislation. The reality In Brazil is entirely different from the USA. The traffic regulations do not allow us to build handmade rigid frames, ride without helmets, or even without turn signals. When it is possible, getting the proper licenses to build a rigid frame and a customized motorcycle is very expensive. People down here frequently give up their projects because of these difficulties. I did not! My bike does not follow the Brazilian traffic regulations, though, and I can be caught by the police anytime because of the non-compliant bike.

That is why I call my bike and all the other non-compliant bikes as VIDA DURA (hard life in English). It is not easy to ride a rigid frame and go against traffic regulations!

Thanks to Chop Cult for the opportunity, thanks @Renanrob for the fantastic photos and thanks to everyone who participated in the construction: Fernando Cintra, Eduardo Sophile Choppers, Erick Pinaffi, Renato Virgulino, Ronaldo Moura, Underground Tattoo Crew, Dire Chopper hall, Sibelis Borg Motos, Denilson Maniglia, ForeverSixWheels Crew, Runtozbanks Crew, and my beautiful wife Karina and my children.

Black Boots Brasil, Converse Cons Brazil, Lucky Friends Rodeo, Kustom Meeting, BMS Motorcycle, Caballeros Magazine, CemporcentoSkate Magazine, Canal Motorama and all the kustom culture and Skateboarding of Brazil. -Tupode

Photos by Renan Roberto - Website / Instagram

Tupode - Website / Facebook / Instagram / YouTube

Article by Lisa M. Ballard /@lisamballard