Wicked Women Choppers

Christine Vaughn has learned much about the industry over the years. She has been a motorcycle enthusiast since the age of 10. She is a spunky blond now in her late 30s and had such a fascination with motorcycles when she was a child that she would often pretend to be a boy so that she could race against them. And when not racing, she taught herself how the parts on her bike operated, as well as how to assemble the bike.

“One of the first things I did with my bike was to take it apart,” said Vaughn, who last year formed Wicked Women Choppers in Herrin, the only female-built, designed, and owned motorcycle manufacturer in the country.

“When I asked my father and brothers for help, they told me, ‘You took it apart, you can put it back together.”‘

Having to develop such independence at an early age helped to make Vaughn the person that she is today - a free-spirited, yet savvy businesswoman with an eye toward the future in the motorcycle industry.

“I’ve been building or creating bikes for the last seven years,” said Vaughn from her chopper shop on the far north end of Herrin. Vaughn explained that she began tinkering with design work mostly out of frustration. She said most motorcycles are built to accommodate the average-sized man, not the woman.

“I have built a number of bikes for my own use and always had to fabricate parts to make the bike comfortable and safe to ride,” Vaughn said. “Having to slide forward to reach forward controls is not only uncomfortable, but unsafe. Having to balance the bike on the balls of my feet when stopped is the same. All of those issues and more have been addressed in my designs.”

Vaughn said that her Shady Lady line of motorcycles is suited for the average-size woman. “Keeping in mind that the average woman is about 5 feet, 5 inches tall, the Shady Lady’s drop-seat frame lowers the seating position while maintaining ground clearance and full-range function of the rear suspension,” she said.

Because an estimated 15 percent of the motorcycle-riding population is female and a larger percentage are passengers, Vaughn knows there is a market for her line of bikes.

And it’s not only women who like the design work and styles created by Vaughn. It has been largely men who have contacted her to date.

“Go figure,” she said. “That’s why I’m hoping that our Black Mariah line, which features no suspension in the rear, will be popular with men.”

Vaughn said she doesn’t want anyone to buy a Wicked Women Chopper simply because it is made by a woman.

“I want them to buy my bikes because they are innovative and a great value for the money. The fact that I am a woman does give me some insight into the needs of the woman rider, but my skills as a designer and builder are what I want people to look at, not my gender.”

“These bikes are made to turn heads, but are also made to be ridden,” Vaughn said, adding that customers don’t have to purchase a fully loaded Shady Lady. A more scaled-down or stripped-down version is available at a lesser price.

SHADY LADY – The Shady Lady is the first model being introduced by Wicked Women Choppers LLC. You will notice that there are very few options and upgrades available because what is an option from other companies is Standard Equipment on our motorcycles. All parts and components used in the production of our bikes are of the highest quality and from the leading manufacturers in the American Custom Motorcycle Industry.

We use a Drop-Seat Frame to provide better control when stopped and safer and more comfortable positioning of the Forward Controls when riding. We also use a Right-Side-Drive Transmission as Standard Equipment to provide better overall balance.

Avon tires are used on both Front and Rear and we use a wider 120/70 on the front as opposed to the 90/90 used by some other manufactures because too much of a difference between front and rear tire sizes could cause the motorcycle to over or under steer when cornering. You still get that Big Beefy Tire look in the rear and gain the benefit of more tire on the front, which increases stability and improves overall handling.

VIN Numbered Manufacturers Title
2 Year, Unlimited Mileage Manufacturers Warranty (Engine and Drive Line)
S&S 96” Polished Motor
6-Speed, Polished, Right-Side-Drive Transmission by Rivera-Primo
Chrome Enclosed Primary Belt Drive by Rivera-Primo
WWC Drop Seat Frame - Stretched 4” in the Lower Legs and 2” in the Backbone
“Phantom” Swing arm (Hidden Progressive Shocks)
Custom Paint and Graphics
Color Matched, Painted Frame
Fully Chromed 41mm Front End
WWC/Climax Cycle Controls Handlebar Controls and Switches
(All Cables and Wires are Inside the Bars – Very Clean)
Chrome Forward Controls, Brake Calipers, Rotors and Pegs
Integrated Rear Brake and Pulley Assembly
250/40x18 Avon Rear Tire
120/70x21 Avon Front Tire
Chrome Billet Wheels With Matching Rotors and Belt Pulley
8.5”x18” Rear
3.5”x21” Front
WWC “Daisy Duke” Shorty Exhaust

S&S 107” Polished Motor
S&S 113” Polished Motor
Electronic Compression Release (Available on 107” and 113” only)
Passenger Pad
Passenger Pegs
Combination Driver/Passenger Seat
Primo Brute “IV” Open Belt Drive
Legend Air Suspension
Dakota Digital Tach/Speedometer