Wednesday, January 24, 2001

Just a Chat... with Jim Crocker

Biography: Jim Crocker is the owner of Alabama Indian Restoration at 1324-B Main Street in Tarrant. Purchasing and tinkering with a box of antique motorcycle parts a few years ago progressed into a passion for the American-made cycles – manufactured from 1901 to 1953. He is 48 years old, has been married 29 years and has two sons. Crocker lives near Oneonta.

Have you always been an Indian man? No, actually, I started out a Harley man.

So what changed your mind? After I rebuilt an Indian, there was really just no turning back.

How did you turn it into a career? I used to do this at my home, and was starting to outgrow the space. Then I found myself out of a job and decided to give this a try. I found this garage in Tarrant and have just been here ever since.

What's the difference between a Harley man and an Indian man? Well, it's a lot easier to be a Harley man these days, with all the different models. Indian motorcycles have manual starters and gear-shifts, so even though most of them start pretty quick, it's not gonna be just jumping on and pushing a button, like on a Harley.

About how many motorcycles do you restore a year? Usually about 10 to 12 a year. I've done about 75 so far. The parts come from all over and it takes a while to work on some of the ones that have really been neglected.

Who are your customers? They're from all over the country, young and old. I advertise in several national motorcycle magazines and on my Web site.Have you ever taken on a project you wish you hadn't, or met a motorcycle you couldn't fix? I've fixed some pretty rough stuff, but I've never seen one I couldn't restore. But I have worked on a few that I wished I'd said no to before I started.

Jennifer Murphree