#WhyWeWeld: Queen Street Motorcycles

We spoke with Kevin Charland from Queen Street Motorcycles, a crew in Ontario, Canada. This group is made up of like-minded builders and riders who build and ride metric choppers.

Founded in 2020 by his good friend Mike, the team aims to show that there is more to life than spending time in front of a phone screen or playing video games.

“We wanted to start something that would inspire people to get out there, build stuff with their friends, and get on the road,” Kevin said, noting that motorcycle culture like this is not very common in Ontario, Canada.

Kevin was introduced to Queen Street about a year ago, and the group has grown quickly since then. The team began building show bikes and traveling across the states to show what young builders are capable of creating, while keeping the passion for chopper building alive.

Long-term, Kevin hopes the project could grow into a business someday. But for now, the focus is on enjoying the process, building interesting projects, and sharing what they can do.

Building Choppers on a Budget

The team is more or less a metric chopper group because many of the members are young builders who don’t always have the money to spend on expensive Harleys and Harley parts.

Kevin said getting into a build can cost anywhere from around $500 to a couple of thousand dollars for a good Honda Shadow, plus whatever parts they can find from swap meets or from older builders they spend time with.

“It shows people that you don’t need to spend a fortune on a Harley to build a cool chopper,” he said.

Most of their builds are based on Shadow 750s, along with a few 600s, CB750s, and some older Chinese bikes. Kevin explained that the team uses a wide variety of Japanese motorcycles to show that almost any bike can be turned into a chopper.

His own bike was bought for about 500 Canadian dollars, about $200 USD. Parts were slowly assembled over time while collecting components from swap meets and shop leftovers.

The total cost of a build like his is just over a thousand USD.

Some members who spent more on cleaner Honda Shadows have builds closer to $2,000 USD. Kevin said it is surprising how affordable it can be to build a chopper.

Built in Their Own Garage

The team has a super long-fork chopper they’ve been showing off on Instagram.

It belongs to a crew member named Jeff, who built it over the last two years.

That bike was their biggest summer project, as they brought it to shows across the United States and Canada.

Kevin said the team built the bike with little to no tools. Being part of the YesWelder crew really helped them step up their fabrication game a bit.

“The TIG welder from YesWelder has been extremely helpful,” he said. Flux-core welding can be messy when working inside frames, but TIG welding provides cleaner results when assembling frames.

The team has been building full hardtails in-house and has completed about three so far.

One project was a Yamaha V Star 650, where they rebuilt the entire frame using the YesWelder machine. The other two were Honda Shadows.

Welding equipment, he explained, is one of the most important tools for the team. It has been critical in showing that they truly have the fabrication and welding side figured out. It allows them to put custom frames together right inside their own garage.

There are really not many people around here offering this service at an affordable price. Being able to fabricate frames in-house and put their own stamp on the work is something the team feels really proud of.

Inspired by the Custom Choppers of Old

Kevin said everything they do is influenced by movies like Mad Max, Terminator, and Ghost Rider. Seeing those choppers on the big screen at a young age made him want to build one of his own. The style inspired the team to be different, build different kinds of projects, and meet new people along the way.

In Canada, most motorcycles people see are stock Harleys or sport bikes. When Queen Street Moto rides through downtown areas, people usually stop and stare.

“It’s a pretty cool feeling to ride around on something so different that makes the older guys come over and say they haven’t seen bikes like this in years,” he said.

Learning by Doing

Kevin is a welder by trade, and many members of the team are also in the trades.

He said it’s mostly about cutting parts and figuring things out as they go. They have really good support from the older guys they hang out with, who have been doing it longer than they have. The older builders give them advice and often guide them the right way, although sometimes they ignore it, and it doesn’t always work out better.

Most of the time, Kevin said, it’s just about learning as they go. New problems can show up at any time, and the only solution is to deal with them as they arise.

One of the biggest challenges that kept them on the ground was tooling. They have been very blessed to have supportive parents who helped them with different things.

Mike’s parents have been very gracious to let them use their space to go crazy in their garage. The team now has a drill press, a frame jig for custom frame fabrication, and the TIG welder, which helped them get started.

Now that the tooling problem is behind them, the team can really bring their work to the next level.

Get It Done

“Just get a grinder and start cutting stuff up. Even if you mess something up, you can fix it.”

According to Kevin, these Asian bikes are fairly reliable and simple to understand. Even if a wire is accidentally cut or a mistake is made, the problems are usually easy to fix.

He said the most important thing is to keep trying and never stop. The bikes are super affordable, and there isn’t much investment needed to get into it.

Chopping the frame, removing the tank, adding new headlights or taillights, making a sissy bar, or installing new foot pegs—Kevin said the best approach is simply to start and not be afraid of mistakes.

"It will come out bad sometimes, but the more you do, the more you learn,” he said.

The team attends many shows to showcase their bikes, including Glory Daze, Party at the Pen, and Strange Days. They also take part in a Canadian show called Bad Living, which is a big deal to them because it’s run by a good friend.

“We are just so grateful for the support you guys have shown us,” Kevin said. “The welder has been a really, really, really big step up for us.”

You can follow Queen Street Motorcycles on Instagram at @queenstreet.moto.