California-based Big Bear Choppers, which made custom bikes on a production line before falling victim to the recession and shutting down its facilities in 2011, called the 2009 Screamin Demon its take on the classic 1950s bobber, a custom bike that had had all extraneous elements removed, or ""bobbed"". In the case of the 2009 Screamin Demon, that meant retaining a vestigial front fender, making it one of the lightest bikes in Big Bear Choppers’ 15-model lineup, at just 650 pounds dry.
Featuring a 1,638.7cc, air-cooled, V-twin four-stroke engine made by S & S, it has an S & S Super E carburetor and a pushrod overhead valve configuration, paired with a Baker chain-driven five-speed manual transmission. The Springer telescopic front forks are angled at a conservative 34-degree rake; the rear suspension is rigid. Single hydraulic disc brakes in front and back furnish stopping power. A chromed two-into-one baffled exhaust system met EPA standards. The bike was also approved by the California Air Resources Board.
A tiny 3.3-gallon fuel tank rides high on the Screamin Demon’s steel frame, which boasts a classic wishbone-style down tube. The 24-inch seat and pullback handlebars are an essential part of the bike’s sleek look, along with the chrome controls and details. The rear tire is a fairly modest 250mm, rather than the wide 300mm used on some of the company’s other machines.
The Screamin Demon came in the same color options available for all Big Bear Choppers bikes: black cherry, candy-red metallic, charcoal metallic, electric blue, firecracker red, gloss red, orange pearl, satin or gloss black, and silver metallic. In the past, buyers always had the option of ordering unpainted parts and building their own bikes. However, now that the company has been reorganized under a different owner, the only way to get a new Big Bear Choppers bike is to buy the kit and build it yourself.
Big Bear Choppers believed that the combination of classic styling, lighter weight, and reduced length – this bike was a mere eight and a half feet long, rather than the nine feet that a number of its other choppers were – gave the Screamin Demon great cornering and made it especially road-friendly.