The ongoing saga of my motorcycle builds....

Tom B · May 25

I've had 4 Harleys since 2000

Every one was black

2 had a good bit of chrome

But the last 2, I'm liking the blacked out look

Handsome Rob · May 26

7 hours ago, gregintenn said:

Black and darker black…just like nature intended!

Fixed it for you.

Also, I'm officially coining the word 'Chromosexual'

Handsome Rob · May 27

It got the grinder treatment But then I gussied it up a bit. I didn't like the unfinished edge. I tell you what though, creating a wire edge on a sheet steel fender is not as easy as the first 3 minutes I watched, of a 40 minute YouTube tutorial, led me to believe. Especially when the only welding equipment available is the 'Easy Bake Oven' of MiG sets......

I've also re-wired the back end for the new light setup & the fender is just sitting letting the paint cure. I'll have her back together tomorrow. Oh... painted the rear wheel & ditched the chrome pulley and inner primary covers. Painted the shift linkage, rear master cylinder cover, horn & coil cover, transmission case & a couple of other trim bits that do, actually, fill the gaps nicely but we're waaaaay to shiny. Installed the new, shorter clutch cable, fixed the front master cylinder, gave her some new rear pads (which were down to the paint....) & modified the kickstand to better suit its new, squatted, stance. Hell of a good weekend so far!

Handsome Rob · May 28

I've got to install the header heat shields, throttle & idle cables & some taller risers tomorrow, since these ones catch the dash, just before full lock and I'm still waiting the fishtails & tanks, but other than that, she's about ready for a test ride!

Oh, that primary cover needs dealing with too.....

Darrell · May 28

You're faster than I ever was! The last Harley I built took me more than a year, but then I did the engine, too.

FUJIMO · May 28

I still see so much shiny.....

Capbyrd · May 29

I'm not a softail guy but this definitely has me reconsidering. Needs some fatter meats though.

Handsome Rob · June 5

Aaaaaaand..... we have fishtails!

BigK · June 5

Looking great!!

I was wondering how chrome pipes could be blacked out. I didn't know covers like that existed. I usually see black exhaust tape used. What holds those covers on?

Handsome Rob · June 5

2 hours ago, BigK said:

Looking great!!

I was wondering how chrome pipes could be blacked out. I didn't know covers like that existed. I usually see black exhaust tape used. What holds those covers on?

They're the factory heat shields, on the headers & cross pipe. They're held on with Jubilee clips (I think you guys call em hose clamps, but y'all call everything hose clamps..... This is the ONE single American thing that after 15 years, I still get stuck on! )

The tail pipes got the same treatment as all the other chrome; wet sanded at 220, etched with Naval Jelly, etch primed & 3 top coats.

I wish I could post videos here. They sound fantastic with the baffles in. With em out, it sounds like 2 kids chucking bricks into a 55 gallon drum.

Edited June 5 by Handsome Rob

aknifemaker · June 5

Looking Good

gregintenn · June 5

3 hours ago, Handsome Rob said:

They're the factory heat shields, on the headers & cross pipe. They're held on with Jubilee clips (I think you guys call em hose clamps, but y'all call everything hose clamps..... This is the ONE single American thing that after 15 years, I still get stuck on! )

The tail pipes got the same treatment as all the other chrome; wet sanded at 220, etched with Naval Jelly, etch primed & 3 top coats.

I wish I could post videos here. They sound fantastic with the baffles in. With em out, it sounds like 2 kids chucking bricks into a 55 gallon drum.

They're hose clamps....spot welded on by a year old retarded monkey, just good enough to make it home from the dealership.

Handsome Rob · June 5

2 hours ago, gregintenn said:

They're hose clamps....spot welded on by a year old retarded monkey, just good enough to make it home from the dealership.

Welp, they've managed 25 years so far & 120 miles this afternoon!

gregintenn · June 6

3 hours ago, Handsome Rob said:

Welp, they've managed 25 years so far & 120 miles this afternoon!

You’ll get to weld on them eventually.

Handsome Rob · June 6

25 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

You’ll get to weld on them eventually.

Anything that falls off, lives where it lands

gregintenn · June 6

Sorry. I was mistaken. These were aftermarket drag pipes.

Capbyrd · June 7

Im not a fishtail fan but its coming along. Oil tank and rocker covers next?

Handsome Rob · June 7

20 hours ago, Capbyrd said:

Im not a fishtail fan but its coming along. Oil tank and rocker covers next?

I may do the rocker covers at some point, certainly if I ever have to take them off. But looking at how much of a ballache it is to pull the oil tank, I think I'm going to leave it alone. A tiny bit of sparkle, here & there, isn't a terrible thing. Enhancing what's underneath.

Like lingerie for motorcycles.

I'm going to start to tackle the new gas tanks this weekend. My god but they're rough. I can envision having to encase the entire things in bondo, then sand it back to a tank shape And that's after I degrease, etch & line them, because they were welded up by the kid that did Greg's heat shields

Edited June 7 by Handsome Rob

gregintenn · June 7

26 minutes ago, Handsome Rob said:

I may do the rocker covers at some point, certainly if I ever have to take them off. But looking at how much of a ballache it is to pull the oil tank, I think I'm going to leave it alone. A tiny bit of sparkle, here & there, isn't a terrible thing. Enhancing what's underneath.

Like lingerie for motorcycles.

I'm going to start to tackle the new gas tanks this weekend. My god but they're rough. I can envision having to encase the entire things in bondo, then sand it back to a tank shape And that's after I degrease, etch & line them, because they were welded up by the kid that did Greg's heat shields

But there appears to be a perfectly good set of tanks on the bike already.

Handsome Rob · June 7

6 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

But there appears to be a perfectly good set of tanks on the bike already.

That're worth about 800 bucks! Ain't screwin' with em when aftermarket are less than 2 bills & some elbow grease!

A full set of good condition, original matching tins with caps, lights & fender tips is worth about 3½ GRAND right now!

I'm occasionally dumb, but never knowingly stupid

Edited June 7 by Handsome Rob

gregintenn · June 7

41 minutes ago, Handsome Rob said:

That're worth about 800 bucks! Ain't screwin' with em when aftermarket are less than 2 bills & some elbow grease!

A full set of good condition, original matching tins with caps, lights & fender tips is worth about 3½ GRAND right now!

I'm occasionally dumb, but never knowingly stupid

I understand. Just screwing with ya.

Rob Gray · June 8

Looking good! I love street style bobbers. I had a 92 FXR (Dyna) with a EVO motor, fun bike. As luck might go, may get it back. LOL it had a bit of mild body work done to it before I had bought it and planned to make it look a bit better like redoing a rear fender. EVOs are solid motors with a great sound. I liked it too because it’s starting to be retro or a classic. It’s the blue bike in the pic..