Gas Tank and New Stuff

I haven't been idle while enjoying the Arizona sun.  Have managed score a deal on some saddlebags and

Pillion Pad

 Saddlebags

Gas Tank  (note the ripples)

 

picked up the pillion pad for the bike as well as the tank badges.  Speaking of the tank, Curtis managed to get the first half of the tank blasted and cleaned up.  With the old paint removed, the reason for all the bondo became evident....looks like someone tied the bike down at some point using a chain across the tank??  Smart!  However, Curtis assures me he can get the small ripples out when he cuts the tanks apart for modification.

Away for a while

Left the continued fabrication of my chopper in my son's capable hands while we're in Arizona for the next month.  If he can, Curtis will try and get the rear fender fabricated and ready for painting when I get back to Victoria in December.  There's a lot of custom work to do on it and the gas tank so it's possible we won't be ready for paint until spring.  He also has a lot of work to do on his custom chopper over the winter so the work on my 72 may have to be put on a bit of a hold.  However, during the months of Nov., January, Feb., and March while I'm in Arizona, I'll be picking up various parts and accessories for my chopper.  Already picked up the pillion pad and have ordered a pair of goggles that will fit over my glasses to keep wind and road debris out of my eyes since the chopper will not have a windshield.

Painting the Frame

Spent the last three days painting the frame and the swing arm.  Ran out of primer and had to make a quick run to Canadian Tire to pick up some more.  The frame and swing arm each received two coats of primer, 3 coats of General Motors Light metallic Blue and 3 coats of clear.  My improvised paint booth worked really well and I am happy with the results

 

Painting the Frame

 

 

 

The Finished Product

Finishing the Frame

Today Curt and I finished modifying the frame.  Curt welded on all new mounting tabs for the oil tank/battery box, the seat, and floor boards then cleaned the frame with a wire wheel.  Also he pulled the bearings from the swing arm and installed the races for the new bearings.  Now my real work starts...painting the frame and the swing arm!  Just about have the paint booth set up.  This should be exciting.

 

 

Oil Tank and Seat mounted on frame

Framed

Yesterday Curt and I spent the afternoon customizing the frame.  Curtis summarily chopped off all the "extraneous" tabs, etc. and then broke out the welding gear to fill in some areas as well as add the mounting hardware for the seat.  Tabs for mounting the oil tank/ battery box still have to be added but that will be next weekend's project.  Also got to see the new period correct tires I ordered for the bike.  Love them!

 Fitting Oil Tank/Battery Box to Frame

 

 New Oil Tank/ Battery Box

 

New tires

 

 

Today I tackled the wheels in an attempt to finish restoring the chrome....an easier task now that the old spokes have been removed.  I think they came out pretty good!

 

 





Bondo Bondo

Today we tackled sand blasting the rear fender and the gas tanks.  Surprise....the fender has up to  quarter of an inch of Bondo under several coats of paint.  Didn't really see the need for so much Bondo as the fender is in pretty good shape underneath.  Some people just like the stuff I guess.  Rather than waste time paying for sand blasting time, Curtis decided to just blast the areas he needed in order to cut and modify the fender.  He plans on attacking the paint and Bondo with a wire wheel and angle grinder.  Same story with the tanks although not quite as much Bondo.  Those were blasted just enough for cutting and modifying.  We also managed to make up a parts list order necessary to complete the engine assembly.  We keep making progress.

 Fender before cutting

 

Fender after cutting...ready for modification

 

 

 Curtis "blasting"

Who Knew?

Who knew all that chrome was hiding under layers of dirt and rust?  Tackled the sprocket and triple tree today with the old standby: WD40 and tinfoil.  Added a new cleaning product to the mix this time called Evap-o-rust.  Seems to work pretty good.

 

 

Forgot to post that the seat and headlight had arrived from Lowbrow Customs.  Thanks Canada Customs for adding another $46.00 in taxes to the bill!!!  Anyway, they're here and looking great.