Starting the Mockup for the Rear Fender

Went to Turkey Rod Run this last weekend and was able to PU a GREAT deal on a pair of used Fiberglass 1936 Ford Front Fenders. After some measurements, I cut them up and have the beginnings of a mocked-up rear fender and seat for the trike. I'm going to see if I can use one of the headlight buckets for the front of the trike, not sure yet.

I also PU the steering joints I will need to get the steering finished up. Flaming River had a 30% off sale going on thru Yearwood sales and Terry and his group were a BIG help on making sure I got the right size joints and now all I need is the DD shafts and I'll be done with the steering mock up.

Should be trying to finish up the welding of the two frame halves by the end of this week, I hope that works out.

I will be getting my title and frame from a dealer in NC for a 1983 Kawasaki 500, that's what the trike will be titled as, don't feel like dealing with the ASPT title that you have to get from Florida to license the trike as a "NEW" ride, using an older title will just be easier and I don't believe it will affect the values at all.

I have posted some updated pics down below, so please check them out. Talk again soon.

The wheels are HERE!!

Well, Eric came thru and the wheels look great. The adaptors from Lugman USA work just as promised and the 2nd mockup is looking good. We had to cut the top half of the Raptor frame off to get the motor to fit, but when it comes time to mock up the steering, i was going to have to butcher it up anyway.

The total wheelbase is just over 6' and the track width is going to be 55", I can live with that. The seat height will be just a tick over 20", but I'll have to live with that.

Moultrie is coming up this weekend and Turkey Rod Run is coming up next weekend. I am hoping to find the rear fenders that I want to use based on a 37 Ford fender.

The Wheels are coming, The Wheels are coming.... Finally!

Eric called tonight and the wheels are coming! I am soooo Happy! I should have them by the end of the week and I can start doing the setup layout work again. We have come up with a Good idea for addressing my frame issues and it will still give the trike a old school look. I'm glad I have access to CNC machines, it will help me do my new parts for the frame, I'll take pictures and post the drawings later this week.

See you soon!!

The motor is really TOO Big!

Yep, there will be no welding this weekend. The motor is not fitting in the stock Raptor frame no matter what. I am going to have to totally cut the top half of the frame off and drop the motor in, then build a frame around it. I'm not sure where to go from here yet, I'll have to get a couple of my other Rascals to come over and ponder it with me, then hopefully, we'll figure something out.

I talked to Eric Vaughan, he's the guy doing the front wheel narrowing, and he still has not done my wheels yet. He said he'll have them done on Monday, I won't hold my breath, but you can't rush artistry. I know that when I do get them, they'll be right.

Turkey Rod run is coming up in three weeks, so is Moultrie Show. I'm going to both to try and find some more parts as well as to look for the fenders that I will use to finish off the bodywork. I know that seems optimistic since I haven't even got the motor mounted in nor the frames together, but I know it will work out in the end. Besides, these shows only happen once a year, and I plan on having this thing running next year.

Talk next week, bye.

The Motor is Here!!!

Well, I got the motor today and it's BIG! I am going to have a whole lot of fun stuffing it into the Raptor frame. But the overall condition looks good, I hope that the folks I bought it from are telling me the truth. I also got a shop manual coming, and some mounting brackets. The wiring harness came in yesterday, no word on the front wheels, Eric said he was going to have them finished today and that he would call, but no word yet.

The rear adaptor should be done today and we are still planning on welding the two frames together this weekend, I'll update everybody when It happens. Lets hope it goes well.

Boy... Did I screw-up! Bikes ain't no different than Cars.

Well, the title came in today for the 2006 Kawasaki 900 motor, and it was totally useless since it was a Salvage Utah title and marked non-rebuildable. So basically, I got a pretty bill of sale. So, I had to buy a title today, found one, hope it works, it still will be a rebuilt title, but hey, that's life. I knew that the Salvage title might be a problem so I knew this might happen. Found a wiring harness, rear pully and a low mileage cdi (ECU) for us car guys. These newer motorcycle motors with fuel injection are not any different than the newer car motors with FI, you need a computer, fuel pumps, special harness, different lines, etc..... I'm SO HAPPY!

The rear adaptor will be ready on Wednesday. The front rims will be shipping by then I hope. I'm going to finish my grinding this week and I'm trying to have the two frames put together by the end of this weekend. I'll post pics as this all comes together, I hope.

Well, I leapped before I looked.... Damn!

I should never have gone to Biketoberfest! I got down there, saw, seen, smelled, heard and listened to all those bikes, people and builders and wannabees, and damned if I didn't start believeing my own hype and I went and did what I said I wasn't going to do. I sold the ready to go, all the parts were there, easy to work , pre-measured Yamaha Fazer 700 and took that money and bought a 2006 Kawasaki Vulcan 900 motor. I was sooooo Happy until my brain kicked back in and I realized that all I have now is a motor and a salvage title w/o any of the electronics, no controls, no front brakes, no frame to use for the numbers, etc., etc., etc. Damn!!

But on the other hand, I get to learn a whole new level of paitence, because there ain't no way in hell I'm going to have this done by Bike Week 2010. I'll be lucky if I make Biketoberfest 2010!

I'll post the new pics ASAP of the new front end with the adaptors, My rear adaptor for the wheel should be ready for PU. The front wheels were supposed to ship on Friday, I hope. Eric was having to get all of his SEMA stuff done, so I'm not holding my breath, that's the way it goes. But, Hey, it's anadventure.

I'll look forward to updateing everybody after next week. Happy Halloween.!

The Cutting Has Begun....

Well, The Cadillac rims have gone to Eric Vaughn's shop in Cally, the rear swing arm and front hubs are off to the Lug Man company to have the custom spacer adaptors created. I've started cutting and grinding off the unnecessary brackets, tubes and hangers. The fiberglass work starts next week and the welding will begin this weekend. I'm really excited with Biketoberfest coming next week, I'm going to be very busy in the swap meet area looking for parts and pieces. I have a few new pics to post, but in the next week or so, we'll see some really great pics of a completed frame.

Scrappy is Born!

I always have to name my projects and this one is no different. Because this is the first project I've ever attempted to use mostly used parts or salvaged parts I felt the best name for this project is "Scrappy". Since most of what he is made of will be from scrap, seems to fit .

Marc & Lil Marc from Marc's Auto Creations came over this last Saturday and helpped to get the project rolling by making the first cuts. We got the Ducati frame and swingarm in place and now I get to use the Sawzall and start whacking off peices and parts. Check out the photos at the bottom of the page and you find some progress is coming along.

I will , so far, have parts from a Seadoo, Cadillac, Yamaha and Ducati making up this Reverse Trike. I think that works in a Frankenstien sort of way. Hope you come along on this adventure with me and my freinds as we try to create a peice of Art from a pile of Crap.

See you soon.

Starting a Reverse Trike Project

I've decided to start a new project... A Reverse Trike. What is a reverse trike? It is just as it sounds, a three wheeled vehicle that has two wheels in the front and one in the rear, hence... a "reverse" trike.

I'm starting with a 1986 Yamaha Fazer, it has a 700cc 4 cylnder engine, 4 carbs and a six speed transmission. I'm going to put that motor in a 2001 Yamaha Raptor 660 frame, remove the two back wheels and graft a 2000 Ducati rear frame, swingarm setup to the back to create my trike. I am looking to achieve a low (20" seat height) stance and a wide stance by using aftermarket Raptor 3"wider than stock a-arms, and 2"wheels adaptor, spacers to get the front end wide. I'm using quarter midget body panels to create a custom front end and a sprint car look. The fuel tank will be in the rear of the trike and the look should be very retro / racy.

I'll post some pictures in the next blog. Till then, good luck to all of us.