August 26th, 2007

Ok so I need to connect the oil lines to the oil tank. I have two options to get this done.

1. Rip off the current lines leaving just the final connector and run a hose from each of the oil tank drains to each of the connectors. Problem Once the line's removed, that's it and I have to go with another line no matter how bad it works/leaks/etc.
2. Find a connector with a hose exit that I can run up to the drains on the oil tank. Problem I have to find not only the connector but it needs to have a small diameter opening so I can connect the short bit of hose to it.

So for now I'll see if I can find such a connector. Basically it's just a threaded bit that'll fit into the end of the current lines and have a small opening at the other end with a male end that I can clamp a hose to much like the ones on the oil tank.

• Picture of the hose
• Picture of the connector

August 20th, 2007

Suggestion for paint: DupliColor Bedliner Spray from Johnny Monsoon on STN.

August 19th, 2007

A little chasing down of cables and hoses today along with a tentative mounting of the coils, just to see if it's a reasonable place to mount them. I also mounted the carbs, again to eyeball the overall look. They're camera phone pics so the quality isn't the best :)

• Overall pic of the bike in the garage with the extra bits
• The front exhaust ports, just a tad to the left.
• Side view. Note kickstarter.
• View of the coils and where I might mount them.

August 12th, 2007

Today I broke out the saw and got the front and rear wheel mounted and the engine and even the oil tank. You might notice that the front rotor is gone. I removed it because it was rubbing against the rear bolt on the rocker. If I put one on, it'll have to have a smaller diameter. For now though, I'll just leave it off. It even makes the front end a bit lighter :) .

Since I also cut up the pipe and got the rear wheel solidly mounted. Before that though I had to cut off the bolts used to hold the rear fender. Then I tightened them all down so the rear fender was solidly mounted. next I got the rear wheel mounted. A couple of extra cuts for the inside so the wheel would roll freely and it's a rolling chassis!

Now that I have a rolling chassis, the next step is to mount the engine. I was able to heft it into place by tying a tie down strap to the rear of the engine as a holder and get it in place. With Rita's help, I got the engine mounting bolts in. The front ones were a little short so I used a tie down to bring it into alignment and all three bolts were mounted.

Finally I drilled a couple of holes for the oil tank and mounted it. Heck, the bike's looking like a bike now. How cool is that?

A Few of the steps left:

1. Front fender
2. Lights (head, tail, turn signals)
3. Handlebar Controls
4. Rear sissy bar
5. Mount coils
6. Fix shifter and brake
7. The rear fender doesn't look right. I have to trim the bottom so it doesn't drag and cut a bit from the left side for the chain.
8. Pipes!
9. Carbs

• Rolling by on the street.
• Stop for a right side picture.
• Left side picture.
• Picture of the oil tank, seat and rear fender.
• Front view of the tire.
• Rear view of the rear tire. Going to have to fix the fender.
• Excellent picture of Rita on the bike.

July 30th, 2007 ($5.97)

I stopped by Lowes on the way home and picked up a short piece of galvanized pipe. I'm going to cut it up and use it as a spacer for the front and rear tires.

July 2nd, 2007 ($37)

While I was getting my rear tire replaced up at Epic Motorsports in Longmont, I was talking to the owner (Kevin) and we discussed this project. He broke out the catalog and we did some measurements. I've been going back and forth on the handlebar width. I started off wanting beach bars (really wide ones) to a narrower, width of the bike sized bar. We finally came on a 27" wide bar with a couple of slight bends. I picked it up today and put it on the chopper. I tightened down a bunch of bolts and aligned the bar to be good (for now anyway) and got a couple of pics.

• From the seat
• From the side - it's a little hard to see in the light
• With me sitting on it

Not bad and it's looking better. Not too much longer it looks like.

June 16th, 2007

I got the parts back in today. Chris got the parts but didn't know who to contact about what to do. I guess the paper I put in the box got lost :) Since it's a bit heavy, it took a few extra days to arrive as well. But today they came. I put the parts on the bike so they wouldn't get lost. It mostly fits which is ok by me. It's not supposed to be a $100,000 custom bike.

• Side view of the springer mounted
• View of the tire and the new axle
• Full side view of the rocker and wheel.
• Front view of the rocker.

Now I have to measure the space that's left and will shoot the measurements off to Chris again so he can whip up a front and rear spacer so the tire's in the center.

April 6th 2007, ($225)

I looked over the bike and find I'm missing a few parts all of a sudden. No idea where they went and I went through the garage. They might be in a box or just gone although it's a puzzle. I contacted Chopper Chris at Chopper Enterprises, where I got the springer front end and asked if he could provide a price for replacing the top plate, adjusting the rockers (the axle is 22mm but the hole is 5/8"), and provide a few extra bolts. He said no problem and estimated the cost to be around $200). I sent in the parts, he finished it and shot me back the final cost via paypal.

March 13th, 2007

I actually broke down and started mounting parts to the frame. I still need to trim the tabs below the seat for the oil tank. I'll catch that soon. One of the guys on line has a metal working business. Maybe I can get some quick work done so I can get the front end mounted.

• The tank, fender, forward controls, and forks on the bike.

November 8th, 2006

Okay okay, it's been a while.

I'm at a point where I'm unsure as to my next step. Basically I need to mount the front wheel on the new forks. The current axle isn't wide enough for the rockers. However if I put in a couple of spacers, I could make it work. I'd have to cut into the rockers at the bottom to make it work. Or I could have an axle made/modify the current axle somehow to fit. For example, have a

July 13th, 2005 ($50)

I dropped the frame and tabs I'd made with a local weldor (Rick of Heat Affected Zone in Broomfield; 303-438-8746). He seems on the ball and is an old biker so he had some ideas of his own :) The forward control mounts look great! Very sturdy. The oilbag mounts, both top and back and positioned just right as are the four fender mounts. The brake tab is welded in nice and tight as well. Great job all the way around.

One of my main concerns was the poor welding on the downtubes. They were cut and rewelded by the frame builder. The book I read and the last weldor I worked with said that connections like that need to have a tube inside the tubes for additional strength. Rick drilled a small hole in both down tubes and found that there was virtually no penetration (the guy who built the frame ground down the weld so with no penetration, the bike frame would have separated). I was already going to put a 3" or 4" plate that spanned the two welds. He suggested a nice arch or pointed gusset that went from the top to about 2" below the faulty welds. He also rewelded them for me. I'll break out my grinder and get them flat again.

He also noticed the races weren't installed as far as they should be. I pointed out that they were installed as far as they'd go in (about a quarter inch) and that I'd installed the front end so it fit. He couldn't see a way to bore it farther down so I'm stuck either way. He also noticed that with the installation of the races, the heads flared out just a little showing the inside bore wasn't quite at the settings for the stock Honda races. Again, not much I can do about it. Still, it's all a learning experience. I'd never looked at a head as more than a "black box". After tearing about the old bike and dealing with this, it'll never be a mystery again.

From talking to him, he's more than willing to help and he charged a great rate. $50 for the welds and included replacement tabs when the two back oilbag tabs weren't in a good position. He's also offered the use of his shop if I need to do any more metalwork.

• The rewelded downtubes.
• Forward control mounts. Nice and sturdy.
• Side angle view. I wanted them at a 90 degree angle from the ground rather than even with the frame.
• Lower fender mounts and drum brake arm mount point.
• Oil bag mount points. The top ones are about a half inch too long. The rear two are actually fender and oilbag mounts.

June 15th, 2005

In an effort to speed things up, I've decided to bypass the attempt to learn welding on my own and rely on someone in the area. As such, I've measured and cut the pieces I need to get welded to the frame. Now I just need to locate a local welder. There are several in the phone book. we'll see what I can find.

• The pieces, ready to weld

There is a long thin piece, which is the cross member support for the oil tank. Coming down from that are two 2" pieces which the oil tank will bolt to. Coming down from the upper rear brace are two 2" pieces for the fender and two 1.5" pieces which will be welded to the fender tabs and used as the cross brace for the rear of the oil tank. At the bottom rear brace are two 1.5" pieces. The four pieces will be used to bolt the fender to the frame. The single large piece will be welded to the far right side of the bottom brace and be used to hold the brake brace. Lastly, the two larger pieces are welded to the front and the forward controls (one of which is in the picture) will be bolted to those.

March 6th, 2005

And here's my first attempt at using the welder after getting the right hoses and regulator. Lots of fun. I posted some info up on the Harley forums and found out that I need to increase the heat, reduce the wire feed and probably attend a class :) Anyway, here is the picture.

• First welding attempt

January 4th, 2005 ($6.62)

Ordered 10' of Ester Based Polyurethane Tubing. 1/16" ID x 1/18" OD x 1/32"

December 27th, 2004 ($8.05)

Ordered 10' of Ester Based Polyurethane Tubing. 1/8" ID x 3/16" OD x 1/32"

December 16th, 2004 ($97.23)

Ordered the proper regulator from Sears.

November 17th, 2004

While working on a wood project, I was cleaning up and decided to see how the bearing press works. I removed the forks that I had put in place temporarily, leaned the head down so it could be hammered against something firm and pressed the race into the stem. It worked just fine and went in with minimal fuss.

• It just looks crooked. It's the light and reflection. Pic of the bottom.
• They're both fully seated. I guess the head was originally milled for the stock races.
• Picture from underneath. I checked to make sure they were fully seated by running my fingernail under the rims of both top and bottom.
• Second undershot. A bit clearer.

I've also been looking at seats and am thinking that the setup I have isn't going to work. Currently I have a hole in the top of the frame mount that screws in to the seat. Unfortunately that's not going to work since it needs to be on a pivot. I think I'll have to cut that off, grind it down, use the cut off on the seat and weld a couple of tabs in place of the mount. Then I can run a bolt through the cut off and the tabs and gain a pivot.

November 15th, 2004

While reading a current bike magazine, I came upon an article that shows, with the nuts and washers, how to press a bearing race in to a head. They also advise not pressing it in all the way so the painter can easily block off the head to paint. I'll have to measure and see what I can locate.

November 3rd, 2004 ($200)

I went out and picked up 20 pounds of the proper mixture of Argon for my Craftsman welder. I also picked up a regulator. Unfortunately I have a different fitting on the welder and need to locate it. The guy at the shop noted that I might need it but didn't stock it and didn't know off-hand where to locate one. Time to check the manual.

October 27th, 2004 ($29.50)

I stopped by Tool Zone and picked up a bearing seat. It's a series of different sized rings that are used to press a bearing in to the wheel. I should be able to use it for the head but I still like the idea of a couple of bolts and tightening it together.

October 21st, 2004

After posting a query about races and bearings to the HondaChopper site, I received a reply from Ed Needham who had the part numbers for the bearings I need to buy to fit the races I have. The head is metric and can use the races I bought from LowRiderTommy but the stem is standard and is 1" in diameter so I need a different set of bearings (they have to fit snugly). Ed says I need Bower BCA part number 07100. Had I had a 7/8" stem, I would have needed part number 07196. He also said it was a "common wheel bearing A-19". I'll have to check on that. Thanks Ed!

October 20th, 2004

After sending back the front forks (just the front pair) and receiving the new ones (2" longer), I posted a question about bearings and the difference between the Honda head and the 1" stem. There's a small difference in the stem size so it's not a tight fit. Rather than trying to weld it myself and with my lack of luck in finding someone in the area, I figured I could just get a standard sized bearing, especially since they're tapered and it'd be ok. It seems that the folks who know better think that's not going to work and I'll need to replace the stem or the head. Neither look like good options, although if I had to, I'd have to do the stem. Hmm, since it's solid, maybe running it through a lathe would fix it, or running a bead of steel around it and lathing it down (trying to get a properly centered stem).

Anyway, here are pics of the forks. Just to show that they do fit the head.

• Right Side view. Note that there seems to be plenty of thread left.
• Front view.
• Left Side view. The whole frame+springer.
• Rear view.

September 14th, 2004 ($400)

I've been putzing around trying to figure out what to do about the rest of the fabrication I need to do. I can't find anyone in the area who'll do it and I'm really itching to get something going before too long. After poking around and checking with the Honda Chopper list, I thought I'd hit the pawn shops and see what was available.

At the first pawn shop, we found a pretty nice looking Air Compressor. It's a Sears Craftsman 5HP, 25 Gallon and goes up to 125 psi. The price was about $135. They had a selection of air tools including two cut off tools. I had used a Mac while at Kevin's so was leaning towards it. They had an Ingersol Rand one but it didn't immediately work where the Mac worked right away so I picked it up. It was marked at $47 but they dropped 7 bucks from the total. I had him plug it in and let it run up to 125 as well as sit there for 15 or 20 minutes to see if there were any leaks.

They also checked their other shops in the area for MIG welders. At the one we were going to visit next, they had a nice new one that the manager said he was going to put up on e-bay. It was going for $2000 though. I'm not a professional and just wanted to finish what I was doing (and learn new things) so I declined that one. He had another at a shop much farther away for $350 which was in my price range so we paid and loaded the new gear, got the address and headed off to the next shop.

At the next shop we found a nice looking Sears Craftsman Mig Wire Feed Welder for $175. The nice part is they were having a 20% off sale so it costs just $140. Since I don't know how to check to see if it works, I spent $14 on a 6 month warranty and we bailed.

Later we went to Home Depot and picked up a welders helmet, gloves and "The Welders Handbook" by Robert Finch. It seems to be a helpful book to assure me that I'm not going to blow the house up and to give me a basic understanding of what I'm doing so I can practice. Since I'm just welding a few minor pieces to the bike frame, this should be a nice little introduction to welding.

I went back later to Home Depot because I didn't have an Arbor. This holds the cutting wheel and is inserted in to the cut off tool. I also needed a bit of clear tubing for a brake job. They referred me to a local Tool Zone which had exactly what I wanted and even a couple of cut off wheels.

A hunt through the Sears Parts Website and I was able to order manuals ($20) for the two machines. In a week or so, I'll be able to locate the correct co2/argon canister and start practicing some welding.

• Here's the Air Compressor.
• And here's the welder opened up. Nice that it came with a spool of wire.
• Here it is closed.

August 8th, 2004 ($90+$50)

We've moved! In April we sold the house and moved to Denver Colorado. Rita's from here and has been bugging me for some time to go back.

I went by Kevin's and picked up the frame. The damage, about $90 for all the work he'd done and for the use of his shop.

After getting here, I bought a rear fender off of e-bay. I don't recall the exact price with shipping, etc, but I paid about 35 bucks plus an addition 10 or 15 for shipping. After putting it on the frame, I see that the diameter is a little wide, however if I bob it, it'll look just about right so I made a good choice.

I also checked the front forks and discovered the front part of the forks were about 2" too short. I put it on the frame today to get the exact amount I need it to be and will be shipping it back tomorrow. I already spoke to Chopper Enterprises and they'll get me a replacement as soon as this one comes back.

Now I need some welding work done and can't find any local shop who'll do just a single item. Suggestions from Honda Choppers include going to the local schools and seeing if there's someone available who'll let me help. I'm also looking at perhaps picking up a welder and just giving it a try myself.

March 22nd, 2004 ($6.86)

Since we had house work to do, I didn't get a chance to head over to Kevin's and work more on the frame over the weekend. I did go out and pick up some additional hardware I'd need to mount the seat to the frame.

• I put two rubber washers on the nose piece to provide movement and cushion
• I'm going to flatten the bushings at an angle for better spring to support contact
• Note the springs are at an angle. Imagine the bushings to be level with the angle of the seat

March 19th, 2004

The support looks really good. Kevin said he had to do a little adjusting since I didn't have the bar totally level and he welded it to the frame rather flat instead of canted. You see, the seat will be on springs. I wanted the strings to sit flat on the bar but from the aspect of the seat. If the bar is flat, the springs will tend to slid backwards off of the bar. Since the front of the seat is a slide instead of a hole, the seat will slide back, potentially causing a problem while riding. Ah well, I put the seat in place and put the springs underneath and snapped a couple of pics. They still look really good.

• The seat from the rear
• The seat from the side

Kevin says he'll be in until 2pm tomorrow (Saturday). I want to pick up a couple of rubber washers. For the front to provide some pivot leaway and on the rear to try and hold the springs in one place. I need to drill the holes into the support bar and figure out how to install screws (or something) into the bottom of the seat.

March 18th, 2004

I didn't make it over last night because of the sleet/snow. Kevin mans a snowplow/salt truck so I called prior to coming over and there was no answer. It turns out he was painting and didn't hear the phone.

I used my first piece of steel to create the support bar for the back of the seat. With the seat mounted, the forward controls in place, and the front end installed, I should then be able to select the appropriate handlebar.

I got the steel to what I though was a good setup. Kevin was busy and didn't get back out to the shop before I bailed so I asked Leon (who was still there) to have Kevin weld the piece to the frame. I marked the spot, passed along my thoughts on having the support canted just a little (but didn't fully explain as you'll see) and bailed.

March 17th, 2004 ($44)

I stopped by Lowe's to pick up some steel bits for the rest of my frame. I picked up several pieces, both for my frame, and to supply to the shop. I figure I should augment the stash if I'm going to be using electricity and such to work on my frame. I suspect I'll be paying Kevin a couple of bucks, but probably not as much as if he'd done it all himself.

March 16th, 2004

I received an e-mail from Leon. He's the guy who recommended Kevin (the welder) to me. It seems that Kevin really doesn't have time to create the tabs I need on the frame and that if I didn't want to ship the parts to Denver some time in the future, I should come on down and do some of it myself. I guess that if I know someone (like Leon) and he can at least point me in the right direction, I can give it a try.

So I went down and, with Leon's help, I created the pivot point for the front of the seat. It's a simple 'U' shaped piece of steel with a hole in the middle and welded to the frame. It was pretty cool to actually start working on the mods and it looked very good, if you ask me :-)

• Angled view
• View from behind

February 29th, 2004

Just a quick note so I don't forget. Consider adding a small fan to the rec/reg to keep it cool. Noted on the HSTA list.

February 19th, 2004

The risers arrived today. They look pretty interesting. With the frame at the shop it's hard to see how they'll work on the front end. I put them on the front end but didn't bolt down the springs.

• View of the springs. Remember they aren't bolted down so they'll be about 4 springs down
• Side view with the risers. Again, the springs will be lower when it's mounted.

February 14th, 2004

I took the frame along with the oil tank, gas tank, rear wheel, forward controls, coils, seat, seat springs and races down to Kevin who was recommended last year (see farther back) to review the frame.

I let him know what I was thinking with each of the items. Where I was going after this stage was completed.

• Finish the burn through on the head
• Mount the bearing races in the head
• Weld tabs for the forward controls
• Weld tabs for the oil tank.
  • Two that might share rear fender mounts (sort of L shaped)
  • Two that might be used to support the seat springs
• Weld a tab for the rear tire brake (drum brake).
• Create a pivot point for the front of the seat.
• Weld mounting nuts for the gas tank tabs.

He recommended using stainless steel for the seat spring support and for the battery box. He also asked about the down tubes. They looked like they were cut and attached. Unfortunately the only way to tell is to cut it apart and check. Kevin suggested that if I didn't want to actually cut it, and since I had to have the coils mounted, I might consider a mount plate that would connect the two down tubes together and also serve as a mount plate for the coils.

February 8th, 2004

So, let's update the list and see what the status is on the parts list.

• Rear Fender. 15" radius. 5"-8 1/4" wide. 36"+ length.
• Kickstand. It's a fairly low riding bike. I think I'm going to have to go with a weld-on stand.
• License/Brake light frame. Side mounted to the rear axle.
• Front Fender. Haven't started looking yet.
• Tires. (See below for specs).
• Handlebars. If they're cheap I'll likely buy the right set. Otherwise I'll use what I have.
• Handlebar Controls. Depends on the bars.
• Mirrors.
• Headlight.
• Turn Signals.
• Sissybar. I'll need a fender before I can get the right sissybar.
• Chain. Again, I need a fender and to get the engine mounted first.
• Exhaust Pipes. I have some ideas on what I want but that'll probably be one of the last things I pick up.

Those two exhaust ports are a bear. Once they're out I can mount the engine and see how the exhause pipes will come out. That will certainly determine what pipes I can use.

February 7th, 2004 ($170)

I've been trying to get the last two pipe mounts off of the engine. It's been interesting to say the least. One of them has rounded screws and the other still has the collar. The bolt on that is rounded. I've been using a dremel to try and remove the collar. I have enough off to try and reach the screws but they're refusing to be turned. I'm afraid to round them off. I'm going to use jbweld on the other two and see if that'll give me enough purchase to get them out. Otherwise I may have to try and just drill them out and use a heli-coil as a replacement.

I also spoke to Kevin again. He's the guy that's going to clean up the frame and weld some tabs to the various places so I can mount the oil tank, gas tank, rear break mount and forward controls. I'll be getting with him on Saturday. Oh, and I'll need to consider a handlebar lock so it doesn't bang into the frame.

Finally I've been searching for handlebar risers. I've been trying to figure out if I want to get new handlebars or use the stock ones. Unfortunately they're pretty rusty so I don't know if they'll clean up. I bought a pair of risers that'll take 1" handlebars. The stock ones are 7/8" but I can use shims so I can use the 1" if it works out. Otherwise I'll just chase down some 1" handlebars and we'll move forward from there.

I got 5 1/2" high risers from SideRoadCycles. We'll see how they work. If nothing else, they also sell handlebars ;-)

January 31st, 2004

I also need to figure out what to do with the axle. The length is exactly the width of the gap between the two rockers. That means I need to find a longer axle and spacers to keep everything in the proper place. The rear axle is wide, however I believe I can use an axle mounted license plate/brake light holder which will fix that problem.

I may also need to get a 'dogbone' and some fork mounted turn signals.

• Split view of the front axle

January 30th, 2004

I need to chase down some replacement tires for the rims. The ones on there have lots of tread but they've been sitting outside for two years. I should replace them anyway. I just got the measurements and will hunt around for some nice tubeless tires. Let's see what they'll cost.

• Rear: Challenger 120/90-18 69H
• Front: Challenger 100/90-19 57H

January 18th, 2004

I had to use three clamps to pinch the top of the tree enough to be able to remove the nuts from the top of the springs. I got it and the springs off, set them aside and rough mounted the front end on the frame. I put the top back on and the nut to hold it. Then I balanced the tire on the end of the daggers.

Damn, it looks pretty good. I'm real happy with my choices so far.

Now I have to get the engine finished up. I have to remove the other two exhaust pipes. I'll be putting the engine into the frame to make sure everything fits. I also have to get risers for the handlebars. I have to figure out how to mount the front lights (head and turn signal) to the new forks. Fortunately there's an article on hondachopper on how to mount the old brakes to a springer fork so that'll be fun. A rear fender and sissy bar.

• Forgive the blurriness. It's cold in the garage.
• And another shot from the rear.

January 17th, 2004

After several e-mails to Chris at Chopper Enterprises, my forks finally arrived. I'm excited and totally ready to move into the next phase of building. The first problem, getting the races into the head. The bottom one seems to fit ok except that it's about an eighth of an inch too deep. I suspect it was cut with a mind towards stock races. I'll have to check them out and may have to use them instead of the replacements. The stock ones are ok but I'll need to replace the ball bearings.

I'll also have to see if the front wheel fits and will probably need to chase down a new front axle. Handlebar risers are in order as well.

This weekend I'll see if I can get the engine mounted, just to make sure it all fits and get an idea for the exhaust pipes. I saw some interesting ones at the Custom Bike Show in Chantilly a couple of weeks ago.

One of the things I'm going to have to do is figure out how to break this down. I have to remove the top of the trees in order to mount it to the bike. The acorn nuts on the tops of the springs are just to keep them from backing off. There is a nut inside the spring welded to the washer. I'm going to have to compress the springs to get to the nut.

• What's this I see on my front door step?
• The forks have arrived!
• Check out those springs.
• There are the holes for the handlebar risers.
• And there are the rockers for the front wheel.

January 6th, 2004

The tank arrived. It looks pretty good even if it took a pair of channel lock pliers to get the gas cap off. I can't really tell but it looks like some sort of glue on the tank. Look at the first picture in the list. I sent a note off to the guys doing the front end. They're claiming holiday mail slow downs. I should see it in a few days. I'm excited :-)

I began cable tying stuff into position. The oil tank (which I got a few weeks ago), the seat and springs, the forward controls I got last year, the coils and now the tank. Note that the whole thing's clamped to the work bench.

• It's a little blurry but you can see the drippings by the light reflection.
• Left rear view
• Left front view
• View from the rear

December 29th, 2003

Two things.

First, we had to send an e-mail threatening legal action to the tank guy. He received the money on the 9th and still hasn't sent the tank. Rita had suggested that rather than use UPS or USPS he should use Fed Ex. She uses it and save several dollars and since she was paying for shipping, she should be able to suggest alternate methods. Apparently it's not like that where he is since Fed Ex is a buck or so more expensive than UPS. Anyway, we paid the Fed Ex amount but he never told us whether he had a problem or what. It wasn't until Rita sent an e-mail to him last week that he said he was shipping it on the 26th. She sent another one Saturday asking if he had sent it and what the tracking number was and received this response:

Upon I sent the following reply:

No replies so far.

Second, on a more positive note. I sent a note off to Chopper Enterprises to check the status of my forks. He said they were done on Wednesday and should be going out either today or tomorrow.

Awesome!

December 15th, 2003

For today's class, we learn what each of the electrical components are and what they do.

Rectifier: Lets current travel in one direction and converts alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC)

Regulator: Bleeds off excess current created by the alternator (hence the large heat sink).

Alternator: Man, here's how.

Solenoid: How it works and how it works

December 12th, 2003

The rectifier/regulator and races arrived today. I think it'll fit on the battery box, maybe on the chain side. Time to modify the list.

December 9th, 2003 ($100)

I found the right shaped gas tank (link good for 90 days) on e-bay and we watched it. Rita was at home so she bid it up to $100 and it was ours.

• Side view of the new tank
• Top view of the tank
• Bottom view of the tank

I'm not sure what I'm going to do regarding paint. I'm of two minds on the paint job. In one case, black is easy to maintain and probably won't cost an arm and a leg to do. On the other hand, I really wanted to have the main metal be green; green tank, green fenders, green frame. On the gripping hand, perhaps leaving it blue and getting the fenders painted the same blue and the frame black (the fork legs are black by the way) might work out. We'll see.

December 7th, 2003

Now's the time to make up a list of what I have, what I need, and what's left to do (which may require more stuff).

• Motorcycle Frame
• Motor
• Front Wheel
• Rear Wheel
• Seat
• Seat Springs
• Oil Tank
• Forward Controls
• Coils (2)
• Front Forks
• Battery Box
• Solid State Rectifier/Regulator
• Flasher Module
• Handlebars
• Handlebar Controls
• Turn Signals
• Headlight (round; may use square lights?)
• Brake Lights
• Front Disc Brakes
• Speedometer
• Tachometer
• Steering Races
• Gas Tank

Some of the items listed below may seem like a duplicate, but while I have something above, it may not actually work for the bike I'm building. We'll see.

• Front Fender
• Rear Fender
• Handlebars
• Handlebar Controls
• Mirrors
• Brake Lights
• Headlight (if square)
• Signals
• Oil Lines
• Throttle Cables
• Tachometer Cable
• Speedometer Cable
• License Plate Holder
• Replacement Rear Axle
• Sissybar
• Battery Box
• New Shifter (I have forward controls and a shifter; maybe turning the existing shifter around, sawing off the peg, drilling out a hole for the forward controls bolt... hmmm, might work.)
• Chain
• Exhaust Pipes

The todo list isn't very long.

1. Remove old pipe stubs from bike (had to saw the old ones off)
2. Put basic pieces on bike
3. Note location of new mount points.
   • Forward controls, left and right
   • Oil Tank; looking at a support bar across the top with tabs on the back
   • Rear Brake lock (the bar that keeps it from moving)
4. Back to bare frame
5. Get frame cleaned and painted
6. Assemble bike for real
7. Get licensed.
8. Go for a ride :-)

I'll keep adding or moving as we move on through the months. I'll note it above and modify it here.

December 5th, 2003 ($130)

I ordered a new rectifier/regulator and new races for the steering. They should be in next week.

December 2nd, 2003 ($585) ($96)

I've ordered the springer forks from Chopper Enterprises. I'm waiting on word whether he has the materials in stock or will have to build it which will delay it by a couple or three weeks.

And, tonight on E-Bay I found an interesting oil tank in the last couple of minutes before bidding ended. How cool is that? We put a bid on it and picked it up for $96 bucks not including shipping etc. We also put a gas tank on watch. There's a few days left but I may have the tank I was looking for by Saturday. Man. We're just moving right along.

• A hex oil tank.

December 1st, 2003

I contacted the welder who looked at my frame a few months ago and we're getting together on Saturday to look over the things I want to fabricate for the chopper. A coil box, a seat mount plate (for lack of a better word; something for the seat to sit on to make it sort of level) and an electrical box.

November 29th, 2003

I posted a question about springer front ends to the HondaChopper web site a week or so ago and I received an e-mail suggesting I hit Chopper Enterprises located up the New England area.

I received a reply from the HondaChopper board about my races. It seems there is a measurement mixup. We'll see how this goes.

November 28th, 2003

I picked up a caliper and measured the races so I can see if they'll fit in the Tallon head and to see what the center hole is so I know what sized stem I need to look for. Here are the measurements.

Inside bottom of head: 1.890"
Bottom Outside Race: 1.9689"
Bottom Inside Race: 1.2636"

Inside top of head: 1.8959"
Top Outside Race: 1.910"
Top Inside Race: 1.111"

Head length: 7 5/16"
Outside diameter: 2"
Inside diameter: 1 3/4"

November 27th, 2003

A few days ago I picked up some 1 1/2" PVC pipe. I cut them in half and set the bike frame (with the rear wheel) down. I put a tool case under the frame and the front tire in the right location. I trimmed the PVC down so I could come up with a reasonable measurement for a front end. At the same time, I put the old handlebars and my new seat on the frame and took a couple of pictures. Check these out.

• The "assembled" bike. The forks are about 10" over standard size or 31" in length from the bottom of the tree to the center of the bike axle.
• View from the front.
• View from the rear.
• And a view from the right rear.

November 26th, 2003

I snagged the back wheel and popped out the axle. It's a bit tough but it comes. I removed the drum cover and then the axle. I had to clamp down the frame and use a sawhorse on the back to hold the wheel in place. I slid the wheel in place and then slid the axle back into the frame. It seems to fit like a charm.

• The frame with rear wheel and the lower tree installed.

The PVC pipes are going to be used to get an accurate measurement of the length of the front end. I'll put the frame with the rear wheel on it on the ground, get a rough measurement of the length, cut the PVC to the right length and mount the front tire. With that, I should be able to get the correct length.

November 25th, 2003

Someone wants the old Honda head for their unregistered chopper. I have no problem with this but I have to break down the rest of the front end. The forks and trees are still attached. So it's time to break out the rubber mallet and the Honda service manual and figure out just how to get them out.

Ok, I've removed the screws from the clamps each of the forks should slide out.

It's not quite that easy. The right one is a little easier but I had to use the mallet and screwdriver to hammer it out of the clamps. It actually came out pretty easily and the cover (with the headlight holder and reflectors) came right off. The left one was a bit more rusted. I had Rita hold it straight so I wasn't fighting too much of the rust. Unfortunately it popped out at the end and hit Rita on the knee.

The top of the tree slid right off which was cool and there's a screw cap holding the stem and the bottom tree. A couple of taps with the mallet and screwdriver and it unscrews just fine.

There are 18 bearings in the top and bottom of the head. The manual says 14 though. The bearing grease is red and there's a couple of metal particles in the bottom one.

It looks like the cups (they're actually called "races") should be able to come out. A pry attempt fails but I figured that I can take the mallet and screwdriver and drive them out. Not the right way but it does the job.

Finally I put the trees into the new frame head, just for the heck of it. They seem to fit. The cups don't appear to fit but I've asked a couple of questions on the Hondachopper site.

• The head minus the rest of the gear. Check out the before picture.
• The forks
• The top of the tree, the screwdriver and the two races.
• The bottom of the tree and stem with the cap screwed into the new frame.

November 22nd, 2003

Today we disassemble. I snagged the neighbor kid (Philip; "a juvenile delinquent in the off season") and we went to work tearing down the Honda. I was still a bit concerned about the pipes so I figured I'd just tear down what could be torn down and let the engine take care of itself.

• About half way through taking off the seat so Philip can remove the tail light.
• Phillip is removing the battery box
• We piled the parts on the workbench
• When I tried to remove one of the pipes it broke in half apparently rusted through. So I broke out the DeWalt "sawsall" and just cut the fuckers off.
• However, I may not have cut them close enough so there may be a problem getting the engine out of the frame.
• Almost all of the connections have been removed. Just a couple more bolts and we can take out the engine.
• The rear plastic and metal fenders. The fuel tank next to them.
• In order to remove the engine I had to cut the frame in half. Here are the two parts.
• And here's the engine, sitting nicely on the motorcycle lift. Ready to be cleaned and mounted in the new frame.
• Here are the wheels. I'll replace the rubber and use a dremel to clean off the rust.
• And here are the parts, nuts, bolts, lights and everything else.

It was lots of fun. We started at around noon and finished at 3:30. I started at the front and removed the headlight, turn signals, and the wiring harness. I also removed the handlebars and the tach and speedometer. Philip removed the luggage rack, backrest, tail lights and rear turn signals. Once he finished that, I had him remove the tool case and battery box. To do that he had to remove the electronic bits that are mounted on the side of it. I drained the oil and removed the oil box in order to get to the last couple of wires and removed the wiring harness. Once we got all the extra parts removed and the engine ready to remove we took a break and grabbed some pizza.

Once done with lunch, we removed the top pins and the two plates blocking removing the engine (remove from the right side). We grabbed Doug for some extra muscle and tried to remove the engine but with no luck. After a few minutes of shifting it around I decided that I really didn't need a whole frame and we cut it off, as far back and down as possible since someone might want the old head (a VIN and title are worth a couple of bucks). Philip had enticed a local girl to visit while he was working so we drafted her to hold the front wheel while Philip cut the last piece of the frame and Doug and I held the motor up. A last cut and it was free. Philip grabbed the front end and layed it aside. Doug and I lifted the engine and put it on the garage floor. Doug bailed (he was watching some game I think). After a few more minutes, Philip and I moved the engine on top of the motorcycle lift and then we removed the wheels.

I still have to remove the front end from the head so I can try it on the new frame.

November 21st, 2003 ($62)

Rita bought a sprung seat for me from e-bay.

• Top view

• Bottom view

Lots more threads out there including some replies from Casey Tallon. I've posted some additional e-mail and moved the entire e-mail conversation to this thread so the main pages aren't cluttered up with e-mail.

June 3rd, 2003

After reading several sites references from the HondaChopper board, I've taken a few close up shots of the welds. Feel free to review them. I intend on taking the frame to a local shop for a review. It may take enough bucks combined to have just bought one of the more expensive frames or even just having my stock one cut.

And I still don't have my Manufacturer's Certificate of Authenticity. Time for more e-mail.

• The bottom welds at the head
• Bottom welds again from the left side
• Bottom welds again from the underside
• The top welds at the head
• The top weld from the top left
• The weld on the top back by the rear split (a bit of sawdust)
• The same weld
• Farther back (blurry)
• The downtube left side
• The same weld wiped
• The right rear engine mount
• The downtube, center mounts
• Rear wheel, bottom weld
• Rear wheel, top weld
• Another shot of the top weld
• Right side rear wheel, inside weld
• Right side fender support bar
• Rear shot of the downtube at the center mount

May 27th 2003

The frame has arrived! Wooo Hooo!

Here are the pics:

• Right side view of the frame
• View of the head
• View of the base
• View of the tail
• Left side view of the frame

Now it's to work on the forks and moving the stuff over to the new frame.

May 27th 2003

There was a little bit of a problem getting the frame I'd ordered. It was supposed to show up in 6 weeks or so but it took until today to arrive. After several e-mails that weren't clear or promised a date that was unrealistic. Following are my e-mail exchanges with Mr. Casey Tallon. [Moved to here]