Flugtechnik
My bike is not transportation, it is a respite
I am very conflicted about starting this thread. I really love the idea that I am going to lay out here, but I am uncomfortable being the beneficiary of the project. There are people on here that actually NEED our help or deserve it more than me. All I did was act like an idiot and ride faster than I should have with the expected consequences.
So what is this idea? Well, the idea kind of took shape on my crash thread here (http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=36724.0). We were talking about rebuilding my bike at Kiley's house during the Vintage MC festival at Barber in October. I remembered seeing that DCC had built a bike at a recent bike show, during the show on the show floor. I thought that was pretty cool. So we discussed doing the rebuild at the actual show at Barber. The way the "cafe" area was setup last year, it was up at the top of a hill. There were some tents for different vendors, including DCC, Cafe Racer TV, and Tim even set up a DTT booth. I think it would be a great way to show what DTT is all about to have us actually doing what we do at the show. I think it would be a great way to demonstrate the type of community that DTT is where we can all come together, hang out with some beers and turn some wrenches. We could do it in the DTT booth or set up another tent next to or behind it.
Here is the basic idea. I bring my trashed bike to the show just as it was when they pulled it out of the ravine. On Friday we do the teardown and whatever work can be done at the show. Friday night we take it back to Kiley's and do whatever fab work is needed, welding, etc. and painting. Then on Saturday, we do the reassembly. If it is possible, we could try and have it ready for the parade lap, but i don't think that is really important. we could have a list of To Dos so people could come and work and know what needs to be done. You could come and turn some wrenches for an hour or two and then go enjoy the rest of Barber. I wouldn't want this to keep someone from seeing what the came there to see. It should only add to your experience so don't spend any more time working than you want to.
The other big aspect of this project is the collecting of the replacement parts. As I mentioned in my original build for Nixon here (http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=9560.0) I was on a pretty tight budget. The way I was able to get my wife to agree to me getting and restoring a bike is that I would only use "my money" to do it. That means birthday gifts, Christmas gifts or money from selling parts, etc. I was able to stick to this pretty well. For the last three years, all of my Christmas and birthday gifts were parts for Nixon. The only exception were the custom tank and seat that I had to beg and plead to use "family money" on. Now I am not poor. I make a very good living as an aerospace engineer. I do not need nor do I want charity. As I said, there are much much more deserving people here that need help. I'm not one of them. This is a hobby to me so I only spend my hobby money on it. After the crash, I have no hobby money left. It was $300 just to recover my bike from the ravine and get it back to my house. (The police officer forced me call a tow company instead of waiting for my friends but that is another story and what's done is done), not to mention the medical bills coming. So, if we are going to rebuild my bike in October, I won't have very much money to spend on parts. I am expecting a small bonus from work that will be "my money" so I should have about $250. that means I will need to reuse as many parts as I can and rely on donations of parts from you guys. Just old crap that you have laying around and don't want anymore. Maybe we could get some some companies to donate a needed part or two.
As the discussion of the build progresses, we will be able to figure out what parts are needed. Hopefully not too many.
So what is this idea? Well, the idea kind of took shape on my crash thread here (http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=36724.0). We were talking about rebuilding my bike at Kiley's house during the Vintage MC festival at Barber in October. I remembered seeing that DCC had built a bike at a recent bike show, during the show on the show floor. I thought that was pretty cool. So we discussed doing the rebuild at the actual show at Barber. The way the "cafe" area was setup last year, it was up at the top of a hill. There were some tents for different vendors, including DCC, Cafe Racer TV, and Tim even set up a DTT booth. I think it would be a great way to show what DTT is all about to have us actually doing what we do at the show. I think it would be a great way to demonstrate the type of community that DTT is where we can all come together, hang out with some beers and turn some wrenches. We could do it in the DTT booth or set up another tent next to or behind it.
Here is the basic idea. I bring my trashed bike to the show just as it was when they pulled it out of the ravine. On Friday we do the teardown and whatever work can be done at the show. Friday night we take it back to Kiley's and do whatever fab work is needed, welding, etc. and painting. Then on Saturday, we do the reassembly. If it is possible, we could try and have it ready for the parade lap, but i don't think that is really important. we could have a list of To Dos so people could come and work and know what needs to be done. You could come and turn some wrenches for an hour or two and then go enjoy the rest of Barber. I wouldn't want this to keep someone from seeing what the came there to see. It should only add to your experience so don't spend any more time working than you want to.
The other big aspect of this project is the collecting of the replacement parts. As I mentioned in my original build for Nixon here (http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=9560.0) I was on a pretty tight budget. The way I was able to get my wife to agree to me getting and restoring a bike is that I would only use "my money" to do it. That means birthday gifts, Christmas gifts or money from selling parts, etc. I was able to stick to this pretty well. For the last three years, all of my Christmas and birthday gifts were parts for Nixon. The only exception were the custom tank and seat that I had to beg and plead to use "family money" on. Now I am not poor. I make a very good living as an aerospace engineer. I do not need nor do I want charity. As I said, there are much much more deserving people here that need help. I'm not one of them. This is a hobby to me so I only spend my hobby money on it. After the crash, I have no hobby money left. It was $300 just to recover my bike from the ravine and get it back to my house. (The police officer forced me call a tow company instead of waiting for my friends but that is another story and what's done is done), not to mention the medical bills coming. So, if we are going to rebuild my bike in October, I won't have very much money to spend on parts. I am expecting a small bonus from work that will be "my money" so I should have about $250. that means I will need to reuse as many parts as I can and rely on donations of parts from you guys. Just old crap that you have laying around and don't want anymore. Maybe we could get some some companies to donate a needed part or two.
As the discussion of the build progresses, we will be able to figure out what parts are needed. Hopefully not too many.