I dont know that they look gangsta...they do look a little like a couple though. just kidding guys. Ive never had a taste for the short flat seat with no cowl but thats a personal taste issue. doesnt matter how well its done, just not my thing. Ill have to agree with the concensus. That rear shock looks all cool at an angle like that but how in the world can it compress without binding?. you could get that look by welding the swingarm in place. effectively hardtailing the thing. still look the same, but without the risk of it acting unpredicatably at the most inoportune time. also never been a hardtail guy, but the bobber is pretty sick.
Unwanted Prostitute and the usual suspect... (Honda CB content)
- Thread starter sabideefoo
- Start date
kopcicle
antidisestablishmentarian
Two sides of a bad penny ...
Heads,
Far too many have the leather that has never seen rain let alone pavement over a fashion statement t-shirt and play keyboard commando in order to live their life vicariously through others . These folks can be seen in and around the "scene" but never on a bike . When it comes down to it they are bigger hasbeens that never were than I am and that's a stretch . When and if you do see these posers on a bike it has never felt their hand for other than a wash and wax if they even do that themselves . The Beemer crowd is downright normal in comparison even taking into account their penchant for the correct wine with their imported cheese . (I'll give a nod here to the off road beemer crowd . They're just , well, they defy description ) . This bunch of pretenders to to the inclusive label "enthusiast" I might "think" of tossing both ends of the rope to if they were drowning ..
Tails,
For want of an engineering degree or a place in life other than what they can eek out from the rubble of mass produced two wheeled machinery we have the other side of the coin . I see my beloved XS650's ravaged by the sawzall "custom crowd" without a single thought as to the heritage of the mark . I have over the years flatly refused to so much as even touch unsafe machinery even in the dead of winter , with the power company waiting to disconnect , just to get the point across that the pile of parts I've been confronted with barely resembles scrap let alone a motorcycle . Those few of us that have done this for a living understand completely . I was very near to being this sort but for a man that rode , fixed , engineered , modified , lived and dreamed motorcycles and was willing to teach . Of the two sides of this coin I prefer this one if there is a clear distinction between ignorance and stupidity . Openly defy the principals of section moduli , ductility , malleability , tensile strength , and weld zone impurity and become a Darwinian proof . I have my issues with this sort but I'll park next to them , drink with them , even patiently answer a plethora of seemingly inane questions if I think it's leading to a glimmer of hope that the answers are sinking in .
I will not ride anywhere near them nor will I under any circumstances even touch their equipment .
It boils down to this .
Between the two sides of this coin we the enthusiast , the owner , builder , modifornicator , riders , racers are the coin . That coin is knowledge and experience . Teach what you learn , else the spirit of the lesson as well as the lesson itself are lost .We are in a position to make a difference . It's just that as the years go by I have learned to immediately detect these two extremes and utterly and completely ignore them after very few words . Time after all is our ultimate capitol .
Make use of the tremendous body of knowledge that the interweb has become and there is a chance of survival . And as I was told in response to my introduction here "don't be a dick" . Instead I think I'll just out live these two .
~kop
Heads,
Far too many have the leather that has never seen rain let alone pavement over a fashion statement t-shirt and play keyboard commando in order to live their life vicariously through others . These folks can be seen in and around the "scene" but never on a bike . When it comes down to it they are bigger hasbeens that never were than I am and that's a stretch . When and if you do see these posers on a bike it has never felt their hand for other than a wash and wax if they even do that themselves . The Beemer crowd is downright normal in comparison even taking into account their penchant for the correct wine with their imported cheese . (I'll give a nod here to the off road beemer crowd . They're just , well, they defy description ) . This bunch of pretenders to to the inclusive label "enthusiast" I might "think" of tossing both ends of the rope to if they were drowning ..
Tails,
For want of an engineering degree or a place in life other than what they can eek out from the rubble of mass produced two wheeled machinery we have the other side of the coin . I see my beloved XS650's ravaged by the sawzall "custom crowd" without a single thought as to the heritage of the mark . I have over the years flatly refused to so much as even touch unsafe machinery even in the dead of winter , with the power company waiting to disconnect , just to get the point across that the pile of parts I've been confronted with barely resembles scrap let alone a motorcycle . Those few of us that have done this for a living understand completely . I was very near to being this sort but for a man that rode , fixed , engineered , modified , lived and dreamed motorcycles and was willing to teach . Of the two sides of this coin I prefer this one if there is a clear distinction between ignorance and stupidity . Openly defy the principals of section moduli , ductility , malleability , tensile strength , and weld zone impurity and become a Darwinian proof . I have my issues with this sort but I'll park next to them , drink with them , even patiently answer a plethora of seemingly inane questions if I think it's leading to a glimmer of hope that the answers are sinking in .
I will not ride anywhere near them nor will I under any circumstances even touch their equipment .
It boils down to this .
Between the two sides of this coin we the enthusiast , the owner , builder , modifornicator , riders , racers are the coin . That coin is knowledge and experience . Teach what you learn , else the spirit of the lesson as well as the lesson itself are lost .We are in a position to make a difference . It's just that as the years go by I have learned to immediately detect these two extremes and utterly and completely ignore them after very few words . Time after all is our ultimate capitol .
Make use of the tremendous body of knowledge that the interweb has become and there is a chance of survival . And as I was told in response to my introduction here "don't be a dick" . Instead I think I'll just out live these two .
~kop
Look guy, all of us being assholes aside. That rear shock IS going to shear sooner or later. Theres a very good reason they were originally mounted on a swivel. youre putting massive stresses on that weld. when you get a chance all you need to do is cut it off, and weld in a box that allows you to BOLT the top of the shock on, so that it can move. its still not the best idea to have it angled like that but much better if it doesnt have a built in stress failure.
The swingarm wants to move on the axis of its pivot point. the shock needs to allow that to happen. if the top of the shock is fixed the body of the shock and that top mount absorb and stop all that flex. and trust me, when youre on it and riding it can be a massive amount of stress. when it does fail it will be from metal fatigue and it will tear away like its made of wet clay....probably on the highway or in a turn in fast traffic.
none of us wants to see another biker get killed from lack of experience. thats all we pricks were saying
The swingarm wants to move on the axis of its pivot point. the shock needs to allow that to happen. if the top of the shock is fixed the body of the shock and that top mount absorb and stop all that flex. and trust me, when youre on it and riding it can be a massive amount of stress. when it does fail it will be from metal fatigue and it will tear away like its made of wet clay....probably on the highway or in a turn in fast traffic.
none of us wants to see another biker get killed from lack of experience. thats all we pricks were saying
everyone likes to try their hand at building something they can call their own...but what you've overlooked and others have pointed out, is that you have done this in an unsafe and unsavory manor. Its fine if you want it to look like a slap-dick job, if thats what you consider a custom job of your liking, but you should follow some simple guidelines to ensure that you aren't destroying what was a perfectly good motorcycle... as others have said, its not that we are being dicks, we are actually being considerate of your safety--which is something you should probably care about as well. Brakes are good, braces are good, shock pivots are good...there are options out there for ditching the fender and just using the brace for the front. there is nothing bad looking about a front brake line, so that was just foolish. All in all, either light that thing on fire and sell the motor to someone who knows how to do something proper with it, or fix it so you don't die whilst trying to look cool--because nothing makes you look less cool than road rash face and no teeth. hope the comments are well received! spend a little time understanding the mechanics and physics at play before you decide to slap together another death trap, please.
Lessons are best learned when they hurt personally. If their pride took a beating from this showing, good. You've got to have a thick skin, and the best thing to do is man up and address the shortcomings. I would certainly hope I get this kind of response if I ever do anything like this. All in the name of doing better...
