Shop progress

Finding it hard to get in the shop lately. Sometimes things just don't feel right and sometimes you have to take time away to gain a better perspective. That something this time was the upper chain stay mounts for the Factory Metal Works hard tail section.  I really like the lug construction of the triumph frame and figured I could fab something similar to replace the old mounts.  I think they turned out nice, they just need a little more finishing.  Later

Passion!

I respect anyone that is truly passionate about something.   Whether it be art, cars or motorcycles.  Magnus Walker most definitely qualifies as someone with passion.  He loves Porsche 911's and his passion truly shows.  Check out the link to his short film. Definitely not your typical Porsche owner.

http://www.reelhouse.org/mos/urbanoutlaw/

Hammers!

I love hammers! I only wish I had this many.  Stolen from http://lecontainer.blogspot.com/

Indy Goodguys

I haven't been to the Goodguys show for a couple of years.  Had a good time and got to see some great cars at the Brickyard. Check out my faves.

The older I get, the more my mind wanders

I have never been a fan of sports cars, but for some reason I can't stop thinking about the Porsche 356 coupe.  Sweet lines, simple and elegant design. It sucks when you have plenty of work to do on your current projects and suddenly you find yourself thinking about the next one.  Next project? Maybe.

Travis' Pan in V-Twin Magazine

Travis and I took his Pan to the Louisville Easyrider show like two years ago. We weren't there but an hour when someone approached the bike.  That someone was Michael Lichter.  He liked the bike and took more than a few pictures. We were stoked to the say the least. To add to the excitement, Michael asked the Reverend Billy Gibbons to pose with the bike.  We got to meet Billy and he loved the bike. To cap it off, the bike won the Limpnickie Lot Pick of the Show.  I have always been a big fan of Jeff Cochran/ SpeedKing and Paul Wideman/ Bare Knuckle Choppers, so it was cool that they were digging the Pan.
Growing up reading Easyrider, Biker, V-Twin and In The Wind, the featured bikes and culture that laid out in those pages was a huge inspiration. We were hopeful that it would make the magazine, but after so much time, we had given up.  Finally a phone call from Easyrider and they told Travis it would be in the September issue.  The September issue of Easyrider comes out and no Pan.  Travis finds out that they decided to run it in the September issue of V-Twin. Still cool.   Check it out.

Gas tank, first version

Thought some of you might want to see what the first version looked like.  Just a little too traditional.  The piece was fun to make though.

Gas tank is coming together.

I had the tank welded up once and I just didn't like it.  The tuck and roll piece was what I wanted in the first place, but I thought it was too over the top.  But after finishing the first version, I wasn't happy with the result. So back to the drawing board, sometimes you should you just go with your gut.

Juice Magazine

I love this magazine.  Don't get me wrong, I love magazines with pics of bikes, rods and the such.  But some magazines are all images and advertisements. I really miss the in-depth interviews that you could find in Maximum Rock n' Roll, Thrasher and other low buck mags . Juice Magazine is full of just that.  Skateboarders, musicians, photographers and artists were my heroes. Just this one issue has interviews with Fred Smith, C.R. Stecyk, Ray "Bones" Rodrriguez,  Dennis Martinez and Keith Morris.  That's only the short list. If you see an issue, check it out, you won't be disappointed.

Chalk lettering...a little experiment.

I've been digging on the chalk lettering/signs by Dana Tanamachi.  So I thought I would try it out. I like the way it turned out. 

New gas tank and a new part!

I am starting on the gas tank for the new bike.  I ordered a mini HD cap from Wargasser. Very Nice!

I also shaped a sheet for the frisco mount bottom.  More to come.

Got a couple things done this weekend

Finished Jim's second patch piece for his Nomad. I also welded up the Mazda Miata steering input shaft for one of my son's friends.   Productive time in the shop.

One down...one to go.

My friend Jim needed a few patch pieces fabbed up.  This is the first of two. He needs them for his Nomad project.  This was the easy one.  Started the other.  Pretty challenging.  

Shaving my legs

Shaved my legs today. Silky smooth.

A little detour...

My brother-in-law needed some help with the intake for his VW engine for the WWI bi-plane he is building.  I machined a couple of 1/8" NPT bungs and welded them in the headers he bought. I like little jobs like these that break up monotony of some of my projects.

 

Fender...almost there.

Finish welded and dressed the seams.  Hammered the trailing edge and added a little extra material to get the look I was after.  I may have to call it done.

More progress

Finished side pieces. I made the side pieces with a wire edge.  Looks pretty good.  Need to weld it out and finish the seams.  Then I will move on to finish the trailing edge.  

Rear fender progress

Finally got started on the rear fender.  So far so good.  Need to cut and shape the sides next.  Later.

Rear fender buck

Decided to tackle the rear fender for the new project.  I am going for a cross between a Wassell ribbed fender and a bobber fender.  Should be interesting.