page 3 of mod madness..

june 2nd, 2006 i received my custom frogskin from ken (a.k.a. froghunter) on volusiariders.com in the mail! and since my friend mike from panther had let me know he'd be dropping off my new reservoir cover on saturday, i decided that june 3rd was to be a mods day!



the chrome on this piece is just gorgeous. i had been thinking, before i saw it, of filling the milled outline with some black enamel. however, there's just no need! it's perfect just as it is :)



and here it is, mounted on the bike

time: 2 minutes
tools needed: #2 phillips screwdriver
instructions: make sure the master cylinder/brake fluid reservoir is as level as possible by turning the bars, and remove the 2 screws on top that hold it in place. remove it carefully, making sure not to disturb the plastic lid or rubber gasket underneath. use the same screws to install the new cover.



i thought this pic was kinda cool because you can see how the milling catches the light. the chrome really is to die for! huge, huge thanks to mike at panther for making this happen. it's not often you can say that you have a part of which only 14 were ever made!

then i got on to installing my frogskin..



ken really did a super job - i couldn't be happier!

time: 5 minutes
tools needed: fingers, water
instructions: thoroughly wet the frogskin and lacing. lace the top straight across the bike side of the kickstand, making sure you are in between the stand and the spring. using an under-over method, lace it back and forth, making sure you form the frogskin to the stand as you go, and that the first criss-cross is above the place where the kickstand spring meets the stand (this will prevent the 'skin from slipping). when finished, tie the lacing in a good knot at the outside of the stand, and trim to length.

afterward, we helped our friend broomer from our SCRC chapter do an oil change on his bike



and discovered that neither of us actually owns a strap wrench. so, i got to ride to canadian tire to buy 2 of them! now, this wouldn't ordinarily seem like a big deal, but it's traditional for me to ride my bike after i put something on it, and it was my first ride since my surgery on may 26th! no problems (despite a bit of gentle rain), and deeply satisfying :)

once again, out of parts...still waiting on tanker's chrome grips, and i gotta start saving for the bags and easybrackets i want...gotta get them on before our circle tour of georgian bay in august!

the latest mod was done unsuspectingly, and didn't cost me a dime!



time: 3 seconds
tools needed: traffic circle
instructions: round traffic circle at 55kph, turning to the left. roll bike over to the right to exit traffic circle via right turn while maintaining speed. punch fist into air and start screaming 'cause you just scraped your first board! note: according to tanker, this mod results in a 5' long spray of sparks!



on june 29th, 2006 we rode down to the A&W restaurant on hespeler road in cambridge for their cruise night. they have a classic car show'n'shine every thursday, and do theme nights throughout the summer. last night was the first of 3 bike nights for 2006.

after a friend mentioned i should register my bike, and refusing to take "but it's filthy!" as an answer, i signed her up anyway, and to my surprise..



so i'm pretty damn pleased with myself right now, and am currently waiting on the 2" lowering bones from john at john's kits (also a member of volusiariders.com) to drop her rear end and make her look just that much sexier again!

on july 1st, 2006 (canada day), i figured there was no better way to celebrate the old red and white than to work on my shiny red bike! in preparation for the lowering bones, i needed to grind down the stop on my kickstand (so it comes forward further, and the bike leans over more. makes it less likely to roll off the stand, and less likely to fall over on the other side in a high wind), and cut off the bolts used to do the plate laydown (which extend into the fender more than i'd like, and could possibly do damage to my rear tire after i lower if i bottom 'er out). so, up on the jack she goes!



in order to prevent any damage to the kickstand while grinding, i decided to take it off.



time: 10 minutes
tools needed: 14mm socket, ratchet, 17mm box wrench
instructions: use 14mm socket & ratchet to remove nut at top of kickstand. use 17mm wrench to remove pivot bolt of stand. carefully work stand off of the frame piece by folding it up and down, then remove springs from pin on back of stand. note: the springs are a bloody bugger to get back on! it took me freakin' ages, a couple of chunks out of my knuckles, and the invention of at least 3 new swearwords to get them back on. i also recommend re-greasing the kickstand before re-installing it on the bike, and put fresh threadlock (loctite) on the bolt before putting the nut back on.



"bah, don't need this thing if you never stop moving!"

next i started grinding



..and grinding..



..and did i mention grinding?



and the above photo demonstrates why i wear eye protection! here's the end result:



then, to cover the bare steel and prevent rust, i coated the ground surfaces with black nail polish.



then i re-installed the kickstand. did i mention that i hate those freakin' springs? but she does sit at a better angle now, and the stand comes forward about 2" from where it used to



after this, i used a mastercraft spin saw's fine detail attachment and a cut-off disc to chop about 1/2" off the bolts under the fender. however, our friend cowboy came over just as i was putting the kickstand back on, so tanker was too busy chatting to take photos.



she sure looks purty...and now i just have to wait for the bones to come in, and on they'll go!

on tuesday july 4th, 2006, SCRC 270 did a canada day celebration for our weekly bike night at jose's noodle factory in guelph, ontario. i decided it was time to tart up the bully a bit, because there was a prize for the most "canadian" looking bike!



i used some white vinyl that tanker got me, and cut maple leaves out of red vinyl and stitched them on. then i just cut the pieces to size (ok, the fender bib piece got cut a little smaller than i would have liked), and tucked the edges under for the event. i also picked up some holographic maple leaf garland for $1.49 at michaels, and wrapped it around the bars, backrest, and license plate.



i didn't end up winning a prize for it, but one fellow ended up giving me his door prize (gary, you rawk! i mean brad! i mean brian!) because he felt my bike should have taken 1st place. in any case, i think it looks pretty cool, and i'm considering making a proper fender bib out of white vinyl with the leaf to bolt on come canada day next year!

bones came in friday, july 7th - go to page 4 to see the new look!

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