Four Wheels Good

I've always been a sucker for a good looking piece of automotive art. As an avid reader of Custom Car back in the '70s I was entranced by the lines of any '57 Chevy Bel Air and gobsmacked at my first up close & personal viewing of a jacked up Ford Model A compete with full chrome axle in the backstreets of Oldbury.

Sadly, my teenage income didn't run to bagging either of these and I had to make do with turning a standard 1100 escort into a Mexico lookalike (complete with padded velvet door inlays, a Ghia interior from the scrapyard and a recon engine topped with chrome cover).

There's very little I didn't fix or tweak on an Escort, Cortina, Fiesta or Mini back in the day - even down to prop shaft replacement and engine installation on a rain-soaked driveway.

But modern cars leave me cold - coupled with the lure and relative affordability of making a bike my own.

But this one I like.

I spotted this hopped-up Herbie during summer runs & recent visits to Wetherby and finally found time to snap it for posterity. Turns out that while we've never met, it belongs to a friend of a friend of a friend.

And very tidy it is too.

I've always loved VeeDubs. This one has inspired me to drop in to the annual VeeDub do at Hareward House in 2015 - a tad more interesting for me than T'Tour De T'France start held there last summer.

Two wheels without an engine? What's the attraction in that...

Sharp end finished

Running a 'naked' front end may look cool - but it can get awful wet in the average UK summer so a quick-detach front muddy was called for.

The aftermarket, none-eBay Sportster lookalike part was surprisingly cheap and with fettling and paint by Carl, looks neat on the bike.

The entire springer assembly was lashed down to replicate the heaviest braking before the fender was positioned - leaving ample leeway for a heavy stop but keeping the muddy as close to the tyre as possible.

I was a little concerned that, while necessary for safety, the full-brake position would leave the front end resembling a cross-country scrambler when the springs were relaxed - but not so, it sits very pleasingly and doesn't spoil the overall lines of the bike.

Sorted then. A bit of good-looking front end cover for the worst a British summer can offer, a pocket-sized Easyriders fabric guard for 'naked' days when showers hit - and an easy-off muddy to make the most of sunshine when it comes...

Shakin' That Ass...

Rear muddy now cut, shut, painted and ON! The custom-made sissy looks just great. Have gone for a subtle orange metal-flake against hi-gloss black.

Having planned the bike in my head for months and collected parts as and when, I hit what I understand is a regular brick wall - WTF colour scheme am I gonna go for? Shoulda thought about it a lot earlier...

I'd love a real cool old-skool pinstripe & and wild Born Free look but pennies were against me. However, the paired down paint job really pops thanks to spray booth wizard Carl. Can't wait to see the bike complete with all tins attached.

Now hitting the final stretch - wiring to redone (time consuming & fiddly but Edge is handling it) and have gone for a reworked aftermarket Sportster-style front muddy which be painted to match the tank & rear fender.

The front muddy will be easily demountable for sunny days when it will be replaced by a strap-on Easyriders fender guard - but UK weather being what it is, I decided to get splash out on the cheap front muddy so I can get on the road early in the season & keep the grime off me face & the engine chrome.

The front fender is currently being fabbed to fit on the existing mounts on the Springer - seems someone at some time went for a deep full valanced skirt front fender and kindly welded some permanent mounts on the leading tube. 

The full cover Indian/Heritage styling I can do without - but the mounts have come in handy.

Sitting Pretty

Popped down to TCity to pick up the take off parts just in time to be amazed at the new seat work. Spent a lot of time discussing the 'right' solo seat for a Softail bobber. One of the big probs, as mentioned before, is the 'gap' between the rear of the seat & the rear fender which is all but unavoidable on anything but a hardtail.

The solution was to mount the seat real low and use short springs. This threw up another problem as the stock battery sits up proud of the frame line. Many of the off-the-shelf covers are big and bulky to accommodate the battery height and the electrics unit usually buried into a recess in the rear fender - in effect, an ugly seat under the seat.

The plan had been to relocate the unit behind the splash guard that will sit with the new rear fender but with space at a premium it had to sit in the well of the oil tank with the battery.

Genius Carl solved the problem  by creating a custom battery cover out of fibre-glass shaped as low as you can go. The finished job is superb - easily better than any factory or aftermarket cover.

As serendipity would have it, Harley have just released a new Bobber seat (pictured) for Sportsters, Dynas & Softails - and have solved the rear fender gap problem by producing a special 'V'-shaped seat mount that sits back from the seat cross member so the seat mounts nearer the rear of the bike. I would have given this a try if it had been available a coupla weeks ago but I'm more than happy with the custom solution.

Whatever. My one-of-a-kind Easyriders seat position is now the best seat in the house. I can't wait to get in the saddle!

Now on to the paint and wiring