Off Topic

So this is the life of a great Beer on its way to a great friend.  I know this is totally off topic but tis the season of giving.  This is also not to say that all my other friends are not great because they are.  This one is for you Steve, enjoy like I have.

It should find you well when you get to AZ.

New Shoes

Well, I got the rims back and got some rubber wrapped around them.  Took a little time today and got them on the bike.  I am going to have to figure out how much I need to get Frank to cut the forks down.  Right now there is 4" of spring out the top but I got to figure how much it is going to sag when there is weight on it.  Enough talk here are some pictures.

So I am really happy with how the aluminum shouldered rims turned out and look.  Unfortunately with the small garage I cant get a good profile picture of the bike.   So I should have a new to me Lincoln Precision TIG 185 in the garage any day now.  Once I get that I can start fabbing/mounting stuff.  Happy Christmas to everyone, hopefully more updates soon.

Gas Tank

So my buddy Jimmy had a Sporty tank that is brand new and already friscoed.  I had a set of 2 under fork tubes that wont work with my forks so a deal was made.  I am not 100% sure I am gonna run it or not.  I have 2 used tanks that I might chop up myself and use instead of this one but we will see.

I like the fact that it is ready for paint but I do have some reservations.  I think I want something a little skinnier, I would like the petcock out the back to get use of all the tank, and I have a cap that will match the oil tank cap and kinda want to run that too.  We will have to wait and see what happens. 

Levers and Bars

So I cut down my bars a little tonight, 3" on each side and modified the levers I am going to use.  I dont like how the brake lever turned out so I am going to have to find another one of those.

Bars before

 Bars After...kinda hard to see with the levers on but you can see it.

Levers before and after

So that is what was done tonight.  More to come

The Heart is Home

So my buddy Jimmy from the JJ came over and we got the heart of this best wrangled into the frame today.   Through some primer on the frame the other night to keep the surface rust under control.  So I am still waiting on the wheels.  The front is completely done and ready to go but the rear is not.  It is built but not tightened down and trued.  I forgot to put the bearings back into the rear hub after powder coat  so I had to drop those off before he could finish.  Should be any day now.

Front End

So I got the front end on this past weekend.  Might have gone a little far with mounting the bars but I wanted to see.  It looks like I am going to have to have Frank shorten my forks but we will see once I get the engine back in and the wheels on.  Speaking of wheels I am still waiting on those to get back from the wheel guy.  That shit is really starting to get to me.  I am not 100% sure that the rims I had will lace to the hubs I had so I am waiting to hear so I can order the tires and tubes.  Once I get that I can get this bitch into a roller and start getting everything lined up and start so fab.  Tick Tick Tick

Not as fast as I thought

Well, I here guys say all the time how their build took a lot longer then they thought and still for some reason I thought/hoped I would be different.  this build is starting a lot slower then I thought it would.  Fucking life will get you every time.  Oh well, still waiting on the wheels at this point but I did get a little done this week.  I cleaned up the neck.

 I also got the cups pressed in and the triple trees mounted.  

I have to figure out a way to get the seals back in on the forks then I can get them on there too.  long road ahead but it will be worth it.  Got a lot of parts in the mail this week.  Got the brakes I ordered from Fab Kevin and the bungs I ordered from Bung King.  Just need to get a Tig Welder and I will be set, or maybe I could get away with an oxy acetylene setup.  What do you all think? I know how to weld with both,  I got a buddy with a TIG and I could tack up at my place and take to his place for final welding.   Input would be nice.  Couple more weeks.  Sorry it couldn't be better, hopefully soon.

Garage

So last week I decided that I was going to do this build in my own garage.  Several things went into this decision and hopefully it works out.  Now I will be able to work on it whenever I get some time.  I have a one car garage in a townhouse/apartment so not much to work with but it is better then nothing.  I also have to share space with bins of stuff we think we still need but really could probably just get rid of.

I did not get much done on the bike this weekend but I did use the time to make a few things for the garage.  I have been wanting to redo the work bench I had made and I needed to make a table for the bike build (didn't really like spending several hundred dollars on a lift at the moment) so that is what went down.    My old man might not be a great metal worker but he is a great wood worker and some of his skills have been past on to me.  I know this was not to demanding but it would have been a lot more difficult if I had not learned a few things along the way.

For those that are wondering how will I get the bike down well when it gets to that point I will just use a ramp.  I dropped the wheels off with a buddy to get laced, hopefully those will be done soon so i can get this thing into a roller.

ITS HERE!!!!

So the frame showed up today.  Super excited.  I cant say enough about ACME choppers, there quality of work, communication and whole experience has been good.  There is defiantly something to be said about dealing with professionals that take pride in there work and treating there customers right.  If you need anything and they make it I would recommend them to anyone.

Now I just have to wait a week to get over to Mark's and get this thing on the lift.  Still need to get the rims put together so I can get it into a roller so I guess there isn't a super rush.  Thinking about maybe doing a 19" up front instead of the 21".  Will have to wait and see.

Shaved my Legs

So I did this a little while back but since I have not updated this in a while I post this up to show you some of the work I have done already.

One leg got a full shave and one got a partial.  Gonna run a single front disc so I have some stopping power.  DC drivers suck and I am used to great brakes so I went this route.

Also frame is on it way and should be here in a couple day.  I cant wait!

Well It is pretty much done

Well the frame is pretty much done, and it is looking fucking sweet!!!  They have to weld a cross bar in behind the seat post and that is it.  Should ship in the next couple days and I should have it back by next week.  I can not say enough about the service I have got from Wayne and the guys at Acme, thanks guys.

Clamps!!!!

Saw this on a forum I frequent and thought of Pops!  Every year I ask him what he wants for Christmas and every year he tells me I can never have to many clamps!  This guy is more set up for metal working where Dad is more about the wood Working but hey it is all about the clamps.  Love Ya Pops!

A Little Closer

So I had not heard anything from Acme for a few days and I was really jonesing for a fix.  So I couldn't take it any more and shot Wayne an Email.  Just a little bit later this is what I get in return.  Man it is looking awesome if I dont say my self.  These guys seem do class A work and I cant wait to get the frame back.