More Subtle Mods Preparing The Way For Performance

Photos by Frank Kaisler

Frank Kaisler and Snake came over to the headquarters to lend a hand. Frank, a longtime editor of Hot Rod Bikes, critized my every move and tried to steer me in the right direction. Snake, with a six pack under his arm proceeded to get drunk and talk about all the women he wished he had. We worked.

Here's the list of parts:

Lowered shocks - for coolness without disturbing the ride.
Shock pump - for ease of modifying and checking ride ability for single or double runs.
Taillight/brake light mod - to turn the turn signal lights into brake lights for added stopping visibility.
Digital dipstick - for ease of observing oil temps.
100th Anniversary Cobra style seat - for coolness
Crash bar bags - for touring.
Mobil windshield - for low or high touring.
Windshield bag - for windshield storage.

We kicked off the process by removing the seat to install the new cobra style 10th anniversary seat. It took one Phillips screwdriver removed from the back and two quarter/20 bolts from the sides to remove the strap.

We had to remove the saddle bags first to get to the side strap bolts that also retain the front Saddlebag latches.

I noted right away that the King Classic with the leather covered soft bags have their benefits due to the size of the bags and the durability. If I had hard bags they would have been dinged already.

We removed the seat bracket off the stern of the stock seat and installed it on the slimmer unit. At that very minute Sin Wu slipped into the garage and indicated for me to meet her in the bedroom until she spotted the narrow passenger seat space. Her bright cheerful complexion turned old, gray and haggard. I quickly pointed out to her that the seats were interchangeable quickly and that the smaller seat might be easier to mount for short putts. A small slim woman would be more at ease straddling the narrow seat with lower shocks. Her smile returned halfheartedly. Did I sell her? We'll see in the bedroom.

We went back to work, but didn't fully install the new 100th Anniversary leather saddle. I was now in a hurry. After we were sure it would fit properly we removed it, set it aside and disconnected the battery, a key component to any wiring modification.

We quickly installed the red lenses on the running lights and replaced the wiring module under the seat.

The directions pointed out that the module was placed in line with the taillight junction then the factory supplied tie-wraps to hold it in place under the seat. It was simple to install then the seat was destined to be repositioned to insure the wires would not be pinched. With all the elements in and checked then we tie-wrapped the module in place.

Since the bags were removed, we went to work on the shocks. First we had to pinch the small red fittings that hold the air fill lines in place. Pinched, the lines are released easily.

Then we put a jack under the frame and set the bike upright and removed the pressure on the shocks so they could be unbolted. With a 3/4 inch socket and long extension we could reach over the muffler to remove the bottom bolt first then the top.

Then we removed the brass air fittings off the old shocks and replaced them on the new units with fresh Teflon tape. It was a breeze.

After both shocks were removed then the height of the bike could be lowered to allow the new shocks to be installed.

The new units lowered the bike exactly 1 inch. With the new shocks in place with blue Loctite and the jack removed we checked the pressure in the shocks with the new H-D Progressive pump. We made absolutely sure that both shocks had 10 pounds of air pressure. "Keep the damn thing in your saddlebag," Frank barked at me, "Don't ever use a gas station air hose. The gauges suck and they'll blow the seals out of the shocks."

I was damn pleased as we slipped the seat in place and he swung a leg over the throne. The bike immediately felt sleeker and closer to the ground. When I turned around Sin was standing in the doorway with her arms crossed. I was in a tight situation, one every man hates to face--sex or motorcycles. I jumped at the chance to demonstrate how easily the crash bar bags installed and the zippers and additional pockets that are designed into each one.

The additional storage area brightened her smile as she pondered the open road with her man. I took Frank and Snake aside and told them that it was time for a lunch break. They looked in her sexy eyes and knowingly nodded. We shut the shop down for an hour.

I had also ordered a windshield bag that works perfectly to carry locks, glasses, chap stick, keys, tie-wraps and more. Sin liked the way the tooled leather pattern matched the bags. She left the garage with a smile on her face, confident that I was following.

That left only taking the adjustable windshield out of the box and trying it out. Frank convinced me that during the rainy season we would strip the King and send a number of parts out to have them black powder coated (we're still kicking the color scheme around. We even had a notion to use the attributes of the constantly growing factory custom paint facility to enhance the black theme.

That was one reason I liked this adjustable removable windshield. The bottom half was already black and allowed the windshield to be lowered 2 inches or raised two inches anytime he felt like it with the flick of two levers.

I also ordered a windshield bag to protect whatever windshield wasn't being used or to pack for run where I might pop the windshield off and on. It's too easy to ding these puppies if they're left in boot range. Finally, just before happy hour we unplugged the stock dip stick and slid in a new digital job that tells you the temp of the oil night or day.

This new chromed puppy just slips into place and is ready to fly. Press the button and the light iluminates and even at midnight you can tell the temp your running at.

Next we're considering what to hop up on this monster. Frank, Wrench and I are considering all the Screamin' Eagle stage packages and which way to go. Since the 95-inch kit has been covered to death, we're considering higher flow, high compression, high performance heads, cam, maybe a two into one Screamin' Eagle exhaust and an oil cooler for runs to the desert. I can't wait. Oh, I forgot. Highbars. Let's ride. --Bandit