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Sponsored By Well, now the holidays are over and I’ve caught up on all the other winter projects, sold the convertible, and put up enough copy to keep Bikernet readers happy for at least another week, it’s time to get back into the rigid project. Although the engine from Custom Chrome came with an ignition […]

Sponsored By   The old module was removed from the timing cover to expose what you see below.   The new Crane module was then put in place as shown.   You’ll notice that this ignition system has the module located right on the timing sensor pickup. This is a littledifferent from the OEM setup

Sponsored By Below are a couple of wiring schematics that detail how the entire system is hooked up. Pretty simple.   In my case, the plug setup was for single plugs, with dual coils. Note that this is a single fire ignition setup.     The initial static timing is pretty easy. Open the timing

Sponsored By OK – the majority of the wiring at this point is taken care of. Now to the fun part. Making it look like a realscooter. For this segment, we add wheels and sheet metal.   We start by preparing the rear for the fender install. The passenger pegs (for looks only….) are installedfirst

Sponsored By   The grab rail is then CAREFULLY slid over the fender (using wax paper or some other type of paper thin matieral) to keepthe rail again from scraping the paint.   Here’s the wheel, as it is readied to be put into position. This wheel setup is a 5.5″ wide rim, with a

Sponsored By   Here’s another shot at the front with the brakes mounted on both sides.   Mounting the front fender is a snap. Four bolts, four nuts. But – remember, you want to mock this stuff up BEFOREyou paint and powder coat. If you don’t, Murphy’s law says you’ll have to grind something afterwards….

Sponsored By   So – here it is so far. At this point, it looks like a real motorcycle. Still missing the tail light, the head light,the belt drive cover, and some other misc. shit… But it’s close. Now for the cool factor.   The guys over at Joker Machine are some good friends of

Excelsior-Henderson www.excelsiorhenderson.com (612) 873-7000 (612) 873-7030 FAX Hi-Tech Custom Cycles Marty Ruthman (818) 901-7037 Buchanan Spoke & Rim (626) 969-4655 (626) 812-0243 FAX Headwinds (818) 359-8044 Al Martinez Custom Paint (714) 288-6700 (714) 288-6707 FAX Avon Tire (425) 771-2115 (425) 771-4246 FAX Back to the Project…

Bandit gave me this assignment a week ago, after a three-daydrunk. I was just comin’ around and, as usual, was on my last financialleg when someone dragged me out from under the work bench and said, “Ifyou want money to eat, here’s your assignment.” It was this tallOriental bookkeeper with big tits and a smile

The transmission looked brand new, but was a Rev Tech reject. Bandit made the tranny plate out of flat stock and put the tranny in place. NuttBoy’s curiosity got the best of him and he asked, “Where the fuck will you put your feet?” “Hold on,” Bandit said. He took the tranny case and the

Sponsored By Well, here it is December and I think the painter’s got his nose in the paint can. Suckin’ fumeswill make you goofy. Apparently, it’s made this guy goofy enough to forget I was planning on paying him to do this job.I sent the guy the sheet metal in August. It is still not

Kenny opened the door to his warehouse, pointed to a dented and rusting bin and said, “Go for it.” NuttBoy climbed in the back looking for the proper bends. This bin was the size of a full length truck container and two-thirds full of scrap 1-3/4 inch pipe material, yet there wasn’t a 90 degree

Sponsored By The majority of the wiring runs up the backbone of the frame to the dash, hand control switches, and the headlight.In this case, the ‘Dash’ is an instrument cluster mounted on the handlebars. Holding this in placewith some zip ties makes the job a lot easier.   The main harness connects to the

  I almost quit over this one. Bikernet was in the middle of year-end taxes and financials. We were about to launch the Cantina. Nyla was shooting photographs of the new line of Dragonfly shirts with near-naked women and the Digital Gangster was working his fingers to nubs trying to get everything launched. Where was

Sponsored By   The wires are accessed through these small panels in the back of the switch boxes.   The hand controls must be put into place to determine proper position. The holes must thenbe drilled for the wiring. The trick is, to make sure the holes are large enough to accommodatethe wires, but no

  Bandit and NuttBoy made a container for the glass with the bottom of an old H-D shipping crate, a couple uprights, tie-down eyes and some old carpet. This time it would be moved properly in an upright position. So Bikernet came virtually to a standstill while Bandit and NuttBoy finished little John’s desk. Can

  I don’t know what gets into that bastard, Bandit, he’s got way too much going on. The one thing about working with him is that we can say anything we want, like the time Zebra blew a hole in the headquarters because he was pissed about something. We let this jerk know what’s on

With the help of our friends over at Chrome Specialties, Bandit and I aquired this front end for the project.It’s a set of 54 mm Inverted GBC forks. The 30″ length is just right for this low slung sled.   We start by preparing the neck. On this frame, we’ll need neck cups to install

This is the story of the build-up of my cheap Suzuki GN 400.Before you get all upset that it is a jap bike, let me say one thing.I have a 1974 sportster that I finished up a couple of years ago that I ride regularly, I was looking for something cheap that my wife could

Here is engine swap tip “Old Bob” and I came up with. This is the second time I’ve done this on a Road King wreck that involved a frame change. I saw something somewhere where the factory was putting a Twin Cam engine in a Road King frame on the assembly line. We got to

Since I’ve been writing tech-tips, I’ve found that the moreopinionated I become, the more responses I get via e- mail fromBikernet surfers. Opinions are interesting. Some postulates areformed from ignorance, others by experience, still others fromeducation, and some are passed down from generation to generation. So which is it, John? Well this month, I’m going

Paul Cox Custom Leather has been creating custom leather seats professionally for over 12 years. His client list includes the likes of Indian Larry’s Gasoline Alley NYC, Billy Lane, Jesse James and Exile Cycles to name but a few. Paul’s handmade work is definitely the finest available anywhere at any price. Each seat is hand

Photo 11: Remove the pattern and you should see the tracing embossed on the leather seat. Photo 12: Paul uses a swivel knife to delicately carve the lines into the leather before tooling. This requires a bit of practice. We recommend that you try it out on some scrap leather before diving right into the