Alrighty folks. I was planning on holding out with my build thread, knowing how much you all love a finished bike. However, in favor of constructive criticism I think I'll go ahead and put her up now. Plus, it'd be nice to actually contribute something. (Looking over a lot of the latest projects on here, it's funny how popular the CBR1k tail has gotten since I started this project last year)
Anyways! Enough stalling, here she is!
Last year I bought my first motorcycle from a friend of mine. A 1997 Suzuki GSXR750. The bike had been dumped a few times; the plastics were pretty rough, and combined with a flat black rattle-can paint job, it was apparent that some work was going to be needed.
Here she is the first day back;
To make it a more fun ride for the summer, I rattle-canned all of the plastics in the commonly available "Universal Black Metallic". I also painted the air ducts with a red-metallic anodized color, and purchased chrome stock "GSXR" decals for the fairings.
Here she is after the initial clean-up;
After a fun summer of riding, it was time for a project, and the motorcycle was the logical candidate. I've always been a fan of the streetfighters, but I'd never undertaken a so fabrication-intensive project before, so I was a little worried about all the work that would go into it, however... I've got the whole winter, so what the hey?
Any ways, I began with a few quick sketches and photochops of what I was thinking I'd like to accomplish. As of right now, the profile has changed quite a bit from the initial drawings, but that's the nature of any project like this, right?
With the general idea in place it was time to begin work. I began by stripping off all of the unnecessary fairings and removing the old bubble-butt subframe.
Already things are looking better! The next move was the tuck the bulky wiring harnesses from the left side of the bike in order to clean things up, and get them out of the way.
The original wiring harness;
Tucked to the right side of the tank. Wrapped in heat-reflective tape. When finally set, the tank will almost completely hide the wires.
Things are coming along nicely at this point. The next move was to cut the Pit-Eck muffler down from it's original length. It's a relatively simple process. I used a hack-saw to cut through the carbon fiber, and pop rivets to affix everything.
Considerably shorter than before;
Consistant with my original idea, I purchased a GSXR1000 headlight and welded up a bracket upon which it could sit.
The original mock-up of the headlight;
The bracket mocked-up;
The assembly is ready for mounting up, I think I've changed my mind however since initially, however, and currently the bike is sporting two 3 1/2" round lights mounted to the forks.
Headlight aside, I finally decided on the tail I wanted. Originally I was going to use the Suzuki GSF-1200 tail fairing. However, I finally settled on the more aggressive Honda CBR1000RR tail fairing. It's pointier and shorter. In addition, the sides of it offer plenty of room to tuck in my coolant bottle and rectifier.
Mocking the new tail up;
Obviously, in order to mount the new tail, I'm going to need a new subframe. The only option is to build a custom subframe to accommodate the Honda tail on the Suzuki frame.
The new subframe, welded up from steel stock;
Before going any farther I needed a compatible seat for the project. I opted for a 2001 GSXR600 seat. It's far more comfy than the 1997 seat, and looks better with the sharper angles of this new incarnation.
Mocking up the new seat;
To accommodate the battery, ECU, rectifier and fuses, I needed to build a tray to fit the new subframe.
I used paper to give me an idea of the dimensions;
The tray was built out of 22g sheet steel, bent and welded together.
Here it is with the battery and other components put in it for a test run;
The tray enameled black. I used velcro to affix everything in it. The upside; it's held solidly but I can easily take it out. And if I need to replace it I can just go to the store and get more. I used 3m Dual Lock to attach the rectifier on the outside of the tray. This stuff is tough! I am not worried at all about the rectifier falling off.
Here is me actually working on the bike; proof that I actually have a role in the build!
My custom Mountain Dew coolant canister; aluminum and sealed with epoxy and silicon:
My new undertail! The initial design mocked up using a "Beware of Dog" sign.
The new undertail. I dig the color.
New undertail along with a new CBR1000RR taillight.
New headlights; preliminary setup.
Far more compact than before. I like the 'no-bubble-butt' approach.
continued in next post...
Anyways! Enough stalling, here she is!
Last year I bought my first motorcycle from a friend of mine. A 1997 Suzuki GSXR750. The bike had been dumped a few times; the plastics were pretty rough, and combined with a flat black rattle-can paint job, it was apparent that some work was going to be needed.
Here she is the first day back;
To make it a more fun ride for the summer, I rattle-canned all of the plastics in the commonly available "Universal Black Metallic". I also painted the air ducts with a red-metallic anodized color, and purchased chrome stock "GSXR" decals for the fairings.
Here she is after the initial clean-up;
After a fun summer of riding, it was time for a project, and the motorcycle was the logical candidate. I've always been a fan of the streetfighters, but I'd never undertaken a so fabrication-intensive project before, so I was a little worried about all the work that would go into it, however... I've got the whole winter, so what the hey?
Any ways, I began with a few quick sketches and photochops of what I was thinking I'd like to accomplish. As of right now, the profile has changed quite a bit from the initial drawings, but that's the nature of any project like this, right?
With the general idea in place it was time to begin work. I began by stripping off all of the unnecessary fairings and removing the old bubble-butt subframe.
Already things are looking better! The next move was the tuck the bulky wiring harnesses from the left side of the bike in order to clean things up, and get them out of the way.
The original wiring harness;
Tucked to the right side of the tank. Wrapped in heat-reflective tape. When finally set, the tank will almost completely hide the wires.
Things are coming along nicely at this point. The next move was to cut the Pit-Eck muffler down from it's original length. It's a relatively simple process. I used a hack-saw to cut through the carbon fiber, and pop rivets to affix everything.
Considerably shorter than before;
Consistant with my original idea, I purchased a GSXR1000 headlight and welded up a bracket upon which it could sit.
The original mock-up of the headlight;
The bracket mocked-up;
The assembly is ready for mounting up, I think I've changed my mind however since initially, however, and currently the bike is sporting two 3 1/2" round lights mounted to the forks.
Headlight aside, I finally decided on the tail I wanted. Originally I was going to use the Suzuki GSF-1200 tail fairing. However, I finally settled on the more aggressive Honda CBR1000RR tail fairing. It's pointier and shorter. In addition, the sides of it offer plenty of room to tuck in my coolant bottle and rectifier.
Mocking the new tail up;
Obviously, in order to mount the new tail, I'm going to need a new subframe. The only option is to build a custom subframe to accommodate the Honda tail on the Suzuki frame.
The new subframe, welded up from steel stock;
Before going any farther I needed a compatible seat for the project. I opted for a 2001 GSXR600 seat. It's far more comfy than the 1997 seat, and looks better with the sharper angles of this new incarnation.
Mocking up the new seat;
To accommodate the battery, ECU, rectifier and fuses, I needed to build a tray to fit the new subframe.
I used paper to give me an idea of the dimensions;
The tray was built out of 22g sheet steel, bent and welded together.
Here it is with the battery and other components put in it for a test run;
The tray enameled black. I used velcro to affix everything in it. The upside; it's held solidly but I can easily take it out. And if I need to replace it I can just go to the store and get more. I used 3m Dual Lock to attach the rectifier on the outside of the tray. This stuff is tough! I am not worried at all about the rectifier falling off.
Here is me actually working on the bike; proof that I actually have a role in the build!
My custom Mountain Dew coolant canister; aluminum and sealed with epoxy and silicon:
My new undertail! The initial design mocked up using a "Beware of Dog" sign.
The new undertail. I dig the color.
New undertail along with a new CBR1000RR taillight.
New headlights; preliminary setup.
Far more compact than before. I like the 'no-bubble-butt' approach.
continued in next post...