The rant

fredintoon

fredintoon

Fred Hill, S'toon.
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Going hardtail?
Why stop there?
Go all the way!
Stretch & widen the rear fame to take an 8" wide tire.
Rake the steering head.
Replace the teles with a stretched springer fork running a 16" wheel with no fender or brakes.
Push the footpegs forwards so your knees are straight.
Mount a tiny little gas tank painted with the US flag.
Wear a set of white leathers, smoke up a spliff and pretend to be Peter Fonda!
 
fredintoon said:
Going hardtail?
Why stop there?
Go all the way!
Stretch & widen the rear fame to take an 8" wide tire.
Rake the steering head.
Replace the teles with a stretched springer fork running a 16" wheel with no fender or brakes.
Push the footpegs forwards so your knees are straight.
Mount a tiny little gas tank painted with the US flag.
Wear a set of white leathers, smoke up a spliff and pretend to be Peter Fonda!
Click to expand...

Sounds like an awesome plan! I'm afraid I would look like later years Elvis in white leathers though. :D
 
Yeah, the heck with all this modren teck-knowlegy. Who needs suspension and handling? If it was good enough for my great grandfather, it's good enough for me. :wtf: :poke:
 
will this work??????....
 

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fredintoon said:
Going hardtail?
Why stop there?
Go all the way!
Stretch & widen the rear fame to take an 8" wide tire.
Rake the steering head.
Replace the teles with a stretched springer fork running a 16" wheel with no fender or brakes.
Push the footpegs forwards so your knees are straight.
Mount a tiny little gas tank painted with the US flag.
Wear a set of white leathers, smoke up a spliff and pretend to be Peter Fonda!
Click to expand...

here we go again if you don't like choppers don't build or ride one!!!!!:thumbsup:
DIRTY DOG OUT!!
 
DIRTY DOG said:
here we go again if you don't like choppers don't build or ride one!!!!!:thumbsup:
DIRTY DOG OUT!!
Click to expand...
Hi DOG,
what part of RANT didn't you understand?
You young fellows think you invented bike chopping, but I was there too, back in the day.
And we never had Sawzalls back then, neither.
It was all hacksaw work in those days.
I destroyed the resale worth of what would have been a valuable antique Velocette by cutting off it's rear frame, throwing away it's girder forks and adding swingarm rear suspension and teleforks.
But at least it was a more comfortable ride.
 
I'm with you Fred :thumbsup:

but then I'm old and cranky too now :laugh::laugh:

Its never appealed to me to modify and custom stuff, bodywise ,I prefer to work on the mechanicals .

I have to say, every time I see another young dude come on here and proudly display a minty XS1 /XS2 that he intends to Bob Chop or whatever I shake my head and groan. christ its all been done to death now surely ??:doh:

how about something different
XS650-street-tracker.jpg
 
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Between potholes and speed bumps in the roads out here riding a hardtail doesn't sound safe, half the reason I decided to keep the suspension on my xs. I've only had my first car for a little over a year, but I've owned quite a few different bikes and have only owned two hardtails never took em on the interstate.

It did take a while for me to realize cool and practical don't always mesh still figuring out what's better hahaha
 
Talking with a machinist the other day and he related his experience of having to fix rear hubs beat to death and bearings destroyed. Problem; hardtail.

Not to mention broken spokes and bent rims.

And when you reach 60, stay close to the toilet, kidneys don't like long waits.

Nice to look at though!
 
You young fellows think you invented bike chopping, lol hahahaha man I 51 years old what part of that is young, I yeas I have cut up a lot of stuff over the years I got in a fist fight over building a pro-street 1966 GTO little did they know we found it in a field
no eng.trans 1/2 the doors and fenders were rusted off. so did we destroyed a 1966 GTO or did were bring it back to life!!! I have built 6 hardtail xs650's that were junk befor I started so did I destroy 6 xs650 or bring them back from the dead?????
 
I don't think anyone would question bringing a rusty decrepit classic vehicle back from the dead or a rusty pile of bits .
I think the point of this is when someone cuts up a perfectly good sound running classic in original condition especially when they are rare like the early bikes. :wink2:
 
Some folks study motorcycle engineering as part of the hobby. Choppers are very stupid but custom motorcycles can be very cool. The underlying difference is whether the bike is better than what the factory built. Speed, handling, looks, tradition and comfort all play a part. As a rule I like all motorcycles but the amount of clueless kids that want a chopper for their first bike is crazy.

Why aren't struts being fabricated for the custom market? There is not a better way to lower the rear of a bike than struts, it's as low as you can go. After Experiencing the struts, the rider can still use shocks.

Tom
 
good point Tom
I don't understand why someone hasn't produced a decent rear swingarm and strut assembly yet for the XS650 .
 
What is a "decent swingarm"?
If the end is the "look" you may want to consider one writers view that skinny is in and fat ass tires on the way out for custom looks. He included it an article about the 5 best new things from Sturgis 2014.

While viewing the builds, whether I like the look or not, I try to be respectful of the fact it is theirs. They can do whatever whenever. First prototype model or the last serial numbered model don't matter it is theirs. Kinda like I don't need to see a no trespass
sign to know not to cross a fence.


Noun: rant
1: A loud bombastic declamation expressed with strong emotion
I think Fred hit the mark.
 
weekendrider said:
What is a "decent swingarm"?
.
Click to expand...

doh !I guess a decent swingarm would be a lightweight one with integral strengthening and taper metal bearings rather than the plastic oem ones :laugh:

you make me larf weekender :wink2:
 
DIRTY DOG said:
- - - I 51 years old what part of that is young, - - -
Click to expand...

Hi DOG,
Oh! To be 51 again and know what I know now.
(and Brian, Oh to be 60 again, too)
So OK, salvaging derelict vehicles to build your dream machines is far better than leaving them in a field to rust away.
My concern is for the younger crowd who have never ridden a hardtail and will learn too late that while a hardtail may look stylish parked outside a bar or a coffee shop, it's more likely to be parked outside a chiropractor's or a proctologist's office.
 
peanut I recently saw(on eBay) some one (other than Motolana)is making a rectangle aluminum tube swingarm. Maybe is decent? It would be better than stock?
 
weekendrider said:
What is a "decent swingarm"?
Click to expand...

During any directional change, there are very high torsional loads induced on a swingarm, which can cause swingarm 'twist' or 'tweak'. Proper bracing and/or larger members (like box-type) can reduce this.

The triangulated-section hardtail rear doesn't have this problem.

What I've never seen is quantitative torsional rigidity tests and comparisons conducted on various stock, aftermarket and modified swingarms. A torsional strain measurement rig could be easily built to measure this.

All I've ever seen were 'qualitative' opinions (yeah, that swingarm looks better)...
 

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