Tire Hugger idea


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StrangerInStrangeLand

New Member
Out of the Molds and Onto the Bike

I removed the fiberglass (FG) pieces from their molds last night, cleaned them up just bit (though obviously much more to do), then placed them on the rear of the bike just to get a quick look-see. Note that I don't have the two pieces properly lined up on the tire because when I did, the fender piece just slipped right off the rubber.

Once I trim and clean the pieces, I'll connect the two. Unfortunately because the bike is in pieces, I'll have to wait until I do the solo-seat section before I can experiment with the fender and the effects of spinning water to see how little of a fender I can get away with mounting.

The FG looks terrible now, but by the time I'm done, the finished piece will be as nice & clean as those I made for my R1. ... I just hope it works.


 
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BrueThru

Sentient Being
Elite Member
Once your done with trimming and sanding do you gel coat or paint or both?
Looking very cool so far.

btw...What literature did you read that helped the most with learning how to work with fiberglass?
 
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StrangerInStrangeLand

New Member
BrueThru said:
Once your done with trimming and sanding do you gel coat or paint or both? btw...What literature did you read that helped the most with learning how to work with fiberglass?
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Oh, yeah, I'll paint it. Decided to do it in black, not whatever body color I end up with. There is a gel coat under all the white (plaster) and green (mold release agent). I probably won't gel coat after the paint because I think I'm going with a matte or satin finish.

Here's the cover of the last book I bought, but the process is pretty simple, so I'm sure any book (or even pamphlet) will do. I had a little experience in mold making when I did SFX make up for some plays in college.
 
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qnoisx

New Member
Looks good so far. Glad you're getting it done. I haven't even installed the hid projector into my headlight yet. I commute to work on my bike, so having a hard time making myself get started. I look forward to seeing your progress. Totally jealous also, guess I need to read up on making molds.
 
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StrangerInStrangeLand

New Member
Thanks, q. Just got in from out on the balcony where I was shaping and shaving fiberglass with the hobbyist's best friend -- my trusty ol' Dremel kit. I'm about to take the pieces down to the garage and start esti-fitting them to the bike. All sorts of minor issues, but it'll happen.

I've sold the K1200R, so I was down to one mode of transportation before I was fortunate enough to be able to borrow my best friend's barely used SV (2003 model with 500 miles on it!) while I work on mine. Otherwise, no way I could do it.

And don't be envious about the fiberglassing; even with my particle mask securely rubber-banded to my face, I still think that I've ingested about a boat hull's worth of shaved and sanded FG resin. Black Lung here I come!
 
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StrangerInStrangeLand

New Member
Rough & Uncut

So here's my chain/splash guard piece taken as far as I'm taking it before the trials stage where I'll ride the bike though real-world water. As mentioned earlier, I can't do that until I have the solo-seat built (at least as far as this is) and installed -- I need a place to sit.

The $20 Question remains: How much fender can I trim away, but still have enough tire coverage to keep the water and road debris off my back?





 
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BrueThru

Sentient Being
Elite Member
Thats lookin real good. Can't wait to see it with the seat.
 
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yellowfz

Looking good SnSL , getting better and better . :thumbup:
Beat the bug finally , little bugger is bad a$$ , 10 days of hell .
Yes water test worked out fine .
Will get back to it after the weekend , pictures to follow .
 
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StrangerInStrangeLand

New Member
A Funny Thing Happen on the Way to the Fiberglass Store

Last Thursday on my way to the fiberglass store on my girlfriend's bike, I got t-boned by some guy coming from the opposite direction attempting to turn left across three lanes of traffic - the last in which I was traveling. He floored it across the first two lanes smoothly enough, but neglected to consider anything in Lane #3 -- like me, safely tooling along at no more than 15 mph. He nailed me in the left leg and sent my shattered bike and now-shatter body under a parked car. Well, partially under a parked car anyway.

Nine days later and after a few broken bones, two surgeries, multiple blood clots, and internal bleeding, I'm coherent enough to use my left hand and type an apology for what will surely be a weeks and weeks delay before I can continue on the project.

Seriously, even after nearly 30 years of riding and my share of non-injury-resulting lay-downs, this may have been my Ride Stopping Moment. Ever look into the terrified eyes of Operating Room personnel who can't believe they almost couldn't revive you from surgery? Yeah, they're apparently human, too, after all.

We'll see, but even glimpses of Ford ads on TV is giving my PTSD.

Okay... fading for a while. Just sitting up on the edge of the hospital bed yesterday -- for the first time in a week -- even with two big, brawny dudes doing all the work -- exhausts me as though I've just run a marathon.
 
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BrueThru

Sentient Being
Elite Member
Holy crap dude.

Glad your alive. Sorry you got to live the nightmare for the next few months.

Hope the cager had the insurance to cover the hell your going to go thru.

F**kin hate hearing bad news like this. Summer time is like open season on us.

We all need to be hyper vigilant out there and even then hope random probability doesn't get us.

Hope your recovery goes well and I prey everything works properly when its all said and done.

Good luck bro. Hang in there as best you can. F**king cagers.
 
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yellowfz

StrangerInStrangeLand said:
Last Thursday on my way to the fiberglass store on my girlfriend's bike, I got t-boned by some guy coming from the opposite direction and wanting to turn left across three lanes of traffic - the last of which I was traveling. He floored it across the first two lanes smoothly enough, but neglected to consider anything in Lane #3. Like me, safely tooling along at no more than 15 mph. He nailed me in the left leg, sending shattered bike and now-shatter body under a parked car. Well, partially under a parked car anyway.

Nine days later and after a few broken bones, two surgeries, multiple blood clots, and internal bleeding, I'm coherent enough to use my left hand and type an apology for what will surely be a weeks and weeks delay before I can continue on the project.

Seriously, even after nearly 30 years of riding and my share of non-injury lay-downs, this may have been my Ride Stopping Moment. Ever look into the terrified eyes of Operating Room personnel who can't believe they almost couldn't revive you from surgery? Yeah, they're apparently human, too, after all?

We'll see, but just seeing the glimpses of television I've seen, just seeing a Ford ad is giving my PTSD.

Okay... fading for a while. Just sitting up on the edge of the bed yesterday for the first time in a week -- even with two big, brawny dudes doing all the work -- exhausts me as though I've just run a marathon.
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Oh man sorry to hear , maybe we should pool our resources here and invent a "Stupid Cager Alert System " or SCAS .
You were doing such good work on the Hugger .
Get well and keep the Fords as far away as possible .
 
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yellowfz

Here are some more of the Hugger that I just finished , Hugger Version 2.0 .
As you can see I am only needing a small area because I have the FE and License Plate/Inspection Sticker , I was just after something to keep mud/water from slinging past them .
This part does move with the tire as the chain is adjusted , kind of a European look .
Works great , a must with a FE to keep Water/Mud off your tail light or back .
Do wish I could make one out of Fiberglass or molded plastic , then I think I could get a better design .
Road Tested for several miles , no ill effects , rock solid .
 

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StrangerInStrangeLand

New Member
If I Could Stand, I'd Give You a Standing-O.

Bravo, man. Brav-the-hell-o. The best compliment someone could get for something like that is: That looks factory.

So, that little coverage is all you need? Or, maybe because you still have a substantial tail on your bike, you don't need as much coverage as my bobbed tail will?

Your designed-in adjustability for eventual chain wear lengthening makes it a flawless design. To tip my hand as to how much I don't know, I really don't know what the actual length is that a chain will stretch over its lifetime. My chains last about 10K miles, but I've never paid attention to how much they stretch.

Update on Me: Got home Saturday, but can still barely do anything without assistance just because of the location and number of mobility-necessary injuries, so I don't know when I'll be able to get back to work on mine. And I know I'll finish it, but it's likely I'll never ride the bike again to enjoy the fruits of my labor. Small sacrifice just to be able to sit up and write this entry.
 
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yellowfz

StrangerInStrangeLand said:
Bravo, man. Brav-the-hell-o. The best compliment someone could get for something like that is: That looks factory.

So, that little coverage is all you need? Or, maybe because you still have a substantial tail on your bike, you don't need as much coverage as my bobbed tail will?

Your designed-in adjustability for eventual chain wear lengthening makes it a flawless design. To tip my hand as to how much I don't know, I really don't know what the actual length is that a chain will stretch over its lifetime. My chains last about 10K miles, but I've never paid attention to how much they stretch.

Update on Me: Got home Saturday, but can still barely do anything without assistance just because of the location and number of mobility-necessary injuries, so I don't know when I'll be able to get back to work on mine. And I know I'll finish it, but it's likely I'll never ride the bike again to enjoy the fruits of my labor. Small sacrifice just to be able to sit up and write this entry.
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SnSL glad to hear you are progressing and will soon recover , sucks to hear of anyone hurt from a bike wreck . Frigging Cagers .
I will take the accolade as a very high compliment SnSL .
And yes , because I am just blocking a small area of debris because I do have a tail piece and not bobbed .
Through the chain life I have seen 3/4" or more chain stretching .
 
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yellowfz

Forgot to say , anyone else want one I will be happy to make one for them . :thumbup:
 
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StrangerInStrangeLand

New Member
The Greedy Gut in Me

yellowfz said:
Forgot to say , anyone else want one I will be happy to make one for them . :thumbup:
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I think there could be a market for this thing, especially with any of the stock bikes that are already somewhat bobbed and sort of fenderless (a lot of cruisers), so if you were thinking of a money-making side venture for yourself, I think you have something here. Those of us who ride short-tailed bikes, know that the water/debris backsplash problem is one of the unspoken negatives of the cool look. I'll bet there are THOUSANDS of riders out there who would be interested in something like this.

I put this cool device called the GripAce on my R1 streetfighter; it's a left handgrip that has four buttons that operate all of the bikes controls, thus cleaning up the bars from turn signal, horn, kill, starter, and light switches. My friend, the inventor and seller of the thing, has found a nice little cottage industry in serving the custom bike market -- so, perhaps, could you with your fender. Of course, because of the downturn in the economy that niche´ in the bike world has suffered along with everything else. Still, if something like yours was available on the market, I'd buy it before making it.

As the kids say, "Just sayin'."
 

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Rabbitman109

Lumen Junkie
Elite Member
yellowfz said:
Forgot to say , anyone else want one I will be happy to make one for them . :thumbup:
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Do you think that it would help promote your product if I had you make one for Alice? Just think...you can say that it is endorsed by the Mod Whore. I really like that dude, what kind of $$ you thinkin for one of those? Would someone be able to customize the shape of the "Water Guard", or the yellow piece for lack of better technical terms. I would love to see you do well with this...highly professional looking.
 
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