The original CL 19" tire vs. the XL 21" tire.

Here are both tires next to each other.  The CL original tire is in forks obviously.  I think the knobbies will add a bit of personality as well.  I wanted to incorporate a dirt bike feel to the build as well.  Along with the knobby tire, the new fuel tank should give it that look.

I will have to figure out a new axle however, the XL axle is much thinner.

Back to work!

It has been a while since I have done anything with "The Side Hill Gouger" build.  I have continued to accumulate some new parts however.

I found some wheels, tires and a fuel tank off of an old Honda XL on Craigslist.  I got the whole package for $50 from a very cool lady who rebuilds old Honda mini bikes.

I love the look of the tank, this is exactly what I have been looking for.  The only down side is that it has a nice dent on the opposite side and does not fit the backbone on the CL frame.  Pretty rusty on the inside as well.

The front tire I am really excited about.  It is a 21" tire, the original CL front was a 19". I like the look of the tall skinny tire.  I plan to lower the front forks to accentuate the height of the tire and to keep the frame level.

New mock-up.

I moved the build back out to the garage since it is starting to "warm up", however there is still snow on the ground.

I figured I would see how it looked with the original tank and handlebars back on.  Don't really care for the look, I will be looking for a skinnier, smaller tank and taller handlebars.

New Seat

I bought a new solo seat for the build, it arrived last week.  I had thought about building one myself, but saw this one for a good price springs included and free shipping!  Cant beat that!

Donnie Smith Motorcycle Show and Swap Meet

Went to the motorcycle show today and my wife was nice enough to accompany me!  It was packed, but saw some nice custom bikes and a lot of club vests .  I did not buy anything, but found some inspiration and motivation.

 This was a Yamaha XS650.  I really like the bike, but the paint aint my cup o tea!

 72 Honda CB450, very similar to the engine and frame from my build, just a bit bigger engine.

 1922 Harley Davidson, enough said!

 Really like the style with this custom, cant remember the year.  Harley Davidson.

 1970 BSA Lightning 750, beautifully restored bike.

1930's?  Cant remember the year, Indian.

Pre-weld mockup with engine

Did a new set up with the frame, engine and front and rear wheels.  I did some modification to the hardtail frame.  It was not fitting very well so I cut the cross support and seperated the frame into two pieces.  I was able to line up one side of the frame with the original swingarm in place and clamp it right where it needed to be.  Then I removed the swingarm and installed the other side of the hardtail and clamped that into place, then installed the tire.

 By cutting the cross supports I was also able to widen the tail and fit the original Honda wheel in much better.

Some light cleaning..

Did a little bit of cleaning on the triple trees today.  Basically just cleaning the paint off, not finished yet but looks a lot cleaner than the old black paint all ready.