Starting my Chopper Build

After a couple decade absence from the bike world, I've jumped back in by starting my first build in decades.

I got the foundation:



A garage find given too me. Hasnt seen the light of day probably for 15 years, but it saw all the moisture.....

An All Souls frame, Paughco Mustang tank, a rear fender an oil tank, and a 6 bend handlebar.

First thing I decided was, "Those plungers gotta go!" so they will be coming off soon, and I will be going with a standard style hard tail. Got a friend that has a metal shop, and they also have built some bikes (nice ones too), so that will be taken care of.

Took care of the tank and fender asap:



Seein that rust on em was driving me nuts. It actually looked worse than it was: all very light surface stuff. No black spots or pits.

I plan on bead blasting the frame, but I got bored one night, there was this wire wheel and a drill settin there, and.......



Yep, I started grease-monkey strippin her!

And it wasnt all bad (rust seems light, very few and small black spots, with hardly any, if at all, erosion), but it was a little frustrating:



BONDO!

Someone sure loved bondo. It's all over the frame!

I now officially, HATE bondo.



I'm going with a CB750 power plant, Springer forks, 18" rear wheels, 21" front. I'm gonna fashion a front fender and some sort of springer/suspended pan seat.

The goal is, to come up with something along these lines:



Yeah, I know thats got an XS650 in the frame, different tank/bars, but the old school style, two-tone color scheme, and the simplicity........

Yeah, that just speaks too me.

I'm kind of going for the same look on my XS. Is the frame you have set up for an XS engine? I couldn't see the mounting points. Has your friend got any other chopper goodies in his garage he's looking to give away?

Originally Posted by MTW

I'm kind of going for the same look on my XS. Is the frame you have set up for an XS engine? I couldn't see the mounting points. Has your friend got any other chopper goodies in his garage he's looking to give away?

It's set up for a CB750.

My friends only got the Springer forks, wheels, and a couple other goodies, that he's digging out and giving too me. Like it that it fits my budget!

He's just not into riding anymore (age), and he wants to see this become something other than a science experiment in corrosive effects.......

I'll have to check out you build. Hopefully it can keep me inspired!

I'm waiting to start a thread. Right now I have taken a '81 Special apart, chopped off the back half of the frame, got Larry Pierce at Garage Company Customs to make a hard tail for it (6" stretch and 1' drop) and I've put it back into a roller. I have to take it back to Larry and weld up a few more things. I've got a couple of fire extinguishers I'm going to use to make a fake oil tank for some electrics. I have a seat pan I want to cut down. I've got a king sportster p-nut tank. It's too big but it's what I've got for now. There's all kinds of little things here and there. For now I just want to get it to where I can ride it.

Kicked out the jams tonight!

She's at least 90% down to bare meta!

Got a Dewalt Grinder, and a good wire wheel, turned on some Led Zepplin, some GnR, some Army of Amyone, and got too it!

The battery died in my phone, so no pics tonight.
Gonna get her totally naked tomorrow, and ready for for the metal shop next week, and kick those plungers to the curb.

Originally Posted by MTW

I'm waiting to start a thread. Right now I have taken a '81 Special apart, chopped off the back half of the frame, got Larry Pierce at Garage Company Customs to make a hard tail for it (6" stretch and 1' drop) and I've put it back into a roller. I have to take it back to Larry and weld up a few more things. I've got a couple of fire extinguishers I'm going to use to make a fake oil tank for some electrics. I have a seat pan I want to cut down. I've got a king sportster p-nut tank. It's too big but it's what I've got for now. There's all kinds of little things here and there. For now I just want to get it to where I can ride it.

I cant wait to see that thread!

The items you are cutting off, will you sell them to me? the plunger sections of an all souls frame, i got a guy who really has a passion for all souls stuff, and i would like to be able to dangle it in front of his nose, and make him beg for it!

Originally Posted by swinewerx

The items you are cutting off, will you sell them to me? the plunger sections of an all souls frame, i got a guy who really has a passion for all souls stuff, and i would like to be able to dangle it in front of his nose, and make him beg for it!

You got it!

The plan today, once I get past the wifes honey do list, is make my bike 100% naked today.

Ladies and Gentlemen, My Bare-Naked Lady:





Oh course, you see the plungers are untouched. I figured, why? I'm just cuttin em off.

Unless of course if swinewerx would like em naked, I can do that. So swinewerx, let me know.

Nice project, cool to see other neglected frames come back to life!

Originally Posted by Cindral

Nice project, cool to see other neglected frames come back to life!

Im sorta that way with electric guitars too: Ive brought a few pawnshop rejects back to life, and I figure that bikes are like guitars: Guitars like to get played, not sit there abandoned. Bikes like to be ridden, not stored amd rusting, ya know what I mean?

Well, noticed my first boo-boo I did on my project:

I destroyed about half of the vendor numberplate. Yeah, looks like I wiped out the magic numbers. But I do have the papers on the frame, so I guess Im making a trip to the California DMV before she hits the road.......

Im such a dumbass.

Hmmm? I know some engravers, so maybe I can have all that engraved onto the neck, and that would be kosher?

Just a thought. But I dont wanna do anything illegal either.

Got my frame loaded up in my 4Runner, and she's going to the metal shop today.

I'll at the very least have the plungers chopped off. Gotta wait till I get the wheels so we can set up the axle plate right.

I've decided I'm going with 18" rear, 21" front.

Got a new take on this, and I think I'm gonna go this way:

I was planning on choppin off the plungers and welding on a hardtail axle plate.

But, I got a new idea:

Keep the plungers in place, but mechanically disable them, effectively making it a hardtail, but retaining that plunger look (which is pretty unique).

Yep, thats the plan.......

I had a feeling you would go that way!!!

Originally Posted by swinewerx

I had a feeling you would go that way!!!

For me, it just made more sense, and fit the budget a lot better.

So tonight, I get the plunger assemblies naked, and I prep the frame for high-heat/high-gloss black epoxy paint.

Wednesday or Thursday night, I start shooting........

Oh yeah, I know some are probably gonna think I'm nuts, but the whole bike (frame/tins, etc), where it requires paint, I'm goin rattle can. I'd love to beable to powder coat the frame, but I just dont have the bucks for it.