Sportster chopper build/ college welding project

[nmaineron]

I'm in the process of building a frame for my project. This is my second frame simply because I wasn't happy with how it came out the first time.I have been welding and playing with steel for 30 years. Levels and squares and clamps,verniers and micrometers fill my tool boxes.I tried to make it perfect but a pulled weld here and there.Too much heat and trying to make do without the tool I need caused cut outs and do overs. I'm not here to criticize or discourage but to make you aware that it's not a week end job if you've never done this type of work before.Study up and ask a million questions. Spend a week on your back trying to get to that spot that needs to be welded which you can only see with one eye when the lights go out. Take a pile of pictures for reference, especially for your electrical issues.

[DustyDave]

A small laser level, a compound head and a tape measure are all the measuring tools I use to build frames. Slugs should be the same thickness and type of steel tube, They should sized to be heavy slip or light hammer fit. Solid slugs cause cracks!
Dusty

[BrokeAss]

Just remember the title goes with the frame................ Unless he has an early motor that is............

Nah, we have a CNC laser for that...quick pic of the VIN, digitize it, burn onto the new frame. Retains the original dimensions, font, etc...

[rockman96]

Is there a general consensus about the best type of steel to make a slug from?

It needs to be imminently weldable, hard enough it doesn't bend.. But soft enough it isn't prone to cracking and is easily machinable.

???

I've always used plain 'ole mild steel.

[Tattooo]

Nah, we have a CNC laser for that...quick pic of the VIN, digitize it, burn onto the new frame. Retains the original dimensions, font, etc...

What ever you think is best................

[BrokeAss]

What ever you think is best................

Ultimately my friend's decision, he'll be the one either paying to sort out the death trap he has now or buying another frame. I'll just provide the means of retaining his current VIN if need-be.

[farmall]

Interesting! How deep can that laser cut and what do the numbers look like? Make/model? I have a bro in the firearms business who may need to do many serial numbers if he gets a contract.

[Jake883]

nah i wasnt insulted by that i get buying shit off craiglist can iffy. ive already come to realize that this is gonna take longer thatn i initioally hoped if i want to do it right. gonna take the time to make sure everything is straight. im back at school now practicing my tig welds on pipe. hopefully i could get my bike trailered upstate with all the parts. thinking ab renting a trailer and having my dad take it up in his suv but everything seems pretty expensive.

[BrokeAss]

Interesting! How deep can that laser cut and what do the numbers look like? Make/model? I have a bro in the firearms business who may need to do many serial numbers if he gets a contract.

It's a 30w CO2 laser we're currently upgrading to 80w. For etching directly into steel, you'd need a fiber laser. Harley VINs nowadays are punched into the powder coat for the most part. You can kinda make out the VIN after sand blasting, but it's thin and shallow. Our laser can burn an exact duplicate of the imperfect punched stock VIN off nothing more than a quick cell phone pic. It goes without saying, we only offer this service if proof of legal ownership is established for both frames. Pinwall Cycles sells clean, used frames legally dismantled and legally sold with bill-of-sale. Harley themselves used to offer (probably still does) to punch a replacement frame with your current VIN for accident repair, so there's nothing terribly unique about what we're doing.

[Tattooo]

It's a 30w CO2 laser we're currently upgrading to 80w. For etching directly into steel, you'd need a fiber laser. Harley VINs nowadays are punched into the powder coat for the most part. You can kinda make out the VIN after sand blasting, but it's thin and shallow. Our laser can burn an exact duplicate of the imperfect punched stock VIN off nothing more than a quick cell phone pic. It goes without saying, we only offer this service if proof of legal ownership is established for both frames. Pinwall Cycles sells clean, used frames legally dismantled and legally sold with bill-of-sale. Harley themselves used to offer (probably still does) to punch a replacement frame with your current VIN for accident repair, so there's nothing terribly unique about what we're doing.

Like farm asked..... Post a pic of something you have done so we can see how close it is to original stamped numbers............ It sounds interesting......... Thanks

And NO Harley doesn't sell number stamps to the public and hasn't for MANY years............... If ever........... They were ONLY sold to dealers..............

[BrokeAss]

Like farm asked..... Post a pic of something you have done so we can see how close it is to original stamped numbers............ It sounds interesting......... Thanks

And NO Harley doesn't sell number stamps to the public and hasn't for MANY years............... If ever........... They were ONLY sold to dealers..............

I'll get a pic tomorrow.

No, I know Harley didn't sell them to the public, I mean they'd stamp a new frame with an existing VIN and ship it to a dealer who was repairing a crashed bike. That's all I meant.

[hillcat]

Why your bristles up, Tattooo?

[Tattooo]

Why your bristles up, Tattooo?

Nope......... Yours??????????

[BrokeAss]

Post a pic of something you have done so we can see how close it is to original stamped numbers............ It sounds interesting......... Thanks

Sporty cafe project in my shop presently. VIN was all but removed by blasting, we burned it back in with the laser. Numbers obscured for privacy:

[farmall]

Looks great! Should also be excellent for restoring corroded numbers.

For those into stamping: https://www.knuckleworks.com/khphshs.html