82 Maxim Bobber in progress

Still in the tear down and clean phase, but this is the first bike I have taken apart. The plan is to relocate the battery and most of the controlling electronics to an ammo box mounted off the left rear wheel (saw this done before and looks great), the airbox will be moved to an ammo box off the left rear wheel (if I can get the air flow right), 2.5" drop in the rear, and conversion to LEDs... I forgot to mention the seat will be off of a 1938 Ford tractor, just need to find someone to do the upholstery. This is going to be a long winter.

 

Just my $.02, but the tractor seat kinda overpowers the bike (it's size)...

skillet
BTW I know nothing so my $.02 may not even worth that :roll:

 

The seat will be cut down a bit to fit more in with the bike... I just want the full seat look and thepan is a good place to start I think...

 

Don't upholster it. Cut it down it you want, paint it then ride it like that.

 

It DOES look like a good starting point :wink: ...

skillet

 

Oh another thing I hope you got long legs. I lowered my bike about 2" and can barely flat foot it on both sides. But I did not cut my seat down.

 

Dido X2

 

I like the idea, itll be differant, but im havin a hard time imagining it workin on a maxim, the seat seems to be a bit too big and the bike a bit too small. Just an idea but it may match up better if you do a seat like that on a bigger/wider bike. but for all i know it could turn out to look bada$$ so if you do make sure you keep us posted.

 

Here is the update so far... Have the rear wheel off to make more room for grinding. I have removed the harnesses for the side covers and am working at grinding/filing off the remaining bits,

 

I messed up that reply, here are more pics. Have started working on grinding down the front fender mounts as the fender will no longer be going on the bike. Now it is just time for more cleaning, amazing how dirty a 30 year old bike can get!

 

I also cleaned the heck out my garage and lined the top with 6 mil plastic so I don't freeze in here this winter. 35 degrees outside, a balmy 68 in the garage.

 

you're gonna have a blast... i'm working on mine right now and it's been pretty cold (no heat in the garage) but i'm surprised how warm it gets when i'm in there... can't wait to see what you do with this bike..

 

I have been filing/sanding the brackets on the frame where I took the side covers off... I should clarify, I have been filing/sanding ONE bracket down to the frame. for the last 3 hours. It is smooth as a baby's bottom. For some reason I thought it would take me 30 minutes, but had a shock of reality once I looked up at the clock!

There are 6 more brackets which I have to smooth down, and if I feel as rewarded after those as I do after my first one I know I will only love this project even more.

I wish I had started tooling on bikes, cars, hell anything that moves! a long time ago... Working on the bike may be the best feeling in the world!

 

to sand that shit down..just use a grinder with a 40 or 60grit wheel.. it'll go quick.... or cut em off with a cut off wheel... grinders are a true help with this stuff... if you've got an air compressor get a die grinder which is small enough to get into everywhere...i've been using mine all the time with wire wheels and stuff to clean and buff stuff..especially old paint!!.. get one with an angled head which makes life easier... i picked one up from princess auto for 20 bucks... and a grinder i got a while back from there too in there summer sale for 5 bucks!..

 

I have used my grinder and cut wheel... Just doing the finishing work

 

Although I think that the tractor seat was overkill, I have seen some nicer lawn tractor seats under $50, not quite as big but padded, upholstered and comfy looking.

 

I will look into the law tractor seats, that could be a great alternative. I am at the point right now where I realized the tear down of the bike was the easy part. Getting all of the fine tune sanding, grinding, cutting, rewiring does not have the same "quick reward" feeling the tear down did. I finally have started keeping a log of the time I spend in the garage and am astounded at the results.

Since I started just over 3 weeks ago, I have around 140 hours into the bike (for what little I have gotten done this feels like a lot, but since I have never done anything like this before I am cutting myself some slack). Considering in those same 3 weeks I have only worked a little under 180 hours, it is no wonder my garage is my second home.

I finished smoothing out the right front fork where I removed the fender mounts yesterday. Today (finally a day off from work) have mostly been working on finish smoothing the frame where the side cover brackets were removed.

Heck, I just saw I never posted this before returning to work on the bike, so I will do a bit of an update.

I was getting anxious to work on the gas tank, so I removed the Yamaha emblems and took a grinder to the welds which held the emblem bracket on the left side. Got that smoothed out and applied body filler. Currently letting the body filler dry (I have no clue if I did it right, but everything seems to be hardening nicely, and I figure if I messed it up I can always sand it down a redo it).

This turned into quite a long post. I will post pictures of the tank once the filler is sanded down.

 

Fixin' to do the body putty thingy with my tank. Did you use more than one layer???

skillet

 

I have done 2 layers so far. Because this is my first time using filler I figured better be safe with the sizable insets behind the bracket. I will have to do a 3rd layer because I messed up when sanding, but 95% of what I have done is seemless between the tank and the filler... I will get a pic up as soon as my 2nd layer is dry and sanded

 

I do wish I had a power sander... my hands and forearms are killing me with all the manual sanding going on

 

Here are a couple pictures from the second layer

 

About the forks;
the stock forks will occilate independently, especially at speed (over 80) without the fender in place, If you plan to ride without the front fender, take an old one and make a brace from side to side with it, in place of the stock fender> and it shouln't wobble.

 

Padre, I am hoping I don't need the fender mounts on the front forks with your idea... If I do, I am past that point in the build as I have removed the fender mounts and smoothed the forks to the point of no return

 

Piece of advice when using body filler... The warning about "use in a well ventilated area" is true! It is only about 30 degrees outside so I have my garage closed up and both the propane and kerosene heaters running to keep the garage at 65. While I had the garage opened up during the first 3 applications, I have closed the doors for the last 3. When Cheri came out to the garage she about gagged on the odors out here.

According to her, I am in a very good mood and a little loopy... Time to open up the doors and relax inside while the garage airs out.

 

Here is the finished left side of the tank. Ignore the scratches in the stock paint, those are prep work. I am pretty happy with the contour of this side of the tank after a little bondo work.

 

There are parts that look like dents in the picture... they are perfectly smooth, once paint has been done they won't be there.

 

lookin good dude! i gotta do mine somewhat soon too.

 

Days like today make me feel great. I watched countless videos on using body fillers and just went for it. It was a very stressful endeavor since I had never done anything like this before, but man I am impressed with what can be done with a little research and a vision.

On a less positive note, my propane heater just took a crap on me and the hi tomorrow is only 35... I finally get a few days off in a row and something has to go wrong. I am just thankful that it isn't something with my bike, I can deal with a broken heater, I would have a stroke if it was my bike

 

That left side looks GOOD! I've used it a lot when replacing rotted wood on homes before painting and such. This will be the first time using Bondo for what it was made :roll: , bodywork. It would be nice to have a D A sander (air driven sander used in body work), don't have one myself ...

skillet

 

It has been WAY too long since I updated where I am on my build... I am sure my next sentence will make many of you very happy (so I am going to write it in all caps). I AM NOT GOING TO PUT THE TRACTOR SEAT ON MY BOBBER BUILD. I decided to go with a West Eagle seat which should arrive in a week or so.

I have completed the bondo work and tonight I put on the basecoat and clear coat for the bike. There are some flaws in both, but I am not going to fix them this year (I figure no one will notice the pit on the top of my tank when I am going 70mph on the highway).

I ordered the forward controls from West Eagle and I am looking forward to them arriving.

As for the re-wire of my bike (moving the ignition to two ammo boxes mounted toward the back) I realized after many hours of studying my hanes manual that I can get away with only running three new wires.

After I have rewrapped (spelling) the wiring harness, no one will be able to tell the wires were re-run.

I am posting pictures of the front forks and tank which I finally painted and clear coated... I know there are flaws in the tank, but considering the fact I have never even tried to fix my lawnmower I am very happy with the outcome (and the flaws give me something to work on next winter when I can't ride).

Please let me know what you think... I want honest feedback, trying to make me feel good on a first try won't help me the next time around.

I plan on mounting the rear tire tomorrow and doing a pre-pre-electrical run... Just need to shake the foggy feeling I have from painting the bike (and yes, I wore a respirator while painting.

 

tank looks good man, i did the same thing, luckily one of my neighbors is really good with bondo and gave me some tips

 

(No expert here :roll: ) Kinda hard to tell about paint from pics but looks pretty good. Like you said, first time doing this, don't expect "perfect". I know, I know, I do (on something I do) and usually get my heart broke . GOOD LUCK on the "pre-pre-electrical run"...

skillet
BTW I'm one of those that is glad you went with another seat :wink:

 

what kind of tool did you use to grind down the front fender mounts?

 

After putting the tractor seat on the bike with everything mocked up, I realized how wacky it looked... Thank goodness for the comments on the forum or I may have been crazy enough to put that seat on my bike (on a side note, I bought a '49 Ford 8N tractor that didn't have a seat so everything worked out for the best with the whole seat situation).

As for the pre-pre-electrical run, I am fairly confident that it will go well. Since I only have to reroute the ignition wires from the front there shouldn't be too much head scratching with that. Now relocating the fuse box, ignition unit, coils, etc. to the ammo boxes will be more of a challenge.

I just ordered my pod filters (much to the dismay of a few people on the forum) and should have those installed by the end of the week. If all goes well with the first mock up, I plan on taking the bike into the local Yamaha shop (got lucky and met the owner of the shop on New Years Eve so I am confident I won't get completely screwed) to have them oil her up and get her tuned in, although I won't have a seat yet.

I realized last week that I hadn't even thought about the rear fender. I have already removed any fender mounts for the stock, and I really thought I was SOL. I will be able to mount the brake light and turn signals into the ammo boxes, and have started to fabricate a licence plate mount to go just above the rear tire. My thought is that I will either fab a new rear fender, or find someone to fabricate it for me during the summer.

Once I have it mocked up later this week, I will post more pictures

 

slobzer- I used a few tools to remove the front fender mounts. Since the medal is soft, I used a cutting wheel to remove 95% of the mount. After that I took my time grinding the remaining bulk down with a grinding wheel (to be honest, using the grinding wheel on the front forks was the most nerve racking part of this rebuild so far). I had never really used a grinding wheel before, so I was very afraid I would mess the forks up beyond repair (luckily I didn't). Tool wise, I didn't own many before starting this project. I picked up a Craftsman Evolv grinder and have used the heck out of it, and it hasn't disappointed me (hell at $35 on sale I could have used it 3 times and would have been happy).

After the grinding wheel there were hours of filing. Finally I was able to move to sandpaper and I finished them off with steel wool.

I found the hardest part was slowing down and taking my time, I really wanted to be done with filing/sanding but if I rushed it the forks would be irregular.

I would say that taking the fender mounts off the front forks is a solid 6 pack project. Grind, File, Sand for a bit... then reach for the beer.

 

Lets see some pictures of what the bike looks like right now. Are you going to take the rear springs out and mod the frame or leave the rear stock?

 

I am going to leave the frame stock. I have basic knowledge of welding, but I don't want to risk my hide with spotty work. I will get pictures up tomorrow after I get the forks and wheels on.

 

Here is where she is after reassembling the front and rear wheels, the tank (just for looks), the carbs, forks, pretty much everything that can be mocked up before the 2nd tear down. Let me know what you think. I get the forward controls tomorrow and will post pictures once they are installed.

This is starting to get exciting, after many months of looking at a bunch of parts, being able to look at something that looks like a bike is a great feeling.

 

GETTING THERE! Kinda at the point you are (waiting on Spring for painting, propane for the shop is just out of the budget). Trying to figure out just what I want to do with the rear portion where you cut yours. Maybe a U shaped piece of tubing (at an angle) joining the left and right sides. Add tabs for fender mounting (???). Indecision SUCKS :lol: ...

skillet

 

There has been SIGNIFICANT progress made since my last post! Here is what I have been able to get done...

The clutch, throttle, and choke cables have all been run. Finally finished drilling out the broken off exhaust manifold post, tapped a new hole, and installed the new post. Forward controls from TCBros. Choppers have been installed (though not painted). Brackets for the ammo boxes have been fabricated, and the ammo boxes mounted (they contain the battery, and 90% of the electrical components). Handlebar grips and respective controls have been installed. New turn signals and slim line brake light purchased (only the turn signals have been mounted). Fabricated the mounts for the new seat (once again from TCBros. Choppers), welded mounts and installed new seat. and I am about 70% done with the relocation of the wiring on the bike.

Below are the pictures I have taken so far. I still have to do some clean up of the wiring, but for the most part the bike in the picture is how it will look when finished (although the ammo boxes will be repainted).

Please let me know what you think. I can see the finish line, and I am going balls to the wall right now to finish my baby.

On a side note, I am moving from North Liberty, IA to Prior Lake, MN in exactly 1 week. My plan was to have my local Yamaha shop jet my carbs and do a final tune up on the bike before I moved, but that won't fit into my timeline. If anyone in Minnesota has any motorcycle shop recommendations, they are greatly appreciated... also I know 0 (ZERO) motorcycle riders in Minnesota and would like to find other people who share my passion.

Thank you everyone for your input, I hope you enjoy my project!

Respectfully,

Matt S.

 

Scizor,
I've been enjoying the progress on your project. Looks like we share the same passion as I like to do my own fabrications also. (I see you came to your senses with that tractor seat idea) It looks like your on the right track and I hope it runs as good as it looks.
I can't help you with any bike mechanics in your area down there (sorry) I'm up here in St. Cloud so perhaps we can get together and ride when you get'r finished. Looks like we'll have plenty of time before riding (thanks to another snow dump!)
Keep us posted on the progress and watch the forum for future rides in the area. PD