[tooseevee]

       I brought this from Campfire Talk & renamed it.

       Here's what I'm doing (should have done it years ago when I got the seat) to get my feet flatter on the ground. I canNOT be tippy-toed any more and keep riding.

       Photo 1: This is the factory seat mount. It is not conducive to after market seat brackets. The main battery frame ground bolt limits how low I can weld the tube on and I can't see moving it and more welding. But.

          Photo 2:  This is how my seat bracket WAS mounted. It's pretty much the ONLY way it can go. You have to jam the nut with a screwdriver because the ground bung keeps a wrench out. It's just overall a PITA!

          Photo 3: This is where the tube will be welded after it's cut loose from the angled piece. It can only go so low because of the ground bolt. Then I'll grind the mount at an angle from the tube back to suit where the seat wants to be.

           The wires are easily protected from welding heat and the one wire going though the frame mount will be moved. I had previously taken the main harness out of there when I unwrapped the whole harness years ago.

            The tank will be removed.

            I'm still conSIDering cutting the whole thing off the frame, mounting the ground bung somewhere else and welding the tube directly to the frame. THAT would get me aNOTHER inch  I'm thinking how hard it would be on my hands to shape that piece of steel to the frame.

       What think ye?

[heloego]

Had you considered relocating the battery ground to another location, like a lug for the battery support on the rear down tube?

[tooseevee]

Had you considered relocating the battery ground to another location, like a lug for the battery support on the rear down tube?

           Read my text again 

[heloego]

Quote: "...and the one wire going though the frame mount will be moved."
Point made. 

[tooseevee]

Quote: "...and the one wire going though the frame mount will be moved."
Point made. 

           No, that's not the sentence I was referring to (and the "one wire" that's inside that damn horseshoe isn't the Main ground wire).

           Anyway   The sentence I meant is the very last one where I say I was still actively thinking of all the ins and outs of cutting the whole thing off, welding the tube directly to the frame and relocating the main frame ground.

           I can't remember for sure, but I think that one wire goes to the starter relay in the left side case & is no huge deal to pull out of there when I decide to cut that bracket off (just to be sure I don't cut it while I'm cutting the bracket off).

           I HAVE to be sure FIRST that my welder friend will make a "house call" before I cut anything & I can't get over to see him with pictures of what I want done until Tues. or maybe Wed.. Finishing this drywell job in my back yard is taking precedence right now. Finished surrounding it with gravel yesterday and finished filling the trench and spreading top soil & will get the Pop-Top standpipe done this morning. Then I'll get the final topsoil spread over the drywell itself. Last step will be seeding it and THEN I can concentrate on the bike.

            Your suggestion to find another existing bolt for the ground is perfect. Why did I think of Welding first?  Keep an eye on me  I'm distracted 

               

[AzCal Retred]

2CV - put the ground from the bat(-) to a nearby engine case bolt, use a #2 or so if you can find a suitable black cable from the auto supply. That'll cover the starter amps plenty. Put a #8 or so ring-lugged jumper from there up to the regular "wad 'o grounds" from the wiring harness, long enough so you don't need to chop up anything. Bolt the jumper & the regular grounds together, add a little black 3M "33" any it's invulnerable. -ACR -

[tooseevee]

2CV - put the ground from the bat(-) to a nearby engine case bolt, use a #2 or so if you can find a suitable black cable from the auto supply. That'll cover the starter amps plenty. Put a #8 or so ring-lugged jumper from there up to the regular "wad 'o grounds" from the wiring harness, long enough so you don't need to chop up anything. Bolt the jumper & the regular grounds together, add a little black 3M "33" any it's invulnerable. -ACR -

           I couldn't leave it alone & went down an hour ago even though I didn't feel like it. Once I got down there I was OK  . I used the bolt that holds the cute little rubber fuse holder to the cross member. A few minutes getting good bare metal with a Dremel sandpaper drum and it was done. The factory main ground wire is heavy & already has a good Ring connector on it. No need for a new wire & the bolt goes plenty tight. All done.

    Now I can cut the horseshoe off right across even with the top surface of the frame tube. That will create three good weld points (the remaining pieces of the horseshoe still welded to the frame tube and the frame tube).  Very simple very easy.

    That will give me the lowest possible mounting for that tube. The other picture shows the "increase in lowness" I'll get.

     Tomorrow I'll go see my welder guy and buy grass seed  and then the drywell will be done.


 

[AzCal Retred]

What about cross drilling the "horse shoe" bracket vertical sides to accept the pivot sleeve, or skipping the sleeve & using only a shouldered bolt through this bracket to to support the seat pivot? Side slack could be made up with washers. A Nyloc nut would handle tensioning chores & stay put for adjustment. Some really good Grade #8 fine thread bolts out there. 

Using a bolt smaller in diameter than the sleeve automatically drops you even a bit lower. Nothing in this option precludes later welding, and you wouldn't need to wait on anyone else. A grinder would easily remove any surplus metal. Plus, you are not accidentally subjecting any electronics to welding current or arc splash.

Just a thought - ACR -

[tooseevee]

What about cross drilling the "horse shoe" bracket vertical sides to accept the pivot sleeve, or skipping the sleeve & using only a shouldered bolt through this bracket to to support the seat pivot? Side slack could be made up with washers. A Nyloc nut would handle tensioning chores & stay put for adjustment. Some really good Grade #8 fine thread bolts out there. 

Using a bolt smaller in diameter than the sleeve automatically drops you even a bit lower. Nothing in this option precludes later welding, and you wouldn't need to wait on anyone else. A grinder would easily remove any surplus metal. Plus, you are not accidentally subjecting any electronics to welding current or arc splash.

Just a thought - ACR -

        I can't leave ANY part of the "horseshoe" as the seat bracket itself is such that it will not "drop down over" the horseshoe (the horseshoe is wider than the seat bracket) so would still remain higher than I want it IOW I don't gain enough to even bother.

           I was already committed to removing the whole thing anyway. There's very little spatter with TIG and everything will be covered with Refrasil.  The battery will be disconnected.

           So. I finally got to go see my welder friend Friday (life interfered with getting there) & he's coming Thursday so I spent 10 minutes twice yesterday and the horseshoe is gone, cut off even with the top of the center frame tube leaving the two stubs of the horseshoe to weld to + the frame tube. This will place the tube for the seat bracket WAY lower than before, as you can see from the previous pictures, making this whole exercise worth the trouble.

          Today I'll cut the tube loose from its little bracket and my part will be done.   

[chuntera]

Can you modify the seat to lower height ?

[tooseevee]

Can you modify the seat to lower height ?

           No. It's a very minimalist Chica style seat. It has almost zero padding. It's just black leather over a steel seat pan with maybe a half inch of "something" for padding.

            I don't have recent pictures of the Enfield, but here's the same seat on the last harley I built.

[axman88]

The way my Classic 500, with it's stock vinyl over foam over steel pan seat arrived as I purchased it 2nd hand, was with a very crude bracket attached to the bottom of the seat.  That bracket was just a simple offset bent piece of steel, bolted to the bottom of the seat pan.  The offset leg went through the open "U" which is welded to the frame.  There was no fore and aft fixing of the seat at the front.  The seat was mounted at the rear via the usual springs and sloped downward towards the tank.  The rear springs pushed the seat forward as well as holding the back end up, which kept the offset prong engaged with the frame stirrup.  It was crude, and I figured it was either an owner mod, or a dealer mod, to get lower saddle height.

Being about 6'1", I wanted MORE seat height, so I purchased and installed the standard front hinge bracket mount.

Could one not cut the stirrup off the frame and weld the static hinge knuckle directly to the frame, thus lowering the front of the seat by over 1"?  Not sure how fastener access would be?

[tooseevee]

Could one not cut the stirrup off the frame and weld the static hinge knuckle directly to the frame, thus lowering the front of the seat by over 1"?  Not sure how fastener access would be?

       I don't get it. Haven't you read what I've been doing? That's exactly what I'm doing. And I get a bit more than 2" lower, not 1". Look at the pictures I've so conscientiously posted 

       I'll take a few more tonight to bring you up to date 

       It's all done now but welding the tube to the frame and that's happening Thursday morning. A welding "house call" like the doctors did when I was growing up in the '40s and '50s. He's an old friend whose father I worked with in the '60s and he has a thriving welding business now.

[axman88]

       I don't get it. Haven't you read what I've been doing? That's exactly what I'm doing. And I get a bit more than 2" lower, not 1". Look at the pictures I've so conscientiously posted 

Yeah, I was reading.   Lots of words.  And I looked at the pictures, which all seem to show the barrel of the knuckle well above the stirrup, which is well above the frame, and none of them showed it down where it would end up if you cut off the stirrup.  Seems like somebody could just drill a cross hole in the stirrup and call THAT drill hole in a couple sheet metal thicknesses the mount, or drill bigger, and weld in a piece of tube, or even swage both ends of a tube so it couldn't slip out the sides of a drilled hole in the stirrup, and be finished.

Or, there was the cheap and crude method the previous owner of my bike used.  I rode it that way for a while, but I improved matters by shoving a couple of pieces of stiff rubber inside the stirrup to cushion things a bit.

I'm surprised that you don't have a welder, building as much as you do.  Can pick up a used arc welder for next to nothing.   I bought my gas rig and tanks for $150 back in the late 80s.

Some of your pictures are not loading for me.  The first ones opened up, but the later ones didn't.  Technically, I'm being paid to work, so I can't focus on the forums as much as some other guys.  Sorry!

Best Luck!

[tooseevee]

Yeah, I was reading.   Lots of words.  And I looked at the pictures, which all seem to show the barrel of the knuckle well above the stirrup, which is well above the frame, and none of them showed it down where it would end up if you cut off the stirrup.  Seems like somebody could just drill a cross hole in the stirrup and call THAT drill hole in a couple sheet metal thicknesses the mount, or drill bigger, and weld in a piece of tube, or even swage both ends of a tube so it couldn't slip out the sides of a drilled hole in the stirrup, and be finished.

Or, there was the cheap and crude method the previous owner of my bike used.  I rode it that way for a while, but I improved matters by shoving a couple of pieces of stiff rubber inside the stirrup to cushion things a bit.

I'm surprised that you don't have a welder, building as much as you do.  Can pick up a used arc welder for next to nothing.   I bought my gas rig and tanks for $150 back in the late 80s.

Some of your pictures are not loading for me.  The first ones opened up, but the later ones didn't.  Technically, I'm being paid to work, so I can't focus on the forums as much as some other guys.  Sorry!

Best Luck!

        Oh, what a tangled web we weave.....

         The pictures you are looking at (in my very first post and in Reply #6 on Sept. 14) and telling me how f*cked up I am are the BEFORE pictures. That's the way the seat was mounted beFORE which is why I'm doing this; To LOWER the front of the seat and get my feel flatter on the frigging ground.

      The way you suggest is way more trouble than what I'm doing which is actually very simple. You'd see why if you were here. The configuration of the "horseshoe" and the seat bracket do not play well together. I HAD to be cut off.

       I had a stick welder for many years. I was never really an expert with it and it's crude. I had more of a circle years ago and people to work with. I gave the welder away along with a lot of harley stuff, tools, parts, etc.. when I gave my last harley to my last best old best friend because of pain that I've been riding with and dealing with my whole life. In fact I sold the harley before this one in 1998 for the same reason and immediately started gathering parts to build another one. I could not give it up. It's made me a stubborn bastard.     

       Anyway. I'm not justifying or defending what I'm doing any more. The seat post has ended up exactly as I pictured it.

[tooseevee]

    Here are a couple pictures As Of Right Now.

     It's all done but the TIG welding which happens Thursday morning. Probably take my old friend Paul 10 minutes then we'll drink coffee for an hour "catching up".

      One of the stubs is a hair high. I'll fix that tomorrow morning. The center of the tube sits right on the frame which is as low as you can get.

       Before someone points out the obvious to me: Yes We'll protect the wires and the clutch cable and everything else. Refrasil is your friend.

[axman88]

Nice!  Glad it worked out.  Now, everything makes sense.  Glad you took my advice. ( just kidding, ... calm down)

I want a TIG!  That's the ultimate in welding versatility right there.   Aluminum, stainless, it can handle it.  When I got my gas rig they were way too expensive, but nowadays those little inverter boxes can be had very reasonably.  Of course, the one I want is more like $4K.  What make/model unit does your friend have?

[tooseevee]

Nice!  Glad it worked out.  Now, everything makes sense.  Glad you took my advice. ( just kidding, ... calm down)

I want a TIG!  That's the ultimate in welding versatility right there.   Aluminum, stainless, it can handle it.  When I got my gas rig they were way too expensive, but nowadays those little inverter boxes can be had very reasonably.  Of course, the one I want is more like $4K.  What make/model unit does your friend have?

           Thanks. Those stubs left from the cut off "horseshoe" need some further "touching up", but I'll be honest, my hands (and the rest of what's left of me  ) hurt so bad I may just do the minimum necessary and just paint it all later with my Ford Black touch up lacquer. It dries nice and hard and tough super fast.

            I'll have to let you know Thursday what rig he brings with him. His operation (which his father started) is quite large. He employs 4 or 5 people (+ office staff) in two large buildings and they can handle anything from large truck and trailer work and fabbing (and lots of fishing boat work) to my little micro-job. They'll build any kind of trailer you want, for example. All the family houses are also on the same many acre "compound". It's a multi-million dollar operation. The largest metal fabbing operation in Southern Rhode Island.   

[tooseevee]

      I got hit Monday (blind-sided) by a "VERY Bad Thing" which required a LOT of immediate action in time, stress and running around getting advice and planning. That's why I didn't write Thursday. I can't seem to keep my mind off TBT + there's been a lot of just plan "other stuff" to do around here. TOO much. I should be sitting down WATCHING stuff get done at my age   

      Anyway. The welding went perfect Thursday AM. Like I said, it took 5 minutes. He built a nice "buttress" aft of the tube. It will never move. Paul sed "That's in case the "next" guy weighs 300#". (I weigh 125).

       It's perfect. It sits right on the frame as low as it  CAN be. It might look crooked in the pictures; it's not. It's the dead black paint & reflections. The seat is all the way back in the picture. It can go all the way closer to the tank because I've cut the slot longer in front + taken the center connector out so it's one long slot now. I do not know yet where it will end up fore & aftwise.

     I have a good idea for rear support which won't even require those rear spring bolts - I will cut them off.   

      Someone (is that 2 words?) asked about the TIG machine. Picture attached. Oooh!  Oooh! He drives a giant silver Ford Dually  Super Duty Platinum 4-door 4WD pickup with all the bells and whistles (in DD+DTS). Many amps. So learn how to weld, you "young folks"    He's a multi-millionaire and just a regular guy.

[Adrian II]

So learn how to weld, you "young folks"    He's a multi-millionaire and just a regular guy.

Maybe if a few of them take a good hard look at the cr*p which seems to be the stock aspirational fodder being promoted at the moment, you never know...

Hope your VERY Bad Thing is sorted, glad the seat is how you want it. 

A.

[tooseevee]

Maybe if a few of them take a good hard look at the cr*p which seems to be the stock aspirational fodder being promoted at the moment, you never know...

Hope your VERY Bad Thing is sorted, glad the seat is how you want it. 

A.

           Yes. It's worked well, but thankgod I'm a planner. Gotta shorten up the bracket bolts (welded to the seat pan) next. Hacksaw time again     

           Sort of half sorted (or 1/3). The first step worked. I wasn't optimistic. The next steps (especially #2) are a I have to wait and see thing.

[AzCal Retred]

Looking good! Nice touch with the chafing wrap (friction tape?) on the cable too. - ACR -

[heloego]

Glad things have mostly been sorted, mate!
That seat sure looks good on there! 

[tooseevee]

Looking good! Nice touch with the chafing wrap (friction tape?) on the cable too. - ACR -

           Thanks, Retread. Early on in the saga of this '08 when it was still "factory new", I unwrapped the whole main wire loom (miles of sticky, gooey, black plastic electrical tape) and refurbished and fixed the horrible job the factory was doing then wiring-wise on the AVLs. Also redid the headlight rat's nest and all new wire from under the seat to the rear lights (there wasn't even a grommet where it goes thru the fender).

           All but that one wire you can see is rewrapped with '50s style cloth harness tape. It adheres on one side, but it unwraps like magic (and rewraps) without the gooey friggin' mess. IIRC there are 39 wires in that loom or maybe it was 29. Whatever 

            The connections inside that loom were negligent and almost criminal. Just bare, exposed. twisted wire splices in many places; no actual "connectors". My only regret (now) is that I didn't run it UNDER that frame member. I will not do it now. The connections are many and many of the wires are spidery and delicate. It would take way too many hours (again) with hands that don't do what I need them to do.  I AM going to reroute that single relay-to-starter wire (that crappy relay has also been replaced) and get rid of that silly plastic coil that's on it now. I don't really like that stuff. It's too "easy way out" looking.     

[heloego]

I don't blame ya for not wanting to re-do the routing!Seems like every time I think I've finished I look at it again and slap my forehead. I guess anything worth doing is worth doing twice. 
I just finished going through the wiring mess on the ElectraX. 
Replaced ALL the "criminal" splices with heat shrinkable splices and emptied out a 5gal trash bin that was FULL of the crap electrical tape. While I didn't use cloth tape to re-cover, I did use this nice expandable wire loom:
https://www.amazon.com/Alex-Tech-25ft-Protector-Sleeving/dp/B07FW86XV6/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1RU6W7341R62A&dchild=1&keywords=wire+loom&qid=1601215653&sprefix=wire+loom%2Caps%2C202&sr=8-3
Takes a little more attention to the ends by securing with black heat shrink tubing and maybe a couple zip ties where wires need to go out the side, but I like the look. IMHO it gives the chassis that "finished look" so needed.
This makes the third one I've done in the last year and I thought I had it down pat. But NO!
Had to re-route at least twice, discovered I hadn't re-pinned a couple of connectors, etc. 
I guess as time marches on the brain marches off.

[tooseevee]

Takes a little more attention to the ends by securing with black heat shrink tubing and maybe a couple zip ties where wires need to go out the side, but I like the look. IMHO it gives the chassis that "finished look" so needed.
This makes the third one I've done in the last year and I thought I had it down pat. But NO!
Had to re-route at least twice, discovered I hadn't re-pinned a couple of connectors, etc. 
I guess as time marches on the brain marches off.

           We grow too soon old and too late smart. Somebody said that. I'm getting tired of only spending 15 minutes a day on 18 different things and having to go sit for a while to get my mojo back and the pain to subside. I said that 

            Up at 4, admin stuff, feed the dog, eat something, arrive at Ace Hrdwr 9 sharp, back home, diddle with this, diddle with that, fix a light switch, played with the seat 1/2 hour, hot as a rain forest in an oven here today, and here it is 5PM. But I guess I'm used to it.

             I did not relocate the relay wire. More trouble than it's worth (unhook battery, disconnect from relay, etc..) and I'd still have to hide it and it looks better hidden where it is Zip-Tied behind the main loom & then Zip-Tie the main harness AND the loose wire as a unit in the little valley between the two frame tubes. You can't even see that wire any more  Simpler. Cleaner. 

              Cut up a lot of cardboard, too. Too much ordering. Too many boxes.

               That "wire armor" looks good. Like it 

[AzCal Retred]

The backbone tube has a nice 5/8" or so hole in it below the seat. If you made a slot, maybe 1/4" x 1" in the other end, on the bottom near the steering stem, you'd have a very nice, protected conduit for wiring. My Bullet will get this mod when the top end comes off this winter. There are gusset plates in this area, you wouldn't lose anything strength-wise. - ACR -

[tooseevee]

The backbone tube has a nice 5/8" or so hole in it below the seat. If you made a slot, maybe 1/4" x 1" in the other end, on the bottom near the steering stem, you'd have a very nice, protected conduit for wiring. My Bullet will get this mod when the top end comes off this winter. There are gusset plates in this area, you wouldn't lose anything strength-wise. - ACR -

            Yes, that all may be true, my friend, and I would love to hide ALL the wires inside the frame, but that would involve undoing all the connections from everything that is wired by the main loom AGAIN and I've done that already and know what a job it is with hands, wrists, arms, shoulders, back that fight me with pain ALL the time and don't follow my orders any more. It took me most of a year at a half hour here a half hour there to get the wiring to my satisfaction when I did it the first time. I can't even lift a coffee cup in the morning without a knife being stabbed into my wrist and just the weight of my arms now will dislocate one shoulder or the other if I'm not careful. My shoulders have dislocated hundreds of times over my life and it takes concentration all the time now to keep it from happening. There's nothing holding them together any more.

          And on the other end, standing on any hard surface (or leaning forward) brings on hip and lower back pain after a 1/2 hour that deMANDS another sit-down. I never get any one job carried through from start to finish. It's fits and restarts all the time and quitting when I don't really WANT to quit, but HAVE to. And the carpel tunnel numbness came back years ago also (left wrist surgery 1989, right wrist 1990). By the time I relented and had the surgery my hands and forearms were fucked.

         And that's my greatest fear; I am a total mess and I just plain may not be able to even get the bike out of the garage by the end of this next winter. THAT is my main reason for doing this seat mount work; to hopefully get more foot (both of them ) on the ground. I canNOT move the bike around any more on tippy-toes; it's just too scary. That, combined with my loss of upper body strength and pain, makes it very scary for me even moving the bike in and out of the garage without it running. I really don't want to drop her. She's still a virgin         

         PS: I've looked into the hole you mention at the rear end of the center tube under the seat. It's full of loose welding slag. I keep forgetting to clean it out with my pick-up magnet.

          Gotta go. Both my hands are completely numb and tingling just from typing. Gotta go feed and water the birds then feed my horse of a dog.

[tooseevee]

     You guys (any girls here?) must be so SICK of this F-ing seat saga. Oh, well and It's Done !!

       This AM I cut a 1/2 inch off the seat bolts so the ends don't stick down past the nut. Looks "unfinished" from the side. BTW don't buy Ace Hrdwr hacksaw blades. An old Stanley 24T worked better.

          Got 'er all rigged up & lined up & tightened up (I've GOT to get better, free-standing lighting!) & mounted & it looked damn fine from above AND the side.

            Next was rear support. I've had 3-2"x2"x3" blocks of very dense hard rubber hanging around for 30 tears (I'll need those some day ) So I cut a piece to just fit into the "slot" the bracket forms and I guessed at the height. Perfect! Comes right down & sits on the frame tube. My weight on it leaves it a finger from the rear fenderoffer. It hits on a bump? - I don't care; so did the Lycette mounted on springs.

      Then? I finally threw a leg over & SAT on it (you thought I'd never get there, right?  ) I am FLATfooted! On the Centerstand!!

     So. Left to do: Remove seat (too bad ). Remove bracket. Cut off that unneeded end of the bracket that sticks out & cut off the 2 rear spring bolts.

       Not today.


         

         

[Adrian II]

Neatly done. Isn't that also the first view of the new petcock?

A.

[tooseevee]

Neatly done. Isn't that also the first view of the new petcock?

A.

           Yes. Did I forget to bring that thread to a conclusion?

            I also noticed I never replaced that stamped metal head steady. I was going to order one of those adjustable, thick wall ones and never did it.

            I might also start a thread on alignment, reason which is pretty apparent in the shot from the rear if you look close. I'll take another picture if I do; the bars are slightly cocked in the picture below.

       

[heloego]

Agreed, you've nicely done it! 

[Adrian II]

I also noticed I never replaced that stamped metal head steady. I was going to order one of those adjustable, thick wall ones and never did it.

If it has lasted this long there might be no rush to replace it. My AVL hybrid snapped two of the pressed ones, I cut a replacement from some heavier gauge steel strip which appears to have survived.

A.

[Bilgemaster]

Well done, Tooseevee! As a confirmed "bodger" and hamfisted practitioner of half-assery just to get me down the road, I still nurse a swooning admiration for guys like you who get it all "just so".

How the Bilgemaster appeared just prior to the ambulance's arrival testing his new improvised wooden axle, inspired by the buttressed entrance to his Shed of Bodgery

[tooseevee]

Well done, Tooseevee! As a confirmed "bodger" and hamfisted practitioner of half-assery just to get me down the road, I still nurse a swooning admiration for guys like you who get it all "just so".

How the Bilgemaster appeared just prior to the ambulance's arrival testing his new improvised wooden axle, inspired by the buttressed entrance to his Shed of Bodgery[/center]

           Thanks & I love that shed (and the guy coming out of it). I actually wish I had been 14 or 15 yo in 1907 when my mother was born & we were 4 years into an explosion of motorcycle creation here in the U.S.. That was a time when we had dozens of motorcycle builders for many years and it was an exciting time when absolutely gorgeous machines were being produced. Then we were down to only 2 & Indian screwed up and it left one. Ideally Indian should have survived (they were GORGEOUS machines) & it would have made BOTH of them better throughout ALL of the years from 1903 to the clusterfuck we're in now. 

            I'm very happy with the seat. It was worth the pain & I'm knees-bent flat footed on the centerstand now. I've not had it down yet - it will be even Better  The big mods for me are over. No more. The thing I regret most now is that I didn't replace the tires way earlier and powder coat the rims black. After I get it squared away & run it down the road a few times next season I think we'll be trailering it up to my son's place in Connecticut. I'd love to deliver it, but I'd Never make it 50 miles, I'd be found dead in a ditch somewhere. He's been lusting after it for years & I think the time has come.

[Adrian II]

Don't let him change the seat for at least 6 months!

A.

[tooseevee]

Don't let him change the seat for at least 6 months!

A.

            Ha  I'm pretty sure he'll love it. He also likes a flat-footed stance, like at stop signs, being used to harleys. I also joked with him that he should give me his 2-wheel drive URAL for a summer to help ease the loss of the Enfield. He hemmed and hawed. I don't really want it. It's too clumsy & weird for me to steer or I would love to have it.

             I may just keep the Enfield another season. Quien sabe??

             

[heloego]

Enjoy it as long as you can! 

[tooseevee]

     So. To put a cap on this thread.

      This AM things sort of fell together & it was the first morning since the seat was finished that I didn't have to wear gloves in order to keep my hands working.

      I backed the bike out to the end of the driveway to catch the first low sun & I'm still not happy with the pictures. Crap camera, I suppose.

       So these are the first pictures with both the pipe & the header satin black.

        It's great to have my feet on the ground  , but it still hurts to even move the bike around. I could have ridden, it was way warm enough, but by the time I moved the bike around a couple times everything just hurt too much. I think it's over

[heloego]

Very Nice!
The work was worth the effort, so rest up and next warm day take her out for a spin. 

[Nitrowing]

That looks spot on! Without knowing what had been done, no one would ever guess what has been done.