opinion on new fender

[lostsoul74]

for those of you that know me, you know i'm always just buying parts just cause it's a deal and i'll find something to make it fit later. Heres a 5 dollar ebay fender for a 2007 Vstar that just came in the mail today, thought i'd dry fit on the rat bob to see if I could make it work. I can, just got to make some minor knotches and bondo over the old holes and paint to match, but kinda 50/50 on weather it looks ok or not. Heres a pic of the before and after, the before is obviously the ducktail bobbed original fender. Plan was to go with a whitewall for that bobber look, but the new fender would cover most of that and definately change the style and taste.... how about you guys, like or dislike.

before:





After: Dryfit

[mastan]

You asked for opinions so...
Thumbs down on the new fender. It really doesn't match what you've done to the rest of the bike. For me a better option would be to paint both fenders to match the tank. It would be a better fit to the look you started.
Also, the rear wheel is way to narrow for that fender. It makes that rear tire look real skinny.
Mark

[lostsoul74]

yea thats kind of my same thought process, I was happy with how it was before, once i put the white wall on and did the polished rear rim lip red, along with the slashcut chery bomb exhaust, i would of been all set. But this was so cheap I had to try, I still like it, alot, but i'm a bit of a hard wild rider, so the ducktail style fits me better and looks ok with my knees up and leaning forward like ina crotchrocket position. I thought about doing hte chrome fender black, i covered it with wide black tape once to see if i liked it, i liked the chrome better in this situation. with the new fender, though it looks good, I would definately have to go with forward controls and probably ape hangers for that matter. you see the tire now cause the camera is low, in a standing position you barely see the tire, and i've got a 140 to put on anyways. Though I was reading the forum on how to knotch out the shaft for a 160. But then again, it would chill my ass down and I wouldnt be such a demon on it. but hey... you know what they say, a bike thats never been laid down, is a bike thats never been riddin... now when i see it coming, i make sure to lay it down on the right, i hate replacing that 100 dollar taillight as it slides 200 feet (big grin with half missing teeth lol)

[DGXSER]

Opinions are like......

Butt here goes mine.

That new fender is like curtains in an outhouse to me, just does not go with it. The short bars and short seat all lend to a minimalist approach. That fender looks like the train on a wedding gown hung off a sundress. JMHO which is what you aked for.

[CatatonicBug]

I guess my sense of style is a bit different... I'm not really aware of all the "styles" of different bikes, or what they are called, so I can only go with what I think is nice. Personally, I think the new fender makes the bike more elegant. I like it. I do agree though that both fenders should be the same color.

[lostsoul74]

oops.. lol, ok, you meant paint the front chrome fender to match the black, gotchya... and yes, Opinions are what i'm looking for, harsh or agreeable, just as long as it's not from a purist... lol... jk. hey... at least this ones actually a yamaha part..... instead of a harley or honda like half the others.

[mastan]

Actually, I am a purist, but only for my bike. Whatever anyone wants to do to their bike is fine. I enjoy seeing other peoples ideas on what this bike is.
I was thinking about cutting the front fender to match the dimensions on the rear and then painting both of them to match the tank.
Mark

[tarzan]

I think the fender actually blends nice with the tank.But the bars look odd with that fender.

[TopCatGr58]

That fender looks like it needs a camoflauge green sidecar attached to it!

The first thing that popped into my mind was the old German WWII service bikes, at least that was the impression it gave me!
T.C.

[Ken Talbot]

I like the lines of the black fender. Match it with a black front fender, and for god's sake ditch those white handgrips and it would be great!

[lostsoul74]

lol, no way man, all my classic bobbers have white walls with white grips, hell, my old one had a white suicide shift to match lol. just google bobbers images and you'll see alot of them do. I just put those grips on today, was about to put the whitewall on when the big box came from ups and i had a new toy to play with. But yea, you are kinda right, it wouldnt match the look with that fender, usually looks sharp with the whitewall and grips on the ductails or stripped fenders on most bobbers. Though.. looking back at the pic above, I could still pull it off with a white seat for balance, that fender would hide too much of the whitewall to give it balance. Though, i do like hte "elegant" mention above, I guess I could pull of this look with some t bars, white grips, whitewalls, red rim lip, forget the red cherry bombs, and do a white seat that i'd have to make from glass, .... hmmm..... now you got me thinkin... I could make this work...
wait... then i'd have one of those Purdy bikes.... i'd be afraid to drive the way I do in that case, heaven forbid i got a scratch lol.

[lostsoul74]

ps. i know everyone wants me to paint the front and rear fenders regardless if ductail or not, but man, do you realize how tight that thing is pounded in there, i can only cringe at the thought of trying to shove something freshly painted in there. lol Besides, if i did that, then i'd have to patch in the old holes in the fender, then it would have be called a custom instead of a rat lol

[DJinNH]

You asked for opinions so...
Thumbs down on the new fender. It really doesn't match what you've done to the rest of the bike. For me a better option would be to paint both fenders to match the tank. It would be a better fit to the look you started.
Also, the rear wheel is way to narrow for that fender. It makes that rear tire look real skinny.
Mark

My opinion....I like the "before" fender better. That's just me, you do whatever makes you happy.

Don

[81xsproject]

I agree with DJ.

[lostsoul74]

ok, thanks guys, looks like this will be going on the xs850 i've just picked up for 300 bucks, running too (then again, thats all i paid for this one too, i've never spent more then 600 dollars total including materials and build/parts/paint/etc on any of my bikes, but 300 bucks for a running bike in spring is a pretty sweet deal). I'll go with ape bars and everything else on that one, forward controls i think would be easier too. Thanks gents, but you got to admit, thats a pretty nice mod for 5 bucks!!! have a great weekend and thanks for your opinions gentlemen.

eric