final pics of hte xs chop

[lostsoul74]

finally had the time to finish up the old xs11. picked this up last winter for 300 bucks, an old 78 standard full dresser. Not my taste personally, but mechanically it was sound.
Stripped her naked, slapped a special tank on her, solo seat, drag bars, harley headlight, dreamweavers Ford sidemount, chopped 5 links off hte rear springs, basically making her a hardtail, but didnt want to go with fender struts as I like the springs mechanical look, plus, even though very stiff, has a little bounce compared to just a bar. Sprayed her with Ebay (trinity-paintforcars, single stage urathane paint, i've used urathane single stage before and loved it, but this cheapo stuff {75 gallon}wasnt worth the money, would not recomend).
Plans in the very near future (just wanted to get this on the road, havnt had time to do this one as i've finished up a cafe racer, streetfighter, and a drag bike in works). I want to spray hte rear rim red (actually, i'm thinking maybe just the polished lips red and the same black on tank on the middle of rims) and a rear white wall tire to finish off that classic look. Broke off my muffler last week so i'm figuring red cherry bombs with the red rim would look sharp. change out the square speedo (maybe go mini). The seat thats on it looked good when i had the standard tank on, but doesnt match the lines of hte curve on this one, probobly do something else, but fine for now. Buddy has a springer front end i can have for 200 bucks, might paint it the same metalic black and install it. Figure i've got about 500 bucks in total on this bike, 300 for the bike, and maybe 200 in assorted parts/paint/etc. looks better then what i can usually buy for 2k.

[xschop]

nother chop

looks good. do yo plan on mufflers? an does the rear fender rub the top tire?.....nice paint too

[lostsoul74]

yep, plan on putting classic red cherry bombs on her, with a red rear rim and white wall tire. No, the tire doesnt hit anything, never bottoms out, cause it's a hardtail. More or less the springs are for looks more then anything else, after cutting 5 links off to get 10 inches, theres not much spring left, but look better then just a flat bar for lowering links/fender strut. plus theres still a "little" give on the springs when i hit an unnoticed pothole, it helps, even a little, over a solid rear.

[lostsoul74]

looking at the pics, what do you guys think, should i paint my lower front forks black, to give balance?

[chrisso]

Originally posted by lostsoul74
looking at the pics, what do you guys think, should i paint my lower front forks black, to give balance?

Yep...get them Powder Coated....lookin reel good

[blue giant]

Looks Great!



Excellent workmanship too!

[oldyam80sg]

I don't like the license plate mounted on the rear like it is .I've seen this on Hayabusas and think it looks good on that bike and maybe current sport bikes but not on the Yamaha.Maybe I'm too old school but everything else looks good!

[lostsoul74]

really, i've mainly seen these on choppers and bobbers for years, i've only seen a few crotch rockets with them. but then again, i mainly look at choppers and bobbers. Personally, i think its what "makes" that whole from behind look but thats my taste. thanks gents.

[Shuriken]

Re: final pics of hte xs chop

Originally posted by lostsoul74
Sprayed her with Ebay (trinity-paintforcars, single stage urathane paint, i've used urathane single stage before and loved it, but this cheapo stuff {75 gallon}wasnt worth the money, would not recomend).

You didn't like the paintforcars/trinity paint?

I have been using this paint for awhile. I liked House of Kolor better, but I think this ebay paint turned out OK on the fenders and tank on my Max:


Just my opinion... I wouldn't put red paint on your bike. I think it looks good as is. Sometimes red just stands out too much. Just my opinion. Great looking bike.

[mason79]

nice lookin bike, fast too i bet,

red pin stipes, on something to accent

yeah you have to do something with the oxidated forks, polish them up first , sleep on it, then paint it black later if that suits you better.
my .02 cents

[Wayne]

Sweet bike lostsoul74.
Now just put some ape hanger on her and she will be perfect!

But thats just me.

Nice job, keep the picts coming.

Cheers,

[lostsoul74]

thanks guys, appreciate the comments. yea, i found a pic on the net of a xs650 with red rim and whitewall, it looks sharp on spoke rims, but not the mags, i think i'll definately go with the red on the outer edge (polished lip) with wide whitewall. Thats a model A ford light, i couldnt see it on anything but a bobber/chopper. And yea, a VMax is on my wishlist too, thats kind of my idea bike, a good balance between a cruiser and sport bike, thats what i wanted with this one. a chopper look, but i ride it like a crotch rocket. No idea top speed, but i kept up with the rocket guys at 140, so i'm happy, just cant take corners like they do.
yea the more i look at it, the more it looks like every other bike out there, so it wont be long before i post pics of a red lip and whitewall, and probobly with the red cherry exhausts. I saw a show bike somewhere with that layout, looked mint. I had a pair of 9 inch bars on it, didnt quite look right, and as soon as I slapped the drags on, with hte old standard tank that was on it large with knee indents, it had the feel like the rockets i've had before. I'll probobly do more in 2 weeks with this one, got to get a kz900 drag bike ready, and finish up a gs750 cafe.
Yea, i've used a couple single stage urathane paints, both previous times came out perfect, first time, and layed like glass, no runs, orange peel, or anything, and had lots of depth and gloss. This Trinity paint I adjusted my gun multiple times, even changed up the mix ratios, no matter what i did i couldnt get it to lay right, ended up with alot of orange peel and HEAVY wetsanding in the morning, even though the paint can itself says DO NOT SAND OR POLISH PAINT FOR 60 DAYS!!! Even once sanded and polished, i personally have gotten the same results out of spray cans after buffing, it lacks depth. Just my 2 cents anyways, should of gone with hte Eastwood line as i've seen alot of good things said about them, only 10 bucks more, but they didnt have metalic black, just jet.
I think i will ebay a set of harley 11 inch springs though, i left a 3/4 gap cause i figured i'd still have a "little" give on the springs like i did on other xs builds before, but so far everyone that rides behind me says they dont see that close up at all when riding. so I see the 11 inch periodicly at 60 on ebay, i'll get em next time i see em, if too soft, i figure i can always lift it another half inch without totally loosing the effect, or just chop 1 link or two off and still have some give compared to these with 5 links off. My back will thank me... lol
thanks again guys, appreciate to hear other feedback, expecially concidering i really have no idea what i'm doing .. lol, just got into bikes last year, this is the 7th bike i've customed so far, i'm not much of a mechanic, thats what the forums are for, but i just pull up a chair, pull off the seat, look at the lines, and decide what i'm gona make next, weather bobber, streetfighter, cafe, or just plain rat. I'll see if this site has an album if so, i'll post some of my previous mods, unfortunately i'm not good with before and afters, just imagine them as old ugly beaters sitting on the sides of garages for hte last 10 years when i buy em for 2-300 bucks.

[lostsoul74]

by the way guys, i've gotten a few messages about my side light. This light is from Dreamweavers. they have a store online, or if you have an ebay account, theyre on ebay too. Any light, any style, any radious, etc.. etc.... unique styles thatno one else has and a priceline that no one else compares. usually under a hundred bucks, and great guy to do business with, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND him!!

http://stores.ebay.com/Dream-Weavers-Custom-Taillights

[Shuriken]

Originally posted by lostsoul74
And yea, a VMax is on my wishlist too, thats kind of my idea bike, a good balance between a cruiser and sport bike[...]
Yea, i've used a couple single stage urathane paints, both previous times came out perfect, first time, and layed like glass, no runs, orange peel, or anything, and had lots of depth and gloss. This Trinity paint I adjusted my gun multiple times, even changed up the mix ratios, no matter what i did i couldnt get it to lay right, ended up with alot of orange peel and HEAVY wetsanding in the morning, even though the paint can itself says DO NOT SAND OR POLISH PAINT FOR 60 DAYS!!! Even once sanded and polished, i personally have gotten the same results out of spray cans after buffing, it lacks depth. Just my 2 cents anyways, should of gone with hte Eastwood line as i've seen alot of good things said about them, only 10 bucks more, but they didnt have metalic black, just jet.

Save your pennies, wait a few years, and get the new VMax.... 197hp. Bad, bad news bike.

My '85 max doesn't seem to have *any* sportbike character in it. Take a turn at 90 and hit a bump and you are in a speed wobble. Feels very much the same (poor handling) as my XS11s. I think of it more as a power cruiser. It will shred through all 5 gears so freaking fast but throw a fast turn in the mix and you're risking your life..... It, like the XS, can be made to handle.... radial tires, progressive fork springs and cartridge emulators, etc.

Interesting to hear about your experiences with the Trinity paint. I too have tried different things with it and I'm always 90% happy with the paint but I *always* get some strange fisheye spots or something in the paint..... I've tried the jet black base and urethane clear. Have tried wet sanding the base after spraying and also not sanding prior to clear. Each time I get some little crater looking spots in the clear..... Otherwise it has been OK paint. As I mentioned earlier, HOK paint worked much better for me but was a lot more expensive.

[DJinNH]

So one question, where are the babes suppose to sit that you'll be picking up with that thing?

Looks great to me. I do think painting the lower forks black might look even better.

Don