Salvaged R65 Winter built

[nhmaf]

I think that this will be the first R65 that I've ever seen with a springer front end - seems like it
may be a bit of a 'bobber, hardtail and flat tracker rolled into one..   certainly very unique !

[Jon_P]

i was looking at a leading link but even the price of a russian copy was crazy. i had got the springer for another bike but then figgured out how to run it on here instead.

i worked on the shock mounts, maybe this will help it not look so much like a hardtail.

[Justin B.]

Not really, the way the angle of the swingarm flows into the rest of the frame it's gonna look like a hard-tail - IMO.  It's going to look interesting when you get it finished.

[nhmaf]

I cannot find it anymore, but at one time I had found a JPG of someone else's modified, kinda Bobber-style R65.  It had a
black and orange tank with under the crankcase located exhaust canisters, a sprung, suspended-style "tractor seat" and a backbone mounted rear shock
in a similar position as yours, but the rear swingarm wasn't the neat little triangulated number you've developed.  If my memory is correct, the swingarm
pn that bike had an extended linkage (or so it appeared) up over the rear wheel, so that the shock was even more horizontal in its position.   I think that
there was a closely fitted rear fender that was "live" (.i.e it moved up and down with the swingarm, like on the Kawasaki Drifter and some older classics
from many decades ago).

Please keep us posted with photo updates of your creation - it is alot of fun to watch someone's creative ideas come to life !
-Mike

[Joan]

Whoa... Jon, this is one wild a$$ project! DON'T STOP!  

[Danie]

Nice.......... I like the front wheel !

[Jon_P]

Joan are those tigger ears on your helmet? my kids saw them right away, now my girls want them on their helmets. my oldest son has a soft rubber mohawk looking thing though i tease him it looks more like martin the space dude helmet.

i am in a build off contest with this and have till march first! so other than the seat rails i am way ahead. now i am really thinking about making a racing cage like side car for it to really make it look different, also i would be able to take my little little boys for a ride, i dont have anything that they could even think about touching the pegs so the side car idea would make me the cool dad of the year with my little guys (they are 3 & 5 by the way)

[nhmaf]

Before that springer front end went on, I was envisioning that it was going to look something like this bike -
found this on the internet... not sure whose it was !


http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t138/nhmaf/Bmw-1.jpg

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

I'm really impressed, Jon.  Keep up the good work!  

(how many spokes ARE there on that front wheel, anyway???)

[Jon_P]

(how many spokes ARE there on that front wheel, anyway???)  

alot! i think there is like 60 spokes jammed in there.

i have done a couple of bikes kind of like this, the others where yamaha's xs650 and a honda cb750. with my back in bad shape i really shouldnt do hard tails any more. (yes i am one who really likes hardtails and how they ride along with the increadable amount of power that goes to the rear wheel, supensions take alot of power from you engines)

some one on another board i hang at said it looks like somethng a Russell would make if he chopped a BMW. i thought that was kind of cool.

so i have only a couple of weeks to finish so i can ride on the great fools ride. should be fine, have to get though my family being sick with the flu. i was sick for the last week and before that hurt my back again but it was more of a pinched nerve or pulled muscle this time so i recovered quick.

not sure if i want to paint it yet? if i do may some primer and let it look like a rat bike. i brazed over a bunch of the weld joints. it makes it looks like the frame should fall apart at any thing more than 10 miles or 5 mph what ever comes first. LOL i then would tear down the engine next winter and polish everything and then paint the tank and frame a nice silver to match??? i dont see the point of painting if the engine doesnt show the same amount of detail, that might just be me.

well i should go out in the shop and get to work while my family is in bed sleeping and throwing up all over the place.

[Justin B.]

I think a "suede Rat" would be pretty cool...  Keep us posted with plenty of pix...

[Jon_P]

i started putting it back together this weekend. should be finish by sunday? or next weekend??

[Justin B.]

I hope you plan on at least tossing an old shop-rag over that seat form before you take off!

[MrRiden]

Why do I keep getting flashes of fishtail pipes? Really a werk of art you have going there. I'm itching to see more as you progress.
rich

[Jon_P]

wow thats crazy you say that rich. i have a idea for some fishtail exhaust set up. i have to deciede how i want to run it.