Riding the same bike day after day for many years can be both a blessing and a curse. You get to know the bike well, but sometimes your vision gets a tad blurred. Nicks and scratches start showing up that you just don’t see. You still see the bike the way you did the day you took possession. Somewhere along the line the bike got old and ugly, but you’re too in love to see it. Then one day you look up, vision clear, and you realize something needs to be done. That’s the case with this bike. I love it, but it has gotten a touch ugly over the years.
I like clean, nostalgic bikes with simple paint jobs. While some of the graphics out there are incredible and take a great amount of skill, single and two-tone paint jobs are still my favorite. I considered a few different directions but ultimately decided on a metallic burnt orange for the color. The first order of business was to strip the sheet metal off the bike and take it to the painter.
The original Road King Classic saddlebags were sagging and had some scuffs. I prefer the look of the hard bags, but like the way the Classic bags open. The solution came when I traded the classic bags for two sets of police style bags. They were scuffed up but perfect for what I had in mind. The bags are easy to open with one hand while sitting on the bike. You can’t do that with the standard hard bags.
The problem with the police style bags is the hardware. The hinges look like something you find at Home Depot. The hockey puck on top absolutely had to go. A quick search of the internet and a plan was made. The stock hardware was removed. The indentation on the side of the bags was filled in. Deluxe touring pack hinges from Harley were used to replace the stock Home Depot utility hinge. The face of the saddlebag has a slightly different shape than the touring pack and the hinges are not a perfect fit. Since I was repainting the bike the fit did not pose a problem, but be aware patience is required if you are fitting the hinges to an already painted bag. Holes are relocated and a polished aluminum spacer was made to locate the hinge correctly. Flush mounted pop up hinges were ordered. The stock latch inside the bag was reshaped slightly to establish the proper fit. The strap and lock mounts were recessed into the fiberglass and hidden.
The result is a clean saddlebag that is one of a kind.
The Mustang seat had over 50,000 miles and was still comfortable and in great shape, however, I wanted a solo seat for riding around town with the ability to quickly attach the passenger seat and quick release backrest. I discovered a stock Harley solo seat with matching rear seat on Craigslist for $50. The foam was cut down and reshaped to give a low seating position with memory foam inserted in the centers. A local upholstery shop recovered the seats. The result is a very comfortable one off seat.
I used the reproduction of the 1961-1962 FL tank badges straight from the Harley catalog. They use an adhesive on a bracket that the badge then bolts to. The chrome and white badges offset the color perfectly.
A few minor details and the bike looks better than ever. The Thunderheader exhaust was ceramic coated black with the stock chrome heat shields cut down. The result is a strong, good- looking coating with a significant reduction in the amount of radiating heat. The rear of the bike was cleaned up with the installation of a grab bar eliminator kit incorporating turn signals.
The result is a sharp looking custom ride that can hold it’s own in any company
The Honda is a 1964 S90. A friend had one since he was a kid, and I like it. I found this one on Craig’s list and traded a pistol for it. I am painting it either charcoal grey and silver or olive green and tan, making a café seat, powder coating the rims black, and putting a 140 to 160 cc pit bike or motocross engine in it for a fun little toy to ride around town and to the lake. My youngest daughter will be getting her license next year so she may ride it as well. I ride it around the neighborhood for fun right now and plan to rebuild it over the winter. I had evil thoughts of finding a 250 Harley sprint motor to put in but doesn’t look like it would fit.
