Great job....you didn't need no stink'in Ural! Welcome to "Hack Rat World". Don't need a credit union to have a blast!
Some finishing touches- /5 black mirrors I had forgotten in the basement, left side cover bungee'd on (no room for the right side), and $19 close-out 55w halogen driving lights. They were chrome, but got the backyard paint treatment. I had them wired in circuit yesterday, but today went back and added a relay, so no one flips the switch and kills my battery. Now they won't light unless the ignition is on, too. Lastly, a salvaged GSXR-1100 steering damper. Post welded to the frame and a bolt through the lower triple tree to mount it. And the piece de resistance- a reflective ADV sticker! Made a little bracket for my $2.89 Radio Shack toggle light switch... Last thing to do is paint some shark teeth on the nose....
I can't seem to get my computer to download videos from my phone cam. Photos yes, video, no. Must be a different driver I need. Not sure what the glitch is, but hopefully I'll have something up soon!
So, I've been driving the rig daily rain or shine for over two weeks now and I love it! After I had an epiphany the first day and relaxed my death grip on the bars it all started coming naturally. I'm taking it slow and steady and trying to anticipate any potential hazardous situations, of course. Don't want to get in over my head while hot-dogging. I've also been acclimating my dogs to the rig slowly. Every day on our walk I let them climb in after a treat. Eventually I'll start the bike with them in it and get them used to the sound, and finally we'll take off nice and slow. I've purchased Doggles and a harness, and I'm going to rig a four point attachment system with some stainless eye-bolts, climbing line, and some carabiners. Old dog is the best candidate for monkey so far... Other than that, only things left to do on the rig are: install my JC Whitney voltmeter (with a custom PVC pipe case, painted black), and cut down my seat and recover it with a solo police seat cover I picked up. Maybe a fender rack behind..... I'm sure this project will never quite be done. I did feel the rig needed some more attitude, so after Googling "P-40 fighter planes" and a few pencil doodles I took a deep breath and slapped some teef on the chair with some One Shot sign paint: Not sure if it's supposed to be a shark, a tiger, or some kind of rabid turtle. I'm just saying it's the Hack Monster if anyone asks. Someday I'm going to figure out video uploads...
I decided to see if anyone else liked the rig today. I took it to the Charm City Mods Vs. Rockers event in Essex, MD. Live bands, pit beef, cold beer, cool merch from local vendors, a visit from the Charm City Roller Girls, and a Pin-Up Girl contest (wish I had gotten pics of that!). But most importantly, loads of cool bikes of every description. First I had to finish decorating the chair. I decided it had to have teeth on both sides of the nose. I free-handed something with charcoal, then started with the One Shot Polar White. Next the red, then I outlined everything in black to make it easy to see from a distance- more graphic-like. I didn't even try to make both sides symetrical. Too impatient. I blasted up the freeway to help dry the paint. The rig did a steady indicated 75 mph and soaked up the crappy Baltimore Beltway road surfaces with no wobble. Tracked straight and I could keep a loose grip on the bars. It did as well as I could have hoped. I took a load of photos but most of them suck, taken with my phone and all. I forgot my camera. I'll post a few pics anyway. My favorite bikes I think were the row of vintage two-strokes. There were Brits, BMWs, Italians, Japanese, US, vintage, modern, a few hacks, scooters, and a sweet old Indian Chief. Pretty good rock-a-billy band on the water.. Scooter rig with the same idea I had. Nicely executed, too. This Ducati repped the Italians, along with a Monster and a handful of Guzzis. Three or four outfits were there. One guy on a Gear-up had a cool solar apparatus that powered his GPS. It might have powered a coffee maker, too. That rig had all sorts of farkle! Wish I had thought to take pics. This Chief is pretty immaculate. Great for hill climb/drag races! One of those "customs" with the ginormous rear tires. It was the only one of it's kind there. No-one wanted to park next to it for some reason. Quite a few rat-bikes... My favorites- when they left it was like a cloud of angry mosquitoes!: I entered my own rig in the "Bits" category- bits a this, bits a that. My first ever entry in a show, and whadda ya know- I won Runner-Up! I think I got beat by the stretched XS650. Got my picture taken with the Pin-Up Girl winner, who awarded all the plexi. All in all, it was a pretty perfect day!
Nice build! Congrats on winning a prize at the Mods Vs. Rockers event! Learned me some things as well with your quickie restoration. Subscribed to watch this progress...any updates since the last post?
Now How in the hell did I miss this build thread? I popped over here to check up on the hacks forum since I haven't been here for a while and thought, "Hey, I know that name!". Bike looks amazing. i have a very soft spot for Bitsa bikes, rats, and Functional creations. (loved the shop pics)