Something doesn't seem right about the color scheme. I'm thinking the front fender stays should be powder coated to match the tinware. This sorta defeats my plan to do all the parts in red that would normally be black on an Enfield, but the front forks look like arrows this way. Anyone have any opinions one way or the other? Wouldn't cost much to get them redone, but I'll have to wait until after May 20th, when I'm taking the bike to a vintage MC show in Corvallis, Oregon. (featured marque; Royal Enfield)
another option woud be to polish the lower forks and leave the stays as they are. What color are you going with for the tin? Nice job so far by the way.
It's too late for redoing the forks, although in hindsight, that's probably what I should have done. The tinware is already painted. Gray. I have another Enfield twin (1958 Indian Tomahawk) that I'm working on as well. It's going to have the same gray for the frame, and the gas tank, side covers and chainguard will be the same red as on this one. It will have alloy fenders, per original spec. and is going to be closer to original in appearance.
Nice work but the colours just aren't working for me. The grey makes it look like it's in primer. Paint everything the same red as the frame. It'll look fine then. or do as mother nature intended and paint the frame and ancillary parts black
It will make a lot more sense when I have my other Enfield done, and the two are parked side-by-side. The Interceptor has never been close to original specification (although, I did always have the frame and ancillary bits painted black before), it came to me as a box of parts, with no original sheet metal, and an old set of Triumph forks, badly fitted. While planning this project (if you can call it "planning") I decided that since I was fitting a "foriegn" front fork on it, that I'd play around with it a bit. I've always admired bikes with red frames. a good friend of mine did his R100 up with red frame and gray tinware, and it's a stunner. I decided to pay homage to his sense of good taste and copy the color scheme. The reason that the photos look like primer is because the paint guy screwed up (no time to have it re-done now!) and left an orange-peel texture. It's a lot shinier than the photos suggest. I'll probably experiment with some buffing compound to see if I can rub it out, but ultimately, I may have to have the fenders and gas tank repainted. The toolbox covers, rear shock covers and chainguard are all powder coated. The powder coat turned out better looking than the paint! While planning the restoration of both bikes, I'd already decided that the 1958 Indian Tomahawk would be returned to original spec. (there are pictures of it floating about with incorrect fenders and paint) with alloy fenders. I decided that I'd like to match the colors I chose for the Interceptor, but reverse them so that the Tomahawk would look closer to original. The two of them side-by-side should make a pretty spectacular pair. Non-traditional colors for the frames on Enfields is something that even the factory experimented with. There's a photo in Roy Bacon's book "Enfield, the Postwar Years" of a Meteor with Gerrard sidecar on display at the Earl's Court Motor Show around 1958, which has the frame painted either yellow or white (black and white picture!). I've also seen a replica of the early 50's Enfield trials bikes which had a light green frame. This bike was built after careful research to get the details right.
I hope you don't think I'm knocking your bike. I love that front end in your Enfield it really does look like it belongs there but the grey with the red frame just isn't doing the bike any favours. If you can get the colours right it's going to be a stunning machine. Try it all red? We must have some photshopers here who can show you what it could look like. Something along these lines
Well, I won't be changing anything for the time being. I was getting this ready for a show coming up this Sunday, and after that I've got another Enfield that needs to be restored, so this one's going to stay the way it is for a few months of longer, no matter what. I think all red is worse than red/gray, and I'm not going to take the bike apart again to redo the frame color. Besides, I always wanted to do the frame on this bike in red, so that's what I've done. I'd consider another color for the sheet metal if you can come up with one that's not also red, but better than gray. Like I said, I'm following the lead of a friend of mine who built an R100S with red frame and forks, and gray sheet metal. I've always liked the way it looks, and decided to try the same thing on my Enfield. I'll see if I can dig up a picture of that bike for comparison. Maybe it's just the shades of red and gray that he chose to use on it.
It looks like you've done a great, careful job with your bike - and it's certainly your choice what color(s) it is to be but since you DID ask... The color red grabs the eye, especially as you noticed, the fender stays, which are items that you DON'T want to be noticed. That rule holds for the rest of the bike - the gray recedes back, and the red stands out. As Rob said, it makes parts of the bike look like they in primer (regardless of the paint quality), and the whole bike look unfinished. The all red monochrome proposal, to me, looks much better - all of a piece. The PO of my Commando Roadster painted it in a monochrome dark blue (including fenders and stays), and it looks quite good, at least to me and most others who have commented on it. Other secondary colors? A bright metallic silver would work better than the gray, but if I were married to the red frame I'd go all red, no doubt, especially seeing as you are undestandably unhappy with the quality of the gray paint. Perhaps the red/gray color scheme does look good on the R100S, but to me, it doesn't on the RE. Remember, you asked, and beauty is in the eye of the beerholder
I think you are right about repainting the fender braces to match the tins, then live with it for a while and see how you feel. Nice looking bike!
Hey, I don't resent an honest critique, which is the case for all the comments so far. I'm going to redo the front fender stays next week, then live with the bike for awhile. I see the point people are trying to make, and you've all put it very well. Many years ago, I mentioned to a friend/mentor with years of experience building "specials" in England, and later the US, that I'd like to do an Enfield frame in red. His advice (knowing my lack of attention to detail in those days) was that unless everything else on the bike was nearly perfect, it wasn't a good idea. So now, I've learned to attend to the details, and have this thing as close to perfect (still not quite there...) as it's ever been, so I decided to indulge myself and do the frame in red. The indulgence rationalized by how well my other friend's R100 turned out. That's not going to change any time soon, I don't relish taking this thing apart again, let alone spending the money to have it powder coated a second time. All I can say now is, wait until I've got the 500 Tomahawk finished, and the two are parked side-by-side. I suspect the red frame/gray sheet metal on this bike will make a lot more sense when it's seen as part of a set, which has gray frame/red sheet metal on its counterpart.
The bike is close to looking really good. The biggest thing that catches my eye and I think I would change is around the headlight/upper fork/upper triple. It's solid red and lacks definition (in the pics anyway). A little change to grey or black on something in that area might be the ticket. Nice bike though! I kinda' hate to say I'd change anything on it, It looks like you've put some work into it.
Can't change that. It's part of the concept. I wanted to adapt a Suzuki fork to the most notable feature of the modern Royal Enfields; the cast aluminum "casquette" headlamp/fork crown. I plan to post a report on it in "some assembly required". That part was made in India about 1997, and fits right onto a 1966 Royal Enfield. It's as good as the original English made parts, is brand new, and cost me less than $200. Wait until I get the actual headlamp bezel and lens in it. That will add definition to it. Hey, I just realized... Been there, done that. This is a picture of the same bike back in the late 1980's. Has the correct Interceptor cast aluminum instrument cluster/fork crown, rear fender and subframe wrong, front fender stays are homemade out of 3/4 inch strap iron. Finding parts for these wasn't easy in those days.
I love RE's but the grey ain't working for me. That being said it will be a damn nice machine when you're done. We will need a video with sound though.
Ok, like it or not, this is pretty much done. Got the engine ready to run, I'll be starting it up tomorrow. I still need to find some suitable mufflers and the Royal Enfield stickers need to be applied to the gas tank. I have a feeling that the large red stickers will help the "flow" that some of you have been complaining about. The ace bars may not stay. I'll have to ride it around a bit before I know if I like them. just sitting on the bike, they feel right with the rearsets I have on it.
