Comments on: The Illegal Immigrant

By: Chad

Chad — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 04:12:09 +0000

cashtonAThotmail.com

By: Chad

Chad — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 04:11:38 +0000

Any chance you could post up or email me the wiring diagram for the tail lights? I am a wiring newb and want to rewire my 650 soon and I really like the two tail lights on your bike. I wanted turns on the rear anyways so this seems like a great idea and project. Thanks.

By: vern sowers

vern sowers — Fri, 20 May 2011 01:38:38 +0000

great frist build i cant wate till i do my frist build im looking for the bike now and im saving your picks so i can go yours for the looks i was looking for a bsa till i price a few then i dag the thought of the then i had the thought about the xs650 because they looked a like never realzing how many people had the idea befor me lol but its all good because this is a great site to be able to fall back on for ideas lol ok well anyway great build love everything about the bke and i think ya schould keep it

By: Matt

Matt — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 22:31:51 +0000

Hey Catfish, I did not do any painting to the motor. As it sits is the way I bought it. I have had no heat issues so far. I agree with you on the chain guard. Easy task, well worth it.

By: Catfish

Catfish — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 20:41:02 +0000

Did you paint the lower jug on the motor? If so, What did you use and is that okay to do on that part of the motor if the bike is going to be used for serious running all over the country… Heat issues…?

I like the way you cut the chain guard off the alternator cover. I did the same thing to the one I’m building and I feel it just looks better.

By: Matt

Matt — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 17:23:22 +0000

Thanks for all the comments! You guys sure are thorough. I’ll try to answer all the questions…
1. Mirror is definitely square. Original mirror, currently looking for another.
2. Front forks were lowered approximately 2 inches. It’s real easy to do. Follow
the tech article on this site. Mine sits perhaps a little nose low, but better than
the other way around.
3. I did not do any internal wiring. The look is great when it’s done, but for me
personally, it’s not worth the hassle and having holes in your frame. You have to
be careful with protecting the wires too because they can definitely rub through
the insulation and cause a short. Had it happen on my hot rod.
4. Top Dog powdercoating in Omaha did the powder work. They glass bead blasted
everything before spraying. They also burned off old paint from the tank and
frame first, then blasted, then sprayed. All the orange parts were done by “hot
spraying” which means the parts were heated to 200 degrees before powder
application. It makes it stick more uniformly and prevents runs, so they say.
5. The footpegs were kind of a weird mount. I welded a 3/4″ socket to a 2-3 inch
piece of tube to the rear lower motor mount on each side. Then I cut the original
foot peg arm after getting my placement right and welded a 3/4″ nut to the end of
the arm. Slid the nut into the socket at the appropriate rotation, and then ran a
threaded rod all the way through with two nylocks on either side. Hope that
makes sense…It’s all powdercoated orange in the pictures and all the peg parts
used were from the stock bike.
6. Good eye to joe speedboat on the fender radius. I had a heck of a time finding a
fender with the perfect radius, so I went a little bigger. It definitely made
mounting easier, but I agree that a perfectly radiused fender has a better look.
Personally, I like em better without a fender at all, but I got sick of having water
and mud all over my back.

By: joe speedboat

joe speedboat — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 07:30:29 +0000

Great job! Very clean bike. Just one minor point, I don’t like the fender having a too big radius. It should hug the tire all the way. But a nice bike!

By: fanoboss

fanoboss — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 15:24:34 +0000

DITTO WHAT FANOBOSS SAID !!!! THAT DUDE RULEZ !!!

By: fanoboss

fanoboss — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:54:24 +0000

I would never run another tank…SPORTY TANKS RULE !!!

By: tadd442

tadd442 — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 19:58:38 +0000

Great build….remember the sporty tanks are popular because they look good.

By: patrix

patrix — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:57:17 +0000

WOW…there is so much life in that color…..very nice work!! IT DEMANDS attention !

By: fanoboss

fanoboss — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 11:56:19 +0000

I dig it !!! Looks similar in stance to mine…I bet the color definitely looks better in direct sunlight, it doesn’t look bad here btw.

By: Brett

Brett — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 10:48:03 +0000

Love it! Can you tell us more about how you mounted the foot pegs?

By: Mikey G

Mikey G — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 02:39:00 +0000

Great job Matt. I agree with you about the Sporty tank, I think they look the best on these bikes too. I know lots of people say that it’s overdone, but hey, that’s why they make chocolate and vanilla, right? I also love the translucent powder coat paint job. I’m powder coating my bike frame, (YamChop, posted just before you on this site) and I was wondering how much and what kind of prep you did to the metal prior to spraying it. I want the same sweet results as you got. Also, did you do any internal wiring at all? I’m looking for tips on pulling wire thru the frame. Anyway, AWSOME first build!!

Mikey G.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 01:58:54 +0000

Great job…how much did you lower the front forks…My bike has a TC Bro hardtail and I’m running a front tire 21 and rear tire 16 and the bike sits nice and level. I want to lower my front forks but the front frame will sit lower making the bike sit uneven I would assume…Does your bike sit uneven? anybody have any ideas?

By: Sean from boston

Sean from boston — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 21:06:23 +0000

I like the bike a lot and for a first build it’s great! Very clean I love the tail lights I think they were worth the effort only thing I don’t like Is the color, don’t get me wrong it looks great but when I see bikes I think of me on them lol and well the color clashes with my red hair and sun burns haha great bike man!

By: Barney

Barney — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 20:48:59 +0000

Nice bike. I’m also doing translucent powdercoat in a red with metalflake. The spokes i had painted turned out pretty cool so I can’t wait to get the rest of it done. I’m also doing the sportster tank. If i had a second choice, i think i would go with the dished tank. Your mirror seems a little square but other than that, great job!