Fabrication Archives | Page 5 of 7 | The Shop Blog

80 kz750 | subframe

May 4, 2015

by Matt with No Comment Custom Swing Arm Fabrication mono-shock conversion subframe Welding

: Starting with the top hoop, I make my first bends.

: I make both sides simultaneously, and along the way I look for symmetry more times than I can count.

: I first assemble the top hoop off the frame. Then I weld it in as you see here.

: So far so good. Everything is lining up and looking straight.

: These are the slugs I made up to attach at the bottom of the frame.

: Made out of solid stock, they weren’t easy to bend, but I got them looking pretty good.

: I bent up the bottom supports, attaching them with the slugs I had made.

: Top view.

: Left side.

: I am more than happy with the way the bottom struts turned out.

: Looking good from all angles.

: Right side.

: Everything lined up amazingly!!!

: I filled in the under-tray, and finished off the back of the subframe.

I was really stoked on the way the subframe turned out!!! The suspension turned out great! Now on to the wiring, and seat-pan.

’80 KZ750 | gas tank

May 3, 2015

by Matt with No Comment Fabrication Gas Tank Modification Welding

: I wanted to dish out the sides of the tank, so I cut out the shape I needed.

: This gave me great access to the inside of the tank. This was the best time to clean out the rust and hammer and dolly the dents.

: After all the cleanup work was done I started to make the panels that would fill in the sides.

: Panel by panel, the tank is filling in.

: I was making one panel at at time, working from side to side to make sure the tank was coming out symmetrical.

: All panels on both sides are tacked in at this point. I just need to weld them in fully.

: All burned in!!! Just a little clean up, pressure test, and time to start getting ready for paint.

So I started out with the original gas tank, and exploded it into a steel beach ball (hopefully the first and last time I do that). I did want to use the tank however. Lucky my local motorcycle salvage yard, Southwest Motorcycles, had what I needed!

I then started out with another stock KZ750 tank. From there I had a little work to do. The new used tank had some dents as well as some rust to address.

’80 kz750 | mono-shock conversion

April 13, 2015

by Matt with 4 Comments Custom Suspension Custom Swing Arm Fabrication mono-shock conversion Welding

: Let’s convert this fucker.

: I started by cleaning up the swing arm. I cut off some tabs and took it down to bare metal.

: I made a plate to reinforce the swing arm where I will be attaching the shock and the swing arm braces.

: Reinforcement in place.

: With the swing arm prepped, the old subframe had to go.

: I figured out where the top shock mount needed be and tacked it in.

: Since it was never intended to have a mono-shock. I wanted to make sure the swing arm legs were reinforced as well.

: I bent up some 1″ tube, and welded into place.

: Now for the bottom shock mount. I made a cradle where the shock will sit.

: I added a piece of 1″ tube under the cradle to disburse the load more evenly.

: Here’s another angle.

: Originally there was one long bolt attaching the bottom of the shock. The new design would not allow that.

: So, I turned out a piece that would make it possible to mount the bottom of the shock.

: The new piece is threaded so I can run two shorter bolts instead of one long one.

: It worked out great!!

: The conversion is complete!

: Left side.

: Right side.

: I still need to add some gussets to strengthen the top shock mount, but she is standing on her own. The suspension cycles nicely as well.

: I added the gussets. Two to reinforce the main hoop.

: And two to reinforce the top shock mount.

I knew I wanted to change the ride height, and I had a mono-shock lying around so, why not?

I like the way it came out! It cycles smooth and look cool as fuck!!

’78 KZ650 | rear set correction

March 26, 2015

by Matt with No Comment Fabrication Rear Sets Uncatagorized Welding

: Front view of left side rear set.

: Front view of right side rear set.

: Time to start chopping!

: Here is the new stock to be used for the outline of the mesh. I weld the ends of the stock to a piece of scrap.

: Next I cut 1/8″ grooves along the new stock. The mesh will sit in the groove.

: Here you can see after I cut the grooves I bent the stock into the shape I need.

: The grooves stay intact and hold the mesh nicely! This is the front.

: Here is a inside view.

: Before and after.

: It was mainly the inside of the piece that was bothering me. I didn’t like seeing all those tack welds.

: Here is the inside of the left rear set.

: And this is the inside of the right rear set.

: Front of the right rear set.

: Front of the left rear set. The rear sets aren’t completely finished, but are %100 better than before.

So, I was working on the frame and just was not happy with the mesh accents on the rear sets. I like the look, but was never really satisfied with the way I had attached the mesh. The tack welds on the inside of the rear sets demanded too much attention.

I chopped off the old and set out to make a cleaner way of attaching the mesh. Now the mesh is basically framed in, instead of welded in. It makes for an much cleaner look inside and out. I was so hyped on the way the second attempt turned out!!

’58 panhead | clutch release arm

March 21, 2015

by Matt with No Comment Fabrication Foot Controls Welding

: I started by cutting off the piece I needed from the old clutch arm.

: I attached it to a fresh piece of 1/2″ round stock.

: After it’s attached, I make the bends necessary to clear the top of the transmission.

: Here you can see the bends.

: I cut down the excess stock to where it needs to be.

: All thats left is to drill the hole for the linkage, and the arm is finished.

: I started the linkage by uing a 1/4″ bolt on the clutch arm side.

: I turned down the edges, just for looks.

: The linkage is pretty simple. A bolt end on the clutch side, and a heim joint on the foot control side.

The clutch release arm that came with my bike was bent, and hit the top of the transmission as a result. So I set out to make a new one. I reused the end of the original arm, and made the rest up as I went along. The clutch throw feels great, and the arm no longer contacts the transmission.

The Shop Blog | Swerve Customs

Posts in category: Fabrication

80 kz750 | subframe

’80 KZ750 | gas tank

’80 kz750 | mono-shock conversion

’78 KZ650 | rear set correction

’58 panhead | clutch release arm